Help our students raise funds for various needs in the next few weeks. We’re selling See’s Candy. These would make perfect gifts! Don’t know which kind to get? Why not purchase a 1 lb. gift certificate through us? It will be cheaper than going to the store. We will also ship anywhere in the U.S., including Alaska and Hawaii. Thank you for your consideration and if you don’t mind, please pass the word (through Twitter, Facebook, email, etc.).

You can click here to order now.

To set the pace for our school year, Bruce Fore, pastor of Midstate Baptist Church in Paso Robles, California will be preaching for our opening week school revival. Pastor Fore has a contagious love for the Lord and a passion for young people. His preaching has been mightily used of God in our school before. We are trusting the Lord to use Him again! Join us for our service at 8:30 a.m. and 2:10 p.m. everyday during the first week of school.

It does sound a little too good to be true–you can give money to help students attend private schools without really paying a dime? Yes, you can!

It’s actually really simple! Just look at last year’s tax return to find out how much you owed, give that amount to a tuition scholarship organization, then you’ll get it all back in your refund.

Perhaps you aren’t aware of how much you can donate. If you are a single, you can donate the first $500 that you owe in state tax. Couples can donate up to $1,000!

It only takes a few minutes to donate online and fill out the additional one page tax form.

Maybe they haven’t heard that the contribution deadline has been changed from December 31 to April 15, giving another four and a half months to contribute! But don’t wait too long–needy students already enrolled in private schools are depending on timely contributions to scholarship organizations in order to stay in school.

Actually, it saves the state millions of dollars because less is spent on educating a child in a private school.

Donors can give to multiple tax credits (public school, working poor, and private school) and still get the credit as long as it does not exceed their tax liability.

Many of the students at GBA are here because of the sacrifices their parents have made. Sometimes that isn’t enough though; sometimes outside help is needed to keep kids in a Christian school. What a difference it makes for a Christian child to be enrolled in a school that honors God and has a biblical worldview.

Maybe you don’t personally know a student at GBA who needs money. That’s no excuse! Fill out the form and put “needy Gateway Baptist Academy student” in the appropriate spot. There is a scholarship committee that will make sure the money gets to a worthy student.

You can help spread the word by forwarding this email or posting it on your Facebook page and talking to your friends about it!

1. Find out how much state tax you owed last year
2. Donate that amount (up to the limit) to a school tuition organization
3. Fill out AZ form 323 when you do your state taxes
4. Cash your refund check to get every dollar back

The book bags were packed
With more pencils to spare
With hopes of escaping
The teacher’s sharp stare.

When all of a sudden
I heard a great clatter
I looked out my room
To see what’s the matter.

It was mom and dad
Praying aloud on their knees
Asking God to help me
Be eager to please.

My Saviour first,
My parents next,
My teacher and classmates
To love and respect.

I went back to my room
And opened God’s Book.
I searched for a verse,
Throughout His Word I looked.

Overwhelmed, afraid,
I said in concern,
“I can’t do all that,
I’ve got so much to learn.”

It was then I came across
The words of prisoner Paul.
I learned from Philippians
Through Christ I can do all!

So when faced with a burden
Too heavy to bear,
I must remember Jesus
Has already been there.

He is faithful and just,
Forgiving and true;
His bountiful provisions
Are waiting for you.

So this night before school
I promised the Lord,
“All things through Christ”
It’s both a responsibility and reward.

Our student-athletes had planned a fundraiser at the Chandler Chick-Fil-A. The proceeds were to help pay for their athletic uniforms. However, somewhere between the time we established the date and the actual event, an earthquake devastated the country of Haiti. Unbeknown to me, our students were desiring to help but were not quite sure how to go about it. Then it was decided in a meeting with all the student athletes. Why don’t we give a portion of the proceeds to the earthquake victims of Haiti?

Let’s be honest- not every teenager thinks this way. They think about their social status, their cell phone, their hair, and so many other things- but not usually others. This was when God said to me, “Yes, it’s worth it! It’s working!” Friend, remember that “soon this life will soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.”

For some reason, extracting the square roots of large numbers was more difficult than expected. For forty minutes or so, I labored to explain and demonstrate the proper method in square root extraction. The process can be very tedious. Attention to detail is necessary. Patience is definitely helpful. Yesterday was undoubtedly one of the harder days for this class.

I wonder how we’re doing when it comes to “extracting potential” from our students. It can be frustrating at times, at the very least difficult. Yet like square roots, it can be tedious, attention to detail is needed but our patience will yield our desired fruit! Satan is as a roaring lion, seeking to devour our young people. We must do all that we can, by God’s grace, to show our students that they are loved by God and that He desires to use the potential He has instilled in each and everyone of them.

Today, my students came in with a little trepidation because of yesterday’s experience. I very patiently demonstrated the method again, making sure they understood each step. Then it happened- the light bulb came on! The smile on their faces made my day as they realized where they were stumbling and made the necessary adjustments to properly extract square roots. And that’s just math!

Imagine the eternal impact when we learn to extract the potential out of our students. So don’t delay and start today and witness the effect one young person can have when they wholly yield their life to Christ!

“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

Because of our busyness today, we have coined terms such as “time management” and “time-saving” which causes us to want a “timeout!” The truth of the matter is we can neither manage time or save it. Managing time is like managing weather- you know it’s there but there is nothing you can do to change it. Time can cannot be saved either. You cannot go down to the bank and deposit some time only to withdraw it later. You cannot say, “I’ll save an hour here so I have an hour later!” We say it, but the words do not match our definition. Just because we saved an hour today does not mean we will have twenty-five hours tomorrow.

There is only one thing you can do with time and that is to spend it. You cannot bottle it up and save it for later. You cannot stop it (though many of us would like to try). It is one of the aspects of life that you cannot correct and everything is tied to it. Think about this: how you spend your time is more important than how you spend your money; financial mistakes can be corrected, but time is gone forever.

The Psalmist prayed teach us to number our day, that we may apply our heart unto wisdom. Here are a few life-changing lessons about spending our time. But before you start, you will need a piece of paper, a blank calendar (daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly- all of which can be downloaded from the internet), a pencil, and all the other calendars you have in your house (church, school, volunteer, family, etc.)

1. Prioritize. Determine who or what is the most important to you. Actually, as a Christian, that has already been determined. Colossians 1:18 states, “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he (Christ) might have the preeminence.” (emphasis mine). All other work is assigned through His Word and by His will (i.e. our family, our service, our jobs, our possessions, etc.). Remember, the Lord wants our precious time, not our spare time.

2. Plan Your Priorities. Don’t be a slave to time by allowing it to dictate what you can and cannot accomplish. Dr. Curtis Huston used to say, “We always have time to do the things we really believe are important.” Paul said in Ephesians 5:15-17, “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise. Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Have a course of action for your day, your week, your month, and your life. Be specific and detailed- treat them like appointment because they are. (i.e. 6 a.m.- Bible reading and prayer, 6:45 a.m- review my daily and weekly schedule, 6:50 a.m.- make lunches for the kids, 7:10 a.m.- breakfast with family, etc.). Always be aware of what’s coming up, at least a week at a time. Include all personal, professional, and spiritual items on your schedule. Give more time to difficult or detailed tasks. Only use one calendar! Using multiple calendars is like reading multiple books- at the same time. Place all your tasks and events on one calendar. Make copies for the family if you need to. Color code each priority is you can (i.e. red for church, blue for family, yellow for school, pink for doctors’ appointments, etc.)

3. Progress Your Plan. It does you no good to plan something and not follow through. Lost time is never found! It has been said that what you put off today, you’ll probably put off tomorrow. Procrastination is a thief of time. The cry of “I’m just too busy” is sometimes a sign that priorities have not been planned therefore there is no progress. Isn’t it amazing that as Americans, we have more time-saving devices and less time than any other people in the world? Plan your work and work your plan!

4. Perfect Your Progress. Success is not a stationary goal but a moving target. The matter of time constantly changes and the need to reassess and reevaluate is necessary. There were plans last week that you may have to modify this week. There’s nothing wrong with that. But be honest with yourself when you ask these questions: why didn’t it work? did I commit enough effort and resources to it? did I do my best? how much time did I spend correcting the problems? did I pray over the problem? was that my plan or God’s? We already know that time is here and it’s gone. Think about this, if you don’t have time to do it right, how will you find time to do it over? Always be willing to improve and implement methods that have been proven effective. Read books on “time management” and study highly efficient people. We can always learn more!

These are just a few ways you can improve the use of your time. Why is this so important? Time is what life is made of and the quality of your life depends upon how you spend your time. Remember the words of James, “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”

The teams gathered at center field for prayer and the game began. Arrowhead Christian scored two goals- in the first two minutes!  The dejection started to set in the team’s faces until Coach Orellana yelled, “Keep your head up! Play your game!” The home crowd cheered and the team looked more determined than ever. For 80 minutes they battled. With a full team on the field, there were no substitutes and all 11 played the whole game!

A slide tackle here, a steal there, and even a body check once or twice. These Lions were not going away, they were not going to just lay down and quit! They played with intensity and a lot of heart. Six times the Lions had a shot on the goal and six times they missed. But on the seventh shot, as Aaron McClure came streaking down the middle, GBA scored their first goal of the game at the 74th minute. Watching them celebrate that well-deserved, hard-earned goal was worth it all!

I am proud of our team for this reason: when Arrowhead had scored so many goals that people on the sidelines started to lose count, it would have been easy to quit. Yet, the team kept on grinding, running, kicking, and yes, even at times, screaming! They never quit! And this quality they’ve learned on one Tuesday afternoon in October will be a characteristic that will serve them well beyond their sport-playing days.

Can you imagine what God can do with Christians who will simply refuse to quit? If they don’t quit their Bible reading, their praying, their giving, their soul winning, their church attending. Imagine what can be done for the kingdom of God! Imagine what the next generation would be like.

“Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,” Ephesians 3:20