I Won't Worry; I'm As Strong As a Mouse!

In his second epistle to the Corinthians, Paul said that he was "well content in weaknesses...for Christ's sake; when I am weak, then I am strong."  This is a text that I have long struggled with.  I mean, I understood that he was saying that when he didn't have control of the situation, he was FORCED to rely on Christ who is always far stronger than we are.  But come on, How many of us can honestly say that we are perfectly happy when all control is ripped out of our hands?  Paul was.

But I am beginning to have a small understanding of where Paul was coming from.  For the past year, I have been laboring to build myself a future, one that I was and still am convicted He has planned for me.  But on God's "to-do list," perfecting my character so that I more fully reflect my Creator's image has a much higher priority than building my earthly future.  And so, here I am, jobless, in debt, with no way to continue my education.  As in the case of Judah and Jehoshaphat in 2 Chron. 20:17 He's telling me, "You need not fight in this battle; station [yourself], stand and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf..."  He wants me to learn to allow Him to become my strength both in and out of weakness.

I have fully committed today to let God take control of my future and to be content to leave Him in control.  I will join Abraham, Moses, and Paul in allowing God to be both Architect and General Contractor of my future.  He's promised in Jeremiah 31:17 that my future is bright, but as the "three worthies" before Nebuchadnezzar,  I am prepared to leave Him in control even if He doesn't work it out according to my desires, because I will more fully reflect the Creator's image.

A Poodle's Salvation

"For all of us have become like one who is unclean and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment..." Isaiah 64:6

My mom's dog has this awful habit of rolling in and eating the excrement of neighbor cats from the backyard when left alone.  Why this prim and proper toy poodle has taken such a fancy to this one disgusting activity is beyond me, but she has.

Last night she was mistakenly left outside, and by the time we realized she was out there, it was too late.  It was caked in the fur on her ears; she had it around her mouth.  The smell was nauseating.  As I tried not to vomit as I bathed her, I began to grumble about what a revolting animal she was.

The very moment these words left my mouth, the Holy Spirit spoke to me.  He said, "That's how I see your sin.  You may find it pleasurable at the moment, but your pride, selfishness, lust, covetousness, and rebellion are just excrement.  You're rolling in feces.  But I want to bathe you so that you can come back inside."  Lord, wash me; cleanse me of my filth and cover me with the perfume of Your righteousness.

Higher Than the Highest

“Higher than the highest human thought can reach is God’s ideal for His children.” (White, Education 18)  This is the avoidance of mediocrity; however it’s also more. Identifying one’s best, and making it better is the pursuit of excellence, and it’s what we as educators have been called to develop in ourselves as well as in our students.  This is the type of teacher that I want to be; I want to be a teacher that doesn’t just “toe the line,” but who, in everything he does, looks to give his students the very best education available.  This is all fine and good, but how am I going to do it?

To answer this question, I have to state my philosophy on education.  “To many, education means a knowledge of books, but ‘the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;’ the true object of education is to restore the image of God in the soul. “ (White, Testimonies to the Church 8)  If I succeed in teaching my students all the works of great minds like Newton and Einstein, yet am unsuccessful at teaching them a love for God, and a passion for the Gospel, then I have failed.  Sure, I’m here to teach science, but the science is not of eternal value.  If I teach the science, but fail to teach the “fear of the Lord,” then I have given them something that is useful in the temporal life but have failed to equip them for their eternal life.  However, if I can help develop in them a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, then they will have all eternity to learn science directly from the Creator.  Deuteronomy 5:6, 7 tells us how this is to be done; it says, “These words which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.”  There are two key points in the text.  One, it’s to be a relationship.  It says, “[they] shall be on your heart.”  Two, they are to be taught in the course of everyday life.  The science is an opportunity to get into my students lives and show them the love of Christ.

The second purpose of my teaching is to pass on this pursuit of excellence to my students, to teach them to be motivated and to not only put forth their best, but to improve upon their best.  To do this I must teach them to seek learning for themselves.  As I was writing this, I received a text message from one of the students that I tutor at Collegedale Academy.  She told me, “I don’t need you tomorrow.”  At first, I joked with my roommate that the text message hurt my feelings, but he quickly corrected my view point.  He said, “But isn’t that what you’re trying to achieve?”  I realized that he was right.  I have achieved success as a teacher when my students no longer need me, when they can seek out the desired information on their own. 

            These two concepts of nurturing a relationship with the Savior and of encouraging a pursuit of excellence are the foundation of my career as a teacher.  “As [I] awaken a desire to reach God’s ideal, [I] present an education that is as high as heaven and as broad as the universe…an education that secures to the successful student his passport from the preparatory school of earth to the higher grade, the school above.” (White, Education 19)  And, in doing so, I will be a caring person, an informed facilitator of learning, a reflective decision-maker, and a committed professional.

God's Equation for the Restoration of His Image

Education – it has played an important role in each of our lives since birth.  Our formal education for most of us began when we were about four or five years old.  We rebelled against having to “go to school.”  But, for most of us we continued this drudgery on through high school and into college.  We all of some idea of what education is, but is that perception one that has been influenced by Scripture, or rather by secular society?  Are we really including in our students’ education what God has intended to be included in their education?

After God gave the Children of Israel the Ten Commandments, he instructed them on how to educate their children.  Deuteronomy 6:6-9 says,

“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”

God desires that His Law become a part of our heart.  He wishes that it no longer be seen as a law, but rather that it become second nature out of an ever present desire to be like Him.  He desires that our actions reflect His.  He desires that we reflect our Creator’s image.  And our education and that of our students is to revolve around this purpose.   One of my favorite authors who was also a revolutionary in the field of education at her time wrote, “To many, education means a knowledge of books, but ‘the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;’ the true object of education is to restore the image of God in the soul.

If we were to approach our students’ education with the mentality that we are to aide our students in the formation of characters that reflect that of their Creator, then our students would not only have an education preparing them for heaven, but they would also incidentally gain those skills found beneficial in earthly life: care, honesty, and initiative.  The teaching of academics, or “book knowledge” while also necessary for life is merely an excuse to simultaneously train the student’s character. “As he [the teacher] awakens a desire to reach God’s ideal, he presents an education that is as high as heaven and as broad as the universe…an education that secures to the successful student his passport from the preparatory school of earth to the higher grade, the school above.”