We live next to one of the high schools here in Philly. Almost everyday I watch kids running from the school. They are running not because anything is wrong but because they saw their break and are running so they don't get caught skipping school. I sometimes see them in the morning from my window or other times they run right past me on my way to Cast Your Cares. I always just shake my head and think to myself "what a shame". I wonder why in the world is it so easy for so many kids to skip school everyday and why there is no one trying to keep these kids in school. I remember growing up, I couldn't wait to leave either, when that bell rang at 3 pm I was one of the first ones out of the school. But what breaks my heart is the brokenness that I see in these kids. Around half of the high school students in Philadelphia drop out school and out of the ones who do graduate the percentage of those who go to college is not very high.
One of the neat things that goes on in the city to fight this brokenness is after school programs. Anna has been working at an after school program here in Philly for over 5 years now. She has worked with kids of all ages from elementary school to high school. I have been a few times over the years and they can be a little rough but she loves them and wants to see their lives changed not only in their school work but have their lives as a whole changed by Jesus. Our hope is always to see the Lord redeem the brokenness all around us, whether it be in our own lives or in those lives around us. The Lord has given Anna a huge heart for kids of her after school program. She always does the best she can with the strength He has given her, whether it is helping the kids with their homework, keeping them in line, loving them, playing with them, and even teaching them about the love God has shown us through Jesus. She has seen success and failures over the years but has always maintained that it is all worth it because whatever is done for God's glory is always worth it.
Yes there is brokenness in the schools here in Philly but I praise God for the work He is doing and the wonderful people He has placed in it to show His redeeming power and love. We all live in a world that is broken and sinful, we all experience it no matter where we live, in the cities or in the suburbs, in our own lives or in others. The one thing that always blows me away is God's continue redeeming work wherever that may be.
