No other foundation. 40th anniversary of Lutheran schooling at Trinity, Ashmore.
1 Cor 3:11No other foundation than Jesus Christ.
Today we take a moment to glimpse and remember all that has been achieved in 40 years of Lutheran education at Cotlew St and at this campus. Today we have students, past students, parents and grandparents of current and past students. We have staff, past staff, College Council present and past, people who have been passionate supporters of Trinity, giving money, and donating time and gifting expertise. It’s a rich history, a precious history, a shared history, a deeply connected history. Friendships made over the 40 years by parents, staff and students, still continue years later. There is a sense that all have been involved in something utterly precious and worthwhile, something much bigger than just individual dreams and pursuits. Something founded on Jesus Christ.
No other foundation: Jesus Christ. He is God’s ‘Yes’ to each one of us, no matter what. He is the one who today keeps reaching out to all, just as he did 2000 years ago, those on the outside, those on the in, those who are confident in their belonging in God’s love, and those who know they don’t deserve it and can’t earn it. In Christ there is the hard message that our little ego driven lives have to die, but underneath each one of us there is the massive ever-present safety net of God’ grace, mercy, forgiveness, love. Through Christ’s death and resurrection, we have hope and the promise that God always works new life out of the ashes of our failures and our wrongs.
On that foundation of Jesus’ self-giving love and grace, something new is birthed – a caring community. Community – that is what keeps drawing school families and staff to Trinity. You belong. You are made in the image of God. There is something special and unique about you.
The phrase: every child a star kept coming up in connection with the primary school. I’ve heard how parents respected and admired the way that poor behaviours were dealt with in ways that allowed good attitudes and achievements to be honoured and encouraged and brought about positive change for all students. Acceptance, forgiveness, and good boundaries – that comes from Christ. Poor behaviour and bad attitudes can be turned round. Maybe even in parents.
Faith. For a chaplain, and for Christian teachers, it’s a privilege to work in a place where you can, appropriately, share that Christ is vital, and that life with him is more meaningful, richer, better. I haven’t had quiet conversations here with individual students, but I believe there’s a lot of hidden faith. They are not going to jump up and down in front of their classmates and say, ‘I believe. This makes sense.’ But they understand being in chapel. They pick up how to pray. They start to get a little familiar with scripture. They learn about serving as vital, about using gifts and abilities for others. They leave here with a strong commitment to doing and living what is right. I sense that Lutheran schools do a great job at being Christian, but not forcing it down children’s throats, in the sense that if you don’t believe, here and now, you are in eternal trouble. Lutheran schools do a great job in providing a safe, godly space in which students grow and develop, in all ways, including faith. Occasionally, I also discover students who are active, committed and passionate in their faith don’t always have it easy with their peers. There is an on-going challenge. Non-Christians pick up faith. Seeds are sown that will bear fruit. We don’t want Christians to suffer. How do we support, nurture, encourage them?
Final thought. Not: Foundation is Christ, and we are separate, working on our own. We are co-workers, co-creators, guided, inspired, working together with each other, with Christ. We are all called to grow in that knowing that we are participating together, with Christ, in Christ, in something much bigger than ourselves. There’s nothing we do that is separate from Christ. Worst case: if we build our own little edifice and it all comes tumbling down we fall back into the foundation, who is Christ. We fall back into forgiveness and a new start. I believe we are all called to grow into living and knowing that we are always in Christ, always in his grace and mercy, always in his strength, always in his love.
