by Adam Kronberger / Superintendent

This past week when I was on the Keizer campus, someone reminded me of the impact made by the senior class of 2016. Last year they visited the elementary students on the Keizer campus summarizing their recent missions trip to Mexico. The young adults soon to graduate provided encouragement as they modeled a life of service and sacrifice. Surrendering to the Lordship of Jesus with our entire lives is full of reward and abundant living, but can be challenging to consistently accomplish.  It was an excellent example to the young students of surrendering to God’s will and all the victories and growth from challenges that comes with that. The class of 2017 will be sharing their missions experience on the Keizer Campus this spring. It will be a sweet homecoming for one student as his Christian schooling began on the Keizer Campus.

This past week on the South Campus, secondary students took an hour of their week and spent it with elementary students in their classrooms. They hope to develop friendships that will allow them to pass on God’s truths of transformation in their lives. Through games, teaching, and times of prayer, these young disciples are themselves leading younger disciples to follow Jesus.

Mark Dever writes in his book on disciple-making, “To be human is to be a disciple. God didn’t present Adam and Eve with a choice between discipleship and independence, but between following him and following Satan. We are all disciples; the only question is, of whom?”  Our children are already disciples. It is of utmost importance that we consider who we are allowing in our children’s lives for them to follow. Without deliberate intervention, the inertia of this culture can easily lead our students away from Jesus.

The mission of Crosshill Christian school is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. To expand on that charge, the mission is to make disciples who make disciples of Jesus Christ. Becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ is not an end in itself. It is a transformational process that is ongoing. One of the joys of surrendering to Jesus is to share this joy with others. Our desire is for CCS graduates to be fully committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in their lives with an authentic faith they claim as their own. We also desire that they don’t “hide it under a bushel”, but let their light shine to the world. And not just with Facebook posts, or political engagement, but with a desire for real relationships with others that transfer God’s love and grace. To that end, the school’s K-12 model provides opportunity for training that can impact others eternally.
 
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– Adam Kronberger / Superintendent

by Adam Kronberger / Superintendent

When I was a small child on our dairy, there was a large heifer that was nothing but trouble, and probably not right in the head. Before we sent old #8 to the butcher shop, she managed to aggressively take down every member of my family with extreme pain, except for my dad. Though the fences could hold her in, our daily chores, and sometimes our curiosity placed us accessible to her terror.  Dad always made sure he was in earshot when we were around old #8 so we could holler out for the cavalry if necessary. We all knew the danger and usually took appropriate precautions.

There is another danger terrorizing American families in the form of regular unmonitored access to the internet. The availability to volumes of pornography and other dangerous content can tear apart marriages and hold children captive. I am not against the internet. It is one of the greatest ways humankind has applied the creativity God placed in us to have dominion over His creation. But it is dangerous. On the dairy, my dad always made sure the dangers of #8 were well understood and that the fences were in good repair. In the same way it is vital that we as parents understand the dangers of giving access to the internet without appropriate fences in place.

As my own children are nearing the age of having more internet access, and as the world around us continues to change rapidly, I have renewed my interest and research in placing fences around this danger. I have used the products Covenant Eyes and Open DNS in the past. But over the past months I have been test driving a product from Accountable2You. It is not a filtering software, but a monitoring software. Any questionable browsing activity is recorded and provided in reports based upon my chosen frequency. I can even choose to receive immediate text messages if questionable activity is detected on any devices being monitored.  

For $9.95 a month, I can place up to 20 devices on the plan. It will monitor app usage on each device and provide fairly detailed records of the usage. It can also be programmed to monitor activity during nighttime hours, providing alerts for after hours usage. It also includes GPS tracking of cell phones. It even alerts me in real time to suspicious words used in text messages. Its extension that can be placed on a Chromebook account appears to be one-of-a-kind. While the service does not provide filtering, it does provide suggestions for additional free filtering options.  

If my dad really wanted to ensure our safety on the dairy, he never would have let us leave the house. But he knew we needed to learn how to live outside those walls, but not at the sacrifice of our safety. He made sure the fences were in good repair, that he could check up on us, and that he himself was prepared anytime he came close to #8. Filtering serves its purposes, and is utilized in my own home. But it has its limitations. Our children need to learn and practice wisdom, but once again, not at their peril. A clearly understood and utilized monitoring program ensures that our children have fences, and that the injuries caused from crossing those fences are used to maximize learning and gaining wisdom.  

Some of the wisdom learned as children will remain as helpful fences when they become adults. Just because my dad had the wisdom and strength to overcome #8 in the right situation, he did not remove the fences. He didn’t need to be constantly distracted or attacked by #8. I encourage each of us to apply similar wisdom in protecting and training our children, as well as our marriages. 
 
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– Adam Kronberger / Superintendent
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*To add this extension to your child’s Crosshill account, please contact the school for settings information. 

by Molly Dillon / Keizer Campus Principal

As a native Oregonian I am accustomed to the unpredictability and certainty of rain. Rain can be most inconvenient: it hits after I’ve just washed my car, am having a decent hair day, and particularly when I am unprepared. At this moment, however, I am appreciating the blessing of rain. After a week of issues with snow and ice, the rain is washing it away, restoring order and normalcy. Rain has the amazing ability to gently enhance or preserve life, or cause damage and devastation at any time or place. 

The rain was coming, and Noah was preparing. He did not possess the prior technology or wisdom to build an Ark, yet was chosen as God’s project manager because “Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord” Genesis 6:8 (NIV), and “he walked faithfully with God” Genesis 6:9 (NIV). He knew God’s character, listened, obeyed, trusted, and by faith alone took action. Noah chose to be different and live a righteous life, all while surrounded by wicked and sinful people. He persevered through criticism, and setbacks (I can only imagine how many times he revisited the wisdom of measure twice, cut once). When the rain was released to destroy, God’s covering was upon Noah and his family. 

A quote from my childhood is a wise reminder for us. “Plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the Ark.”  Are we preparing for rain? Rain often pours down on us in the form of financial, health, professional, spiritual, or relational challenges. Yet, when we follow Noah’s example and faithfully walk with God, we are able to weather any drizzle of discouragement, or disastrous storm. Walking in fellowship with Him through time spent in worship, prayer, and reading the Bible combine to reveal God’s heart. We are all aware that we become like those we spend the most time with. The closer and more frequently we walk with God, the more we will grow in faith, wisdom, peace, our capacity to love. 

It is inspiring and encouraging to be a part of the Crosshill community of students, staff, and families walking with God. We are a community faithfully moving forward into the plans God has for our school, obediently walking alongside each other in unity and love. By our collective example and guidance, our children are learning to know God’s character, know His voice, His Word, His love, and His specific plans for their lives. They are growing into strong witnesses for Christ in our hallways, in this community and in the world. We are truly blessed!

Like Noah, may we all live lives that find favor in the eyes of our Lord.
 
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– Molly Dillon / Keizer Campus Principal

by Adam Kronberger / Superintendent

Over the Christmas Break, I am sure that many families sat down to play some spirited games. Two of my favorite games are Catch Phrase and Guesstures. Both require quick planning and quick thinking. In Catch Phrase you must consider the members on your team and strategically provide clues that they will quickly understand. With Guesstures, the player must do a risk analysis on which words to choose and their corresponding points awarded. They must also choose an order that will provide the most time for the hardest words. These games are all about strategic thinking and using your time wisely.

During the month of January, Crosshill will focus on showing respect for others by doing the right thing at the right time. Punctuality is a practical and wise use of time. God first revealed the absolute nature of time when instructing His people to rest on the seventh day after working for six, just as He did during creation (Exodus 20). The Psalmist tells us that our days our numbered, describing the finite nature of time (Psalm 90). The apostle Paul holds us responsible for time, instructing us to gain wisdom and make the best use of our time. Even a recent article written by a Forbes contributor used the following words to describe tardiness: disrespectful, inconsiderate, loss of credibility, thinking you are a “big deal”, unprofitable, disorganized, flaky, megalomaniacal (thinking you are the center of the universe).  

“Early is on time. On time is late. And late is unacceptable.” I have found this common phrase to be quite helpful in ordering our lives. Choosing to be punctual is not making time a tyrant. Rather it is allowing time to be our servant. Punctuality allows time to serve you, rather than becoming a slave to it. Creating order in our day is not for the purpose of becoming busier, but to develop contentment and wisdom. At Crosshill, students will learn to not keep others waiting. Teachers will emphasize to them to do some work ahead of time and not wait until the last minute. Planning and keeping a daily schedule while remembering deadlines honors the Scriptures God has entrusted to us. Just as God rested on the seventh day, we need to have times of rest in which time is abundant and less urgent.

Another one of my favorite games is Rummikub. Its collection of numbers and patterns is stimulating and the ability to play off each other’s tiles keeps things competitive. Each player has a finite amount of time for their turn and must be prepared as their turn can come around unexpectedly. It’s another great exercise in time management. Still some players often take longer than their allotted time their turn allows. This also can happen in everyday life. Fortunately, in November we focused on the character trait of patience...
 
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– Adam Kronberger / Superintendent