Well, after three months at home for the summer my children went back to school today. It is a huge transition for most of them. My youngest gets his first male teacher. My third child goes to middle school and it is his first school experience as a believer in Jesus (He was baptized this summer). My second child is starting high school and will be joined together with kids from all over the area for the first time. My oldest is an old pro as a sophomore and he was confident in himself, just ask him:)

Every year I enjoy watching them get ready for school to begin and prepare themselves for the transitions that are coming. I also am reminded of some big lessons by watching them each year.

1. Learning is not as exciting as relationships. The boys were all looking forward to seeing their friends again. None of them said anything about their excitement over the teaching and learning. I think there may be a lesson in their for Churches and especially preachers.

2. Change is exciting to show others. My boys are growing and they wanted others to see that. They wanted to show off their new “styles” for clothing. They wanted to share their stories of adventure and conquest with their friends. They have experienced all kinds of new things causing to grow physically, emotionally and spiritually and they couldn’t wait to share that with their friends. Once again, I am sure there is a lesson there for Churches to learn.

3. Excitement wears off quickly. This first week will be fun. Then it will be a normal daily activity they need to get through. Finally it will be a serious chore to get them motivated to go to school at all. (This is true of all things new, even faith!)

I know those are simple and you probably new each one of them by heart. New things are exciting, but that joy quickly fades. It is interesting that only the first one is lasting. Maybe one of the biggest lessons of school is the power of relationships in our life. They bring joy to our lives and will often keep us going, even when that joy has faded.