LCS Families,

I keep hearing the scripture passage from Nehemiah 8:10 that concludes with "....the joy of the Lord is my strength."  Under the leadership of Nehemiah the wall of Jerusalem had been rebuilt and the Book of the Law was read to the people. The guilt connected with their former disobedience that led to their exile to Babylon was weighing heavy on them and Nehemiah encouraged them to rejoice. They came to realize what God's Word was saying and the fact that God was forgiving them. He wanted them to rejoice and their strength was renewed. Joy is accessible in many places and through a variety of circumstances, however, true and lasting joy, characterized by consistency and duration, is only found in embracing Christ and Him alone. We can even walk through a time of repentance for sin and find joy because Christ forgives us and strengthens us as we are transformed into a more accurate reflection of Him. Joy is not just an end result, it can be experienced through the challenges because it comes from the Lord and not the circumstances we find ourselves in. I am praying that our school community will experience a deep joy this month and share that experience with one another!

Here are a few verses addressing joy.  These could form a rich devotion time this month:

• Isaiah 40:30-31 (esv)“Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

• Romans 15:13 (esv):  “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

• 1 Peter 1:8-9 (esv):  “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

• Psalm 28:7 (esv): “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.”

• Psalm 16:11 (esv):  “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

Mrs. Kristen Zaloom
Dean of Learning
kzaloom@lcs.org

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A Message From Our Board Chair

You are a missionary. Yep! It’s true. What’s that, you say? No one told you? Well, you are. And I don’t mean that in some sort of cheap cliche sort of way. But more on that later…

Have you ever been on a mission trip? After graduating from high school, I went on a week long mission trip to Ukraine to help with a kids camp for children of women who had been helped by a local Christian pregnancy center in the city of Zhytomyr. The camp was held in the nearby countryside in old, very modest buildings with lots of open space and a river that the kids loved to swim in. The food was very simple and meager and most of the children wore their one and only pair of clothes all week and swam in their underwear. That was all they had. But our spiritual experience together was fun and rich. As the kids came out of their shells, my nerves began to settle as well. The kids were well loved and the gospel was preached that week. Many put their faith in Christ. In fact, this was the first time I helped lead someone to Christ. The excitement was palpable.

Mission trips can be highly impactful. Sometimes they’re more impactful for the ones going than the ones receiving. God can change you as you see him change others.

In graduate school, while working on my PhD, I went on a different sort of mission trip to India to help lay groundwork for a Christian organization trying to build relationships at a local university in Mumbai. Again, it was a life-changing experience though in a very different setting. Yet none of this compares to the mission field I entered nearly 10 years ago.

When I became a father, I didn’t realize it, but I entered the most important mission field of my life! Fast forward to today and the Lord has blessed my wife and I with five wonderful children. This is our mission field. Life is a bit crazy at times. And often quite loud. We literally have a large sign near our front door that reads “We Are Living Our Adventure.” But amid all the noise and chaos, we try to find quiet moments to speak spiritual truth and expound the gospel with our children. This is challenging, but we aren’t on this journey alone. And neither are you.

Research by Chap Clark at the Fuller Youth Institute showed that every child exploring the Christian faith is more likely to remain in the faith if they have at least five adults who know them by name and can speak spiritual truth into their life. I recall our pastor sharing that statistic several years ago. They call it the 5:1 Ratio. When I first heard this, I immediately began mentally tallying how many adults were speaking spiritual truth into each of my children. I imagine you may be doing the same right now!

For my family, grandparents live far away and don’t see our children in person more than twice a year. They have no aunts or uncles closer than a 10 hour drive. For many families, it may be difficult to find five adults who know their kids by name and can invest in their spiritual development. Yet because of LCS, my family has built a strong and impactful network right here in Upstate New York, a network of believers who pour into our children every week! Yes, this includes Sunday school teachers, but more significantly, it includes many wonderful teachers at Loudonville Christian School! These teachers spend 35 hours a week with our children. That’s as many hours as our children spend awake at home on weekdays! These teachers go out of their way to invest in our children even after the move up to the next grades.

At Loudonville Christian School, our teachers and staff spend many hours with our children explaining the Bible, memorizing Scripture, building Godly character, and praying for and with our children. They are living out the school’s mission to cultivate a passion for God. Our children are our first mission field, our most important mission field. And I am so grateful for a powerful partnership with Christ-like teachers, coaches, and school staff who shower our children with God’s love every day. And by God’s grace, I pray that each of my children and yours will see God’s love, hear the gospel, and come to trust Christ as their savior. This is what we all pray for. This is our first and most important mission field. And we’re not alone.

Andy Martin

LCS Chairman of the Board

Did You Know?

In an effort to better communicate all the fun things happening in our lower school classrooms, we have created fun websites for you!! These websites are updated weekly with news, announcements, pictures and upcoming activities. Check out our websites below:

Miss Crosbie
Mrs. Owens
Mrs. Parker
Mrs. Dahnke
Mrs. Rodriguez
Mrs. Kergel

Looking Ahead....

• October 13th: Columbus Day/No School

• October 15th: PSAT/NMSQT for 11th Grade-PLEASE BE ON TIME

• October 22th: Picture Make-Up Day(reach out to Bonnie Strock at bstrock@lcs.org)

• October 27th: October 31st: Spirit Week 

• October 30th: Powder Puff Football Game 3:30pm-4:30pm; Homecoming Event for Upper School(details coming)

• November 7th: End of Quarter 1

Great Parent Resource...AXIS Ministries

What is the Culture Translator?

The Culture Translator, written and published by Axis Ministries, comes as a free weekly email to help Christian parents stay up to date on the music, movies, TV shows, and Social Media trends impacting your student's world!

Parent Guides & Suggested Book Titles for Christian Parents

Axis Ministries offers multiple parent guides for the issues your student will face and provides information and support to Christian parents!

October Lunch Menus