Are you nervous, even anxious, about the coming school year? Join us as Trish Lott shares lessons she learned through her "nightmare year of terror" - specifically, how to overcome back-to-school anxiety. Download your free Who I Am in Christ Biblical Affirmations at www.teach4theheart.com/backtoschoolanxiety. Join our free prayer challenge at www.teach4theheart.com/prayerchallenge. Find out more about CEAI at www.teach4theheart.com/insurance. _____________________________________________________ When God wants to stretch me, He doesn’t consult me because if things were left up to me, my life would always be comfortable. After completing my second year of inner-city teaching, urban education seemed way too challenging, so I applied to teach at a private Christian school because I thought it would be my dream job and let’s be honest more “comfortable”. The truth is, I have spent most of my life seeking comfort while avoiding my long list of fears: you know, fear of embarrassment, fear of failure, and fear of not being liked just to name a few. During my 3rd year in the classroom every one of my worst teaching fears came true. My anxiety was so consuming that I wanted to give up nearly every day, but I couldn’t run this time. I was forced to face my fears. Thankfully, the Lord met me in that dark place, and I have never been the same. As the school year begins, you may be battling feelings of inadequacy, fear and even dread, but I hope that my story and the lessons I learned will encourage you to push past fear and trust God like never before! Let me tell you about the season I have nicknamed… “My Nightmare Year of Fear!” My Nightmare Year of Fear   Within the first 3 weeks of school, the principal’s son started a petition to get me fired and a third of the 8th grade class signed it before the boy felt bad and stopped. I found out months later, but the damage was already done. Another teacher’s son spread a vicious lie to the parents accusing me of looking at inappropriate materials on the internet and cursing in class. The parents believed it and never checked with me. I found out by accident and was completely broken hearted. Before Christmas break, I found out that my students created awful memes making fun of me and spread them throughout the school via social media. I was crushed to know that I was a joke to my students. Hoping to build relationships, I shared my testimony with a few of my classes only to have some of the students invent graphic details that I never said and once again enrage the parents based on lies. I felt helpless in my attempts to build relationships. The students were incredibly intimidating and challenged me publically day in and day out! It seemed that their favorite game was “test the teacher!” Every “trick” I had learned up to this point just didn’t seem to work on these kids. Each day felt like I was auditioning for my right to be a teacher at their school, and the “judges” were not nice. I had students that were actually looking for me to make mistakes, so that they could tell their parents. When I didn’t mess up they would make things up. Many parents treated me cruelly—when they bothered to talk to me at all—and I cried myself to sleep most nights only to face more tears in the morning. Sadly, I could go on and on about how I was lied about, made fun of, verbally attacked and intimidated by parents and students for a whole year while the administration did nothing but blame me. The good news is God does not waste pain! The Lord taught me some powerful lessons during that difficult year. Sometimes as a teacher your worst fears do come true, but with God’s grace you will make it through stronger, wiser and more skilled! Lessons I Learned During my Nightmare Year of Fear 1. Don’t be intimidated by anyone because God is your defender and your protector! A teacher’s world is filled with potentially intimidating people and situations. Yet Proverbs 29:25 says, “Fearing people is a dan