Jesus’ Gift Giving and receiving gifts is something that happens year round in every country in the

world. There is even an etiquette to giving gifts in different cultures so that the spirit of the gift, and the process, are valued as they should be. For example, in Japan the emphasis is on

the act of giving, not the gift itself. Also, gifts should be presented with both hands and the receiver should deny the gift at least twice before accepting it. In China, cash gifts are discour-

aged as it shows a lack of thought or understanding of the person receiving the gift. In Saudi Arabia, gifts are best shared only between intimate friends and are of the highest quality.

Looking around during the Christmas season we all see the emphasis on gifts and, to some extent, the art of giving a gift so that it is a memorable experience for everyone. All of this action and atten-

tion to gifts at this time of year ought to point us to the ultimate gift of Jesus Christ Himself. For a lot of church-going people the gift of salvation can seem to lose its shine. We would not say this out loud

in public of course, but our lives show that we are used to the free gift of salvation. Some of us can recite Luke 2 word for word yet our passions lie in other areas of life. I would encourage you to speak to a newly converted Christian and hear how the gift of Jesus Christ changes everything!

God’s Word is clear about the nature of salvation ― it is a gift! We did nothing to earn it, we can’t start now to try to earn it and we can’t add or take away from it. Jesus did it all and our responsibility is to accept it and use it for His purposes. See the following passage from Ephesians:

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Eph. 2:8-10)

We strive to teach children about the gift of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ gift does not have special regulations that you need to receive it with two hands or deny a few times before accepting it. Jesus’ gift is for everyone who believes and repents. SCCS’s students are challenged to become workers in the Kingdom by thankfully accepting the gift of salvation.

As we put the gift of salvation in the context of the Kingdom work Jesus invites us to do, please read and remember our theme passage for the 2013―2014 school year: Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and

prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are

being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. (Eph. 2:19-22)

Blessings, Principal Ken VanMinnen

7880 Walkers DriveStrathroy, ON N7G 3H4 519-245-1934www.sccs.caoffice@sccs.ca

Providing quality, Christ-centred education

The Community ConnectionDECEMBER 2013

Please enjoy the wonderful selection of

student artwork throughout this edition!

From the BoardEntering into the joyous Christmas season we are invited to pause and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. We are encouraged again to consider the astounding gift that God gave to us in human flesh – His Son Jesus Christ. What a display of love and sacrifice His birth was and still is today! As a school community, we have the privilege of joining together in celebrating the incredible gift of Jesus and the promise of life with Him. The message of the gift of Jesus and His sacrifice for us is part of everyday learning at SCCS. Students learn that this world and everything in it belongs to God – including each one of us! Students are taught they are created in His image and for a personal relationship with Him. How transformative education is when it’s rooted in the truth of who Jesus is and who He has called us to be! Ephesians 2:19–21 tells us, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners or strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of His household, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to be-come a Holy temple in the Lord. In Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.” What a privilege it is to be part of a body of Christian believers united around a vision for Christian Education in our community! A community joined together, hearts surrendered to God, asking Him to build His Kingdom here. At SCCS, we are blessed to see examples of this humble obedience every day: in the grace students show by helping each other, in the devoted service of a school volunteer, in the compassion of a teacher, in the generosity of those sharing financial gifts, in the care of the staff team, in the faithful prayer of a school supporter, in the energetic service of a store volunteer, the list is endless. While we are each uniquely blessed and gifted with different strengths and abilities, we are called to serve God together, each doing what we can do and relying on God to do those things that only He can do. What a blessing it is to be part of a community devoted to Christ and following the Spirit’s leading! Thank you for your continued prayerful support of SCCS and commitment to Christian education in our community. With thanksgiving to God and hearts full of praise, we wish you a blessed Christmas and New Year.

Blessings and peace.

Gabriella HoogstraChairperson of the Boardhoogstragsccs@gmail.com

From Finance Development & PlanningFinance Development & Planning is tasked with the oversight and strategic direction of the fundraising activities of SCCS. This includes being aware of CRA rules around what is acceptable fundraising.

Over the years, the idea of a “volunteer program” has been brought forward numerous times. The idea would be that families could opt out of volunteer duties at SCCS, and make a voluntary payment in lieu of meeting certain volunteer hour requirements. Organizations everywhere seem to use similar models, and many find it an effective trade-off for families who determine that volunteer time requirements do not fit for their families. Finance Development and Planning did some investigation into this type of program to deter-

mine if it would be feasible to implement at SCCS. We very quickly discovered (through consultation with lawyers who are well-versed in charity law) that this type of program is not CRA compliant, and would put charitable status of SCCS at risk. By placing a dol-lar value on volunteer hours, the school would, in fact, be paying a financial benefit to families doing volunteer work at SCCS, and would have to treat this financial benefit as

income, which is taxable for the families. It did not take significant further discussion to determine that such a program would not be appropriate at SCCS.

Our committee is also in the middle of a significant analysis of the current Fundraising Strategy at SCCS. We recognize that volunteer time is a valuable resource, and we are evaluating ALL fundraising to determine whether there are opportunities to improve how we raise non-tuition funds.

From Finance Risk Management & PlanningWell, it is December, and we have laid the accountingcycle of 2012–13 to rest, are tracking financials for 2013–14 and are also actively planning for 2014–15! Preliminary budgets are already being discussed and planned; it is an inexact science, and we are continually seeking God’s leading as financial decisions are made. God has blessed SCCS in incredible ways – the past three years have seen record-breaking results from our Goods & Service Auction fundraisers, the opening of our store and the growth of SCCS from 77 families to the current level of 99. We couldn’t have imagined that we would have had two buses donated to our school, and then also had the privilege of buying a new one.

Seeing how God has blessed us in the past gives us con-fidence to trust that He will continue to bless us as we look forward. We know that there are some big projects for us in the near future; rooftop HVAC units will need replacing ($125,000), the school entrance needs to be modified to meet new accessibility legislation ($18,000), our fleet of buses is aging, and our Internet required a complete overhaul this past summer. These are big things, but God promises in His Word to take care of our needs. Continue to hold the Finance Risk Manage-ment & Planning Committee in prayer as they seek God’s leading and direction for stewardly decisions on the financial matters of the school!

www.Facebook.com/StrathroyCommunityChristianSchool

Stay Connected to the Community!Join the SCCS community online, stay up to date with happenings and show your support! ‘Like’ us on Facebook today!

Show your Support for our Students:

Shop and Donate at the Second Chance

Construction Store!

Important Dates!December 11 – Christmas Program at 1:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. December 20 – Last day of school before Christmas breakJanuary 6 - First day of school after Christmas break

’Tis the Season for VIP!

Family XYZ is a VIP family! There is nothing unusual about this family—it is probably a lot like YOUR family! They have three children attending SCCS. Their monthly budget for groceries is between $600 and $700 (that Grade 8 son they have eats A LOT) and they spend about $300 per month on fuel. They also sell about $250 per month in grocery coupons to grandma.

This chart shows their monthly VIP purchases.

So, each year, their rebate adds up to $654! Half of that rebate goes to SCCS, and the other half goes toward their tuition—so Family XYZ gets a credit of $327 on their next year’s tuition. The rebate shows up on the pledge sheet that comes home in June.

VIP doesn’t take much time for Family XYZ at all. They place their order once per month online on the easy order form that is posted at www.sccs.ca/vip.

Mr. XYZ loves that he can track his rebate every month online and then just send a cheque to school. Once in a while, he even orders some Tim Hortons coupons as a treat, and when he knew that he was going to build his deck last summer, he ordered enough coupons for Rona to cover the lumber purchase. The first month was a little bit tight on cashflow, because he did have to prepay for the coupons, but he called the bookkeeper for some advice on how to make it work, and now that they are past that first month of cashflow planning, it all works. The best thing (in Mr. XYZ’s opinion) is that he isn’t spending money that he wouldn’t otherwise spend, and it’s the big corporations that are giving the money to the school.

If your family isn’t participating in VIP yet, please contact vip@sccs.ca to get signed up. SCCS needs your participation in this fantastic program!

Store Amount Rebate % Rebate $RCSS 850 5 $42.50Canadian Tire 300 4 $12.00 Total Monthly Rebate $54.50

What is Peace?In honour of Remembrace Day, students in grades one, three and seven were asked to describe what peace is like to them, using their five senses. Here are some of the responses:

Peace smells like...• Fresh laundry• Pie that just came out of the oven• Freshly cut hay• A full breakfast cooking on the weekend Peace sounds like…• Wedding bells ringing• The oven’s timer when cookies are ready• Birds chirping in the trees• A baby’s first laugh Peace tastes like…• Hot apple pie on a cold winter’s evening• Kimchi noodles• Ice cream• Candy and chocolate Peace feels like…• A teddy bear• Love in my soul• A soft blanket• Soft, fluffy snow• Silk

Peace looks like…• A lion and a lamb laying together• A diamond• People making friends• A complete Lego set• Kids playing happily• God’s hand around His children

From the SCCStoreTwo years ago, we began the journey to discover if God

was leading SCCS to open a second-hand store in Strathroy. This wasn’t going to be just any second-hand store…we were

dreaming BIG! The vision was to open a store similar to the successful ReStore concept run by Habitat for Humanity, where

we would accept used but re-usable building and construction materials, as well as appliances and furniture. Meetings were held,

interest by potential volunteers was gauged, and MANY leaps of faith were made!

Fast forward to December 2013, and we can only praise God for the

journey it has become!

The location at 24661 Adelaide Road (at the Corner of Adelaide and Carroll) is a bustling hive of activity. Cars and trucks are coming in and out of the parking lot on a constant basis. Our volunteers (who we believe to be the BEST in the WORLD) happily accept donations at the side shed, and then happily relocate them to the 4,500 ft2 retail space for a short while, until they go back out the front door with our satisfied customers. It would be hard to say what would be the most unique item to come through the store…the wringer washer? The five-foot model sailboat? The 24-foot REAL sailboat? The pump organ? Church pews? The new refrigerator?

What we can say with confidence is that the SCCStore is having an impact on the Strathroy community. We divert countless items from the landfill, provide great friendly service to MANY custom-ers from the Strathroy and surrounding community, and raise

a significant amount of money for SCCS. Are you part of the SCCStore story? We encourage EVERY family at SCCS to

share in this work in Strathroy; our volunteers truly are the BEST in the WORLD, and they want to share their won-

derful experiences with you. There are diverse opportu-nities for volunteering available—we have something for

everyone…lifting, cleaning, laughing, moving, arrang-ing, planning, repairing, selling, smiling…which of

your talents will you share?

Auction Sets New Record!The 24th Annual Goods & Services Dinner/Auction was a night that will go down in history for Strathroy Community Christian School – more than $51,000 was raised!

The success of the event is the result of the school’s extremely generous community and a dedicated team of volunteers.

Funds will support a number of areas of the school including a new HVAC unit, technology upgrades and general school operations. Plans are already in place for next year, the event’s 25th anniversary. It will be held at the Caradoc Community Centre in Mount Brydges and there are already more than 200 of the estimated 325 seats reserved! To add your name, please call the school. Alumni are especially invited to attend.

Reading Garden Coming to LifeHave you seen our new pergola? It’s behind the school and is looking great!

With a $5,800 grant from the TD Friends of the Environment Founda-tion, this pergola will be at the heart of a beautiful garden featuring native plants and edibles – a perfect place for students to learn in the great outdoors!

Christmas for All!Grade one students collected Christmas cards for soldiers overseas. Our goal was 200 Christmas cards, and we sent more than 400! WOW!

Are you a volunteer?Amazing things happen at Strathroy Community Christian School because of our dedicated volunteers who give of their time to ensure students receive quality Christ-centred education.

If you would like to learn more about some of the many ways you can help to ensure student success, please talk with Cathy in the office.

Ready...Set...School!

All children ages 3–5 are invited to attend “Ready...Set...School!”, a free program designed to give preschool children the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the school routine.

Children will experience carpet time, craft time, snack time (provided*), and play time. They will rotate through each activity with thedirection of the classroom teacher.

Every TuesdayJanuary 21 – February 11

9 a.m. – 11 a.m.

Register today!

*A theme-based snack will be provided during each visit. If your child has allergies, please come prepared with your own snack

Online at www.sccs.caCall 519-245-1934

In person at 7880 Walkers Drive, Strathroy

“We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.”Isaiah 64:8