Not many people are thinking about you. Most are celebrating the class of 2014 or excited to be a part of the class of 2015 or are thinking about the incoming kindergartners who are the class of 2027, but I am thinking of you.
You will be my 3rd class of 6th grade students. I've only met you a handful of times, but you've reminded me that 6th graders RUN. To everything. All the time. And that you wear yourselves out so fully every single day that you're exhausted by activity by the afternoon. I love that. Don't lose your reckless abandon for life, duck duck goose and roller coasters.
I'm praying for you already. I hope that over the next year or 7 that you change and grow towards Jesus. Your lives are already hard and they'll only get harder as you begin to understand all of the things that your parents have said or done in a new light. You'll start to question their love for you the way that you question God's love for you. I hope that I get to be a part of pointing you back to Him and to them.
I hope that as your friendships change that you always know there is a place that cares about you - not because of the great leaders or because of "other Christian kids," but because this place - this little refuge of fun and hope and chaos - is based around the God that loves you and has an awesome, beyond-what-you-can-imagine kind of life for you if you'll just follow Him.
Class of 2021, I'm going to do my best to care about you, hang out with you, and answer your calls even if it's early in the morning or late at night. But I hope that instead of me, that you'll see Jesus as the answer, the hope, the person who can show you the best possible way to live life. And I hope at the end of 7 years when 2021 has arrived, that you leave high school with enough foundation and knowledge to seek God on your own. And that you follow Him, even when it gets hard.
I can't wait to see what the next several years will bring.
-michelle-
