So, it is all over the news - at least in the state of Iowa - universities in Iowa have to make budget cuts. It's a hard truth to deal with.
Some of the programs that are in the University of Northern Iowa's proposal to be cut are programs that I believe helped shape me as a person and as a science teacher.
So this Saturday afternoon when I should be doing laundry and grading, I am taking time to write to the board of regents about my time at UNI and why I think that some of the budget cuts are going to hurt UNI in the long run even if they seem to help in the short term.
This is one of the things I love about our country. We the people have a voice. As many of us that can - and that care - from the universities are writing to the board of regents attempting to preserve those things which we see as beneficial to the future of the state of Iowa and those that come from it's universities.
Then I start to think about people in countries that don't have the right and freedom to do so. And it drives me to my knees in prayer for those people, those countries, and our world. The more I enjoy my freedoms as an American, the more I should realize that so many people in this world do not get the same freedoms that I do.
And as I'm praying, I start to think of the people of the world that aren't allowed even to pray by their government. People that are killed for talking to Jesus. I begin to wonder, would my faith stand up to that? Would I be willing to die for a faith I am able to freely believe here in the US? I hope that my answer to that is 'yes' while realizing that I am saying that from inside protected walls and in a country where my speech is protected and I am allowed to voice my opinions and beliefs.
Now, in my life I have had to many moments where I know I could not believe anything else. Jesus is my Savior and my Redeemer. That truth to me is more solid than anything science could come up with. I am just questioning if I would be bold enough to proclaim that in a country where it was illegal to do so. And my safety causes me, and should always cause me, to be on my knees for those who are brave and bold and so full of the Spirit that they proclaim Jesus everywhere - even if it means their deaths.
That was not where I was planning to go when I started. But it is something that I think I really needed to think about actively. Praying that the Spirit would grant boldness and courage to those in need of it everywhere in the world.
Some of the programs that are in the University of Northern Iowa's proposal to be cut are programs that I believe helped shape me as a person and as a science teacher.
So this Saturday afternoon when I should be doing laundry and grading, I am taking time to write to the board of regents about my time at UNI and why I think that some of the budget cuts are going to hurt UNI in the long run even if they seem to help in the short term.
This is one of the things I love about our country. We the people have a voice. As many of us that can - and that care - from the universities are writing to the board of regents attempting to preserve those things which we see as beneficial to the future of the state of Iowa and those that come from it's universities.
Then I start to think about people in countries that don't have the right and freedom to do so. And it drives me to my knees in prayer for those people, those countries, and our world. The more I enjoy my freedoms as an American, the more I should realize that so many people in this world do not get the same freedoms that I do.
And as I'm praying, I start to think of the people of the world that aren't allowed even to pray by their government. People that are killed for talking to Jesus. I begin to wonder, would my faith stand up to that? Would I be willing to die for a faith I am able to freely believe here in the US? I hope that my answer to that is 'yes' while realizing that I am saying that from inside protected walls and in a country where my speech is protected and I am allowed to voice my opinions and beliefs.
Now, in my life I have had to many moments where I know I could not believe anything else. Jesus is my Savior and my Redeemer. That truth to me is more solid than anything science could come up with. I am just questioning if I would be bold enough to proclaim that in a country where it was illegal to do so. And my safety causes me, and should always cause me, to be on my knees for those who are brave and bold and so full of the Spirit that they proclaim Jesus everywhere - even if it means their deaths.
That was not where I was planning to go when I started. But it is something that I think I really needed to think about actively. Praying that the Spirit would grant boldness and courage to those in need of it everywhere in the world.
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