Message from Jim Koan, Superintendent

26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one
and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing.
27 Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the LORD;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40)

Boy, I needed these verses today. I’ve had a few fitful nights of late, tossing and turning on my bed. I’ve been thinking about the challenges which lie before me, which lie before us, here at PCUS and I’ve spent some early morning hours trying to come up with solutions. I’ve spent that time also trying not lose heart…because those solutions are not coming to mind as fast as I want.

I have to admit there have been some times during my 17 years as head-of-school I’ve wanted to go ‘screaming into the night’. I’ve wanted to cry out to God “I can’t do it; I can’t take it; I won’t do it! I don’t want this responsibility!”

As I form those thoughts, God patiently but firmly says to me “Exactly! You can’t…you won’t…because this is not your school and it is not your responsibility. Now sit down, just ponder on Me, and then watch Me work. And if you want to know what I’m capable of…look up.

“Look at the sky at night. All those galaxies – I know each star by name. I named them, Jim, I placed them in orbit, and I keep them there. The moon, the sun…those are My handiwork too. I made them all, established their orbit, and keep them aligned.

“And that is not all, son. I did it all…from nothing; nothing! And I did it so you can see the path before you – not just your physical path but the path of leadership – this calling I’ve given you as husband, as father, as administrator. The path is illuminated…and it leads to me.

“So, quit your striving; quit relying on your own understanding, your own experience. Your hope is not in you…it is in Me. And I am big enough to handle it. Just look up!”