Mrs. Evans Blog

We all know studies show that we spend way too much time on our phones. If someone dies, their online persona can live on for a while on the internet. If someone's social media presence were to suddenly disappear,  it could feel like a piece of that person is actually missing. There are people I only know through social media.  It feels a little bit like our internet identity is a horcrux. Does that mean we are all falling victim to some evil piece of dark magic that splits our soul into pieces? Hopefully not, but it made me think just a bit about the time I spend on my phone.  I want to make the most of our generations ability to be connected, but I pray that my soul stays whole and my priority stays in line with God's purpose for my life. 

Ezekiel 20:11-13 "I gave them my decrees and made known to them my laws," (God gave clear and consistent expectations. I would bet he made sure they were available in multiple formats so people could both read and hear them.) "for the man who obeys them will live by them." (I have way more wisdom and knowledge, not to mentioned a fully developed frontal lobe. I know the results of those bad choices already, so seriously, listen to me for your own good...) "Also I gave them my Sabbaths as a sign between us, so they would know that I the Lord made them holy." (Here I imagine God feels like I do when I spend hours planning a hands-on lesson that would make me curious and excited as a student. I bet he looked forward to the Sabbath because he imagined how excited he would be as a human to have this day to rest and appreciate what a great and loving God they have. He wants us to know he loves us and wants what's best for us, just like I want my ...

Thoughts about Jesus as a teacher... 1. A lot of people didn't and don't want to learn what Jesus has to teach. This doesn't mean they don't actually really need what Jesus has to teach. 2. Jesus valued individual conversations and relationships. (Think about the woman at the well.) 3. Jesus had tough conversations with people, but he always offered hope. The entire message of the gospel is about second chances. 4. Jesus doesn't give infinite chances. At some point, everyone will die or Jesus will come back and there will be no time left. Until that time, though, Jesus is willing to meet people wherever they are at to bring them salvation. It doesn't matter if they "get it" when they first hear his message as a child or when they are lying on their death bed at 99. 5. Jesus had no patience for leaders with no true understanding of his content. He did what he knew was best practice despite their attempts to the contrary. 6. He was the epitom...

Here are just a few examples of bad leaders from the Bible: 1)  The leaders during Jesus’ time oversaw his murder. It was tragic and awful, but it was also God’s plan being carried out exactly as he had planned. God was in control.  2)  Esther’s king had some pretty bad qualities: murderer, ignorant, mistreated women, racist, sexist, arrogant. God used Esther to save an entire group of people. If she had chickened out, the Bible says God would have found someone else to carry out his plan, but she was encouraged by her uncle who told her that maybe she was made for “such a time as this.” God was in control.   3)  King Nebuchadnezzar threatened to murder anyone who didn’t bow down and worship him and his Gods. God was in control when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were thrown into the furnace. They lived and King Nebuchadnezzar believed in their God.  4)  Consider the story of Moses. The Egyptian king was mistreating the Israelite slaves...

Losing Weight By Whitney Evans Part 1: Why I decided to make a drastic change. When I started, my confidence was low. I was self-conscious about wearing certain shirts without sleeves or shirts with fabric that clung a certain way. Every time I tried on a pair of pants and had to reluctantly banish them to the back of the closet because there was no way I would be seen out of the house in them, another little piece of me died inside as I tried to make excuses or talk myself into believing it was okay. Here’s a picture from my sister’s wedding. She got married in December of 2015. I was self-conscious in all the pictures… My husband, Jay, and I talked about needing to do something about our weight while on the trip for this wedding, but nothing changed when we got home… I remember going to the doctor for my yearly check-up the following summer. That was six months after the wedding, and I had continued to gain weight. I’ll never forget crying to Jay when I left as I reme...

"Every moment of my life God, You never left my side Every valley, every storm You were there, You were there I don't need to know what's next You'll be with me every step Through it all, through it all I can see You carry me" - From "You Carry My" by Moriah Peters Recently God has done some very specific things that have been answers to prayer. Nothing crazy, but I've prayed for guidance in my classroom or in my lessons, and God has provided me with things that were not even remotely on my radar until the moment I needed them.  Moving has brought a lot of questions to Jay and I. What are we supposed to do with the rest of our lives? Should we do our current jobs forever? Where does God want us to live and for how long? What church should we go to? What small group should we join?  If only these questions came with answers... ever. Unfortunately, I would put these in the category of God's UN revealed will for our lives. I have a feeling t...

My body literally feels heavy at the end of this week with the weight of my imperfections. I read a blog recently (I wish I had the link to put here) about the hardest part of being a teacher. This blogger said it's not the hard work or the low pay or the grading or the difficult students. The hardest part about being a teacher is never having enough. I am inclined to agree. Here are just two of the things I don't physically have enough of: 1. Time (to grade, plan, differentiate, collaborate, research, create, clean...) I do all of the above things, but not to my satisfaction. My grading, planning, differentiating, collaborating, researching, and creating are never done the best they could be. In fact, not one thing on that list is done the way it really  should  be... But I only have so much time. I know how I want them to be done, but there isn't much more frustrating than being forced to do a job you're not 100% totally proud of. 2. Uumph... This is the w...