The front lines

Spiritual Warfare? I used to work at churches. From 1997-2010 I worked at 3 different churches. When working at a church you learn to deal with different types of people. Most of the time the people were loving and hurting all at the same time, they needed the church and they needed you. 

Since 2010 I have been working at a Religious school. I am the chaplain. People don't really NEED me. They like that I am in place, they like that I make them laugh and give them things to think about. I guess it is because the students and the staff don't come just for the spirituality. The students are dropped off and the teachers work here. Every once in a while people need prayer and I'm there for them. 

Chapels are a requirement. 

Prayer in the morning at the beginning of school is a requirement. 

Conversations about God are a requirement. 

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE IT HERE.

I am at a unique faith based "Christian" school. We have Muslims, Jews, Hindus and Seiks. We are not a condemning Christian school, we celebrate all faiths. 

St.Mary's Faith Identity Statement LINK 

https://www.smaa.org/discover-st-marys/who-we-are/faith-identity

How do I feel about that? I LOVE IT. 

I am given opportunities every day to talk about Jesus' love to these kids and their parents. I am given opportunities every day to share the love I get from Christ with people of other faiths. This is a HUGE blessing. Every single person who hears a message in chapel and reads an email form the chaplain chooses to do so. This isn't church where one voluntarily shows up on a Wednesday night to get their worship on and to learn about the Bible. I do miss it sometimes. I mean, I have the best job on earth, but people don't always understand what I do. It's hard to try and compare this position to others. When I teach the students praise songs with the chapel band, I know that some of them don't really understand what we are singing about but maybe it is just planting seeds, of love. 

My daily prayer -Jesus, grant me peace in my heart when I am out in the world fighting against evil. You know my heart and I love that. Please protect me from giving into temptation and from giving up.