whole heart

   I ponder sometimes the idea of church and state. I am entrusted this year with 19, nine and ten year old, children.  The care that I have to give and provide for them is different then kindergartners but also very much the same. Last night as I was having a hard time sleeping thoughts of them kept me awake...
    Am I doing my best for them? What more can I do to help them? How can I use the precious time that I have to teach them wisely? What do they each need? How can I give them what they need? What is most important? The list goes on and on. But the thought kept coming back to me that I need to pray for them, not as a whole but one by one, by name.  And so I began to pour out my whole heart to the Lord in regards to the children in my classroom. Eventually I was able to sleep again, and as a result gain enough strength to make it though another day in fourth grade. 
    Wouldn't it be wonderful if I could say that all my questions were answered and that I know just what to do with and for each student in my class? But alas No. I can however say that I felt gentle nudges throughout the day to do somethings differently. To spend more time on subjects that I had not before emphasized. I felt strength to be a little more patience as I explained subjects to them a few extra times. I was prompted to say things different. Most of all I felt a greater love for my students. 
   I am not sure why I felt the need to share this today, but I know that I am not the only teacher who loves her students. That's part of being a teacher, to give our days, nights, and hearts to the children that we are entrusted with each and every year.