Roger Erdvig

A Culture of Honor at SCS

2011-09-26T16:40:00.003-04:00

One of the central values that drive us as we seek to improve our school is the establishment of an Honor-based school culture. This concept is built on the New Testament mandate to “honor one another above yourselves,” which is found in Romans 12:10. Paul’s words here, which built on Christ’s command to love one another, are a radical departure from the Old Testament understanding of honor.

In numerous passages in the Old Testament, the word honor is used in the context of paying proper respect to both God and earthly authorities. The idea of treating one another (our equals, or those “below” us) with the same deference and respect we would for, say, a king or president was nothing short of revolutionary.

We are so strongly drawn to this value not only because of it’s biblical basis, but because of how strikingly absent it is in our culture today and because of how powerfully it meets a need that all of us as humans have—the need to be valued by others. True honor is not based on another’s performance, but on the reality that they have been made in the image of God. This has profound implications for every human relationship and interaction.

So what does honor look like? You’ve likely heard me talk about the three facets of honor… treating others as special, doing more than what’s expected, and doing these with a good attitude. These short phrases are helping all of us at SCS stay focused on the pursuit of an honor-based culture, and I would ask that you would consider how they could impact your own culture there in your home. And remember, these are not simply mandates for our kids to follow; they are for us as parents as well, as we interact with each other and our children.

Would you join us this year as we recommit to pursuing the creation of a culture of honor at Smithtown Christian School? Just imagine the impact on our students’ lives if at every turn, they see true biblical honor being demonstrated before them! And just as we’re asking you to commit to such a lifestyle, we too at SCS commit to treating both you and your children with honor. From every interaction with us, you can expect that we will treat you and your children as special and valuable, we will seek to go above and beyond what is expected, and we will have a loving and godly attitude.

2008-08-04T14:37:00.006-04:00

Since moving to our new home in the rolling hills of Berks County, Pennsylvania, Lori and I have found some great routes for our morning walks. Last week, one new favorite took us past a cornfield whose stalks towered over our heads. It wasn’t noteworthy that we saw tall cornstalks; what caught my attention was how quickly they shot up.

Over the recent weeks, our area had seen almost no rain at all. However, in the several days before our walk in the shadow of the corn, it had rained practically every day.

As we continued on our walk that day, I began to think about how dependent farmers are on God’s grace, whether they acknowledge that fact or not. They can do everything right—break up the ground, plant the corn, and provide the ideal environment for growth—but without rain, nothing will flourish.

What about other vocations? Would it be helpful to acknowledge that every endeavor’s success is dependent on a mix of my effort and God’s rain, with the proportion heavily weighted in favor of the latter? Let’s test it out…

A home improvement contractor can buy all the best tools, have excellent carpentry and business skills, and advertise heavily, but unless God brings in the calls for estimates, the corn won’t grow.
An author can discipline herself to write everyday, do immaculate research, and sent out excellent query letters, but unless God brings her book to the attention of a publisher, the corn won’t grow.
A coach can be thoroughly trained at the best coach-training school, have a cutting edge website, and network with strategic people, but unless God leads clients to call, the corn won’t grow.

I think it can work… Maybe as Keith Green sang, we should “do our best, pray that it’s blessed, and he’ll take care of the rest.” Perhaps we would do well to contemplate Isaiah 26:12: “all that we have accomplished, you have done for us.”

I’ll admit I’m writing here as if I have a choice in whether or not to be dependent on God. Really, my only choice is in whether or not I’ll acknowledge that I’m dependent on God. I might as well break up the ground, plant seeds appropriate to the season and desired harvest, and do my best to nurture those seeds. And at the end of long days of labor, I can take off my hat, wipe my sweat-beaded forehead along the length of my shirt sleeve, look out over my fields and with a satisfied sigh, pray for rain.

Patience in Spring

2008-04-04T12:16:00.000-04:00

Gardens don’t spring up instantly.

It’s Spring here on Long Island, and Lori and I are very ready to get outside to enjoy the first phase of preparing our vegetable and perennial gardens for the coming season of growth. For me, there’s a romantic mystique to getting my hands dirty in the cool earth as we break up the ground and plant new seeds of expectation for this year’s beauty and bounty. I’m hardly ever happier than when we’re on hands and knees pulling up weeds, dislodging stubborn stones, or carefully edging a new flower bed.

Somehow, that romantic mystique fades away quickly in other areas of life…
• When my children don’t seem to be growing in character fast enough and I seem to spend all my time “on my knees.”
• When the weeds of my life spring up infinitely faster than anything of real fruit-bearing potential.
• When stones and other nasty obstacles appear to constantly reproduce, behaving more like rabbits than rocks.
• When a client seems to only walk carefully around the edge of a challenge, and all my coaching seems to accomplish is providing company for the endless revolutions.

In the classic children’s book series from the early 70’s, Frog and Toad, there’s one story which connects well with my experience in the areas I just listed. As the story opens, Toad visits his best friend Frog, and finds him working a meticulously manicured garden, with new sprouts pushing up through the mounds of dirt like well-ordered soldiers reporting for reveille. As Toad admires the garden, Frog suggests that he take some seeds of his own to plant at home. Toad quickly accepts the offer and excitedly runs home to plant them and watch them grow. Unfortunately for Toad, he doesn’t realize that a garden doesn’t just spring up instantly.

So Toad proceeds to plant the seeds and then do everything he can think of to make the seeds grow, including cajoling them, singing to them, standing guard over them at night and even jumping up and down in a fit of anger. (Kind of mirrors our own impatience, doesn’t it?)

Well, the seeds finally do grow, as seeds inevitably do. The irony in the story is that they begin to sprout only after Toad collapses into an exhausted heap as a result of expending all of his energy in attempting to force them to grow.

Like Toad, I often stand in the “gardens” of life, looking for sure-fire, guaranteed ways to get things to grow. And when I do, I too end up in an exhausted heap. The coming of Spring just outside my office window is reminding me again to be patient, to savor the labor in preparing gardens for growth, and most of all, to let God do his miraculous work in the seeds that I plant. And hopefully, I won’t expend so much needless energy that I sleep through the grand appearing of those first tender shoots!