Summary: A few weeks ago, I was on an airplane with my oldest daughter, Emily, who just finished her first year of college and is enjoying summer break. Being with her brings back a lot of memories. At the time, she was staring out the window into the landscape of clouds below while we flew to a conference together in Chicago. As I watched her, I recalled moments from her birth and growing up years. And I thought about how hard is to explain the kind of love you have for your children.<br> I’m a father of four, and with each one, I have had such deep emotions that words fail to describe the feelings. When I held Emily in my arms for the first time, I remember the overwhelming affection I felt, and I thought, “I have no idea what I’m doing!” But I also thought, “I had no idea how deep a father’s love can be.” <br> Thinking about a father’s love also helps me think about my spiritual growth. Your beliefs guide your thinking and life decisions. The bedrock of my beliefs about spirituality are communicated from my background and experience as a Christian –the belief in a Heavenly Father who cares deeply for His children. Although your experience and beliefs about God may differ from my own, I’d like you to consider some reasons why your spiritual growth matters:<br> 4 Reasons Your Faith Matters<br> 1. Faith provides a bedrock of assurance.<br> We live in a world of uncertainty, and our students experience increased anxiety and stress because of the environments (both globally and locally) presenting risks and dangers we may not have faced at their ages. At the same time, human experience has always included risk. In every aspect of your life, you have to accept that there are some situations and experiences that are beyond your control. <br> But when you are faced with more difficult scenarios – like counseling an abused child or struggling through the death of a loved one – no amount of self-talk replaces the kind of assurance that faith provides. Walking by faith does not mean pretending. Instead, it means placing your trust in something or someone that promises hope –a belief that our circumstances are ultimately under God’s control. <br> This does not mean that I expect my students or teachers to share my faith. Instead, I can step into each day (whether the day is one of inspiration or crisis) knowing that I can step forward with courage and assurance. <br> 2. Faith provides a measure of perspective.<br> I think it is important to ask yourself the question of who are you ultimately trusting for the outcomes you hope to see in your work or life? Your ability to self-reflect and rely on others will provide you with growth and improved outcomes, but many of your outcomes have nothing to do with you.<br> My grandfather was a farmer. I would ride the tractor with him as he planted corn or soybeans, and I noticed how hard he worked to till the soil, select good grain, apply fertilizer and plant in early spring and summer. But there were a number of elements he could not control. First, he planted outdoors, not in a greenhouse. So, he was unable to control the weather. Sunlight and water were not in his control. But most importantly, he had no power over the seeds. Yes, those seeds were helped by being surrounded with the right conditions, but sprouting and growth was never guaranteed.<br> In the classroom or schoolhouse, you can place your students in the best conditions possible for personal or academic growth. But you also have to trust in the elements beyond your control. <br> Frankly, some of you reading this have encountered others in your work or life whom seemed beyond help at times. As I’ve met with individuals who appeared to be in conditions beyond my reach, I’ve had to learn to trust in what I cannot see. Not every situation turns out exactly as you plan, but when you trust God for the ultimate outcome, you are practicing the same wisdom as a good farmer.<br> 3.
