Seek. Serve. Grow

I have named the next five weeks or so of my life “The Month of Change.”  Today was my final day of student teaching.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, it’s hard to think of never seeing my precious class again.  I have come to truly love each and every student, hoping and praying for the very best for each individual.  I feel a great sense of accomplishment and pride knowing that I completed all the teacher education program requirements.  Bethel College requires a 4-week full block of responsibilities (where the cooperating teacher is completely out of the room for the entire day).  The other student teacher in my building this semester (from another college) only had a 2-week block.  I think this requirement is a unique and wonderful aspect of Bethel’s program.

Next, I look forward to graduation on the 20th.  It’s hard to believe that I will be graduating with not one Bachelor’s degree but two!  My first major is Elementary Education, but I will also be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Bible & Religion.  I was so grateful to the Bible & Religion department at Bethel for being so willing to work with me as a transfer student to make it possible for me to double major and graduate on time.  The level of agreeableness to transfer work from Hesston College and AMBS Great Plains as well as agreeing to directed study courses was amazing!

A short twenty days after graduation I will be getting married to an amazing fellow 2012 Bethel grad.  We are so excited to be starting a new life together in a town nearby.  I have been offered (and accepted) an elementary teaching position and hope he will get a social work position soon!  Somewhere between all these celebrations we will be moving various belongings and furniture into our rental house.

As I think ahead to all of these exciting (and at times terrifying) changes in my life, I have to think back to what it means to be a Thresher.  What does it mean to seek, serve, and grow?  I think the “growing” part is easy.  New experiences, new friends, a new family, a new job, all of these “new” things provide a perfect opportunity for growth.  But what does it mean to seek God through all of these new experiences?  How do Peter and I seek to make God the center of our new lives; what does it mean to seek God in my daily work at the Primary school?  And finally, how can I live a life of service?  Who will I meet that I can serve?  Even as I graduate and leave campus for the final time, I won’t stop asking myself, “How can I seek, serve, and grow?”