Day 15 of 25 Days of Thanks

I remember my first grade Sunday School teacher: Sadie Harper. She was a wonderful older lady with orange hair who loved kids and probably had been teaching Sunday School since the beginning of time. I remember where the class met and if I close my eyes and take a deep breath I can remember the slightly musty smell of the carpet. I remember the flannel graph stories, snacks she would bring and stickered attendance charts. She made quite an impression on me.

Around the 5-6 grade Nell Cook became my Sunday School teacher. She let me help do the bulletin boards in our class, taught us about modesty and even hosted a slumber party at her house once. She was a dear friend of my mom's so I saw her outside of the classroom a lot. One thing that impressed me even then, was how busy she was with her own family, yet she made time to invest in the lives of adolescent girls.

In junior high and senior high, like most churches, we had our share of youth directors in and out. Mostly I remember Dale and Cheryl Butler who were lay people who were looking to serve the Lord full time when He opened the door. I had never been around someone so funny and so sold out. He was a shoot straight kind of guy and when he spoke...we listened.

I guess I am writing all this to say how thankful I am for faithful Sunday School teachers for my own kids now. I don't think that we as parents ever give them quite the credit they deserve. I trust when I send Savannah and Tucker to their classes on Sunday mornings that they are getting much of the same love and teaching that I received as a kid. When I think about the impact it made on my own life, I am incredibly thankful that God has placed us in a church where the teachers are prepared and equipped to share God's love with the kids in a way that they understand what they are being taught. I'm glad they are reinforcing the things we are teaching at home.

Thanks to all you Sunday School teachers out there! You're a blessing!