Summit Principal's Blog

Psalm 37

²⁵ I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
or their children begging bread.

²⁶ They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be blessed.

Having just returned from a two week trip to visit our grandchildren in Pittsburgh, Providence and Salt Lake City we took the opportunity to travel on the train from Salt Lake City home to Roseville. It was an attempt to slow down a little before ending our vacation but also an opportunity to reconnect as a couple who had been immersed in our kids and grand kids worlds for the previous 12 days. I had envisioned fond memories of my youth on trains with my uncle and grandfather who were “rail fans”. I could smell the coal smoke of the locomotive and hear the “clickity clack” of the rails as the train sped down the track being gently rocked to sleep as the car rocked gently side to side.

As we traveled to the train station I thought how much I had always enjoyed our visits to the Salt Lake area because of the families you see everywhere. And the LDS Church has had a positive influence on the culture in many ways as you see a great commitment to holy living. But the underbelly of Salt Lakes inner city is just like most large cities and was in full view as we approached the Amtrak Station.

Boarding the train in Salt Lake City at 11:00 PM and getting into our sleeper car we were greeted by our “attendant” who showed us to our room. Pulling out of the city we were treated to an amazing electrical storm which kept us up until 12:30. After six great hours of sleep we awoke to experience God’s handiwork in the Nevada desert complete with silver lined clouds and the sun rising behind majestic mountains. But God’s greatest blessing was yet to come.

Moving to the dining room for breakfast we were seated with another couple who we didn’t know. It was a little strange at first because in all our previous travel we never really faced or talked with anyone. In the plane we were in a row of seats facing the backs of the next row, and not really able to talk with anyone face to face. But here we were having breakfast with a couple from Australia, a professor of Agriculture and his wife, a educational policy analyst from the State of Victoria, Australia. Once again I’m in awe as God works His plan in our lives!

Upon discovering our common interests in education an hour long conversation ensued comparing education in our two respective countries. It seems that Australia has experienced many of the same problems in public eduction that the US has! They agreed with us that the core problem is the secularization of the schools and their curriculum. Kathleen the public educational policy analyst believed that because public schools are hopelessly lost to secularization the only answer is private Christian schools that still hold to the Christian values which shaped the United States and Australia’s history.

As we travelled into Roseville I thought of what God has begun at Summit, He has started a new work to develop a new generation of Christian kids that will have a tremendous impact on our world. And He has allowed us to be a part of making it happen! What a great blessing to be used of God, it was good to be home!