Jojo is a first grade student at the MSI-sponsored school in Central Java. For the last three nights he has been sick with typhus and is being treated at a local hospital. Typhus is an illness that includes symptoms of chills, delirium, high fever, pain in the joints, severe headaches, and rashes. His family has been by his side at the hospital, but they haven’t been alone. Jojo’s teacher has gone directly from school to the hospital each of the last three afternoons to sit by Jojo’s bed and to pray for him, talk to him, cheer him up and encourage his parents until well after midnight. This impressive young teacher is Xavier, a young man who is in his first year of teaching at the school but already carries an informal role of leadership.
Xavier is the first graduate of TransformNation, Mustard Seed’s teacher development program. When I was told earlier today that Xavier displayed that level of commitment to Jojo and his family, I was inspired and proud but not that surprised. One of the first lessons that our TransformNation students learn is that teaching is not just a job. Teaching is a calling to serve children and their families, and lovingly dedicating one’s life to others. Our TransformNation students are becoming remarkably skilled and creative teachers. But TransformNation is about more than great teaching. TransformNation students are learning to pattern their lives after the Master Teacher, Jesus.
Did you know that in a lifetime one teacher like Xavier can powerfully and deeply impact the lives of as many as 500 children like Jojo? One of my personal joys is knowing that there are currently seventeen TransformNation students who are following in Xavier’s footsteps. These young men and women are eager, energetic, and dedicated to becoming transformative teachers. They are excited to go and serve anywhere they are sent across this archipelago. We are in the process of recruiting ten more students to enter TransformNation in June. We are praying that God will raise up sponsors for them. Thank you to all of you who pray and give sacrificially so that TransformNation can continue to send out more teachers like Xavier to serve among the urban and rural poor of Indonesia.
Yours in Christ,
Paul Richardson
P.S. Click here to find out how you can sponsor a TransformNation teacher and launch them into a calling and career of creative ministry.
