God is always always faithful – though we may not yet see

By Mark Seymour

This second blog from a Trustee of CViE will encourage our supporters to trust in the Lord, as he shares experiences of working in education between 2011 and 2023 in a Multi-Academy Trust.

In my first blog I shared how the Lord opened up a position for me working for a secondary school as a Business Manager. This school became an academy and then part of a Multi-Academy Trust in which my role developed as Chief Operating Officer, working closely with the CEO of the Trust. 

When I joined the school in April 2011 the Headteacher was very pleased that I was a Christian as she said she was, as was the Chair of Governors. Over the years I worked with them both I did not find the subject arise with the Chair of Governors but it certainly did with the Headteacher.

In my early days I recall having an afternoon meeting with her and she told me that she had had four very tricky matters to deal with that morning and she had seen them all disappear before her eyes as if a hand had dealt with them for her. We both felt quite melted at realising that the Lord had gone before. On another, when we were struggling financially on a cash flow basis (funds due but not paid on time) we had some unexpected funds from a completely different source. As I explained this to the Head, she simply said this… “the gold and the silver are His”. Once again, we were at unity in this thankfulness to the Lord.

I worked with this head for ten years and it was good to work with one who had fundamental Christian beliefs. It is a wonderful favour if we find those in our work connections that have these beliefs and we must, I believe, acknowledge these things even if they come from different churches to our own.  

Almost as soon as I joined the school we had plans to become an academy and I supported the Headteacher in this move to give us more freedom and more financial control. This was a challenge due to the very sceptical governing body, but amazingly they were eventually unanimous – I believe this was following much prayer.  How the Lord helps in these things!

Point 1 – Opposition

In my early days I found the Finance Governor a most difficult person and it was very trying. He did all he could to oppose me and try to undermine as well. Much prayer was offered up! School governance can be very frustrating at times for senior leaders. Many times, I had to pray about this situation and how to deal with things. I recall one very difficult and personally hurtful email. I could not answer it. (My advice would always be to not answer a difficult email straight away, to pray over it and see where the Lord is leading in terms of an answer). I found the matter resolved without touching it – the Headteacher had been copied in and spoke to the Chair of Governors as she was most unhappy about the email.

Over time this individual had his wings clipped by the other governors and backed away and I was thankful to the Lord, but he was still not easy to work with. However, one day the Headteacher called me into her office to say that an allegation had been made against him. She knew it to be unfounded and actually unjust but she said to me that this could be an opportunity to force him out. What did I think?  How easy it would have been to say – “let’s get rid of him”!  Oh, the standard we are set…”What would the Lord Jesus do”? I said to her almost immediately – “we must support him and help him through this”. She said “I completely agree but I must say, I think that is the most gracious thing to do.”

It wasn’t long after this that he was forced to resign over a different issue and how we have to prove that the Lord allows opposition but helps us through it all! There is a scriptural lesson from Nehemiah as he sought to build the wall against much opposition – in his case from all quarters. I have found that there is always at least one person who is difficult to work with in all of my different work experiences and this has led to much prayer and exercise before the Lord.

Point 2 – Embracing other Christians in the workplace

Soon after I joined the Trust the Headteacher was able to obtain financial support from local churches for a school Christian worker. He was a young man (early twenties) whose father was a vicar and he was established in the Church of England. His role was to support in assemblies and in school life although the school was not a faith school. This was very encouraging. However, when the role was announced at a staff meeting – together with the fact that there would be a weekly staff prayer meeting for those who wished to go – there was some open criticism from staff members. I felt this to be a time when I must show my own Christian beliefs and I made it clear to those around me that I would do so. Before this, although I knew there would be a prayer meeting, I was unsure whether this was something that I should do or not given the different views that there may be amongst those attending.

The scepticism among staff made my mind up and I ventured to go. The meetings were reverent and after a reading the Christian worker would give a prayer list and ask us to all pray privately and quietly for a few minutes. I found it very rewarding and even felt on one occasion the Lord favouring me with His word. That particular morning, I was troubled about many things at work and in other aspects of life and prayed on my journey into work – “Lord, thou knowest but I so need a ‘Fear not’”. The Christian worker would read a portion of scripture and there was no set pattern to this. This particular week he felt to read a few verses starting at Isaiah 41 v 10 – “Fear thou not; for I am with thee, O be not dismayed for I am thy God.” It was a blessing to me and I told him afterwards to encourage him.

In all this there is a lesson, I feel. To me this is that we should look for those common areas that we have with others that profess to be Christians that we come across at work, university or generally in life. There will be differences but we must try to join with them where we can particularly in these days where there is so much opposition to the Christian religion.    

Point 3 – Making a stand on Sunday issues

There are two separate matters that I will mention on this. The first one relates to an incident in 2014 after I had been with the school trust about three years. The Headteacher came to me and said that she felt with one of the GCSE Mathematics papers on a Monday in June that year we should open the school for a revision lesson on the Sunday afternoon. It would help with last minute revision. Now I have already made the point about different views among Christian people and here I was faced with a situation which I did not agree with but with a Headteacher who was keen to do something against my desires. She was very kind, saying that she realised I did not agree with her idea and as the buildings were under my control she would manage the situation with the Estates Manager (who usually would report to me). That way, I was not involved in the arrangement at all. I did say to her that I doubted that it would give better results, which the school wanted, of course. This whole circumstance brought much prayer out from me but the revision class went ahead. That year we had the worst Mathematics results at GCSE for several years! I watched the matter and found that during my time at the school over the next nine years they never opened on a Sunday for a revision class again.    

The other issue is a little different but on the same theme. In my role as Business Manager at the school I was very involved with the Town Council with plans for improved sports facilities in the town in about 2015/2016. One area required in the town was a 3G football pitch and several locations had been considered but none would work. I was able to offer the school site on a playground area that was used for sports but the surface had worn away. Now, I was working on the basis that the pitch would be available for all of the week for the school and for any weekday evening matches that they might need it. I was aware that evening and Saturday lettings of the pitch to the general public would be necessary to ensure we obtained some funding via the council from house developers in the area. There would be an agreement drawn up in due course with the Council for community usage. It was considered by those of us working on the project that Sunday would be a rest day – not least because there were some houses near to the pitch and they would need some rest from the noise generated on the pitch. So, I pressed hard from several different funding sources and was able with the local Council support to raise all of the funds to complete the project. I did feel helped in all this.

When the pitch was complete, the community use agreement was drawn up by the Council. The school were surprised to see that this included Sunday mornings usage. Now, this was not something we expected and I felt concerned that my efforts to raise the funds now meant that the pitch could be used on a Sunday. When I considered this fully, I realised that I had done the project for the good of the children at the school and it wasn’t my decision regarding the Sunday morning letting. Interestingly, and I cannot speak for the situation now, but from November 2018 when the pitch became available, through to 2022 when I was no longer involved in that aspect of school life, there was limited use on a Sunday.

These issues are those that all in business will become involved with in some way or another and not just in school life. For me, I was clear that I would not work on a Sunday or encourage others to do so. Much care and prayer are needed in these areas – they are not always black and white!    

Future blogs will consider some of the challenging issues during a twelve-year involvement in a school trust.