I think we can all agree that this school year is going to be crazy.
No matter what choice we made for our kids, there are going to be challenges and adjustments. And even if we aren’t doing anything radically different, the world around us is a completely different place. Wearing masks, not going certain places, not being able to visit friends or family. Depending on where you live, it might feel like what was normal last fall will never return.
I’ve been struggling with keeping a positive attitude. I’m usually an optimistic person and I genuinely try to not let things get me down. But there are some aspects of 2020-21 that I am not looking forward to. And I’m not excited about explaining things to my kids or dealing with their frustrations.
This summer as I prepared for our school year and planned curriculum, there were moments when I wondered if my efforts would even matter. Will we be able to do the fun things I’ve researched? Will field trips be a possibility? How can I get my kids excited for things without risking having to cancel our plans and disappoint them?
There’s always a measure of unknown about the future but this year feels completely uncertain. Thankfully, we are not alone. And the One Who is with us is Sovereign over all. This summer as I’ve prepared curriculum and spreadsheets and my lesson planner, I’ve also been praying and meditating on Bible verses a lot. When the wisdom of this world is complete foolishness and I’m at the end of my mental and emotional rope, I can always rest in the truth found in the Bible.
The Bible never grows old or outdated. The truth that comforted David as he ran from Saul can comfort me in 2020. The grace Paul wrote of is available to me now. The wisdom Solomon gave his son thousands of years ago is relevant for us to pass on to our children. And God Who inspired and directed its words is still in control of the world He created.
So as I approached this unprecedented 2020-21 school year, I wanted to make sure I was filling myself with God’s words and not the discourse of today’s news. The Bible is brimming with encouraging verses that we often forget.
To help myself — and hopefully you — I’ve created a very simple printable of 47 verses. My hope is that we print off and cut out these small cards, put them in the schoolroom, in our planners, on our bathroom mirrors, in our kitchen windows, and recite these promises to ourselves and our kids.
I made them simple because 1) I’m not a graphic designer, 2) I know not everyone has a color printer, 3) I wanted the Bible verse to take full attention. If you want to color, draw, glue on scrapbook paper, make it pretty, go for it!! Print it and make it yours. Read a new verse everyday then circle back to review throughout the year. Or mediate on the same verse for a whole week.
Just click the button below and a PDF should open for printing.
Photo from Jeffrey Hamilton on Unsplash