It's time to move: A WORD tip

Well, It has been a while since I have posted a tip.  The family just decided to up and check out about moving from Eastern Kansas to Western Montana, so a great deal of stuff has happened.  The below picture was taken this fall in our new habitation.  

A group of Elk hanging out just south of our house

I have thought of the insanity of such a move.  We have not felt settled in Kansas and have sought out where we might go.  We even toyed multiple years about selling it all and joining a relief organization and go to Roatan Honduras and I must admit that the taste for that warm salt air, lush environment still resides deep in my heart.

Some questions that we often ask ourselves as Christians is, What does God have for me? Or Where does he want me to go? How many have asked. What does God want me to do?  The answers to those questions seem vague when we look at Matthew 16: 15, "…Go into all the World and Preach the Gospel…"  The message of this passage haunts the very core of my adventurous passion, which really brings me to the question, Are the will of God questions for my life really the correct response to God?

Maybe you have happened upon this blog based upon the title, and if you are not a Christian, ie: have asked Jesus, who died for your sins to be your Lord and Savior, than may I say, that The Bible is true and not just a "Good Book".  No, it is the written expression of the Truth of God's love wrapped up in the person of Jesus.  The will of God is for you to know him intimately. However, if you do know him and struggle with the above questions, than I will say God's will is very clear and found in the Philippians 4: 4 (LEB) Rejoice in the Lord always: again I say, rejoice.  if you go down to verse 12.  we have to learn to rejoice in the good, the bad, and the downright ugly times of life, and that is sometimes a tough place to be in.

So what about that unsettled feeling? Well, in God's timing He will open the door.  Sometimes waiting on God to move seems to take forever.  But, when He begins to move the surrendered heart, than the floodgates of events begin to line up and all you can do is ride God's wave.

In my own experience of moving from Kansas to Montana,  that is just what happened.  I questioned this thing personally, not really feeling what my wife felt.  But I went up on a scouting mission for two weeks and during that time things began to line up, but not everything.  Even though I now reside here things are not all clear, but this one thing I know, I will keep pressing to surrender my all to God and ride his wave in the raft of thankfulness in order to see His plan for my life realized.

Picture Tricks

I recently came across a Facebook post with a picture of a guy holding up a dead rattlesnake that was quite large.

I have to admit my suspicion which prompted me to Google "giant rattlesnake." In a flash, the picture was found. The only problem was that the Facebook post referenced the guy in the picture being from Texas, while the googled page said he was from Georgia. I could go deeply into plagiarism which was so evident, but the illusion is what I wanted to concentrate on.

This shocking picture is quite similar to a somewhat famed picture of giant camelback spiders being held by the military person.

http://www.grose.us/pics/camel_spider.jpg

Here is the trick: it is called forced perspective. In both cases focal points give a known comparison as a background. In the case of the snake it is a 6'2" man, and for the spiders which are closer to scorpions in fact, it is the soldier's leg. From an artistic standpoint forced perspective takes on a surreal feel, but in these instances, the effect is more realistic to make it seem real.

If you check out the can by the guy's foot holding the snake, it looks rather small. The truth is that the snake is being held four to five feet out in front of him making the snake look much larger than it really is.

Similarly, if you focus to the right of the fighting camelback spiders, you get a better idea from the sleeve of the soldier holding them up as to how big they really are. Not to diminish either creature, the other soldiers are keeping their distance and a rattlesnake is ominous regardless of how big it is.

So, what instructional tidbit can be gleaned from these photographic illusions? I suppose I could mention the importance of visual literacy or the fact that images as well as film can be manipulated. Or I could discuss how we have to be careful with intellectual property, and all of this is important when it comes to lesson design. However, I feel compelled to point out a world view comparison. Our hope, faith, and trust is in God alone. The world sees Christ as some small figurine dangling from a chain: a forced perspective. The rock singer Madonna was once quoted saying that the crosses she wore we "sexy."

The flip side is, that the brutality of sin and the curse placed upon the real man Jesus is a truth that was far from beautiful. A tiny figurine He IS not, for the man Jesus is fully God and was not held captive in death. No, He spoke life into existence: His power is immeasurable including His love for each person regardless of his/ her wickedness. Satan would have mankind to view Christ as some figurine. Rather, he is the King of all, Devine Creator who loved us enough take our sinful punishment. He really is that big and so is His love for you.

From NCLB to CCR

The last ten years emphasized accountability of schools through standardized testing requirements. The ultimate goal was that every child would meet standard on state required tests. Each year the numbers of students meeting standards increased until all students were to be meeting standards, or beyond, by year 2012. Schools whose student numbers that didn't meet requirements started receiving consequences: this was No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and seems a logical path right?

With the end of an administration and an era of education legislation comes a new philosophy that emphasizes preparedness for college. In other words. All schools should follow the same standards across the country that are rigorously preparing every student for college or careers. This sounds pretty good right, because everybody gets the same education.

The problem:
NCLB was a pipe-dream that unfortunately led to extensive test-prep, unethical behaviors in testing situations to avoid penalties, and in truth, ten years of a lot of bad teaching, not to mention a somewhat justified loss of respect for public education. Kids were still being left behind and there was a decline of fresh educators entering the force and a growing exodus of experienced teachers tired of of the brow beating. This has further led to a rise of districts outsourcing positions to oversees teachers. Now that's effective legislation for the betterment of our country.

So, does CCR offer a better solution? It does offer change, but is limited in funding. It seems to be some cruel legislative Superbowl idea of having schools compete for limited governmental perks in order to be able to upgrade to 21st century technologies, and equally important, needed staff training. In the meantime financially strapped states have already had to cut funding of various institutions and with schools being large portions of states payrolls, schools have taken sizable financial hits. It sounds like another pipe-dream and we know who being left behind.

But have I talked about the real problem? The initial proponents for educating children publicly were the puritans in the 1700's. Their primary belief was that an educated society was crucial for a stable safe society that could interpret scripture and live accordingly. They had lived under religious oppression prior, that discouraged the commoner from learning to read. They believed their former teaching to be erroneous. Compulsory education did not come for another hundred years. Fast forward to 1962 and a critical court case Engel v. Vitale ruled against prayer in the school. The big picture: schools have been relied upon to address social needs/ills of the culture they serve throughout the decades, but have gradually had impediments added over time. As a general rule, they do the best they can, but is it enough? The answer is no. Legislation is not the answer to our society's issues and that includes public education especially now when our social ills are far from agreed upon.

I used to say when I first started in education, "We shouldn't take the light out of the public schools." However, I have come to realize that yes children are also carriers of the light but, to rely on the government's answer to learning doesn't align with scripture. It is the family's job to train up the child in the way that he should go. School's mission used to be to support all other institutions, including family. Times have changed and so has the idea family. That mission no longer exists and in some cases the relationship is adversarial.

The answer is found in the Word and the Church. I recently read a Barnum report about church's investing. The biggest investment is in adults as a rule. Barnum feels it should be reversed due to poor retention of our kids and I agree. I live in a city of 109,000 population. There are 7 Catholic churches in town. Each church claims a constituency of 1500 families. That is approximately 35,000 professing catholics: every church is tied to a school. Talk about an impact on a community. Protestant churches aught to take note. If we want to spread the gospel the best way to do it is through kids. Our investment should be in creating top notch, high tech, affordable education that not only educates, but indoctrinates the Word of God. If we truly want to evangelize our communities we need to follow the Puritan example and invest our money in our children and their educations and not rely on a faulty state system with proven failure.

Almost Epiphany

Have you ever felt like you were on the verge of an epiphany: that revelation of magnanimous proportion that would rock your's and everybody else's lives, yet you can't seem to break through? It is a love/hate thing for me when I feel that way.

Somewhere out there in the recesses of my pondering might just be something really cool. On the flip side is the shroud that falls on the feeling like a curtain plummeting onto some poor sap of a performer that should never even walk near the stage, much less on it.

Some might consider the conversion of the Apostle Paul an epiphany, however Paul's claim to Apostleship found in Acts as well as II Corinthians describes an encounter with God beyond some sort of vision. He had a face-to-face encounter with Jesus. Though I am not a theologian, I can only imagine that Paul's stint in the desert involved further encounters, though this notion is dimly alluded to. However, few can argue against the magnitude of impact that Paul's experience has had on the world.

In a blog I read about epiphanies, the author had lit into someone for overuse of the word because the word represented something sacred to him. A comparison to an igniting sculpture bearing the name "Epiphany" was made. The author claimed that such rare occasions of visions of gods should be reverenced.

However, such sacred events should be common for the believer who dwells in the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit teaches us and enlightens us concerning The Truth. Jesus talked about this prior to his ascension. This was truly evidenced shortly after on the day of Pentecost as Peter preached, and further as these simple minded disciples literally rocked the known world; in many cases one by one.

So, how do we receive these spiritual encounters regularly? We posture ourselves in a place to hear God's voice. It is a daily search into His mysteries that He desires to share with us with the Holy Spirit as the Inboard professor. We saturate are minds with the Bible, then pray for revelation.

If that is all it takes, than why is it so hard? The reason is clearly connected to my analogy of what it feels like to lose that feeling. When should a believer feel worthless? The answer is easier than the belief: never. Why, because Jesus said when we accept him as Lord we become joint heirs with him. A pauper that finds out he is an heir to the throne will carry himself differently, unless he doesn't fully believe it.

According to Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." The interesting thing about this verse is that he didn't say he couldn't see or didn't know at all. No, while we walk out our life, God's mysteries are being made known to those postured to hear His voice. But...one day, it is all going to be clear as we are in His presence.

What's an epiphany? For a non-believer I am not sure. For the believer however, it might just be the same small voice that spoke to to Elijah or Samuel of old trying to get your attention. He just wants your glass a little less dark.

Murphy's Law

Wouldn't it figure that any attempts to draw close to God, step out in faith, or attempt a new project, yields opposition. Is it the devil? Is Murphy's law true?

Maybe, maybe. Now I could go through the history of Murphy's law and its coinage at Edwards Air force Base. Or I could discuss the seemingly more applicable and older sod's law rooted in some idiomatic European saying. But, the question of validity still remains. If anything can go wrong will it? Well, maybe the best way to support a quip is with a quip. So here are a few:

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Measure twice: cut once.

“It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien "The Hobbit"

If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.

Is there a pattern? I used to say that some of my best lessons came from my hip pocket. However, truth be known, they were often fraught with mountains of ambiguity that only added to rapid hair loss. In spite of my planning fiascoes, the idea may have had merit enough to engage student participation which was why I thought it was successful. Regardless, having a plan attempts to foresee the hair pulling teeth grinding hinderances and steer clear of as many as possible.

My tips:
In spiritual matters and reaching toward God and following His will one must know to expect a blow below the belt by the enemy of your soul. Your only plan is to count on a smashing punch to your most vulnerable spot. Jesus talked about the forceful advance of the Gospel which indicates that a conflict is ensuing. In other words, this is war. But, know this; God is on your side especially flinging everything down and allowing Him to take control. He isn't in the failure business. The only caveat, His idea of success may be different than ours. Don't give up!

For projects, lessons and those areas that we can plan for, remember these three words: analyze, draft, and develop. If you are familiar to instructional design than you probably recognize this as the first three phases of the instructional design model ADDIE.

Start by breaking things down, delving into where you want to target, determining resources an so forth. This is where Edwards Air Force Base used Murphy's law to seek out any possible flaws that would disrupt a plan. From that breakdown, devise a plan to avoid the POTENTIAL disruption or flaws. From there you can draft, hone, and develop your plan that will set you on a sturdier path.

The search for Truth

I'm laying on a hospital bench with my 7 year-old sleeping in the bed next to me. His blood sugar is 4 times higher than it should be, yet down half way from where it was. He is a sweet boy who also has autism.

Why is the word that I have mumbled to God for the last few days: I was even reduced to, "It isn't fair." My son is going to endure sticks and pokes daily for the rest of his life. He doesn't even know he is not a neuro-typical (normal) child yet, now this. It is definitely easy to ask the above questions of God.

When my wife took him to the E.R. his glucose levels were above 600. According to the Mayo clinic, at that level a person is in diabetic hypersomolar syndrome and at risk of going into a coma. His glucose though wound up rising to a little over 800 before his first of many insulin shots which did bring it down. When my wife called me about this I had to slip away to hide for a few moments. I want God to heal and take this hardship away from my son. In the end I could only say, "He's yours."

From an instructional design point of view, there is a lesson to be learned. As I write this post I was reminded of Evangel University's old slogan: All truth is God's truth. The epitome of learning is the search for truth regardless of the concentration. The absolute Truth is that the Word of God became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus is the embodied Word of God. He is the Way, the TRUTH and the Life. What is Truth: it is God.

So, "What is Your sovereign, will God?" That is my question. It isn't easy, but the Truth is, God is sovereign over every situation. HE is the preeminent reigning authority: He knows the ultimate best. Furthermore, Jesus is the way (The straight level highway) to Truth in everything even for Micah, but not only Truth: Life.

What is to be learned: the Truth. God really knows what is best.

Pencil Tech

I recently responded to question in a discussion forum for my technology committee. The question was: what technology is used most in our school? I was first to respond with a pencil.

Ok, I was being a little silly knowing the principal was talking about electrical devices, however, I would contend I am right. Every class requires the use of pencils. Laptops, iPads, Netbooks and so on are only used occasionally.

Most people might not consider the humble pencil technology, but it is. Here is my argument. Compare a pencil to a computer as they relate to the definition of technology. Here's the link, but come back: http://i.word.com/idictionary/technology

There isn't really any difference. The pencil was birthed in the 1560's with the discovery of graphite. It was first sandwiched between wood in 1565 and has been in use ever since. Regardless of the lengthy history of a writing device that has never had lead in it, it is a tool to enable a process, whether writing calculating, or creating art. I must also mention that not all pencils are the same quality. If the graphite is not centered the pencil will not sharpen by many sharpeners, and I could drone on about variations, types, and the like.

The point (pardon the unintended pun) is: this is one technology that should remain in a class regardless of the type of classroom. If you teach a class where students aren't writing down their thoughts on the subject, drawing, making maps or whatever. Maybe you should give it try. You may be surprised at the increased learning.