“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go”
My precious wife shared a phrase with me recently that she has found incredibly powerful to help her through a busy life: “Do it afraid!” Lynn read about this in one of Joyce Meyer’s books. Do it afraid! We just have to do what we have to do. How often are we faced with challenges that we think are too difficult? The more I have thought about it, the more I see so many of our school community, including our students, applying this to their everyday lives. Life can be very difficult.
I get so frustrated when students back out of opportunities and tasks because they are too afraid to have a go. It might be fear of failure or fear of something difficult or new, but it is still fear. This is where resilience comes in, as does the ‘rescuer’. It is tempting, as a parent, to step in and rescue a child rather than helping them develop the resilience needed to get thought a situation or cope with a major piece of schoolwork or deal with that difficult relationship.
Years ago, one of my children had a terrible teacher. Lynn and I did follow up issues with the teacher. The bottom line was it was my child’s responsibility - in Grade 10 - to learn and prepare for the exam. We were not prepared to shrug our shoulders and allow poor results because of bad teaching. Extra time and effort toughened said child and excellent results were achieved. This attitude and effort were incredibly valuable at University where you get the work thrown at you with very little help. The phrase ‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going’ is correct but may it would be better if it was worded, ‘When the going gets tough, those afraid get going!’
As a school principal, I am surrounded by heroes. Darren Hardy, an American success mentor, was reflecting on those who fought in wars on Veterans Day, their equivalence of Remembrance Day. He gave the definition of a hero as, “someone, who in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength for the common good.” He proceeded to give examples of what incredible acts of bravery occurred during World War 2. I see acts of bravery every day in the lives of some of the students who struggle, terrified by trauma but are still here not letting life beat them down.
It is my sincere hope that we all support our students and help them deal with the things they find difficult, not by rescuing them from it, but by helping them be resilient learners who ‘do it afraid!’ God tells Joshua to not be afraid because He is with him. Joshua, I’m sure, would have been afraid. God gives him a huge task and then challenges him with ‘Do not be afraid’.
Do it afraid and do it with God. It is as we set out in faith that He helps us with our fear and gives us strength and courage.
Scott Winkler - Principal