The Passion Awards 2012

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen
Ephesians 3:20-21

This doxology by the Apostle Paul was the theme of the 2012 Passion Awards held at the Kansas City Convention Center on Monday night, November 12th.  The Passion Awards, sponsored by the National Christian Foundation Heartland, is a celebration of God's working in the Kansas City area by demonstrating an "unwavering passion to highlight ministries that are making huge impact for the Kingdom and provide resources for them to make an even larger impact."  On that evening $130,000 was awarded to a dozen different local ministries.

HCA was honored to be able to join Mission Southside in celebrating their award at this event.  Mission Southside was established in early 2011 by Craig Howard (joined a few months later by Steve Friesen) to demonstrate a "neighbor's heart by being a partner with churches, 'helps' organizations, businesses, and individuals to bring help and hope to those in need throughout the Johnson County area by meeting both physical and spiritual needs."  As HCA was itself in its infant stage in the fall of 2010, several HCA moms were meeting with me, praying that God would provide an ongoing local opportunity for outreach into our community.  As we prayed, God seemed to bring our hearts together and, in the spring of 2011, the first HCA students began leading a weekly Bible club in a mobile home neighborhood in Gardner.  The students quickly took "ownership" of this ministry, making sure it continued through the summers, developing new leadership as students graduated, and working closely with Mission Southside in their ongoing ministry.

Because of that close relationship, HCA students had a very special opportunity Monday night ... they had the honor of presenting the Passion Award to Mission Southside!  They had to keep this a secret from Craig and Steve, and they did a great job doing so.  In fact, Steve said he almost fell off the ramp going on stage because the tears in his eyes we hindering his vision.

It was such a joy to be able to be a part of this special night.  This was not only a celebration of God's work through the ministry of Mission Southside, but it was also a celebration of the "passion" of the HCA students (both past, present, and future) who have served faithfully alongside Mission Southside, bringing a message of Christ's love and hope to these children in Gardner.

The "Shema" at HCA

When Jesus was asked asked by the Pharisees to identify the greatest commandment, he referred to the Hebrew Shema from Deuteronomy 6 for the "first" commandment and to Leviticus 19 for the second commandment.  That complete text is our theme in chapel for this year:  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and will all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  (Matthew 22:37-39).

This past week I have had the joy to see this second commandment demonstrated in the lives of HCA students.  First, our JrHi girls VB team won their league tournament - Congratulation!  But as excited as I was to hear of their success on the court, I was even more gratified to hear of their testimony off.  I'll let their coach, Cara Fox, describe it for you:

What an incredible group of girls!  I have never coached a team who meshed as well as they did.  They were very hard workers, loved learning about the game and applying it to the way they played.  They energy they had while they played was contagious.  It was really neat to watch each girl offer something to the team.  I was so proud of them at the tournament for several reasons.  First off they played they best they had all season and they beat teams we hadn't ever beaten.  I think the coolest part though was after we won the championship game one of the first things the girls said was "Can we go ask the other team if they want to pray with us?"  It really showed me that those girls sure do have their priorities in line!

I heard later that one of the officials at the game observed that take place and was moved by that spirit.  What a wonderful testimony of the heart of Jesus - loving your neighbor as yourself.

The second example came later in the week.  You will remember that a week ago the East Coast was ravaged by Hurricane Sandy.  Many remain without power, life's necessities (food, lodging, gasoline, etc.) remain in short supply, and relief efforts are struggling to keep up.  One of our senior student leaders, Chris Earnshaw, came the office Thursday, burdened by a need do what we can do to show Christ's love to our "neighbors" on the East Cost.  He spent the next 24 hours researching a variety of opportunities to partner with organizations and then, Friday afternoon, I "just happened" to take a call from Heart to Heart International (and Olathe-based international relief organization), asking if we would help with their relief efforts.  Chris was next door talking with Rick Lukianuk and, within a few minutes, a plan was formed.  The HCA family will be collecting items over the next five days to help fill care kits for Heart to Heart. (The said their have a critical need for handtowels, shampoo, and combs.)  On Saturday, a group of HCA seniors is planning to go to the Heart to Heart warehouse in Kansas City to deliver our collected supplies and help assemble care packets.   Loving your neighbor as yourself.

It is so gratifying to see that Jesus' words in Matthew 22 are not just a theme ... they are coming alive in our students' lives!

Lesson From The Pitch

In the aftermath of last night’s gut-wrenching soccer loss to Kansas City Christian, I watched as the HCA players fought back tears (most unsuccessfully) at the realization that their season was over, short of their dream.  Players hugged teammates, coaches, and anyone else who could offer some solace and comfort.  It’s a familiar scene that we see played out 67 times every March during Madness when all but one team comes up short of the ultimate goal.  And the end comes so quickly and is so final, especially for the seniors.   Only someone who has invested so much to play at a high level can understand the emotions these players and coaches were experiencing.

As I was driving home (huddling around my car heater trying to thaw out!), the thought crossed my mind:  “Besides sports, what else in my life am I so passionate about, so invested in, that I would experience these kind of gut-level emotions?  What about important things, things of eternal value?”  As a youth, my mother (who apparently was absent the day they passed out the “competition DNA”) used to try to give me some perspective in moments like this, reminding me that “a hundred years from now, no one will really care.”  As you can imagine, while true, that was small consolation … I usually responded with something like:  “Yeah, well get back with me in a hundred years.  It really stinks right now!”

Upon further reflection, I don’t think my mother’s statement is so much a dismissal of the present as it is a challenge to consider the eternal.  Jesus, wholly God and wholly man, cried when his dear friend Lazarus died.  This was human emotion in the face of an earthly loss.  And this from someone who 1) knew the eternal perspective better than we could ever hope to and 2) knew that we has going to resurrect him in a few moments.  It’s OK to experience the kind of emotion the guys did last night … it’s just part of being human.

The question for me remains.  What of eternal value do I invest in so much that failure hurts like a loss at soccer or basketball?  I’m tempted to respond like Scarlett O’Hara - “I can't think about that right now. If I do, I'll go crazy. I'll think about that tomorrow.”  But I’m afraid God won’t let me off so easily.  Do I invest that much in my relationship with Christ?  Do I invest that much in his Word?  Do I invest that much in my family relationships?  Do I invest that much in discipleship?  These are uncomfortable questions, questions I will be answering for some time.

To the HCA soccer team:  CONGRATULATIONS on a great season.  Your hard work and commitment paid off in a big way.  I am especially thankful for the way you represented the HCA family and our Savior both on and off the pitch.

The Learning Commons & Letterboxing

Mrs. Kirby and the HCA 5th grade classes recently completed a 19th century activity (letterboxing) with a 21st century twist.  To prepare for this activity, Mrs. Kirby created a website for the Learning Commons.  The students came to class the first day and practiced using an iPad compass app to follow a set of directions Mrs. Kirby had prepared.  The next day, they hid their group's "treasure" (a stamp and a booklet) somewhere on the property.  Using the iPad compass, they created their own set of directions to find their treasure, typed those directions up on the Pages app on the iPad, and emailed that document to Mrs. Kirby who posted those directions on her website.  The next day, the students opened the website and followed the directions posted there to find the other "treasures" of the class, exchanging stamps on their booklets.  High school students from HCA West came over to help as coaches for his activity.

This is a great example of your teachers effectively integrating technology into their curriculum.  All of the elements of a technology-enhanced 21st century education were evident in this activity - creativity, collaboration, critical thinking and communication.  The whole project is summarized in the brief video below:

A Renewed Mind in Christ

The video below (first shared with us during the AXIS presentation a year ago) is a dramatic presentation about how a relationship with Christ transforms our minds.  Enjoy!

CHAMPIONS!

Congratulations to Coach Tony Felich and the HCA Chargers soccer team which recently completed a sweep of the Crossroads Conference schedule to claim the conference championship in our first year of membership!  The Chargers, 8-2 on the season, have five more games in the regular season (including one against defending state champion Kansas City Christian) before beginning KSHSAA regional play.

Remaining schedule:
      Friday, October 5th (4:30) @ Topeka Heritage
      Tuesday, October 9th (5:00) vs. Kansas City Christian @ OP Soccer complex
      Thursday, October 11th (4:30) vs. Pittsburg, KS @ Prairie Center Park
      Friday, October 12th (4:30) vs. KC Lutheran @ Lone Elm Park
      Tuesday, October 16th (5:00) vs. Gardner/Edgerton @ Prairie Center Park

Come cheer on your Chargers!  All the way to state!

Mobile Access to ParentsWeb on RenWeb

Parents and students NOW have two new ways to access ParentsWeb from their mobile devices: ParentsWeb Mobile and the RenWeb Home App!

ParentsWeb Mobile

• provides free browser-based access to ParentsWeb information from any mobile device, including an iPod, iPhone, Android Phone, iPad or Android Tablet.
• ParentsWeb Mobile allows parents and students to access Homework Assignments, Daily Grades, Lesson Plans, Calendar Events, Announcements, School Directory Listings, Report Cards, Attendance, Behavior Events and Class Schedules.  Future enhancements include Family Account Balances, Pay Now, Lunch Menus, Lunch Ordering, Newsletters, Resource Documents and Medical information.

The RenWeb Home App

• accesses the same information as ParentsWeb Mobile, while providing the additional conveniences of an App for an annual subscription of $4.99 per household.
• With the RenWeb Home App, parents and students will:
  • Always stay logged into ParentsWeb, providing instant access.
  • Navigate to their information faster.
  • Communicate easier with other school parents and faculty through their Smartphone's integration with the School Directory, allowing parents to Tap & Send emails or make phone calls instantly to directory listings.
  • Import school calendar events and student homework assignments into Personal Calendars. 

Access Instructions for ParentsWeb Mobile
To access ParentsWeb Mobile, parents simply use their mobile device to navigate to their normal ParentsWeb Login Page and they will be redirected to the ParentsWeb Mobile login page.
Access Instructions for the RenWeb Home App
The RenWeb Home App is available now in the Apple App Store for an annual subscription of $4.99 per year.  Parents should use their iPod, iPhone or iPad to search the App Store for RenWeb Home. 
RenWeb Home is offered by the App Store as an In-App Subscription. That means a parent or student installs the App for free, and then purchases an annual subscription to the App the first time they access it. That single annual subscription then covers every iPod, iPhone or iPad used by every member of the family as recorded in RenWeb.
Android Version of RenWeb Home
An Android version of the RenWeb Home will be released in the Android Market later this Fall.  For now, parents on Android devices should use ParentsWeb Mobile.

FAQ / frequently asked questions:
Q: What is the difference between ParentsWeb Mobile and the RenWeb Home App?
A: Both provide access to the same ParentsWeb information. ParentsWeb Mobile uses a free mobile-friendly browser. RenWeb Home accesses the information using an app, which provides additional features only an app can offer, including the ability for parents to:

• Always stay logged into ParentsWeb, providing instant access.
• Navigate to their information faster.
• Communicate easier with other school parents and faculty through their Smartphone’s integration with the School Directory, allowing parents to Tap & Send emails or make phone calls instantly to directory listings.
• Import school calendar events and student homework assignments into your Personal Calendars.

---

Q: Why are you charging parents a $4.99 subscription fee to access ParentsWeb using the RenWeb Home App? Shouldn’t that be included in the fees we pay RenWeb already?

A: Parents can access ParentsWeb for free using our desktop browser or through ParentsWeb Mobile. If parents want the additional convenience and features available only through an app, they have the option to purchase a subscription to the app. RenWeb uses the fees to help fund all of our mobile-friendly development, including RenWeb Home, ParentsWeb Mobile and RenWeb Staff, our iPhone/iPad app for faculty.

---

Q: Will ParentsWeb Mobile work on both an iPhone and Android phone? How about iPads and Android Tablets?
A: Yes. RenWeb Mobile works on an iPod, iPhone, Android Phone, iPad and Android Tablet.

---

Q: Why do you show the app as Free, and then ask parents to pay the subscription fee once they try to log into the app?
A: This is certainly not our choice or preference. To offer RenWeb Home as a subscription, the App Store forces us to manage the subscription “In-App”, meaning the parents must first download the app and access it before they can purchase a subscription to the app.

---

Q: Why didn’t you just allow parents to purchase the app once and avoid the subscription?
A: We evaluated this option. The problem was that every member of the family that had a separate iTunes account would have to make separate purchases of the app, forcing some families to make as many as four purchases. We felt this was excessive. By managing the app as an In-App Subscription, we were able to let all members of the family share the single subscription.