"And he called ten of his servants, and gave them ten minas and said to them, 'Do business with this until I come back.'"- Luke 19:13
The parable of the minas, or "talents" as recorded in Matthew, is one of Jesus' best known parables yet by no means an easy read. It reveals an element of Jesus' nature that Christians, particularly those of us in the West, would rather gloss over. Yes our Lord is kind, yes he is gracious, but he who gave everything expects something in return. He has entrusted us with his Kingdom and commanded us to do business until he returns.
But what does this mean for Church School? How can we best invest what God has given us that He might be glorified through our schools?
Unsurprisingly, I believe the answer lies in effective leadership. Chaos and lack of vision from above trickles down to the classroom at an alarming speed. This is worrying in any school but in those that are called to be "Christ's handiwork" (Ephesians 2:10) it can be even more costly.
It is therefore incumbent that Church Schools Governors invest their time, efforts and resources wisely when seeking to appoint a new Headteacher, as the way we "do business" reflects on our master. Christian Governors ought to settle for nothing but the very best when recruiting their next school leader and in order for this to be achieved the finest and most innovative recruitment techniques and practices must be employed.
The fact is that there is a direct link between the quality of the recruitment process and how the opportunity is viewed by candidates. Here at Emmaus we believe that your school deserves the best selection of candidates available. What is more, we are confident that our faith, expertise and unique approach can attract such candidates.
For yes God has a plan for every school, but that's not to say we should leave him to do all the work! On the contrary, He has given us talents and expects business to be done.