The first day of school

Erick Kalenga
Published: August 16, 2008

During my high school years, I remember seeing my parents getting a little bit intense while preparing for the first day of school.

There were a number of us in my family going to school at the same time. That means there were a lot of school supplies to be purchased.

Although I wasn’t excited about vacation coming to an end, I was always looking forward to the first day of school.

Before leaving home for school on that first day, my mother would make sure we were cleaned up very well and then we put on our uniform. Yes, we had to wear uniforms to school.

My mother would then help us pack our lunches.

Before she let us go to the bus stop — which was at the corner of the street — she would gather all of us and pray for us. After praying, she would give us hugs and say this a brand new year — last year is gone and today you are starting fresh.

Later on I learned that what my mother was trying to communicate to us was very simple: You cannot change the past but you can set the course of your future.

It was very easy to believe this statement due to the fact that I had a nice haircut and I was wearing a brand new uniform and a new pair of shoes.

When you walk on the school property you have the smell of everything being clean and fresh. But after a few weeks the tendency to return to the past is very much a reality.

I thank God for my parents; they always worked hard in reminding us about our purpose in life. We were not the perfect kids. And I will be very honest with you — it is much easier to go back to your past than to press on toward the future.

Pressing on toward your goal, however, is very rewarding. Like Paul said in Philippians 3:12-14, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

It is time for us as parents to encourage our children to put the past behind and to focus on what God has for us this school year, which I believe will be awesome.

This past week, I was having breakfast with Pastor Steve Campbell from Culpeper Assembly of God, and I asked him, “What would you like to say to the youth as they are getting ready for the first day of school?”

He said: “I feel in my spirit that God desires to move powerfully in the lives of the youth of our nation. I sincerely believe this can begin on the campuses of our schools. Christ will use anyone who is humble and willing to serve.”

2 Kings 22:1-2 speaks of a person by the name of Josiah who was only 8 when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem 31 years. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.

It’s very possible that a “Josiah” will be walking the hallways of our schools this year — a person who is totally devoted to making a difference for the kingdom of God.

With this in mind, you could be that special someone that God desires to use, so, as Nike says, “Just Do It.”

It is time for this generation of youth to stand up and do what is right.

Have a great school year, and may God bless you all.

Erick Kalenga is an independent columnist who appears Sundays in the Star-Exponent. He is a high school soccer coach and works with teens in a youth group setting. E-mail