I’m amazed at how Health class really relates to real life… I mean, of course it should, but just the things we talk about in that class really relate to life. I think it has to do with just the timing of what we learn and when I hear it, but also I’d like to say it’s also because of my teacher, Ms. Bowie. I think she’s really good at teaching and not only that, but since she’s Christian, I can relate to what she says, unlike some others. Apparently she is a leader at Alderwood Community Church (somebody correct me if the name is wrong), and is a leader for the youth group there (?).
Anyways… I really hate it how people think about sex ed when they first hear “health class.” Earlier this school year, people were asking me what I was learning in health, and before I even told them, they immediately started to guess. “Is it sex?” I answered, “NO.” I hate how this world has become so sex-oriented. Apparently my health teacher shares the same view. She talked about how commercials have now become more sexually appealing, and how commercials like those attract millions of people just watching the Superbowl. They pay millions of dollars to bring in customers. I personally think it is, in a way, a smart way to advertise, because millions of people watch the Superbowl (approx. 150 million). That doesn’t necessarily mean I like what they are doing. It’s quite the opposite. I ultimately dislike how they use sex-oriented images/videos to bring in customers. I’m not saying this is in every commercial, let alone even a half of the commercials. But my point is that some do.
Right now, we’re at the point of taking our finals for this class. After this, good-bye to health for the rest of high school (I think). But this past week has been really busy, in the sense that we were learning a lot in a short period of time. I do admit this last unit has been about sex ed, and I’ve been trying not to fall asleep in class (most people think that’s weird, because they think this is the most interesting unit, but for me, NOPE). I will also admit that I’ve failed the sex ed unit in the past two years of middle school. Funny, isn’t it? Anyways (again), we were learning about relationships; specifically building strong relationships. I thought this was very interesting, because I was thinking about my relationship with God and not about relationships with other people (the opposite sex, as you were probably thinking). I know this is just textbook stuff, but I thought it was very interesting because it really applies to life. In our health textbook, there is a picture of two people on stepping stones. Each stepping stone was its own step in a relationship. I know dating doesn’t have anything to do with our relationship with God, so I’m going past that. The next step after dating is, “DEEP FRIENDSHIP: The two people confide in, trust, and support each other. This is considered ‘going steady’.” After that, is “LIFELONG LOVE: Two people feel they can commit to each other for life…” (the rest talking about marriage).
Isn’t that how we should go with God? (Master) June talked about this during praise last Sunday, in a way. Do we know God? Or do we know about Him? It’s a tough question and I can’t find an answer even for myself. But lately, my relationship with God has been going a little downhill, so I’d go closer to the answer of about Him. Before we can truly love God, we must absolutely know Him. When we “confide in” and “trust” our God, we start to truly know Him. When we start to tell God about the shadowy parts in our lives, or to go to him and ask for support, we start to truly know Him. Of course, this is not written, but when we read the Bible and God really speaks to us, then we start to truly know Him. I’ve read the Bible, and many times, it hasn’t been a really amazing experience for me, and I’m pretty sure you haven’t, as well. I’ve had some experiences where God just simply struck my heart with his word (Psalm 46:10). When God speaks to us, reveals Himself to us, gives his Word to us, that’s when we start to truly know Him. I know I’ve used the last phrase quite a few times in this paragraph, but I’m trying to strongly portray how we get to know Him. Get the picture?
Moving on, my teacher taught us about our own relationships with people. The two words she gave to us (which will also be on our final) is “balance” and “honesty”. In her opinion, this is what our relationships and our life itself should have. The analogy she gave us for “balance” was this: You’re walking through the buffet and there are all these different types of food. You don’t only want a whole pile of mashed potatoes with gravy, but you also want to have some macaroni & cheese. You may not want to, but you need a balanced meal, so you should get some greens: salad. Not only that, but you should get a drink and after you eat everything, you get some dessert. This is the same in our lives. We not only want to make our relationship with the opposite gender (mashed potatoes with gravy) as our top priority, but we also want to have a good relationship with our family (macaroni & cheese). We also need to get some exercise (salad) and be healthy. We need to set a time for school/work (drink), as well. The dessert can be anything you love to do, such as hobbies. The main point is: we need to find a balance. She didn’t give us an analogy for “honesty”, but I’m guessing it’s pretty self explanatory. We should be honest in our relationships. How can we lie to the people we love? This honesty does not only cover lying, but our integrity in our relationships. Are we staying true to that special someone? Are we keeping ourselves pure for that special someone? Are we being truthful, keeping our morals, etc.? That’s what I believe to be honesty. This is a lot to swallow, and my fingers are tired from typing this all up, so I will type up another post later.
