A listener asked me what I thought of the thought expressed on this t-shirt.
So here goes: Putting it in delicate terms... it's hogwash.
God isn't "allowed" anywhere. He doesn't need permission. He doesn't need a hall pass from a teacher, and He doesn't need to report to the office on the way in.
We didn't "kick God out" of our public school system. We don't have that kind of power, unless you're such a big fan of the Supreme Court that you think God must first parse a majority decision to determine where He can go.
When Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always," he didn't leave it subject to court review by our robed lawyers.
Do I think the courts have it right, that they've interpreted the constitution fairly, to allow students religious expression? No way. They've been all over the map. Incoherent, even. They've overstepped their bounds, in restricting free citizens the very first freedom mentioned in Bill of Rights. That's my opinion.
But they did not kick God out of schools, because... they can't. And God doesn't take on the role of dispassionate observer to prove a point for you.
So don't tell us otherwise. And, because words matter, don't give kids the impression that God waits, sadly, outside, waiting for the final bell, when they can rejoin Him.
God loves little children, and He does not hear their cries from without, and then refuse to be with them. He loves teachers, too, who often feel overwhelmed at their jobs, and thousands call on Him daily. He does not offer a wistful, "I wish I could go in, but..."
It's true: He does not promise an absence of suffering. In fact, he promises just the opposite.
But lo, students and teachers, he is with you, always. And when God says He draws near to the broken-hearted, there's no asterisk that says, "Except during homeroom, pending an appeal." When He draws close, He doesn't consult the reigning opinion of the Sante Fe ISD v. Doe decision for boundaries.
Turns out, the Bible doesn't talk about our courts much. It does, however, make it clear that evil precedes the McCollum case of 1948. In fact, it dates back thousands of years, and Jesus' own birth into our world was greeted with unspeakable evil, an infanticide on an unimaginable scale, with a single purpose: Disallowing God.
But you know what? The authorities didn't get to determine where God goes, and where He is. They never do.
There's nothing new about evil. This is our world, as it was, as it is, but not how it shall ever be.
"In this world, you will have trouble," Jesus tells us. "But take heart! I have overcome the world."
Good news, kids! And good news, teachers!
God is in your school. He has not left the building.