Seven-year-old me always prayed before lunch, even though I was in a public school. I never realized that my friends noticed. Sometimes they would ask, “What are you doing?”
I find myself worrying about the future, like, “Will I get accepted into the college I want?” In my worries, this verse reminds me that “God supplies all my needs.” He knew our future even before we were born. He has a plan and purpose for everything.
It was a rainy Monday morning. I stood in front of my seventh-grade class ready to teach Bible. My head cloudy, my heart in pieces from trials in my personal life, I struggled to hold back the tears.
Most of the doors to our churches have had to close during the pandemic, but in closing our doors, the pandemic has caused a shift in our focus from being content to remain “behind the walls” in a service to going “beyond the walls” in giving service.
Keynote speaker Charles A. Tapp, president of the Potomac Conference and chairman of the Shenandoah Valley Academy (SVA) Board of Trustees, shares a message (excerpted) at the Zirkle Gymnasium Renovation Groundbreaking Ceremony, May 14, 2021:
In my mid-30s, I experienced depression for the first time in my life. Being a very positive person who is known for my laugh and optimistic demeanor, it was such a stark contrast from my usual state of mind.
