Allow me to begin my remarks by expressing my sincere appreciation to all of you who have, in various forms, provided me with affirming comments about my retirement whether on video, your attendance at events, your cards or e-mails expressing your best wishes, or an affirming remark over the past few weeks and months. I am overwhelmed with gratitude. Please know I will be thinking of you as I sit on the deck of a mountain cabin or cruise a river in Europe, or enjoy Scotland's landscape this August. Thanks!

James Kouzes and Barry Posner, two highly respected leadership researchers and authors, make the following observation in their book entitled The Leadership Challenge. “Exemplary leaders know that if they want to gain commitment and achieve the highest standards, they must be models of the behavior they expect of others.” And what an appropriate description of Dr. Tilley’s leadership! When Mount Paran Christian School personnel meet with other educators, both locally and nationally, Dr. Tilley’s name and his profound influence are invariably the first things mentioned in each conversation. Dr. Tilley and Mount Paran Christian School are considered synonymous with one another.  And rightly so! His servant-leadership has garnered great renown. 

"Providing academic excellence in a Christ-centered environment" is the opening phrase of the Mount Paran Christian School mission statement. While we do strive to provide the most academically challenging education in Atlanta, it is our commitment to become a strong, diverse, and inclusive environment that reflects the richness of what a Christ-centered environment is and how that sets us apart. In keeping with this core truth, MPCS has come together to initiate CommUNITY.

Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. - 1 John 3:18

Wednesday, March 14, 2018 marked one month from the senseless school shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in South Florida. If you have been following the news, students in schools all over the country were joining together in remembrance of the event in a planned 17-minute walkout... many schools except ours. A group of students at Mount Paran Christian School decided to do something more — to not just walk OUTside... but to look INside.

In the early 1950’s racial tension was filling America’s borders. No part of society was untouched by this. Even our churches were shamefully segregated each Sunday. It was in these times that the Rev. Billy Graham did something unthinkable; he held crusades in the South where hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children of every race stood together and worshipped the Lord. Well as many of you know, on March 21, the Rev. Billy Graham went home to be with the Lord. He was 99. Billy Graham boldly proclaimed the Gospel for over seven decades of his life, preaching the Word of God to more people of all races than anyone else in history. In the end, Graham's legacy is one that is filled with a message of love, togetherness, and unity — a message that, even during Black History Month in 2018, is still needed.

We live in a world that is changing exponentially with each passing day - change that can bring much turbulence and great uncertainty. It is in these times that our society must have leaders who put the needs of others above themselves and provide a sense of stability and hope to those who follow. But from where do these leaders come?

 

Over the past few decades, the legendary Neiman Marcus Christmas catalog has featured some pretty amazing gifts. Their catalog in the 60’s offered his-and-her submarines for $18,000 and a hot air balloon for $6,000. In 1970, you could buy a life size Noah’s Ark, complete with some animals for $588,000. And this year is no different...you can purchase a New Year's Eve Times Square party for a measly $1.6 million.
Maybe a million dollar party isn't at the top of your wish list this year, but perhaps you have certain expectations of what you hope to find waiting for you under the Christmas tree. If you put your hope in what gifts are found under the tree, you will be very disappointed. However, if you have put your trust in the Christ of Christmas, you will never be disappointed. Look with me at the Christmas “symbols” of the gifts Paul talks about in Romans. 

Oswald Chambers wrote,

“The measure of the worth of our public activity for God is the private profound communion we have with Him. We have to pitch our tents where we shall always have quiet times with God, however noisy our times with the world may be.”

I want to tell you about one of my first memories of a veteran. When I was about six years old, I remember watching my father labor to meticulously build 40 picnic tables as one of his side jobs. He had to work these extra jobs because he took a pay cut when his company moved him to working a desk job. You see, my father served as a munitions specialist in the Air Force and was stationed in Germany around 1960. His job was to reach his arm into a nuclear warhead to arm it for daily practice runs. This exposure to radiation caused my father to lose that arm (and later his shoulder) to cancer. However, he went ahead and built those 40 picnic tables with one arm.

Have you ever felt that you weren’t good enough? That no matter how hard you tried you could never measure up? Every day, we face expectations from parents, teachers, coaches, and we often fall short. Our rooms are never clean enough, our grades are never good enough, our efforts on the field are never strong enough. As much as we aim to please, we are caught in a constant battle of meeting demands that seem to be just out of our reach. We are left with the tension of trying harder or simply giving up. However, the anniversary of the Reformation reminds us of the hope we have.

I had an occasion recently to review an article written by the American Culture and Faith Institute which has, as its sole purpose, to educate, motivate, and activate Christians to engage in cultural transformations in ways that are consistent with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The article, entitled “Americans Worried About Children,” provided a sobering analysis of a 2017 survey, which was conducted among adults in the United States. It attempted to identify the impact of the contemporary culture on the lives of our children and the views of Christians in regard to this phenomenon.

#BeKind is a focused effort to teach students to value the God-given uniqueness of every child, friend, teacher, coach, staff member, etc. It is more than just acting nicely - it is learning the core values of good character and effective interpersonal skills. It is a way to develop relationships - crossing cultural, developmental, and socioeconomic boundaries, and encouraging intentional acts of kindness, big or small. It is about being "salt and light" by modeling Christ-like character to all of those around us. You may have already heard of the #BeKind "movement" and we have now brought it to MPCS in every grade-level! 

The first few days of any school year have always presented multiple opportunities for me to witness affirmations of Mount Paran Christian School’s mission and experience. One such serendipitous moment came the first Wednesday of school. While on my way to the middle school chapel, the front office receptionist informed me that Preston Moore was here to see me. I gladly shifted direction and welcomed this young man into my office. I was honored he took time to come see his old headmaster.

Today we will experience a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon... the eclipse! Solar eclipses are an amazing phenomenon. As the moon slides between the earth and the sun, the sun’s brilliance gradually fades. Its light grows dim as if there’s a layer of dust on everything you see. The effect is most dramatic on a bright cloudless day. While the eclipse is in full force, it’s easy to forget that the sun is still there in all its force and glory.

2 Corintians 10:4-5

For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ...

Just recently I found my vision fading… blurring. Everything I was looking at was not the same. That was really hard to accept for someone who has always had better than 20/20 vision.

 

I am often asked to capture what sets MPCS apart from other educational settings. At times I find it difficult, not only to place into words the feelings and personal connections we have with our students and parents but also to comprehend how critical our Christian curriculum is to the spiritual foundation of our children.