In just a few days’ time, young people all across our state will be returning to School.

For many Monday is a return to education, enrichment, and social development. For some it’s the return to a sense of routine in your life, as you’ll be back to getting up at this time, you have to go to bed at that time. For some it’s the return of responsibility as you’ll soon have this work to finish by the weekend, and that chapter to read by the next day. For some parents it’s a day of relief, while to kids it’s a day of dread. For some kids, it’s a relief and it’s the parents who dread it.

Go figure.

No matter your outlook, school starting back means reentering a world that you only left behind for a brief window of time during the summer. It means returning to an environment where children come from vastly different backgrounds, with different opinions and beliefs, likes and interests, dislikes and hates.

I used to think going to school was hard, then I became a parent. Now I know that dropping my kids off at school is the real challenge. It’s hard to think that they’re out of my sight for several hours a day, surrounded by so many potential influences, benign…and bad.

All I can do, which I encourage everyone to do—student and parent—is pray pray pray. Give your worries to God and trust that He will take care of us, come what may.