School’s Over

SUN., JULY 31, 1988, 6:15 AM
FARM, STUDY

Yes, o son, it is important that I offer you a final Teaching in relation to the School that now is over. The lost suitcase is a minor tragedy, but otherwise it was a week unmarred by negatives. You looked forward to the experience, and you were not disappointed. It was a fine spiritual experience, and life should have lots of these.

The physical site is a good one for the School. The campus is small, and yet there is the necessity for a good deal of walking, which balances the predominant sitting that most Schools feature. The trees and grass are green, as they should be in summer. Importantly, as a group has a prolonged spiritual experience in a particular setting, that place begins to take on more spirit, and give it forth to the participants. You felt this last year, and this year it was more pronounced. As you go repeatedly, should you choose to do this, the campus will become a familiar part of the experience, as your church building is, after these many years.

The teaching experience was almost ideal. I guided you into the format, you used songs sparingly but well, and the activities and your presentations were balanced nicely. The size of the class was near perfect, with the learners all rather enthusiastic. You must realize that your judgment about adult Christian education prevails here… that most will not read outside material, and that assignments have to be simple and interesting, and many still will not do them. Also, as you realize, discussion will be dominated by a relative few, yet each has something important to say. This is why a variety of active approaches is essential. You were not apprehensive about the upcoming teaching opportunity, and you needn’t have been. Henceforth you can do it even more easily. Just beware of becoming popular so that the class becomes too large to function as this one did. Popularity is a mixed blessing.

You were properly concerned about the “pressure” of competing and overlapping activities and your use of time. You expected, rightly, that your granddaughters would adapt well and would not need constant supervision and nurture. They did wonderfully, but you were not as available as you might have been, at times. If this is to be, in future years, a more common experience for you and Lenore then you must agree to actually do more things together… take at least one common class and go to agreed upon concerned conversations. Yet your interests are somewhat different, so seek a balance of what you do together and what is more satisfying to the individuality of each of you.

I don’t have to urge you to continue the choir experience. Your musical inabilities keeps it from being pure joy, but it is mostly so. It is a small but vital use of time, and in a small way you contribute to the enjoyment of others.

You found various ways to give of yourself to others at the School, and this is the supreme spiritual task in any situation. There always must be a balance with not becoming too dominant… just be sure to keep this awareness. Your songs bring varied reactions, and they remain a unique contribution. You could still learn more… and yet you were a touch frustrated at not being able to sing all the ones you wanted to. What you did with songs, totally, was just about right.

Be sure and send the writings with which I helped you to My servant Al. You contributed, as you should have, to that early morning devotion group. He and others were touched by what you, with My assistance, wrote. Don’t neglect this wee act of belated service.