Her voice sounded desperate as she pleaded with me to accept her son into our school. It was one of those calls school administrators dread to get. This young man was having trouble academically and socially. He was a good boy, but he was just hanging around with the wrong crowd. As I asked more questions, it finally came out that he had been expelled from the local public school and would not be allowed back for six months. Would I take him?
I was only half listening as she talked with me, because I was praying for wisdom to know what to do. I scheduled a meeting with her, mostly to buy some time.
We met the following day. As we visited, I was given the distinct impression that I should accept Jake (not his real name) into our school. He joined our classroom a couple days later.
Jake was a very polite young man from the first time we were introduced, and by the end of his first day at Cedarbrook, he was telling the other students how lucky they were to get to go to a school like Cedarbrook. He spoke with disappointment that he, an eighth-grader, would only have this year to finish, and then he’d have to leave.
The impressions God gave me that day have proven true. Jake has become an important part of our classroom. He is excelling in his classwork. He loves coming to school. His attitude is positive, and he is succeeding for the first time in many years.
Does Adventist education make a difference? You bet it does. Jake sees a brighter future ahead. And I, as an Adventist educator, pray that the seeds that have been sown in Jake’s life will continue to grow, and that he will someday give his heart to Jesus, the friend he has been introduced to at Cedarbrook Adventist Christian School.
Sandy’s parents knew they needed to make a change in their daughter’s educational experience. She was doing okay in her school work, but she was making some negative choices. Her friends were leading her away from God. Would it be possible to transfer her to Cedarbrook?
Her first day was a difficult one. It was obvious she didn’t want to be here. As we went through the day, I prayed for her many times, asking God to help her to adjust and to feel accepted and a vital part of our classroom. It was enjoyable watching her soften over the next couple days. She soon became actively involved as though she had started school with us from day one.
Several months later, she had a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye as she approached me one morning before school started. “I’d like you to read this card,” she said as she handed it to me. I paused to read a code of purity that she had taken in her youth group at church. The card instructed her to share it with people she knew who could help her be accountable. She beamed as I told her how proud I was of her for making that pledge to remain pure. She went on to tell me that she most likely wouldn’t have made that pledge had she remained at the public school, since the friends she had chosen would have made it impossible for her to remain pure.
The cost of an Adventist education may seem high, but in the light of eternity, the cost is cheap! Adventist education does make a difference.
