Operation Christmas Child!

Operation Christmas Child, the annual Samaritan's Purse project for children in need, is nothing new to the elementary schoolers at Black Forest Academy.  Every year the classes pack shoeboxes filled with toys and personal items to send to children around the world.

What's different this year is that the 4th graders are heading up this project!  I created different "jobs" that would be needed for OCC (ambassadors to the other grade levels, publicity, secretary, box packers, and box collectors), and each student completed an application for the job of his or her choice.  What fun it has been to see these fourth graders get excited about and take ownership of this project!

On Wednesday we kicked off Operation Christmas Child with a special chapel presentation.  The fourth graders put on a skit, and I shared how to pack a box.

What is this poster all about?  What is this paper chain for?

Haven't you heard?!  It's Operation Christmas Child!!

OCC volunteers deliver a shoebox and a Bible

 Explaining how to pack a box

Our class bulletin board outlining all of the jobs and showing a collection calendar

Please pray that the students would gain a new understanding of generous giving and God's greatest gift to us!

Lobpreisabend (Worship Night)

I don't usually think about taking pictures at church, but I thought I'd capture a moment from the worship night at our church on Tuesday night.  We sang songs, took communion, prayed in small groups, and sang some more.  I learned this song, which has become a new favorite!

"Second Chance" (by Hillsong United)

You called my name, reached out Your hand

Restored my life and I was redeemed

The moment You entered my life

Amazing grace Christ gave that day

My life was changed when from my shoulders

Fell the weight of my sin

So it's with everything I am I reach out for Your hand

The hope for change the second chance I've gained

On You I throw my life, casting all my fears aside

How could greater love than this ever possibly exist

Consume my thoughts as I rest in You

I'm now in love with a Savior

Bearing the marks of His love

So I'll wait upon You now

With my hands released to You

Where a little faith's enough

To see mountains lift and move

And I'll wait upon You now

Dedicated to Your will

To this love that will remain

A love that never fails

Journey Across America Celebration!

After teaching about each of the regions of the United States, I planned a "Journey Across America" celebration for my class.  Several parent volunteers helped to run the stations for a creative project: create your own state!  Each student thought up a new state to add to the United States.

At one station, students had to draw the outlines of their states and place them on the map.

At another station, they recorded facts about their state, such as state bird, flower, motto...

Students also had to think through what someone could do if they visited the new state.  They named new cities, landmarks, mountains, and lakes.  Some sports aficionados even created sports teams for their new states.

Finally, students also created their states' flags out of colored construction paper.

To continue our North America unit, we are in the midst of a two-week unit on Canada, and we'll travel to Mexico, Latin America, and the Caribbean after that.  The journey continues!

First-Ever Chapel Band!

There are some specific moments when I feel like I'm part of the bigger picture.  I can sense that God is calling me to Himself as He calls me to specific roles here at BFA.  And one of those is the brand new elementary chapel band.

Ten 4th and 5th grade students have joined BFA's first-ever elementary school chapel band, and I am thrilled to be leading worship with them!  I've split the kids into two teams to lead singing on alternating weeks of chapel.  We have talked together about what "worship" means, how they can lead by example, and why we sing songs to God.  I am inspired by the passionate, pure worship of these elementary schoolers!

This Wednesday, four students led us in singing "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High" and "How Great Is Our God" (in English and German), while I played keyboard and another student operated the Power Point slides.  The other children responded so well by doing the motions along with us and lifting their voices in praise.

Please continue to pray that this won't be about us, but about Him.  Pray that I would be an honest, Christ-focused leader for these impressionable children.  And pray that the students on the worship team, as well as all of us at the elementary school, would live sincere lives of worship for Him.

Journey Across America

Over the past few weeks, I've been leading my fourth graders on a journey across North America!  We began in northern Maine and are working our way through each of the regions of the United States (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, and West).  Following our study of the USA, we'll head to Canada and then down to Mexico and the Caribbean.

The students are divided into five pairs and have designed "cars" in which they are driving across America.  Each week, the students complete projects (researching landmarks, sports teams, weather, etc. for the states in the region of study) to earn points, which allow them to move their cars across the grid-paper map one space at a time.  It's not a race; the goal is to get to as many states as possible before our unit is over.

One highlight of this unit has been "hosting" guests from each of the regions!  Some guests have been through email, others over Skype, and even a few in person.  Today we welcomed two of the moms from Texas for a Southwest Celebration!  They greeted us with "Howdy y'all," shared with us about life in the city vs. country in Texas, taught us how to sing "Deep in the Heart of Texas," and danced along with us to "Cotton Eyed Joe."

One of the students whose "home base" is in Texas (although he has lived in Germany for almost his whole life) made Texas-shaped cookies with Texas flag-colored icing!  Yum!

The kids were adorable in their cowboy/cowgirl attire!

Yee-haw!

I'm an ESFJ.

I'm an ESFJ.  That probably doesn't mean much to you unless you are familiar with the Myers Briggs Type Indicator.  Then you know that my preferences are "extroversion, sensing, feeling, and judging."

This weekend, while on our annual retreat in Adelboden, Switzerland, all of the BFA staff took the Myers Briggs indicator to help us understand ourselves and our co-workers better.  It was helpful to be able to have these results to pinpoint why I love to be organized, dislike change, care so much about people, and enjoy being "the planner."

With the cow and goat bells ringing in the background and fresh Alp air blowing in through the windows, we began reading Ten Essentials of Happy, Healthy People.  We will continue reading this book over the course of the school year to learn more about balance and wholeness in our lives -- focusing not only on the physical, but also emotional, relational, and spiritual health.  As challenging as it may be, I'm looking forward to growing along with the BFA staff toward becoming more "whole" in Christ this year.

My roommates and I also led music for staff worship this morning.  It was a blessing to be able to be able to serve in this way.  We were able to use our new video projector, thanks to the generous gifts of supporters this summer!

Thank you for your prayers as I seek to become more like Christ while serving Him here in Germany.  How thankful I am for the encouragement and challenge of others in this body of believers at BFA!

The view from the highway as we reached the Alps...  Breathtaking!

Einschulungsfest und Willkommen!

In Germany, the first grader's first day of school is a huge celebration.  Students get all dressed up and receive "tute" -- large cone-shaped boxes filled with treats and school supplies.  Extended family members accompany them to the school for the special "Einschulungsfest" (first day of school celebration).

On Monday afternoon our English students (grades 1-5) welcomed the first graders to our school with a choir program.  It was neat to hear our students singing in English and German, a representation of the bilingual education they are receiving at Black Forest Academy/Christliche Schule Kandern!  We are the only Christian bilingual (German/English) elementary school in all of Germany, so this really is a neat program.

Welcome to our new BFA/CSK students!

As If We Never Left...

I forgot how much I love to hear the squeals and screams of high school girls.

When I arrived at the main campus of BFA for our small group kick-off on Wednesday night, I heard my girls before I saw them.  Their high-pitched exclamation of "HEATHER!!!!" was unmistakable... and warmed my heart to the core.  Seconds later, they practically knocked me over with their enthusiastic hugs!

And I thought to myself: This is what I have been waiting for.

Last year at this time, I was a new small group leader standing with other adults at the back of the school, waiting to meet six students in a mass of unfamiliar high school faces.  One year ago we were strangers.  I can't explain the bonds that were formed as we read Crazy Love together, took pictures and videos, sang worship songs around the piano, giggled at sleepovers, munched on numerous yummy snacks, shared prayer requests, wrestled with how to put our faith into action... God has stitched our hearts together to form a community of grace and love.

Though we were apart for three months, separated by oceans and country borders, we were instantly reunited as they yelled out my name.  We have faced challenges and learned unforgettable lessons this summer.  And now we're back together to keep pressing on toward the prize.

I feel a sense of belonging with these girls.
The moments we have together are gifts from God.
It just feels right to have six beautiful young women in my home again.
It's as if we never left.

Please keep praying for us as we yearn to know the Holy Spirit more this year!  Pray that our views would be challenged and eyes opened through the reading of the Scriptures and Francis Chan's Forgotten God.  To God be the Glory!

Life with Jesus: A Backpacking Trip

The elementary school chapel speaker yesterday was BFA's interim director, Phil Peters.  Mr. Peters is an avid camper and backpacker, so he used his large pack to share with the children about life with Jesus.  He called on students to guess what was inside his pack.  These 1st-5th graders have obviously been camping before, as they guessed many of the items correctly!

I was struck by the parallels between the backpacking essentials and life lessons...

Sleeping Bag:  "Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."  Matthew 11:28
Food:  "I am the bread of life.  Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."  John 6:35
Water:  "Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst."  John 4:14
Clothing:  "Therefore put on the full armor of God..." Ephesians 6:13
Tent: "I long to dwell in Your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of Your wings."  Psalm 61:4
Flashlight:  "Your Word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path."  Psalm 119:105

This is the journey of a lifetime!

Welcome to 4th Grade!

Some numbers...
7 live in Germany.  3 live in Switzerland.
3 have parents working at BFA.
1 used to live in Azerbaijan.  1 lived in Kenya.  1 lived in Kazakhstan.
2 have never been to North America.
And they're 8-9 years old.

Some faces...

At the end of the school day yesterday, students gave tours of the new school building to their parents.  It was fun to hear the fourth graders describe our routines and the parts of our classroom to their moms and dads.

One week of school is complete...  Please pray for wisdom and energy as I show God's love to the enthusiastic students in my new class!