Brad and Kathy Clark didn’t want to send their children, Bethany (9) and Hayden (7), to a public school. But their church, Christ Our Savior, Rockford, Mich., didn’t have an elementary school. After a discussion with their pastor and prayerful consideration, they enrolled their kids in the local school.

“Since making that decision it has always been our hope and plan to continue to be very active in and committed to their religious education both at church and at home,” says Brad. “We also hoped that public school would allow the kids, as well as ourselves to some degree, plenty of opportunities to share our faith.”

Bethany has been taking advantage of those opportunities. Recently her teacher asked the class to write a paper on caring. Bethany submitted the following:

God cares

I listened to the whistling wind. The trees rustled in the breeze. It was another beautiful day God made for us. I put my book down and thought.

God cares for me by making the wonderful world around me. He sent his only son, Jesus, to die so we can go to heaven. He gives us everything we need and some things we want.

I decided to pray for this wonderful day. “Dear God, thank you for making our wonderful world and for saving us from our sins. Thank you for caring for me. Amen.”

I sat on my blue swing and watched the birds fly in the colorful afternoon. I smiled. I know God loves and cares for me.

“At first I feel happy and proud when the kids let their light shine at school, and then I wonder if and when it will generate a negative response,” says Kathy. But in the case of Bethany’s teacher, the opposite seemed to be true. After reading Bethany’s paper,  she wrote, “Beth, I enjoyed reading your paper about caring.”

“We feel extremely blessed to have caring teachers and staff in our school district who appreciate and even encourage such behavior,” says Brad. “It’s heartwarming to us as Christian parents!”