An Open Letter From a Teacher to Her Students at the End of the School Year

Friends,

I'd like to share the words I gave my precious middle schoolers on the last full day of school for the 2015-2016 school year. Most of them knew I would not be their teacher next school year--God has called me to another teaching position. I knew I could not leave them without one last challenge. I needed to remind them what we had been through together, and for some, what they had been running from ever since I met them two years ago.

My words are passionate, hard, and truthful. But as I reflected about what words I should use to reopen this blog, I realized that my words to my students of this past year could really apply to any student I have ever taught.

I pray the words that the Holy Spirit impressed upon me will challenge, encourage, and motivate others to live for Christ even as all of the temptations of summer begin.

It is good to be back.

In Christ,

Rebekah Hawk

Farewell to My Freedom Students (But not Goodbye!)

3^rd John 1:4 says, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.” As we close this chapter of middle school, I know that this verse rings true for all of us teachers. We see you as our children because we have spent over 8 hours a day with you for this past school year, and we have been pouring our lives into yours the whole time. We have been broken and spilled out on your behalf, like the expensive perfume Mary poured on the feet of Jesus.

We have pushed you to improve yourself, we have corrected you—sometimes harshly—sometimes gently, we have prayed and cried with you, we have played games together, we sang together, we made vows together. We were hard on you because we know how hard life is. We know what you will face as you continue to grow up and take your place in this dark, dark world. We know that Satan desires to destroy your faith by saturating your heart with selfish desires and gorging your fleshly appetites on the rich delicacies of money, fame, and pleasure that this world offers. We know that the world you face is darker than the one we entered, and we tremble for you. We tremble because we are afraid of the judgment that you will receive at the hand of the Holy, Righteous God when He comes to make a reckoning. We know that you who have been given so much will be held accountable for the Word that was poured into your lives.

We have done our part, and we have to hope that you will reject the spirit of wickedness, apathy, and laziness that has struck your generation like a flesh-eating cancer, and embrace the God we have tried to teach you about with our words, our actions, and our lives. Now it is time to let you go, to realize and accept that we have done all we can do. We must commend you to Christ, and pray that some day soon we will hear that you are, in fact, walking in truth. Most of us are saying goodbye to you today—we will not be your teachers next year. Some of us have been called to other ministries, to pour our lives into others that God has prepared for us, some to the most important ministry of all—motherhood. Some of you will not be returning to this school next year—God has called you and your families to a new place.

We will miss you. We will pray for you. We pray for those of you who would not be reached. Our love and discipline could not reach you; you have remained rebellious, defiant, and hard to the voice of Christ. We ache for you because like Christ, we long to gather you beneath our wings like a mother hen, but you would not. We pray that God will not turn you over to a reprobate mind, but that He will continue to chip away at your heart of stone, and that you will come to know Christ and the power of His resurrection. We hope you will realize that everything we have done was done in love for you.

We also pray for those of you who have embraced the servant life of discipleship to Christ.  We are so thankful for you who have listened and obeyed, for you have been true encouragement and joy to us. We have seen through your lives that our labor is never in vain, and we exalt the name of Christ as you demonstrate your faith in tangible ways every day. We have seen your struggle to do right despite your sinful flesh, and we have tasted elation as you defeated the enemy, died to yourselves, destroyed pride, against all odds. We have tried to show you the joy it is to serve the Savior, and we have cried happy tears as we have seen that same joy reflected in your eyes when you tell us of answered prayers, as you forgive your enemies, as you embrace the role of Light-Bearer in a generation of darkness. We are so incredibly proud of you. We are proud of what you have allowed God to do in your lives.

            8^th graders, as you become Freshmen, we ask that you not forget the lessons you have learned with us. 7^th graders, as you become the leaders of middle school next year, we ask that you leave the childishness behind and become the young men and women of God we know you can be. 6^th graders, you have demonstrated that God does not put an age limit on service for His Kingdom; we trust that you will serve through your talents and gifts next year as 7^th graders. We ask all of you to recognize that the future of the church’s witness in this world depends on you; and we remind you that God will use someone else if you refuse to be used by Him. We love you, and we look forward to hearing that you all walk in truth.