Update: I have changed World Race routes. Instead of leaving in June 2019, I will now be leaving in January 2020. I will be a part of a World Race Expedition route, and I am so excited to spiritually and physically challenge myself as I help serve and minister in areas of the world that are considered unreached by the Gospel. If you’d like to hear more about this route and the story behind the switch, let me know. I always love to share my heart.
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“I can’t remember the last time I wanted something as badly as I want to work at Nixa Junior High…I love these students. I love these teachers. I love how the school is led and operated. I love this community…Ultimately, where I go is up to God, but I have certainly let him know my desires. I just want to fly like an eagle.”
I wrote these words in 2016. I was a student teacher at Nixa Junior High, and this school, the people within its walls, and this community had come to be a dear part of my life. There was a job opening for the upcoming school year, and I would not have missed the chance to apply for it for anything.
I remember spending hours poring over my application.
I remember being notified that I had qualified for a phone interview.
I remember the nerves before my phone interview and the pep talk my cooperating teacher (whom has become one of my dearest friends) gave me to try to help calm my nerves before I had a meltdown.
I remember praying and praying for this school and the chance to be a part of it.
I remember being told I had been selected for an in-person interview.
I remember my interview.
I remember how much I wanted the job.
But, mostly, I remember being called down to the principal’s office and offered a job at Nixa Junior High.
Upon receiving the offer, I nearly bounced out of my seat (in front of my future boss) with excitement.
Working at this school was a dream, and my dream had come true.
And my dream has continued to come true each day I’ve walked through the doors of this school.
I love Nixa Junior High.
However, less than three years after being offered my dream job, I walked into that same office with a resignation letter in hand.
While I’ve been giving up many things in preparation for the World Race, giving up such an incredible job has been the most difficult because as I turned in that letter, I felt like I was, simultaneously, turning in a piece of my identity.
Who am I?
I am Ms. McConnell (or one of the many nicknames my students have given to me).
I am a teacher.
I am a cheerleader of students in and out of my classroom.
I am a listening ear, a voice of reason, and an encourager.
I am a giver of smiles, high-fives, and fist bumps.
As I have reflected on the past three years of pouring my heart and soul into my students, I have realized something important:
I have turned my career into my identity.
Teaching has become my life. Being a teacher has become my identity.
That’s why life without teaching makes me nervous.
However, I have an identity that is so much greater: my identity in Christ.
I am a child of God.
I am who God says I am.
I am a part of “…a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that [I] may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (NIV, 1 Peter 2:9).
This identity should come first and foremost in my life.
While my three years as a teacher have easily been the most purposeful and fulfilling years of my life and I may feel a little lost when school ends in May, I am believing that as I step away from my classroom, my purpose and fulfillment in life will only increase because my identity is not found in my career; my identity is found in Christ.
I can’t wait to see what He has in store.
As always, thank you for being a part of this journey.
Xo,
Jami
P.S. If you are interested in donating, please click the Donate! button. I am currently a little over a quarter of the way funded. While I am so humbled by the giving that has already taken place, I still have a long ways to go, so if you feel led to give, please do so, and know that I will be praying so many blessings over your life in return.
