Newsletter Articles - Featured

Work & Rest - A Core Value at North Star

By: Brandi Buerstatte

Work and Rest: A Sacred Balance

The Bible calls us to be servants and to obey God’s commands. From the very beginning, God established a rhythm—creating day and night, the sun and stars, and breathing life into existence. And on the seventh day, He rested. At North Star, we believe in the importance of balancing diligent work with intentional rest. We strive for excellence and mastery in learning while encouraging curiosity and broad thinking. At the same time, we emphasize the necessity of rest—making space to connect with God, nurture relationships, and honor the Sabbath.

The Sabbath may look different for each individual and family, but its significance remains the same: obedience and renewal.

A Culture of Restful Learning

At North Star, we intentionally incorporate times of rest into our educational rhythm—through at-home learning days on Fridays, Enrichment Weeks, and school breaks. Our approach is rooted in the concept of Scholé, which means "leisure learning." Scholé invites us to seek Goodness, Truth, and Beauty in all we do, both inside and outside the classroom.

One example of this approach is Mrs. Matlin’s Beauty of Math initiative. Over the next few weeks, each math class will embark on a journey to explore how numbers and nature intertwine. Have you ever paused to admire the intricate patterns of a flower? Counted its petals? Observed the symmetry in creation? God has woven numbers into nature in a breathtaking way, and we encourage our students to slow down and notice these beautiful connections.

Fridays: A Gift of Growth

Our Learning at Home on Fridays are a gift. They provide structured learning while allowing space for personal growth, discipline, and meaningful family time. We partner with parents to equip, form, and educate children—not only in knowledge but in God’s truth and the shaping of their hearts, minds, and souls.

Additionally, we have built two Enrichment Weeks into the school year to provide families with the margin to travel, visit museums, explore hobbies, or dig deeper into areas of personal interest. Learning is not confined to a classroom; it happens everywhere—structured and unstructured, planned and spontaneous. When we slow down, we see the Goodness, Truth, and Beauty that surrounds us.

The Privilege of Work

The word work can sometimes carry a negative connotation—associated with obligation, monotony, or pressure. But at North Star, we see work as a privilege. It is an opportunity to grow in knowledge, deepen our faith, and find joy in the process.

Last year, on the first day of school, a kindergartener hopped into the car with a beaming smile. When her mother asked, “How was your first day of school?” she enthusiastically replied, “It was the best day of my life!” Imagine if we all embraced work with that same authentic joy. Work is not just something we do—it is something we create. It builds community, strengthens relationships, and brings fulfillment.

The Sacred Call to Rest

In today’s fast-paced world, rest is often misunderstood. It can be seen as laziness or lack of ambition. But at North Star, we honor God’s command to rest. True rest is not idle; it is intentional. It allows us to recognize our limits—physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually—and to restore our souls.

God deeply desires for us to abide in Him, to step away from distractions, and to be renewed in our faith. As we embrace both work and rest, may we find joy in our labor and peace in our Sabbath, always seeking to glorify Him in all that we do.

©Brandi Buerstatte | This article was first published in North Star February Newsletter Edition, March 2025.

You May Not Know…

Black History Month and Frederick Douglass
By: Kristy Adjei

Many are aware that February is Black History Month, but have you ever practiced the intellectual virtue of Curiosity and Intellectual Thoroughness and asked why this is the case? Black History Month actually started as Negro History Week in 1926 by Carter G. Wilson. Wilson was an American historian, journalist, and founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. He started Negro History Week to honor and highlight contributions that black Americans had made to American culture. The week surrounding February 12th and 14th was chosen by Wilson to honor both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, since their birthdays fall in this range (Lincoln’s is February 12th, and Douglass’s is recognized as February 14th). In 1976, Negro History Week was extended to Black History Month.

However, in actuality, Douglass’s birthday may not have been on February 14th - Valentine’s Day- or even in the month of February at all! Later in life, he chose this day as his birthday because he did not know his actual birthday. He had specific memories of his mother calling him her “Little Valentine” during the few sporadic times he saw her during his childhood. He picked St. Valentine’s Day as his birthday to honor her.

At North Star, we acknowledge not only Valentine’s Day on February 14th, but also Frederick Douglass, since the school was named after his abolitionist newspaper, The North Star. Douglass was an exemplar of all of the intellectual virtues and learning dispositions we envision for our students. Additionally, he did not see his education as a vehicle for just his own advancement. He equipped himself so he could equip others. This is the vision we have for our students at North Star and why we want our students, teachers and families to know his compelling life story. So, next year, perhaps you can join North Star in saying, “Happy Douglass Day” in addition to “Happy Valentine’s Day”.

©Kristy Adjei | This article was first published in North Star February Newsletter Edition, February 2025.

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Obey and Abide

by: Kristy Adjei

For my waking breath, for my daily bread

I depend on You, I depend on You

For the sun to rise, for my sleep at night

I depend on You, I depend on You

You're the way, the truth, and the life

You're the well that never runs dry

I'm the branch, and You are the vine

Draw me close and teach me to abide

These are lyrics from the song, Abide, by Aaron Williams (full lyrics are here). Since hearing this song in church about a year ago, it has become my drive-to-school anthem. The general theme of the song is Jesus’s “I am the Vine” discourse to his disciples recorded in John 15:1-17. The cornerstone verse of this passage likely is verse 5, when Jesus tells His disciples, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” One of the reasons that this song stood out to me when I heard it was because the faculty at North Star spent the entire year last year in our weekly meetings discussing and picking apart what this passage means. Is abiding active, or passive? What does abiding look like in the life of the believer? How does abiding affect our prayer life, our interactions with the truth of the Scripture, and how we look at the Gospel, our rest, and our work? What does it mean to depend - to literally hang from something? To understand why we devoted the year to this passage, you would have to rewind even further to the summer of 2023. I felt the Lord impressing upon me that this passage should be the staff theme for the year - and then He confirmed this in a variety of ways only He can. Since that time, the theme of obedience, abiding, and dependence has been part of the fabric of North Star.

Rewinding even further yet, the project of starting, and running a school lends itself to many situations and circumstances when these themes are not just talked about, but are lived out. One picture of how practically living in obedience, abiding, and dependence feels is painted in the book Hinds Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard. In the end of the book, the author describes the experience of going to the Sesselbahn in the Swiss Alps and seeing the chair lift (presumably for the first time). Word pictures such as “fragile…unenclosed…fearsome abyss…chairs with no sides or backs - only a few bars for support…no earthly ground of support…nothing beneath except broken bones and death” are used to describe the hanging chairs. However, she then moves to describe the “invisible power” making the chair lift work - the cable; as well as the pinnacle of the mountain with its amazing view. The author uses this visual to illustrate the spiritual reality of obedience, faith, trust, dependence, and abiding that we are called to as believers in Christ. “One had only to be willing to trust the invisible power, sit down on a chair, and abandon oneself completely…But, oh, how terrifying that choice looked to me!”

Quite honestly, much of the school has felt this way. It became a matter of obedience to take the very first steps to start the school four years ago, and has been a story of obedience, and abiding in the power and promises of Christ and His leading since that time. Time and time again, we find ourselves in the position where “there would be nothing to do but rest in the chair and (be) carried upward…How easy to get in a panic and fall!” There have been many situations and circumstances at North Star when I feel like we are in “mid-dangle” and I think, “I don’t like this! I don’t feel safe! I want to get off this thing! I want to go where it is safe. I don’t want to think this hard, or have to pray this hard, or depend this much.” Doubts also inevitably creep in, adding to the mix of fears, worries, and panic. At those times, God confirms that this is exactly where He wants me- where He wants us. He wants us living in this level of obedience, this level of dependence, this level of abiding, and this level of resting and trusting - that is when we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He is the one doing the work. Apart from Him, we can do nothing. He is the one working it out. Hurnard sums this up by saying, “The traveler resting on and in the promise does nothing but remain in it. Having trusted the promise enough to risk everything upon it, up one goes! And no power on earth can hinder arrival at the consummation of the promise and its perfect fulfillment. Though we may seem to meet the most horrifying precipices confronting us, and abysses far below which we could never hope to ascend nor pass over in our own strength, yet in the spiritual Sesselbahn of faith and obedience, everything is triumphantly surmounted.” What a beautiful - and accurate - picture of living in obedience and abiding in Christ.

God has built North Star through situations that demand this level of obedience and abiding, but God is building more than a school. He is building our faith, our prayer life, and our dependence upon Him. God’s desire in all this is that we would see more fully the beauty, power, strength, and trustworthiness of His character, and what is possible when we abide in Him. Knowing and experiencing this is not only a lesson we have learned while being involved in this endeavor, but it is also what we desire students, families, and faculty members to walk in as they go through life, and why “Obey and Abide” were officially established as Core Values at North Star.

Ultimately, however, this obedience and abiding is not about situations nor circumstances - making budget decisions, finding teachers, or a plethora of other big and little things that have “worked out”. Situations and circumstances will fade, but are used by Christ to shape us and mold us in eternal ways. Our lives - our eternal lives - are dependent upon Christ. The Aaron Williams song continues with a line that states,

For eternal life to be raised with Christ

I depend on You, I depend on You

A declaration and a prayer from the song which I sing over myself as I make my way to school each morning is, “Lord, I depend on You, and Teach me to Abide!” And I end with a challenge: How can you depend on the Lord and what can you ask Him to use to teach you to abide as you go through your life circumstances?

©Kristy Adjei | This article was first published in North Star January Newsletter Edition, January 2025.

The Mission of North Star

By: Julie Dockery

I recently attended a conference where the speaker asked all of the conference attendees to stand up and start walking. We all rose to our feet with hesitation, everyone scanning the neighboring faces to see if anyone else in the room could offer more clarity or instruction on where we should walk, or what direction we should go. Many people kind of shuffled one direction or the other, paralyzed by uncertainty or fear we might, ‘walk the wrong way.’ The leader then instructed the room to turn to the right and take 3 steps. The hesitation that had first gripped the room was gone, the scanning looks for greater clarity, gone. We all confidently turned to the right and took 3 steps. The purpose of the exercise was to illustrate that without clear direction people don’t know where they are supposed to go. The session that followed was constructed around clarity of mission.

The North Star mission statement has always been a robust explanation of our purpose and vision for our students. Our mission has not changed. But we did feel the need to crystalize the more expanded version into a soundbite that our faculty, families and students can say with clarity and conviction. The ability to articulate the mission of North Star with one sentence will help us walk in a unified direction and with a unified purpose.

North Star Classical Christian School exists so that students are anchored in the hope of Gospel, equipped by the classical method and prepared to lead and live wisely.

Anchored in the Hope of the Gospel-

When I think about what it means to anchor our students in the hope of the Gospel, three things come to mind. First, is the image of a boat. Much like the picture above, the ferocity of the wind and the waves toss the boat, but it will not float away or capsize when the storms get rough, it is anchored. Secondly, when I think about the kind of anchor we are giving our students, we are not asking what we are anchoring them to, but Who they are anchored to. It is our primary aim, goal and prayer that students would be reconciled to God through a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Thirdly, we believe that the Gospel is not only good news for our salvation, but that it shows us what a redeemed life looks like. We believe that the relationship students have with Jesus will help them answer the most important questions of life: who is God? and who am I in light of who God is? At North Star we are committed to students knowing Christ in a way that provides an anchor to them, not only to remain steady in a current storm tossed-world, but that their souls are anchored in a world that is not their home.\

Equipped by the Classical Method-

The classical method of education is the tool that we use in order to form a certain kind of person. Our vision for the North Star graduate is that they would have a purposeful perspective, compelling communication, and a critical mind. We believe that the classical method is the best soil to create this kind of fruit. I recently shared with the students that I was taking pottery lessons. When you are preparing to begin this process, you start with just a big lump of clay, and when you sit down at the wheel you have an idea of the kind of bowl or mug or pot you are hoping to create. I told the students we don’t want any of them just to be a lump of clay, we are approaching their education and formation with intentionality. The classical method uses the stages of grammar, logic, and rhetoric that parallels a students’ natural grain of learning. We start with the end in mind and use the subjects of study as tools to form a certain kind of person: one who observes and listens with discernment, thinks critically and logically, reasons persuasively and precisely, and clearly articulates goodness and truth compassionately and humbly for the glory of God and the good of their neighbor.

Prepared to Lead and Live Wisely-

At North Star students are given the opportunity to lead in all kinds of ways. You will see a line leader, or a hymn leader, a pledge leader or a lunch leader. You will see an 8th grader leading a kindergartener in reading a book or a 10th grader leading a 5th grader in a discussion on what it means to be curious. We want students to see leadership in many contexts, so that when they embrace life beyond our doors they are prepared to lead in their home, or community, their church, or our nation. Our prayer is that their leadership, in whatever sphere of influence they find themselves, would be paired with wisdom from above. James 3:17-18 says, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

At North Star we recognize that ultimately we cannot anchor the souls of our students in the Gospel, we cannot make the fruit in their lives grow and we cannot squeeze wisdom out of them. However, we can share the Gospel with them; we can equip them with the time-tested classical method; and we can pray that they will become people who lead and live wisely. This is the mission of North Star.

©Julie Dockery | This article was first published in North Star September Newsletter Edition, September 2024.

Remembering the Essentials

By: Julie Dockery

The month of May is an academic roller coaster. Final Exams, End-Of-Year parties, Graduation Ceremonies are but a few of the numerous events that dot the calendar. As someone who loves both a to-do list and a large gathering, I enjoy the hustle and bustle. That said, the energy can turn frenetic. In the midst of all that’s going on, it’s important to remember the essentials. For that reason, I wanted to reflect on four areas of focus for North Star students. These four areas help shape what we do at North Star – from curricular choices, to teacher hiring, to community events and everything in between.

1. Jesus - As our students proclaim at the closing of each day, “He is before all things, and in Him, all things hold together.” If we miss everything else, we can’t miss that.

Every Monday morning, at North Star, a small group of faithful moms gathers to pray for the school. They recently shared with me their extensive prayer list, and I was blown away by the specificity of the petitions they bring before the Lord each week. ‘Open __(child’s name)_ eyes and turn him/her from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that he/she may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus.’ (Acts 26:18) They say those words over every student – by name. These moms embody what our school is all about. Above anything else, our deepest desire for every North Star student is that they would understand that their sin separates them from living in right relationship with God, and that their belief in Christ’s death on their behalf, will restore that relationship with a holy God – granting them forgiveness of sins and ultimately eternal life. Following the Apostle John, our hope is that they would “believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing [they] may have life in his name.” (John 20:31)

2. God’s Word and God’s World - At the opening of every day at North Star, our students recite our creed which contains these words: “God is the source and purpose of all learning. His fingerprints of goodness, truth, and beauty are on all that we learn and encounter. His world is one of design, order, and purpose. All learning starts from Him, points to Him, leads to Him and reflects Him.”

God has given us the incredible gift of time – the opportunity to fill our minds with the knowledge of His creation and our hearts with the treasures of His Word. It is our hope to bend our students’ hearts around rightly ordered affections in order to be people who reflect God’s glory. We want students to know Christ through Scripture. Each year, we pick a book of the Bible for the students to slowly and intentionally work through. More than mere data dumping, we want students to taste and see the beauty of the Lord through their engagement with Scripture. Eugene Peterson uses John’s metaphor in Revelation 10:9 “I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll; and he said to me, “Take it, and eat;” as a way of helping us understand ‘Holy Scriptures and how the holy community has learned to eat them, receive them in a way that forms us into Christians, men and women created and saved and blessed by God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.”

Deep knowledge of God’s world combined with rich experiences in His Word will shape our students toward their God-given purpose.

3. The Beauty of Community- During my day at North Star, it is not uncommon for me to see a 9th grade student stop to help a kindergartener tie their shoe, or watch an intergenerational game of, ‘What Time is it Mr. Fox?,’ at recess. These 9th graders take after their teachers, who invest relationally in their lives. A virtuous cycle of conversation and care ensues. Each student here is valued for who they are as an individual, and also pushed to see themselves in light of a broader community. That last part can be difficult. Living in community is challenging. I have had numerous conversations with students this year about what it looks like to, ‘consider others better than yourself,’ (Phil. 2:3) or to ‘only speak what is helpful for building others up,’ (Eph. 4:29) We want our students to know what it means to be loved in a community, and we want them to know it’s messy – it means hard conversations and forgiveness and reconciliation, just what Jesus has shown to us.

4. How to be Sturdy- At a recent faculty meeting, our 1st and 2nd grade teacher Linda Wolfe shared about an event in her class. She administered an assignment involving students solving a phonics riddle. One by one, each student came up to her desk to check their paper, and one by one, they were asked to reevaluate their incorrect answers back at their desks. They struggled – and struggled and struggled. Some of them gave up, believing that there wasn’t a right answer. It was an impossible task. How could they do it? Mrs. Wolfe patiently let them sit in the struggle. And then one student figured it out, which sparked some encouragement for the others to keep trying! Finally, one by one, they each figured out the ‘unsolvable,’ problem. At the end of the day, these 1st and 2nd graders all agreed that it was much better not to have received the answer from the teacher. The joy, in the end, was much greater working to get the answer on their own. At North Star, we call that relentless drive to overcome obstacles tenacity. We want our students to be sturdy, in order to develop the kind of character that will not be ‘swayed by every wind of doctrine,’ (Eph. 4:14) and the kind of character that is able to ‘stand firm.’ (Eph. 6:11)

By focusing on these four essential areas, our prayer is that North Star students will be shaped for a life that extends far beyond the walls of our school. The following story demonstrates that some things are indeed sinking in.

Our 7th/8th grade Latin teacher Kristy Adjei came into the office earlier this week to tell me that in class she had miscommunicated about an assignment with one of her students. She was visibly hard on herself in front of the class. She told him that she felt like a failure. He told her in response, “we are unconditionally loved not based on how we perform, but because of who God is.” Those words are taken from the North Star Creed. This 8th grade boy was quoting back to his teacher the prayer we pray for each of our students, that they would know God and His unconditional love for them.

©Julie Dockery | This article was first published in North Star May Newsletter Edition, May 2024.

Julie Dockery

Head of School

William Adjei

Board Member

Embracing Courage and Tenacity

By: William Adjei

“Be strong, Polycarp, and play the man!”(1,2 )

As a member of North Star’s board, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing the school’s progression from its humble beginnings to the thriving community it is today, nearing the completion of its third year. At the heart of our school’s mission lies the enduring virtues of courage and tenacity, which have guided us through both triumphs and trials, shaping our identity and defining our purpose.

Courage has deep roots in language and culture, tracing back to the Latin word "cor," which means "heart." Courage (or fortitude) was one of the four cardinal virtues of mind and character (the others were wisdom, justice and moderation), formulated to guide individuals in leading a morally upright life and making ethical decisions, and to serve as foundational principles that other virtues depend on (3).

Tenacity stems from the Latin word "tenax," meaning "holding fast", emphasizing attributes like determination, persistence, and resilience. It reflects the intention, effort, commitment and perseverance in confronting challenges, not only of great daring, but also of everyday commitments, responsibilities and tasks.

Perspectives Across Time:

Various thinkers in history have offered explanations of courage and tenacity, drawing from both biblical teachings and philosophy. Augustine, one of the most influential early Christian theologians, emphasized the importance of courage as a virtue rooted in faith, proposing that true courage is not merely the absence of fear, but the willingness to act boldly in obedience to God, even in the face of daunting temptation and persecution (4). C.S. Lewis explored the concept of courage in his writings, believing that true courage arises from a deep sense of faith and trust in God's grace, empowering believers to stand firm when confronted by spiritual challenges (5). Contemporary author Angela Duckworth, in her book titled "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance" delves into her research that suggests that talent alone is not enough to guarantee success. Instead, the combination of passion and perseverance ultimately enables individuals to stay committed to their goals despite obstacles and setbacks, to maintain focus and effort over time, and to continually improve and grow.

More than a few notable figures have exemplified courage and tenacity. Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna and a significant figure in early Christianity, was arrested and brought to an arena to be executed for his faith. As he was being taken into the arena, a voice from heaven was heard saying, “Be strong, Polycarp, and play the man!” Despite being given multiple opportunities to deny his faith and save his life, Polycarp steadfastly refused, demonstrating his unwavering commitment to Christ in the face of martyrdom (6). Mother Teresa, the beloved Catholic nun and missionary, embodied courage and tenacity in her tireless service to the poor and marginalized. Also, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor and theologian who was executed by the Nazis, exemplified courage and tenacity in his own life, embracing suffering and sacrifice (7). Their insights remind us that true courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to act in spite of it, guided by faith and conviction.

Jesus, Our Ultimate Example

Jesus' death and resurrection stands out as the foremost instance of courage and tenacity in several profound ways. Jesus demonstrated unparalleled resolve in facing his impending death on the cross. Despite knowing the agony and suffering that awaited him, he willingly embraced the path set before him, out of love for humanity and obedience to God's will ("And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." - Philippians 2:8). Throughout his trial, crucifixion, and the agonizing hours on the cross, Jesus displayed remarkable tenacity in enduring unimaginable spiritual, physical and emotional pain. His steadfastness and resolve to fulfill his mission was challenged, but ultimately uncompromised by the intense suffering he endured. What was his source of strength and how did Jesus and these heroes of the ages muster the courage and tenacity to persevere through their difficulties? What might we be able to glean and apply to our own contexts today? What do courage and tenacity have to do with classical christian education in general and North Star specifically?

Living These Out:

Martin Luther King Jr once said “I submit to you that if a man hasn’t discovered something he is willing to die for, he isn’t fit to live”. (8) He was right. The ability to exercise courage and tenacity hinges on being clear about one’s own convictions or beliefs. Like the foundation of a building without which it cannot stand, commitment to virtue in any endeavor is a necessary beginning. For example, this would mean students thinking carefully about and committing to pursuing truth and wisdom in learning, managers choosing to always lead and serve with integrity even when it is disadvantageous, or for those in a committed relationship resolving to be faithful. So first, take a stand.

Second, persistently embrace courage to cultivate inner resilience and endurance. The process of growing in wisdom and wonder requires and further cultivates the boldness to speak up, willingness to try new things even when one is uncertain, and bravery to take on difficult or complex endeavors. Consistent determination over time is key for both developing the self-reinforcing skill of perseverance, and ultimately, overcoming challenges.

Finally, never stop learning and following those who have exemplified courage and tenacity. Incorporate their insights into your own life and endeavors. Reflect on how their approaches to courage and tenacity can be applied in your own personal, academic, and professional contexts. It may well be that your own example becomes the inspiration for someone else in their struggle.

Courage and tenacity are ways to approach all of life, not just qualities to be displayed on special occasions. C.S. Lewis’s quote “Courage is not simply one of the virtues but the form of every virtue at the testing point” (9) is helpful here. As we reflect on the legacy of courage and tenacity at North Star, we are reminded that these virtues are more than ideals to aspire to. They ought to be woven into the fabric of everyday life, guiding and shaping our pursuit of truth, wonder, wisdom, and service to others. At North Star, we’re not just teaching subjects, we’re shaping futures—one courageous, tenacious heart at a time.

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(1) Polycarp's Martyrdom | Christian History Institute: https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/study/module/polycarp
(2) The Early Church Fathers Series: Polycarp of Smyrna: https://www.joeledmundanderson.com/the-early-church-fathers-series-polycarp-of-smyrna-part-3/
(3) Plato proposed the Cardinal virtues in Republic Book IV, 426-435, and they were further developed by Aristotle in The Nicomachean Ethics

(4) Augustine, "The City of God" (De Civitate Dei), Book XIX, Chapters 4-21; and , "Confessions" (Confessiones), Book VI, Chapters 11-13

(5) Lewis, C.S. "The Screwtape Letters," HarperCollins Publishers, 1942; "Mere Christianity," HarperOne, 1952; "The Chronicles of Narnia" series, HarperCollins Publishers, 1950-1956.
(6) Eighty-six years have I served him | InContext - Christian History Institute: https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/incontext/article/polycarp-testimony
(7) Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. "The Cost of Discipleship" (Nachfolge), Touchstone, 1995

(8) From Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech titled "A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches," published in 1986. The specific line can be found in the speech he delivered at the Bishop Charles Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 3, 1968, the night before his assassination.

(9) C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters (1942) ch. 29, HarperCollins, 1942

© William Adjei | This article was first published in North Star April Newsletter Edition, April 2024.

Kristy Adjei

Academic Dean

Work & Rest - A Core Value at North Star

By: Brandi Buerstatte

Work and Rest: A Sacred Balance

The Sabbath may look different for each individual and family, but its significance remains the same: obedience and renewal.

A Culture of Restful Learning

Fridays: A Gift of Growth

The Privilege of Work

The Sacred Call to Rest

©Brandi Buerstatte | This article was first published in North Star February Newsletter Edition, March 2025.

You May Not Know…

Black History Month and Frederick Douglass
By: Kristy Adjei

©Kristy Adjei | This article was first published in North Star February Newsletter Edition, February 2025.

Obey and Abide

For my waking breath, for my daily bread

I depend on You, I depend on You

For the sun to rise, for my sleep at night

I depend on You, I depend on You

You're the way, the truth, and the life

You're the well that never runs dry

I'm the branch, and You are the vine

Draw me close and teach me to abide

For eternal life to be raised with Christ

I depend on You, I depend on You

©Kristy Adjei | This article was first published in North Star January Newsletter Edition, January 2025.

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1 Hurnard, Hannah. 1987. Hinds' Feet On High Places. Uhrichsville, OH, Barbour.

2 Ibid., 252-254.

3 Ibid., 254.

4 Ibid., 254.

Hospitality

By: Julie Dockery

I’m from the South, a native Texan. If you ever venture down south, you will discover a land where bbq is king and College football reigns supreme. You will also encounter another age-old tradition: southern hospitality. We southerners – (once a Texan, always a Texan) – like to present a warm welcome. We enjoy hosting dinner parties where you’re invited into a freshly cleaned home and a perfectly manicured tablescape, all to extend one of the most highly esteemed virtues of the South…feeding you. Our hope is that you will leave the house with a full belly and a desire to invite us to your home where you can present your finest Williams Sonoma tablecloth, accompanied by coordinating chargers and freshly cut flowers. Don’t get me wrong, I love a beautiful table and I love a good meal even more. But as I’ve started to think about the real, biblical, meaning of hospitality, my Southern experience with hospitality left a lot on the table.

Over the summer, the North Star leadership team spent some time working to identify the school’s core values. We started by making a list of things that we treasured about North Star, and adding other things which our community loved about it as well. I had just finished reading the book Unreasonable Hospitality, where the magical experiences of hospitality in a restaurant setting had my imagination humming. Reading Guidara’s book reignited my appreciation for the power of making an outsider feel at home. This combined with my southern roots of hospitality and now I was asking: does the Bible offer a vision for hospitality that we could embody at North Star?

The best understanding of hospitality comes from the Greek word philoxenia which literally means ‘love the stranger.’ Hospitality, in its etymology and in the Biblical context, is more than a presentation of good food and an inviting space; it is an act of love where strangers become friends and foreigners become fellow citizens. When we humans extend hospitality, we reflect God’s invitation to us. The Bible is clear about who people are in relation to God. We are strangers and enemies of a holy God, kept distant by our sin. We’re separated, alienated from God and from His people. But in God’s deep love for us, He extends the most beautiful picture of hospitality by offering us salvation from our sins, and inclusion in His Kingdom. Our invitation to fellowship isn’t given on monogrammed stationary, but extended through the blood of Christ. In Him, those who are strangers can now come in as guests, those who do not have a seat at the table, can now pull up a chair. Hospitality means that we are loved and received into the family of God. We are then commanded to turn and offer hospitality to one another (Romans 12:13)

The Biblical picture of hospitality inspires us to wonder: what does it look like to extend hospitality to the students, faculty and families at North Star? How can they feel known, loved and cared for in ways that point them to a God that knows, loves and cares for them? And how will this change how they go out and interact with the world?

In Jonathan Haidt’s book The Anxious Generation, he outlines some startling statistics about the rise of depression and anxiety in teens in America. On average, there has been a 153% increase of depression in teens (ages 12-17) since 2010 and a 134% increase in anxiety. It’s not surprising that these numbers directly correlate to a rise in self-harm and suicide by, on average, 118% and 129%, respectively (in teens ages 10-14). Haidt’s picture of adolescent mental health is bleak and worrisome. Could biblical hospitality offer an anecdote to this anxious and lonely generation? At North Star, we think so.

Every morning I stand at the front door of the school to greet each of the students as they enter the building. This is one of my favorite parts of the job. These short interactions give me a glimpse as to how each student is coming into their day. Sometimes it’s obvious that a student has already had a rough morning. I might pull them aside for a check-in or pass along to their teacher some extra attention might be needed. Last week, one of our kindergarten students was having an especially hard time, feeling anxious to come in. At about the same time, one of our freshmen students walked up, she instantly put her arm around this younger student and walked her all the way to class, comforting her as they went. This small act said, ‘I see you,’ and ‘I care about you.’ This is the same message that God gives us, we are welcomed in, known and cared for.

At North Star, hospitality is a core value, because we believe that, “biblical hospitality creates portals of belonging so the kingdom of God can be extended into the world.”(Jon Tyson). When North Star students experience true belonging and radical hospitality, they’ll launch from our doors into the world as agents of God’s love, regularly extending the hospitality they have experienced to others.

I am headed south for Thanksgiving, and I know I will be met with the glory and warmth of some good ol’ Southern hospitality. But as I pull my chair up to a perfectly set table and a beyond delicious meal, I will remember that hospitality isn’t just what takes place at a really great dinner gathering. I will remember that the Thanksgiving dinner table is just a shadow of the deeper meaning of hospitality: we, the sinning strangers, are invited into God’s table of abundance through the Gospel of His Son. For North Star students to flourish in the midst of an anxious generation, we will need to follow His example by welcoming outsiders, loving strangers and receiving everyone with the hospitality that has been extended to us.

The Gospel: Truth and Grace

By: Glenn Wishnew

How does an empty tomb relate to a full classroom? That’s the question. How does the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ – the gospel – shape an educational institution?

The word Gospel means “good news.” In the ancient world, it was used for imperial proclamations: the birth of an heir, a victory in a critical battle, or the ascension of a new ruler. A modern equivalent to gospel might be “BREAKING NEWS,” in that sweet period of television history when every headline wasn’t deemed “breaking news.”

In short, a gospel is an urgent public announcement of good news. Now that we know what a gospel is, let’s shift our attention to defining the Christian gospel. The apostle Paul can help us here:

“Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand…For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)

In the first century, there lived a man who claimed to be Messiah (Christ) (verse 3). His death was not merely the cessation of his physical life, but the salvation of people from their sins (verse 3). He was buried and then raised to life after death, in accordance with promises God had made to Israel hundreds of years before His birth (verse 4).

Let’s stop there. Already, a school shaped by this story – and by this man – will be oriented toward Truth. The gospel claims to be a true event that shapes all other events. Therefore, there is such a thing as Truth; schools dedicated to the gospel must pursue it.

Pursuing truth is not a given in today’s educational environment. “Truth” in our culture has fallen on hard times. We don’t trust the media to provide truthful information, we don’t trust tech companies to arbitrate truth and we’ve even started to use phrases like “my truth,” by which we mean “what I really feel,” something most other societies deemed less important than what really happened. Because public institutions are failing to disseminate truthful stories, because our friends are saying “truth” when they mean “my gut feeling” and because our lives have been overtaken by endless amounts of false advertisements – all this creates a skepticism toward truth claims that no postmodern professor could have imagined.

Beyond broader cultural dynamics, many educational institutions today avoid topics that might elicit discomfort and other negative emotions. The intention is admirable. There is a teenage mental health crisis and urgent action is needed from every corner of a kid’s life (including the school). But sheltering them from reality – history that offends them or biology that confronts them – is not a long-term plan for success.

The inclination both to distrust or avoid Truth stems from a deeper anxiety: that we will not be able to handle the Truth as it is. Earlier this week, my students (10th and 11th graders) were reading in The Great Divorce about a character who resisted any claim to ultimate truth. Setting aside the manifest incoherence of that (ultimate truth) claim for a moment, I asked my students why someone would resist capital T Truth.

Erika Adjei shot up her hand and said “because then they’d have to deal with it.” Garrett Howe chimed in “Also, because then they’d lose control.” Yahtzee.

(Yes I know, they are the best students in the world).

This is where the gospel can help us. For if the gospel is true, then ultimate reality, the Truth underneath all other truths, is good news. We don’t need to be afraid of it. It will make demands of us (we will have to deal with it), it will deconstruct our illusions of control but this is not a God intending to oppress us; it is One who has come “to seek and save the lost.” (Lk. 19:10)

Let me make the implication of this plain: Because the Architect of the gospel is the Author of truth, no area of academic inquiry could ever disconfirm God’s love for us in Jesus Christ.

Because the gospel is true, nothing a student could learn in history class – say about the sins of their ancestors or the oppression of their forefathers – could define them as deeply as God already has by sending His Son to save them.

Because the gospel is true, no scientific findings which appear to contradict Biblical teaching don’t threaten the heart of our faith, but rather invite us to a deeper understanding of both the book of nature and the book of Scripture.

Because the gospel is true, no story about secularism read in Humanities class could threaten the potency of the gospel’s answers to the deepest questions of the human mind and the highest longings of the human heart. Life in gospel light is “life to the full.” (Jn. 10:10)

I’m not saying Christian educators shouldn’t exercise discernment when making curricular decisions, nor am I saying a Christian school should blindly accept all the findings from every academic discipline. Rather, my claim is simply that the impediment to pursuing truth – the fear that Truth might be dark, discomforting and ultimately damaging – is radically undermined by the gospel of a God who dies for sinners. The Truth that lies behind the creation of the universe is gracious Truth, good news for all.

There’s so much more we could say about the power of the gospel: how it grants rest to students exhausted from the pressure to perform, how it empowers the kind of teacher-student relationships that lie at the heart of transformative education, how it creates a staff culture of forgiveness and hope – indeed, if we excavated all the riches of the gospel for North Star “even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” (Jn 21:35)

So we’ll stop here for now and say: A gospel-shaped school pursues Truth because it knows the Author of Truth is the Giver of Grace. Amen.

Trust & Obey

By: Kristy Adjei

Then in fellowship sweet, we will sit at His feet
Or we'll walk by His side in the way
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go
Never fear, only trust and obey

This coming May, we will sing this classic hymn with fifty-three students to start every school day at North Star Classical Christian School. It will be the third year in a row that we will sing the hymn as a group. Last year, we sang with thirty-seven kids, and the year before, in 2021, we sang with seventeen kids.

Approximately four years ago, I had a very unique experience where I felt like God very clearly and directly caught my attention and told me to start a school. While I knew definitively this was what I was supposed to do, I did not respond with prompt obedience. Rather, I responded with all of the reasons why I was the wrong person for the job. Besides, who would be the teachers or the students? Where would we even meet? How would one even go about starting something like that?

After a while, when the prompting did not subside, I decided that I could just start by asking others to pray about it. Honestly, I felt a little embarrassed actually saying the words, “Will you pray about something for me? I think God wants me to start a school”. I did muster up the nerve to ask a few close friends. I think I was hoping that the idea would kind of fizzle out or just go away. It seemed overwhelming.

Over time, the idea did not go away, and in reality, it just intensified and was confirmed in unexpected ways. I just could not shake this prompting. At that point, it became a matter of obedience..

Although I was dragging my feet, God was patient with me. I felt like God was telling me, “Don’t worry about doing the whole huge thing. Just do the next thing.” He proceeded to give me some very specific “next things” to do. Through all of this, I did have one request back to Him, which was that I needed a ministry partner. I knew that God had provided Moses an Aaron. So, I prayed for an “Aaron,” and God provided Julie Dockery.

With the accountability of a ministry partner, we decided that if God was calling us to do this, we needed to be all-in. We devoted the next four months to getting the school off the ground. Our thinking was that if this idea really was of God, then within a year, He would confirm it and momentum would pick up. If it was just of our own doing, we prayed that God would put up roadblock after roadblock and just have it go nowhere. We frequently prayed that “unless the Lord builds the house, those that build it labor in vain.” We did NOT want to labor in vain. Then we got really busy just continuing to do all of the “next things”.

It has been a long series of “next things” for the past three years and there have been many ways God has been confirming the work. Confirmations fell into several main categories of needs: faculty, families, finances, and facilities.

Time and space limitations prevent a recounting of all the stories of God’s provision in these areas. Many of them should be considered miraculous. These provisions have been ways that God has seemed to have handed us the next piece of the North Star puzzle at just the right time. This has included some really weird-shaped “impossible” pieces! Because of this, I am convinced that North Star is God’s story. There have been too many things that have been beyond any of us, and bigger than us.

This past week at North Star, we got to share this story with students, faculty, and families on a special day called Ebenezer Day. This is a day set aside from all academic work to make sure that everyone in the North Star community knows the story, and has the opportunity to praise God from whom all blessings flow. We had a “3rd Birthday party” for the school, and students took part in activities to celebrate the North Star story as well as worship God for the way He is continuing to build this school, and how He somehow chose all of us to be a part of it.

At times, we stop and think, What if we had said “NO” to this work? This has not been easy, and it has not been comfortable. Had we said, “no”, we would have missed out on being part of an amazing God story. We would have missed out on the opportunity to have our faith grow in a very tangible way. We would have missed out on the opportunity to experientially know the truth of the song Trust and Obey - “While we do His good will, He abides with us still and with all who will trust and obey. Trust and obey, for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey”. We are glad that we gave God our “Yes”! What is YOUR “yes”?

Judy Robinson

9th/10th Latin Teacher

Why Latin?

(Is my child wasting their time on a language no one speaks anymore?)

By Judy Robinson, 9th/10th Intellectual Virtues through Latin Teacher

Take a dime out of your pocket or wallet and flip it over. Do you know what that symbol is? It is an Ancient Roman symbol called a ‘fasces’ - a bundle of rods with an axe in the middle bound together by leather straps. Bodyguards (‘lictors’ in Ancient Rome) used to carry this weapon around to keep citizens in line. It is a classical symbol of restrained power, unity, and authority, and can also be found on the Washington monument, inside the House of Representatives, and in the Oval Office. While studying the fasces in our 9/10 Latin class, one of the students asked if the etymology of fascism was linked to the fasces. We then took a fantastic academic rabbit trail and learned that the fasces symbol was also used by Mussolini in Italy from which they adopted the term fascism. This led to an important and fascinating discussion on how one ancient symbol can lead to the founding of different nations or governments based on competing political ideologies.

If we think of taking Latin in high school as an alternative to a modern foreign language, we have missed the point
The point of learning Latin is to help shape the mind, it lays a great foundation and makes connections to every other discipline, which is why we start teaching it when it matters most – to the young students in the grammar school.

In the end students may not remember all the Latin they learned, but the Latin will affect everything else they ever learn
Latin is to thinking as weight lifting is to playing football. A well-known fact in the NFL is that the best players are those who do the hard work off of the field, they put in their time in the weight room. Saying “why bench press? I never bench press on the football field” is similar to saying “why learn Latin? No one speaks Latin anymore.” Those who lift weights will be better football players, basketball players, or runners. Those who study Latin will be better at English, science, mathematics, and history.

Galileo, William Shakespeare, Martin Luther, CS Lewis, JRR Tolkien, Albert Einstein, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Sigmund Freud, and Dorothy Sayers all studied Latin and received a classical education which helped mould them into the heavy lifting thinkers of our time. Not every student is meant to become a great academic, but every student, whether they become a plumber, teacher, parent, banker, or graphic artist, will benefit from the ability to think, learn, reason, and defend their beliefs.

Our founding fathers drew upon Latin and Roman history in creating the USA
Our forefathers, most of whom were classically trained, founded the USA largely on classical and Christian principles. Striving to be a Republic (‘res publica’ in Latin, meaning “the public thing”), they declared the USA would be ‘E Pluribus Unum’ (Latin for “out of many, one”), and set up a country in the likes of the separation of power of Ancient Rome rather than as a monarchy like the United Kingdom that they were declaring independence from. They established a senate (‘senatus’ in Latin meaning “old man”), announced liberty (‘libertas’ in Latin from the Roman goddess for freedom), and used a number of classical symbols which can still be found on state mottos, the monuments, and our money today.

60% of the English language derives from Latin
The Romance languages derived from Latin: French, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, and Romanian. There are also Latin borrowings in English, Albanian, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish and Swedish. Our calendar comes from Ancient Rome (the Roman ruler Numa Pompilius is credited for creating the 12-month year), and our planets are named after Greek and Roman gods. History, philosophy, mythology, mathematics, politics…. Latin is the language of our ancestors. In forgetting it, think how much we stand to lose.

Latin teaches students how to think
Latin is a tool for learning language, a key component of thinking and communicating. Studying Latin shows us how ideas became words, and words became laws, ideologies, and worldviews that build societies, cultures, and the world as we know it. For example, ‘pater’ in Latin is ‘father’ in English, and has also derived into paternal, patriotic, patriotism, and ‘patria’ or fatherland. It is no wonder that Latin has been proven to increase students standardized test scores and overall academic ability.

Latin teaches students how to learn
I often tell my students that if they can learn Latin, they can learn algebra, chemistry, sudoku, philosophy, baking, or how to build an engine, because it offers the discipline of learning how to learn. Because Latin is no longer spoken it is an eternal language with very clear, steady, and unchanging rules, much like a puzzle (and unlike modern languages that are full of slang words and inconsistencies). Of course, studying Latin also makes learning modern languages easier. Even one to two years of studying Latin will aid in speaking Spanish, French, German, etc.

‘Quid ergo’ (So, now what?)
If the above arguments have been convincing, we are left with the question of how to help our children study Latin. Perhaps it requires humility from our generation to acknowledge the decline in the comprehensive education today’s students receive. This humility, coupled with repentance, could pave the way for a fresh start, an earnest endeavour to reclaim what has slipped away. It echoes the narrative of King Josiah in 2 Kings, who stumbled upon the neglected scrolls of Torah, unseen by the Israelites for years, prompting a revival of their foundational teachings.

Some practical ideas: learn a bit of Latin ourselves alongside our children, read Homer, Cicero and Livy, look up Latin mottos for the military/universities/US states, read ancient mythology and discuss how it has influenced modern stories (tip: look to Percy Jackson and nearly every Marvel movie), plan an enrichment week trip to Athens and Rome (and please bring me with you!).

And in the midst of study, let’s keep the big picture in mind. Perhaps the next generation in the USA will be a predominately Christian one, or perhaps it will become largely taken over by secular humanist thought. Our children and grandchildren may thrive, or they may be persecuted. Whatever is to come, we can prepare them to recognize the good, the true, and the beautiful, and equip them with the tools to think, learn, stand firm, and articulately defend their beliefs. Latin is one great tool to help us disciple and educate our children well for whatever is to come.

Kristy Adjei

Academic Dean

Culture of Collaboration

By: Kristy Adjei

“One aspect of the joy of learning is addressing this concept of humility. As human beings, we are limited, frail and fallible. Frequently we attempt to cover this up, to hide what we truly are behind the smoke and mirrors of our expertise and accomplishments. True human growth, though, only occurs when we uncover our true nature and deal with it. As an individual confronts an area of lack, there is a transformation that can occur, whereby something about us becomes strengthened.” This is a quote from the June 16, 2020 issue of Educational Renaissance. Upon first reading, perhaps you thought that it was addressing the attitude which should be held by students. However, you are encouraged to read the quote a second time with the perspective of a teacher in mind. This quote highlights one of the goals we have at North Star Classical Christian School, which is to establish a culture of collaboration between teachers. In addition to teaching evaluations and classroom visits by an administrator, teachers at North Star are encouraged to visit colleagues and offer “warm” and “cool” feedback. The visit can be to a teacher in the same field of study as the visiting teacher, or, it can be in a totally different field of study. For, example, in recent weeks, a Latin teacher and a music teacher both visited math classes. Opening our classrooms up, allowing ourselves to be observed, and being receptive to warm and cool feedback, takes a lot of humility, but it helps us all grow in the intellectual virtues of humility and broad thinking.

Going a step further, throughout the year, faculty members at North Star have taken this practice of collaboration on the road and visited several mentoring classical Christian schools in the area that have opened their doors to us. Most recently, a team of five teachers and a board member attended an Auxilium in Maryland, visiting a well-established classical Christian school on the cusp of completing its 29th year of operation. These are all opportunities, for us, as teachers, to learn from others, grow in the art of teaching and leading our students well, and ask the question, “Is there a different way or better way to do this?”

Our hope is that all of these practices would establish a culture of collaboration at North Star. We, teachers, have a lot to learn, and much to offer one another as we all grow in our vocation.. If this is established as the culture at North Star, this disposition will inevitably trickle down to the varying ranks of our students. Perhaps this may offer a guard from all of us thinking that we are ever above learning and growing more in our area or field of study.