Happy January everyone! We are now settled back on campus, enjoying getting back into the groove of school. Though when we arrived there wasn’t much snow on the ground, within a few days, we were greeted back with massive snow storms. Within a week, we had accumulated almost 3 feet of snow. The last time I remember seeing this much snow was when PA had the blizzard of 96! We now regularly hear the dynamite blasts from up in the mountains as the passes are cleared and avalanches are prevented. The roofs also have to be cleared as well as they become heavy with snow. The faithful little swagger wagon succumbed to the sub-degree weather and decided she doesn’t want to start if the temperature drops below 10 degrees, which is a fairly frequent occurrence. I really don’t blame her as I’m not a big fan of running in cold weather either!

The activities around campus have changed a bit due to the weather. Instead of playing football or Frisbee in the yard, the students now go sledding, snowboarding, or skiing. Every Friday night we head down to the rodeo arena in town where they have constructed a skating rink. Everyone grabs a broom and plays broomball (basically hockey with brooms). Since the Klase girls aren’t much good at winter sports, we attempted to take a walk on our bike trail for some exercise. Much to our chagrin, the trail is now knee deep in snow, and we only succeeded in getting side swiped by a wall of muddy, slushy snow that a passing bus threw at us. It seemed to me the bus driver enjoyed our shocked squeals just a little too much!

It has been great to be back in class again. We completed a massive church history course from Bible times through the founding of America. Later this spring we will have an American history course that will complete the timeline for us. The church history course really gave me a whole new appreciation for our spiritual heritage. The stories of the martyrs throughout the centuries were a sobering reminder of the cost that is sometimes necessary when serving Christ. This week’s course is “The Theology of God’s Will.” We have been learning many wonderful principles for God-honoring decision making. I really wish I learned all this when I was 19! What a blessing for so many of these students to be hearing this at such a pivotal point in their young lives (not that I’m counting myself old yet, but they’ll be 8 years ahead of me on this for sure!).

In the area of service, we were able to serve the local community this month by helping to host a “Right to Life” vigil in the town square on the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday (1/22/12). We made cookies, shoveled the town square, and then held a service there to raise awareness for the 1.2 million abortions that take place in the U.S. each year. It is hard to believe that our nation ranks 3rd in the world for the most abortions, following just China and Russia. It was encouraging to see so many local churches unite for this event and I was privileged to be able to participate.

It is hard to believe that by the next time I write, it will almost be time for spring break! Our time here is slipping away much too quickly, so we try to soak up as much as we possibly can each day. Hope you all have a wonderful February!

About the Author, Sarah Klase

Sarah Klase is an Advisor Assistant at Bridgeway Academy and has decided to embark on a 1-year creation studies adventure at Jackson Hole Bible College in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Sarah, 27, holds an Associate’s degree in Biblical Studies from Moody Bible Institute and fell in love with JHBC 3 years ago when she visited the campus with one of her sisters. This year Sarah and her two younger sisters decided to take a year out of their lives to experience an amazing adventure complete with cross-country driving, interesting field visits, archeological digs and more! Tune in each month as Sarah blogs about her travels, experiences and learning’s.