Preschool Blessings

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This is the last week of the school year for our preschool that meets here at the church.

One of the classes just passed by my office on their way to rehearse for their “Moving

Up” ceremony on Thursday, and a few of the kiddos waved and exclaimed “Hey, Pastor

Dave!” as they passed by my door. I can’t tell you how much that warms my heart. I’m

going to miss these kids. It’s going to be much quieter around here over the summer!

I wonder whether preschool teachers realize the impact they have on the children they

teach. I remember going to preschool at my home church in Virginia. My teacher was

Mrs. May. I remember her as very loving and kind, but she also had clear expectations

on how we were to behave in class. She was also a member of our church, and I

remember when she would see me in church, she would ask me how school was going

as I rose up through the ranks. Her care and attention extended well beyond the

classroom.

Both of our boys attended preschool at the churches where I was serving, in Knoxville

and then in Athens. It was a joy to know they were just down the hall and to watch them

learn how to interact with their peers. It helped them in so many ways to prepare for the

transition to kindergarten. Teaching preschool was a true calling for their teachers, as I

can tell it is for the staff here at Signal Crest.

One of the very first scripture verses I remember learning—maybe I learned it in

preschool—is Proverbs 22:6, which reads “Train children in the way they should go;

when they grow old, they won’t depart from it.”

I know this is an optimistic verse. After all, many of us have, in fact, from time to time

and in various ways, departed from the way we should have gone. But those preschool

teachers are among those—including parents, grandparents, Sunday school teachers,

pastors, coaches, mentors, and others—who help provide such good solid basic

training, a launching pad, a grounding in the way of Christ for children.

The preschool has been a part of this church’s life and ministry since the 1960s, and I

am so thankful that they continue to “train children in the way they should go,” and I’m

confident that, even those who may lose their way, will be able to find their way again

thanks in no small part to the love and care and training that they have received here.