Second Semester Begins

I was telling Director yesterday, when we were over at his house for cheeseburgers with the Sr APs, that this semester is going to be the hardest semester starting for me. Until the last day of Fall Semester, all I've known in Chuuk is school is top priority and it means go, go, go. Now I've had a couple weeks of doing nothing practically.

Every day for the last week, Em and I have had visitors at our house - Franky, Maverick, Maverick's cousin, Peterson, Lillian, Dayson, KI, DS, Ketty, N-Cina, KM. I think not more than three at a time and not longer than, oh, eight hours. Haha! We've been watching movies, playing guitar, teaching them fun new card games, listening to music, teaching them this other really fun game (The Father's Day Game), and doing these hilarious other things.

The new schedule is fairly similar to last semester: Em is teaching two art classes, senior reading, and freshmen new world history; I'm teaching four speech classes and New Testament. For New Testament we will be going from Romans through Revelation. Ideally, I would like for my students at the end of the year to be able to easily know where each book is found and know who is writing it, why he's writing it, and the general ideas of what he's saying. I would also like for them to memorize a good portion (I haven't decided how much yet) of a book or what's referred to as "the Romans Road" perhaps.

Although I'm teaching four separate speech classes, only two of them will be alike in content. With my Junior regulars, who did not learn to outline last semester because I figured writing complete sentences and formatting them into paragraphs was more important, I will be focusing on how to speak clearly and correctly (rather than what to say). How to enunciate, articulate, and project. They will do some recitations from different literature selections and memorize Scripture.

Since my Sr APs had my speech class last year, we will be going into some more details on how to give excellent speeches. This will include learning much more about introductions, conclusions, examples, and research. They will also read some selected chapters from a book by Howard Hendricks. I also hope to go into persuasion and debate, including fun games like philosophical chairs.

My junior AP and senior regular class will be almost identical to my last year's speech class.

Teachers are supposed to be at school at 7:45 this morning for normal staff devotion time. Then we have a day of preparations and tomorrow classes begin.

Please, be in specific prayer for Emily and me as we prepare our classes and decided how best to teach what specific material to these particular students. Ask the Lord to give us creative and useful ideas. Please, ask Him for strength, peace, and happiness (it's from a Chuukese song that Maverick taught me). Also be in prayer for our minds as we know what we're getting ourselves into and are already beginning to stress. Pray that the Lord covers us in grace.

And, please, continue to be in prayer for these precious students. Pray that God will use us, and all the staff, mightily to show Himself clearly - His just wrath, loving kindness, and eternal delight. May they willingly embrace Him!