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| All dressed up and ready to go! |
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| We've worked hard to show our love for you. |
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| We're lined up and ready to go. |
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| On with the show... |
It was our final rehearsal before the big Cowboy Sweetheart
Program. We’d practiced every day for
months, and that afternoon we were back in the sanctuary for the second time
that day, tweaking the details of the show. While the other teachers were
conferring with the audio-visual man and evenly spacing stickers on the carpet
so the children would know where to stand, I tried to encourage the weary,
wiggly group of kids who were waiting on stage for their cue to begin.
“You have to be patient.
Remember that patience is the fruit of the Spirit,” I said.
“And Joy!” said one of the kids.
“And Self-Control!” exclaimed another.
“Faithfulness!” someone else said.
“And being good!” said another child.
Galatians 6:23 says, “The
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
The children remembered. Concepts
and values that they are taught in their classrooms, in chapel, and even on the
playground and on the stage—these lessons had somehow found their way into the
children’s hearts, and now they had an opportunity to apply what they’d
learned.
Sometimes I ask myself, “Why am I doing all this? Why am I
putting hours of labor and buckets of energy into this kid’s program that will be
over in the blink of an eye? Why do I get up every morning and spend my day
saying things like ‘Feet and hands to yourself’ and ‘One, two, three, eyes on
me’?”
OK, one purpose of the program is to show off---to show the
parents and family members what these kids can do and to give the parents an
opportunity to be proud of their children. We know how much it means to the
parents. I remember how I felt when my own children performed on stage at their
little programs, and I see how my son, now a father himself, beams when he
shows me a video of his preschool child speaking five words into a microphone
at her school program.
“I’ve never felt so proud!” my son said.
But it’s not just about showing off. As an educator, I
evaluate all activities by asking: What are my students learning? So just what
are they learning as they practice for the Cowboy Sweetheart Program?
They are memorizing Scripture. They’re hiding God’s Word in
their hearts and internalizing the principles behind the words.
They’re practicing oral communication. They’re learning to
speak clearly and at an appropriate volume in front of an audience.
They’re learning to follow directions. They’re learning self-discipline.
They’re learning to work hard and to persevere in order to achieve a goal.
They’re learning music. Research shows that there is a
correlation between music and math skills. Performing music activates the parts
of the brain that are used in solving math problems.
And besides that, the program gives us all, students and
teachers alike, numerous opportunities to display the fruit of the Spirit.
“And now abidith faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of
these is love.” I Corinthians 13:13
