A Change in Perspective

This year sending our boys back to school was a pleasant experience. Last year we had to move Max from the private christian school that the church that I work at runs to public school. Max was going into first grade and Joshua was entering Kinder. Kim and I wrestled all summer to try and find ways we could afford to send them both to our private school but ultimately there was just no way. So last years first day of school was a huge leap of faith for us along with the normal separation anxiety that usually accompanies the first time you send your kids to school. We knew Max had a great year in kinder and had heard about Jesus and we were not sure how the whole public school thing would end up. We struggled with the decision of what to do and as we grew more unsettled Kim even toyed with the idea of homeschooling. Then one day while the grandparents were visiting, or we were visiting there, I can't remember which, my father said something in passing to us as we were talking about it.

Now I need to pause here and say something about my dad. My dad is a man of very few words and always has been, but for as long as I can remember when dad said something you had better listen. When we were younger it was often because we were acting up and we were only going to get one warning. The older I have become the more I realized that while dad seldom speaks, when he does it usually carries an incredible amount of wisdom behind it.

Anyways, I don't know if dad had really thought it through, or whether he was just thinking out loud, but either way, he said "you know, if all the Christians and christian teachers just went too and taught in christian schools, then who would be there to be an example of Christ to the world?" or something to that effect. Now for the rest of the room that might not have resonated like it did for me, however for me, it was intimately profound and I think God was using my father to speak directly to me.



Now fast forward to yesterday. Yesterday we took Max and Joshua to their first day back at school. This year was completely different. Max remembered his teacher he has this year from the interactions he had with her last year and when he found out she was his teacher he literally jumped for joy. Joshua loved his teacher as well. Neither of them had any apprehensions about going back to school, well except for Joshua who wasn't to sure about his teachers choice to sit them boy-girl-boy-girl. Both of them ended up with Christian teachers again this year. Both teachers recognized the Dietz name and were eager to meet our boys and us because of the reputation the Dietz boys had as good students and who's parents were supportive and people they could rely on. Joshua's teacher even asked "Now you are the pastor, right?" to which when we replied yes, she said "awesome!"




God is good! He has taken care of our boys yet again with awesome teachers! He has used them through their relationships with friends at school to create relationships between us and their parents that Kim and I are praying, allow us to reveal the love of Christ and as 1 Peter says "the reason for the hope that we have..." one of Joshua's classmates from last year and again this year is from Argentina so we have an instant connection because of my background. Another family that has boys both Max and Joshua's ages, well there mom is from Chile where I grew up.

God has changed my perspective and I am so happy my boys are in public school. It has helped ease my worries that God become so institutionalized with their father working at a church. It has already given us the opportunity to teach through life lessons that we need to not just Love God but Love people and that they might be the only Jesus their friends see. To watch them internalize that and take that challenge on already has been amazing! God knows what He is doing all the time even when we don't see it that way!

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P.S. Today was Tate's first day of preschool and yesterday was his first time to go to the big boy potty and #2 completely on his own without having to be asked! Now that is Miraculous!

The Director's Vision

Have you ever seen "Schindler's List." What a great yet gut wrenching movie! There is a scene in the movie where in the middle of all of the chaos of the Holocaust, a young girl goes walking down a street. This particular scene stands out because while the rest of the movie and even the scene are in black and white, this girl is wearing a red. Obviously Spielberg wanted the contrast of the black and white and this colored coat to elicit certain emotions and focus for the viewer.

This past week I performed a wedding for a former youth of mine. Marcela was a child born into a situation that none of us should have to be born into. Her mother was a homeless drug addict living in the streets in Colombia and thus Marcela was what is known as a "street kid" an infant being raised on the streets of Bogota. Friends of ours who were missionaries in Bogota at the time adopted Marcela and her sister and the rest is history! Now here I was marring her to a young good looking youth pastor who has graduated from seminary and who works vocationally with the younger generation raising them in the ways of the Lord. It was so awesome and comforting seeing one of your youth who waited on Gods timing and for Gods best for her marry someone who had done the same. Because of her and his obedience God was blessing them with each other and at the same time ending a generational curse that keeps so many Colombian women living in the streets turning to prostitution and drugs to survive.

As I sat in their living room with Marcela's family helping them get the house decorated as Marcela wanted I noticed a picture hanging on the wall that Andrea, Marcela's sister, had matted and framed for her. It was a picture of the streets in Bogota just like many pictures I have taken. The difference was that she had converted the photo to black and white and then punched in the original colors in just some areas of the photo. Seeing the image that was so similar to photos I had taken as recently as this year in a new light was absolutely amazing!

As soon as I got home I had to try it on one of my photos as you see above. It wasn't until I was done that i realized something I hadn't noticed before, even when I took the photo. if you click on the photo and then look to the left their is a homeless man sleeping on the ground in the threshold of the building in the forefront.

I think many of us like to ask God to reveal the "big picture" of our lives to us when in reality what we really want is just to see the pretty or comfortable parts of our lives. I'm not saying that having seasons of blessing and enjoyment are wrong rather that many of us would rather take the good but not the bad or hardship the Lord needs us to go through in order to paint the whole picture of our lives.

In the pic above just a little of the original colored buildings is enough color to draw your attention int o the street. To highlight just enough to make the whole scene look beautiful. Yet when the whole picture is in color those things tend to fade into the rest of the image. By bringing color to just part of the image it makes the rest pop in a different way.

Maybe that is how God paints the picture of our lives. Rather than using such a broad stroke he details every part. Just enough powerful and great experiences to make the refining we need to go through to be more like Christ have meaning and make them be beautiful as well.

May the Lord and author of your picture have His way with you and I! May He make beauty out of all of our lives, not just the parts you or I would deem worthy or deserving.