This month we celebrate Easter, the time of year when Jesus was put to death and rose from the dead.  Besides Jesus’ birth, Easter represents the most important events in all of human history.  In this article I want to help you determine if you fully understand the importance of Easter.  This may challenge you a bit, but we all need to be challenged in order to grow.

The two key elements of Easter are Jesus’s death followed by His resurrection.  Let’s examine His death first.

The book of Romans tells us every one of us has sinned and has fallen short of God’s glory.  Because of this our relationship with God was broken.  God, who is perfect, pure, and holy, cannot have a loving relationship with a corrupt race of people.  That’s where Jesus comes in.

Jesus is called our Mediator, the person who stands between us and God.  He is the one who reconciles our relationship with God so we can become God’s people, His adopted family.

For Jesus to bridge this gap between us and God, several things had to happen.  Philippians tells us He left the riches He had in heaven with God and came to earth to live a perfect life, die for our sins, and rise from the dead so we can also have eternal life.

In Hebrews we’re told that God requires a sacrifice for sin, and that Jesus was the only perfect sacrifice because of His sinless life.  He was the only person who ever did that, and God would accept nothing less than this perfect life in exchange for ours.

In other words, our sins were so great that In God’s legal system justice had to be administered, and the justice for our sins required us to suffer the death penalty…eternal death and separation from God.  Instead of making us do this, God accepted the perfect life of His Son Jesus in our place.  That way justice was served but mercy was also given to us.

That’s not the end of the story though.  Remember, there are two elements to Easter.  We’ve discussed Jesus’ death; now let’s move on to his resurrection.

The best explanation of the importance of Jesus’ resurrection is found in 1 Corinthians chapter 15.  In that chapter the Apostle Paul describes some of the events of Jesus’ resurrection, but the most important part in my opinion is where he explains that without the resurrection our faith would be useless, even laughable.

Paul says that Christ’s resurrection is the ultimate hope for mankind.  It results in true salvation because it makes eternal life possible.  By rising from the dead Jesus defeated death permanently.  Not the death in this life, which we all will suffer, but eternal death and punishment for our sins.  Instead of this eternal death and punishment we get to spend eternity in heaven with God.  That is our ultimate destination, and we can only imagine how wonderful it will be.  This life, precious as it is, is just a warmup.

So, let me ask you, do you believe what I have written about Jesus’ death and resurrection?  If you do, and if you have asked Jesus to be Lord of your life and save you from your sins, you are a child of God with great hope, purpose, and destiny.

if you don’t believe this account, I encourage you to be open minded.  Read Romans chapters 3, 5, and 8.  Then read Hebrews all the way through.  Finish off with 1 Corinthians chapter 15.  If you have questions you can e-mail me at mcclymonds@cox.net, or you can talk to your pastor.

As always, Cindy and I appreciate you being a Busy Bees customer.

Happy Easter!

Scott McClymonds

Last month we wrote to you about a fresh start, about setting goals for the new year. With that in mind, let me tell you about one of our household’s goals. One of our goals for 2011, as well as for every year, is to be healthy. You may have heard the saying, “If you have your health, you have everything”. We may not agree with that completely, but it certainly has a lot of truth to it.

One of the most difficult aspects of being healthy is getting our kids to eat right and exercise daily. They would rather eat all sugar and dough, and watch movies or play the Wii as their activities. Given their self destructive tendencies, we decided it is our job as the parents to educate ourselves on healthy eating and exercise, then teach and enforce them with our kids.

It hasn’t been easy to change habits, but over time we have significantly decreased the amount of sugar and starches our kids eat, and increased the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables. They don’t know it yet, but their boxed cereal is about to be replaced with oatmeal and fruit in the morning.

There’s an abundance of information about healthy eating on the internet. You can find answers on just about any food you want. Just this morning we were looking up the health benefits of black strap molasses as a substitute for sugar.

Regarding exercise, one of our favorite things to do is to use Beachbody exercise videos in our home. Scott has had great results over the last year with P90X®, losing almost 20 pounds. In fact, Scott became such a believer in the Beachbody products that he became a Beachbody coach! Our five year old, Emmy, really enjoys Tony and The Kids! The Trainer does a great job of making it fun for kids, and Emmy even asks to do it without being prompted.

You may have heard that the obesity rate in America has skyrocketed in the last 20 years, and childhood obesity is a huge part of it. However, you and your family don’t have to be part of this epidemic. As part of your goals this year, we encourage you to make some health goals for you and your family. Learn to eat right, exercise more, and feel a lot better.

For more information about any of the Beach Body programs we use, or any others you may be interested in, please visit Scott’s Beach Body Coach web site at www.nwwfitness.com. Here are just a few products we enjoy:

As always, we are grateful to you for being part of our Busy Bees family, and we hope you have a healthy and fit 2011.

Thanks for reading.

Scott and Cindy McClymonds

I hope you had a nice holiday season. Our family had a great time, but it seems the days go by in a flash. At least we didn’t have the same freezing weather as last year!

Now the festivities are behind us and it’s time to focus on 2011. Do you make goals for each new year? I definitely do, but I also know there’s nothing magic about a new year. A goal can be set at any time. If I want to be a better mom or dad, why wait ‘til the new year to start doing it? If you want to further your education, what good is it to wait until the new year? Do you want to improve your golf game, or get better at whatever sport of hobby you enjoy? There’s no time like the present.

Since we can set goals and start accomplishing them at any time, why do we get so focused on starting them in a new year? My thought is that we see a new year as a way to start over. It’s a way to put the disappointments of the previous year behind us, with a resolution to improve. In short, we view it as a psychological fresh start.

Just as we like to give ourselves these psychological fresh starts, God gives us fresh starts as well. The greatest one was when He allowed Jesus to die for our sins and defeat death for us with His resurrection and ascension into Heaven. This fresh start saved us from eternal death and gave us eternal life if we believe in Christ as our Lord and Savior.

God also gives us a fresh start every time we confess our sins to Him and ask His forgiveness. In the New Testament book of First John we are told “If we say we have no sin, we are deceivers and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.”

God loves us so much that He is willing to forgive us each time we sin if only we confess it to Him and ask for His forgiveness. He is willing to give us a fresh start each and every time we sin, and we don’t even have to wait for the new year! Of course, this is not meant to encourage us to sin just so we can be forgiven more. Rather, it is meant to show us the great depth of God’s love toward us, and it’s this love we try to teach and demonstrate each day to your children. I hope you and your family experience this great love in 2011.

As always, Cindy and I are grateful to you for being part of our Busy Bees family.

Thanks for reading.

Scott McClymonds

I hope you and your family had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Our family had a great celebration as we were visited by family from Maine again this year. Too bad we can’t see them more often.

I really like the Christmas season, but have to admit I’m a bit of a fuddy duddy. Like many Christians I feel a certain “conflictedness” over the mixed messages of Christmas. There’s the message of the generic “peace on earth” as well as the fun and games message of Santa Claus. To me there’s only one real message, and that is the message of the King of the Universe, Jesus Christ, coming to Earth to forgive us of our sins.

The Apostle Paul summed it up nicely in I Timothy 1:15 when he said, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief”. The Apostle knew the real meaning of Christmas. He understood the gravity of his sin and corruption, and basically referred to himself as the worst sinner of all.

Elsewhere in the New Testament Paul talks about Jesus by saying, “Let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which above all names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father”.

Friends, that is the best news ever, and is the real message of Christmas. The King of Kings, Creator of the world, took the form of a baby, lived among mankind sinlessly, and was executed for something He didn’t do so you and I could become children of God. He loves you so much that He was willing to die for what you did so you can spend eternity with Him.

That’s the message of Christmas, and that’s why Busy Bees exists. Yes, we want to deliver an outstanding and well rounded preschool education, but most of all we want each student at Busy Bees Christian PreSchool to know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior.

We look forward to seeing you at our Christmas party on December 17th. The kids and teachers have been working super hard, and I think you will be delighted!

Scott McClymonds

Many years ago some of the first immigrants to this country set aside a day for Thanksgiving to God for His mercy.  They had undergone severe hardships and trials, even to the point of losing some of their loved ones.  Despite these frequent adverse circumstances, they still decided to thank God for bringing Him through those difficulties.  They could have cursed God for all they had suffered, but they chose to thank Him instead.

What about you?  If your family is like ours, you have suffered some difficult times, particularly during the last several years as the economy has stagnated.  Maybe you have had health problems, problems in your family, your marriage, or at work. 

There is no shortage of difficulties in our world, yet we can choose how we view our lives and the challenges that come our way.  We can take a grim view of things, be dour and depressed, or we can be encouraged and thankful knowing that we have a merciful God in heaven who loves us and intercedes on our behalf.

In his letter to the Philippians the Apostle Paul says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God: and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ”.

In our home life is not always a bowl full of cherries, but we sure do have a lot to be thankful for, most of all for a Savior who loves us and watches out for us.  We’re thankful for the peace we have because of that.  We hope you and your family have that same peace.  If you do, you have a lot to be thankful for.

We’re also thankful for you, the Busy Bees parents who let us train your children every day.  We deeply appreciate the opportunity you have given us as well as the faith you have put in us.

The fantastic team of teachers and administrators we have at Busy Bees is something we are also very thankful for.  They show love for our Busy Bees kids every day, and put their whole hearts into it.  What a blessing they are.

We hope you all have a happy and thankful Thanksgiving this month.

Sincerely,

Scott and Cindy McClymonds

On October 31st, 1517 a German monk named Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church at Wittenberg Germany. These were in response to what he perceived as abuses by the church. Luther accused the church of engaging in practices that did not conform to the Bible. At great personal risk Luther chose to stand up for what he believed, even when his very life was threatened.

We think it is important for everyone, you included, to know what they stand for, and why. You also need to know whether or not you would be willing to pay the ultimate price for what they stand for.

Consider the men and women who serve in our military. They know they stand for the protection of your freedom and mine, and they are willing to die for it.

Consider Christian missionaries who go into countries where there are severe penalties for preaching the gospel or believing in Jesus Christ. They are putting their lives on the line for their faith.

Fortunately in day to day life we are not generally faced with these life or death situations. However, the Bible tells us there is a spiritual war going on, and we are in the midst of it. We are either on God’s side or Satan’s. We hope you are on God’s side, and if you are, we hope you take the fight to the enemy every day.

You may have never thought of Busy Bees this way, but we do. Every day we are open as a Christian preschool teaching your children about Jesus, we are taking the fight to the enemy by giving your children large doses of Jesus.

That’s what we stand for, and we are very grateful you let us put our faith into practice by serving you and your families

Sincerely,
Scott and Cindy McClymonds

Thinking of Labor Day, it seems strange that we Americans celebrate our work by taking the day off.  Don’t take that the wrong way, we’re happy to have an extra day off, but not doing our labor seems an unusual way to celebrate it!

Speaking of work, the Bible has a tremendous amount to say about it.  Starting with Adam and Eve, God gave His people work to do.  One reason He did this was because He created humankind in His image.  Since God worked first by creating the world, the natural pattern was for those created in His image to follow His in footsteps by doing work as well. 

Every time God created part of the world He said, ”and it was good”.  So, God’s example is that work is to be done with excellence.  In Ephesians the Apostle Paul specifically tells us to obey those in authority over us, and work as if we are doing the will of Jesus within our hearts.  Proverbs says, “Do you see a man who is excellent in his work?  He will stand before kings.”  So, excellence should be our goal with our work.

The book of Proverbs says God will reward hard work, and the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians that we were created in Christ Jesus to do the work He determined for us to do before the world was created.  Even Jesus said He chose us to bear lasting fruit, and to do even greater work than He did!

We’ve always found it amazing that God has a plan for each of us, and has given us our work as a means to fulfill part of that plan.  Just think, the job you have was given to you as part of God’s plan, and it is helping build His kingdom. 

Sometimes our jobs don’t feel like we’re helping God’s kingdom, do they?  Instead, they sometimes feel like a grind.  We have found it very helpful to re-read the passages in the Bible that discuss the blessings of work.  It helps us regain our focus when we feel down in the dumps with our jobs.

We realize that some of you are struggling with work in this economy, and some of you may be unemployed.  Scott was laid off a number of years ago, so we sympathize with you.  It is not a fun time.  During that time of stress in our family we tried to remember God’s promises to provide for His people.  Guess what?  He did provide for us in a way we could never have imagined.  He moved us from Virginia to Arkansas, and we have met many great people as a result.  By the way, Scott found the classic book “What Color Is Your Parachute” extremely helpful in his job search.

So, in your time of unemployment or underemployment, what is God doing in your life?  If you hold onto His promises and work hard to find the right job, we can guarantee God will faithfully provide something, even if it is unexpected!

Scott and Cindy McClymonds

We hope you have had a fantastic summer, with at least a little bit of rest and relaxation. At Busy Bees we are ready to start our new school year programs, and we have never been more proud of our staff and teachers. They are the heart and soul of Busy Bees, and they work hard each and every day to make sure you and your children have a positive experience with us. Please note that this is not a commercial! We just want you to know that this is our best Busy Bees team in the almost five years we have been in Farmington, and thought they deserved some public recognition in the Busy Bees newsletter.

As the new school year begins, we always like to remind you about the purpose of Busy Bees. Busy Bees exists first and foremost to introduce Jesus Christ to your children, and teach them the fundamentals of the Christian faith. This is the mission God placed on our hearts more than five years ago, and it is absolutely the most important thing we do.

As part of this mission our goal is to hire and train teachers and staff who will love your children and be role models to them. Of course no one will be perfect, but we believe our team, led by Amanda, does a great job fulfilling this part of our mission.

In Proverbs 1:7 it says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but fools despise knowledge.” This goes to the heart of a Busy Bees education. Learning how to read, or say the alphabet is a great thing for a child to learn, but learning them within the context of Proverbs 1:7 is even better. What we mean by this is that a Busy Bees education teaches children to understand that God is in everything and involved in all aspects of our lives, not just someone we think about on Sunday mornings.

Having said this, the ultimate responsibility for your child’s understanding of God lies with you. Busy Bees is here to help you along the way, and we encourage you to help your kids learn the songs, stories, and memory verses we teach at the school.

Scott and Cindy McClymonds

“Those who desire to give up freedom in order to gain security will not
have, nor do they deserve, either one.”
– President Thomas Jefferson. 1743-1826

“There are more instances of the abridgement of the freedom of the
people by the gradual and silent encroachment of those in power,
than by violent and sudden usurpation.”
– President James Madison. 1751-1836

Dear Busy Bees Parents:

July is a month we celebrate America’s independence and freedom, but the reality is that we should celebrate it every day. Our nation is extremely blessed by God, and we have historically enjoyed freedoms which people in other countries only dream of.

As I write this to you, I have to tell you I am concerned about the future of freedom in our nation. I think we have more and more of our fellow citizens valuing security over freedom, and are willing to submit themselves to dependence on the government rather than on the opportunities in a free society. As this submission and dependence on government grows, I am afraid that our government is slowly taking away our freedoms.

Along with this trend toward dependence on the government comes a declining reliance upon God to help people. The government becomes their real god, the one they count on to provide for them, and the God of the Bible is pushed aside.

This worries me for America. I have heard that it is the fourth largest unreached nation in the world for the Gospel. That means we have the fourth highest non-Christian population in the world. We have truly lost our way as a nation, and I hope you will join me in praying for revival in America. I believe a product of greater faith in God and less reliance on government is a free society where people are willing to work hard and take risks. That’s who we are as Americans, and I hope God allows us to go back to those roots.

Incidentally, this is one reason Busy Bees exists. We believe in faith, family, and country, and we hope our Busy Bees students become strong in their faith, dedicated to their families, and defenders of their country.

In the McClymonds household we try to impart these values to our children, and the following letter I wrote to our kids may be helpful to you as you attempt to explain American freedom to your kids:

“Dear Andrew and Emmy:

I wanted to write to you about the country we live in…America. You are too young right now to appreciate what a great place it is, but I would like to spend just a few minutes telling you why it is so special, and why you should do your best to keep it that way.

America is great because of one very important word…freedom. That means we don’t have to ask anyone for permission to do the things we love to do. Think about all the wonderful things we get to do each and every day. Today we went to the park after dinner, Daddy went to work during the day, and you and Mommy worked and played at home. No one made us do any of those things, and we didn’t have to ask anyone if we could do them. Being free lets us take vacations to the wonderful Colorado mountains, play Little League baseball, eat ice cream any time we want, and go see the Buckeyes play.

Being free also lets Mommy and Daddy choose to educate you at home so you receive the type of education and training we believe will be most helpful to you. When you are older you will be free to go to the university of your choice if you want to attend college. You will also be free to choose a profession, open a business, or use your God given gifts in any other way to earn money and pay for your family.

Our freedom has let Mommy and Daddy work in different jobs, live in three states, and open several businesses. Yes, it has taken a lot of hard work, but nobody made us do it, or tried to keep us from doing any of it. We made the choices by ourselves because we are free.

Most of all, we love America because we are free to worship Jesus. America has what is called religious freedom. That means we can go to church wherever we want, study the Bible, listen to Christian music, and tell our friends about Jesus.

I’m sad to tell you that not everyone in the world lives in a place where they are free. Many boys and girls just like you live in countries where they have to get permission to do the things we do. Most of all, many boys and girls live in countries where they are not allowed to go to church or worship Jesus like we do. That is very horrible, and we should pray that God will make those people free some day.

I hope you two will always be glad you are Americans, and that you will look upon your freedom as a treasure to be protected with your lives. Many people have fought hard to make sure you are free, and I hope you will fight and work hard to protect your freedom and use it to become people who love Jesus and use the gifts He has given you to the best of your ability.

Love,

Daddy”

Thank you so much for being a Busy Bees customer. I hope you are having a great summer in our wonderful free country.

Sincerely,

Scott McClymonds

This month we celebrate what is by far my favorite holiday…Easter.  It isn’t my favorite because of the Easter bunny, Easter egg hunts, or chocolate Easter candy.  In fact, I have to admit that all that stuff drives me a little crazy because it is a distraction from the greatest event in human history.  Let me explain.

The Bible says in Romans 3:23 that all of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s requirements.  We are all unable to reach God with our own efforts.  Nothing we do can please Him.  However, He loves us so much that He decided not to leave us in that condition of separation from Him.  Romans 5: 8 shows this remarkable truth to us.  It says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”.

That, my friends, is true love, but it’s not the end of the story, because on the third day after His crucifixion He rose from the dead.  In Hebrews we’re told He is now seated in Heaven at God’s right hand, interceding for us.  That means He pleads our case to God, and God declares us not guilty because of the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ on our behalf.

See, without the death and resurrection of Jesus on Easter it would be impossible for you and I to have a relationship with God.  Our best hope would be to try to live a good life, then spend eternity separated from Him.  God is merciful, but since He is holy He cannot coexist with sin.  In His justice system sin requires a death sentence.

That’s why Easter is so important, because Jesus took that death sentence for everyone who believes in Him as the Savior of the world.  Not only that, but His resurrection permanently defeats eternal separation from God and let’s us be part of God’s family.  We are adopted into that family and have all the rights and privileges of family members, both in this life and the one to come.

So now I hope you see why I call this the most important event in human history.  Without the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ our lives would be meaningless because we would be separated from God forever and subject to His justice instead of His mercy.  With His mercy, the Bible says we are forever changed.  How can the Easter bunny compete with that?

This is why we work so hard to teach your children the basic truths of Christianity.  We want all of them to benefit from the work of Jesus so that they can know and enjoy life in its fullest and receive all the benefits of being part of God’s family.

Our Busy Bees team wishes you a Happy Easter.