We live in a day in which we are constantly bombarded by media. Expanded news programs leave media outlets searching for stories, and that makes it easy for us as citizens to hear a lot of bad news about our schools. If an incident occurs in one of our schools on a particular day, even down to a late school bus, by nightfall the public has heard about it. Douglas Adams was right when he said that "nothing travels faster than light, with the possible exception of bad news, which follows its own rules." In times that are tense and politically polarized nationally, it can be easy for a community to jump onto a bandwagon of negativity, even in the face of facts to the contrary. People of faith, however, should be the last ones to jump on such a bandwagon. Our faith teaches us respect for government, law, and leadership. In regard to our schools, I believe that this respect will translate into three specific actions. As people of faith, we need to be ready to speak with understanding about our schools, serve our schools, and support our schools and their leadership.

First, to speak with understanding about our schools means speaking with balance. We often speak about needs and problems within our schools, but we also need to speak about achievement. We
have just heard about many of the academic achievements of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools,
and schools are definitely to be primarily academic institutions. But we can also speak about the good our schools do for society in general. Our schools provide everything from meals to mental health services for many children and teenagers who otherwise would go hungry and under-served. For some young people, their teachers, principals, and coaches may be the only caring adults they ever see. Some of you who listen to Christian radio may have recently heard the testimonial of a man who called in to say that he had overcome the challenges of growing up in a tough neighborhood because of the efforts of his band director, who would personally pick him up and take him to and from band practice. As an adult, this man named his band director as the most significant influence on his life in terms of keeping him away from crime and other pitfalls of his neighborhood. It's easy
for us to say that this is the job parents should be doing. And trust me, I proclaim that message and
standard week after week. But sometimes we don't live in the world of "should." We have to live in the world of "what is." And in the world of "what is," our schools are standing in the gap for our children in a way that no other organization can. We need to speak positively about the good our schools do.

Secondly, we can serve. Dr. Gorman has reached out to the faith community in unprecedented
ways. He has asked us to become involved as hands-on volunteers at the sixty-two "focus" schools in the county. At First Baptist, as part of the process of developing our core values, we recently set a goal of having fifty volunteers in CMS by the end of this year. Our hosts here today, Covenant Presbyterian, have shown how a mustard seed of faith and service can grow into a great tree of impact with their volunteer program. What started as a few members of a Sunday School class volunteering at a school has grown into an expansive community ministry in the Highland area
off North Tryon Street. The lives of both children and parents in this community have been significantly improved by one church with a passion to serve.

Finally, as people of faith, we need to support our schools and their leadership. The book of
Proverbs tells us that "where there is no vision, the people perish." In other words, without leadership to cast a cohesive vision, no mission can be accomplished. Conversely, when competent leadership does cast a vision, the people's responsibility is to support it. I believe CMS has leadership that has cast a vision we can trust. The people's part of the equation, then, must be fulfilled by us, the citizens of Mecklenburg County. We need to support that vision, yes, even down to the bond package. Supporting the bonds sends a message to the leadership of CMS, as well as to the teachers who are on the front lines of this issue. That message will be that we trust them, believe in them, and want the best for them.

Most importantly, our support will send a message to our children that we, the faith community,
recognize that we are part of a larger community. Much has changed in the faith community over the last twenty-five years. Many of us have chosen to educate our children at home or in parochial schools, and these are valid choices for those parents who want their children to be taught the tenets of their faith at school. These options, however, are not possible, nor would be chosen by everyone. Without quality public education, many, many children would simply be uneducated. Ultimately that would be a far greater drain on community resources than school bonds.
And it's just not right. For us to refuse to pay for the infrastructure our school leadership has clearly shown we need-if I did the math right about one-fifth of the current CMS enrollment is housed in portable trailers-- is tantamount to turning our backs on the children in our community.

Last Christmas Eve, my family took a turn operating our "Room at the Inn" homeless shelter at First
Baptist. Because it was Christmas, my wife and daughter, with help from my wife's Sunday School
class, made fourteen gift bags for the guests who would be sleeping at our Family Life Center so that they would have presents on Christmas morning. Two of our guests were children; one in middle school, the other just starting elementary school. They were there with their families, who had fallen on hard times. Due to the holiday, they got to sleep in late. But on a normal day, these children would be up at their shelter at around five in the morning, then on a bus to another location, where they would then be picked up by the yellow school buses and taken to school. Unlike the Christmas candy that was quickly eaten, or the gloves they would soon outgrow, the gift they get at school is a gift that keeps on giving. It is a life-altering gift that has elevated generations of North Carolinians
before them. It is a gift given by a caring community. . It is the gift of a free public education. And it is a priceless gift for each child who receives it.