jillianG

UPWARD AIM: Why it’s important and how to help your student have it Dr. Jordan Peterson has become a polarizing cultural figure. Though not a Christ-follower, he effectively articulates the value of the Christian worldview, often provoking strong reactions. One of his most insightful messages—found in 12 Rules for Life—is about the necessity of aiming: "We cannot navigate without something to aim at, and while in this world, we must always navigate. So, we would be wise to always aim at something." The biblical definition of sin—"to miss the mark"—reinforces our innate need to aim at something, to live our lives [...]

2025: 40 years of faithfulness has prepared us for our future   Would you rather be a mile wide and an inch deep or an inch wide and a mile deep? Dr. Ed Young, one of America’s most respected pastors, often pointed to Isaiah 54:2, saying that to be a mile wide, you must first be a mile deep. This truth sums up Indian Rocks Christian School’s first four decades. The faithfulness of patriarchal and matriarchal members has made us a mile deep and, in turn, led to our growth. Our founding pastor, Charlie Martin, and founding head of the [...]

CHRISTMAS: A Holiday for Outsiders There are three versions of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. As a fanatic of all things Christmas, I appreciate each one—the version featuring Jim Carrey as the Grinch seems to have the most quotable quotes. For example - part of the Grinch’s daily routine is going name by name through the Whoville phone book, declaring his dislike for each person. ‘Hate, hate, hate, hate. Double hate. LOATHE ENTIRELY!’ Why is the Grinch so Grinchy? Because he’s an outsider, and being an outsider hurts. We all want to be included - we want to be insiders. CS [...]

HOW TO MAKE YOUR JOY GIGANTIC What's the biggest thing you've ever seen? When I lived in Houston, I visited NASA's Johnson Space Center and saw the enormous Independence Space Shuttle—an entire shuttle sitting atop a Boeing 757! Yet even that pales compared to the Eagle Nebula. Six trillion miles from top to bottom, this vast collection of gas, stars, and stardust stretches our understanding of size and scope. The prophet Jeremiah said, “Oh Lord, you have made the heavens” (Jeremiah 32:17). Unlike building a house or baking a cake, God needed no materials to create the heavens; they came from [...]