Unschooling

February 17, 2012February 17, 2012 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

I was introduced to a new concept last month by way of an article in WORLD Magazine. The article, in the January 14 issue, is titled, “Setting Their Own Limits,” and the concept is “unschooling.” Despite being involved in Christian education, having a master’s degree in educational leadership, and (I think) staying pretty current on trends in education, I had never heard this term or of the idea the term represents.

The first two sentences of the article, written by Grace Howard, should provide you with a good introduction of what unschooling is all about: “For Bethany Drury, an Iowa State University senior, school was whatever she wanted it to be. She was ‘unschooled’–a homeschooled child with complete control over her education.”

Howard describes Drury’s unschooling education as being focused on horses, the outdoors and veterinary skills, with Drury spending time watching National Geographic specials on television and reading books from the library on her favorite subjects. All of that was probably quite fun for Drury, I imagine, but the challenge came when she reached college. By her own admission, there were subjects that she had not been interested in or wanted to spend time studying as she grew up, so she was not ready for the challenges of math and chemistry in college.

While the concept of unschooling is difficult for me to fathom, what completely blows me away is that Howard quotes the National Center for Education Statistics as estimating that one-third of the homeschooled children in the U.S. are actually unschooled. That translates to somewhere between 500,000 and 700,000 children who are calling the shots on their education (or lack thereof) and spending all of their time doing whatever their little hearts desire.

Howard defines unschooling as giving “children complete control over their subjects, schedule and interests. If children do not want to learn science, they do not have to. If they enjoy art, literature, or computer programming, they can spend all their time pursuing that subject.” The article goes on to quote one unschooling mother who has written this on her blog: “The goals of unschooling are different than all the other methods. … The goal of unschooling is not education. It is to help a child be who she is and blossom into who she will become. … Learning happens as a side effect.” Howard goes on to explain that the most “radical forms” of unschooling carry this principle ever further, allowing children to exercise this same freedom in every aspect of their lives, including mealtimes, bedtimes, and chores. The unschooling mother quoted above, Joyce Fetteroll, has explained that parents should let children make their own decisions and thus “sculpt their own lives,” with parents “giv[ing] them what they want.” She continues, if “they are happy and free and are making these choices because it brings them joy, then we should trust that it really is what they want or need right now. … We need to trust that when it is enough for them, then they will stop. Their ‘enough’ may be different from where ours is.”

Well, I tell you what…I can pretty much guarantee you that their enough will be different. It would be for any child! I understand that there can be some compelling arguments made for letting children pursue things that interest or fascinate them, to follow their natural bent. But there can also be some compelling arguments made that children need to be introduced to things that are not naturally appealing to them, that parents need to train and teach their children certain expectations and requirements of life. Not only do I have two children of my own, but I have worked with children for my entire adult life, and I can only imagine the things that most children would do, and how they would spend their time, if they were left completely on their own to decide. I think it is safe to suggest that their eating habits would favor junk food at the expense of vegetables, their recreational activities would tend toward video games and indoor activities at the expense of legitimate exercise, and their sleeping habits would tend toward staying up quite late and waking up even later.

Since the very idea being discussed here is an alternative form of education, perhaps it would be helpful to define exactly what education is. Wikipedia provides this deifnition: “Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts. In its narrow, technical sense, education is the formal process by which society deliberately transmits its accumulated knowledge, skills, customs and values from one generation to another, e.g., instruction in schools.”

Whether or not instruction takes place in schools–and I have no problem with the notion of homeschooling, by the way–I find it difficult to believe that aims and habits can be passed on by letting children do whatever they want, whenever they want. I certainly struggle to see how knowledge, skills, customs and values can be passed on. After all, unschooling mother Elissa Wahl has says she lets her children do “whatever they want. … If they want to learn about rockets for 5 years, or 5 minutes, that’s okay with me.” So, perhaps a child who wants to learn about rockets for 5 years–or 15 years, for that matter–would become a brilliant scientist or engineer, but at what cost? Would that child truly have received an education? Only in the very narrowest sense, I would suggest. Furthermore, I would go on to suggest that the child that is left to pursue his own interests to his heart’s content has been deprived of an education by not being exposed to other fields of study, taught how to interact with others, and trained in how to develop and use his intellectual gifts.

This notion of letting children pursue their own interests is another of those proverbial slippery slopes. After all, suppose a child decides he wants to pursue something that is not acceptable for whatever reason? Then what does the parent do? Because when someone suggests that a child should be permitted to do whatever he or she wants it is extremely important to think about just how big a word whatever really is. And, in case you missed it, the very nature of my question–about a child choosing to do something that is unacceptable–is built on the presupposition of there being a right and a wrong and that one or more persons will pass on to each generation some understanding of what right and wrong is.

One of the classic ways for political scientists to explain the concept of personal rights and how eventually the rights of the individual may conflict with the rights of another individual or of society is to say it like this: your right to swing your fist ends where my nose starts. But again: says who? Doesn’t that also presuppose a right and a wrong? Doesn’t that presuppose that parents and/or society will pass on to each generation the understanding that there is a limit to individual rights? But if we do that–if we limit anyone’s activity in any way–we are necessarily saying that it is not okay to do whatever you want.

In order to tell anyone that it is not okay to do something though we have to tell the person that there is a limit to what they can do. That is not a terribly profound statement because it is a restatement of itself, but it is important to recognize the consequences of our ideas. And since I suspect none of the parents who are “unschooling” their children would sit by quietly and let their child continue to choose to cause his fist to make contact with the nose of his sibling, neighbor or parent, there is no parent who really thinks his or her children should be allowed to do whatever they want to do. And…brace yourself…since no one really thinks that, there is no parent who does not believe that it is necessary and important to educate their children. In other words, unschooling doesn’t really exist. The question is simply what kind of education to provide, where and how to provide it. More on that next time….

The Value of Teachers

January 12, 2012 ~ jbwatson ~ 1 Comment

In yesterday’s New York Times Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Nicholas Kristof wrote an op-ed with the same title as this blog entry. In the column he examined the results of a recently-released new research study by economists at Harvard and Columbia universities that identifies the value of good teachers. The study highlights test performance but also the actual long-term economic value of good teachers in terms of students’ future earnings. According to the study a student with a good teacher in fourth grade will go on to earn, on average, $25,000 more in his or her lifetime than a fourth grader with a teacher that is no so good. According to Kristof, that translates into approximately $700,000 in additional earnings per class. Furthermore, that fourth grader with a good teacher is 1.25% more likely to go to college and 1.25% less likely to get pregnant as a teenager.

Perhaps even more shocking than that is this assertion: “Conversely, a very poor teacher has the same effect as a pupil missing 40 percent of the school year.” Whoa! No school anywhere would allow a student to miss 40% of the school year and still move on to the next grade. Yet, based on these findings, students with ineffective teachers may attend school every day of the year and still end up just as far behind as if they had done exactly that. Kristof highlights the importance of the study’s findings by pointing out that if a good teacher announces his or retirement or plans not to return to the school the following year, the parents whose students would have had that teacher should hold fundraisers, pool their resources, or do whatever is necessary to offer that teacher a bonus of up to $100,000 to stay on for another year. That is how important it is for students to have a good teacher. On the flip side, Kristof says that poor teachers have such an adverse impact on students that parents of students who will have an ineffective teacher should offer that teacher $100,000 to retire or otherwise leave the school, assuming he or she will be replaced by a teacher of at least average quality. Now, neither of these things will happen, of course, and probably should not happen, but it is a powerful means of conveying the importance of quality teachers.

Kristof goes on to write that, “Our faltering education system may be the most important long-term threat to America’s economy and national well-being….” He laments that, given that level of importance, education is receiving so little attention in the current presidential race. In fact, he goes on to say that, “Candidates are bloviating about all kinds of imaginary or exaggerated threats, while ignoring the most crucial one.” (That word bloviating may be new to you. It was to me. It means “to speak pompously”). I agree with Kristof that it is imperative that students have, to use the phrase made popular in No Child Left Behind legislation, teachers who are highly qualified. There is no excuse for students in the United States to have inferior, incapable or just plain apathetic teachers. Of course, overcoming that is easier said than done, as Michelle Rhee and others have learned. Why teacher’s unions seem so intent on saving teacher jobs and seem to care so little about actual student success is beyond me.

But I think that it is important to take this a step further. Kristof, and the authors of the study he is writing about, are focused on public education. And given the number of students in this country who are in public schools I think it is important to look at those. As a Christian educator, however, and someone who is committed to the value and importance of education from a biblical worldview, this research highlights for me the fact that students receiving instruction lacking in biblical worldview, regardless of their age, will have long-lasting consequences of that education. If having an ineffective teacher will impact a student’s academic progress and ability for years afterwards, how much more does the worldview of a teacher impact a student’s development? If the consequences of worldview are even remotely close to the consequences of academics, a student–even as young as elementary school–who has a teacher that is at best “neutral” in their worldview (though that isn’t really possible) and at worst actively opposed to a biblical worldview could experience influence on his or her own worldview for years to come.

When there is that much at stake, does it really make sense to risk a child’s future by exposing him or her to a worldview that isn’t grounded in Scripture?

An Open Letter to the ADL

November 17, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ 1 Comment

In today’s mail I received a letter from Jennifer Nielsen, the Project Director for A World of Difference Institute and Director for the Training and Education Curriculum Division of the Anti-Defamation League. Her letter begins thus: “As the December holidays approach, we at the Anti-Defamation League–one of the nation’s premier organizations defending religious liberty–know that many school districts are faced with difficult questions about how to appropriately acknowledge the December holidays.” The letter goes on to explain how a school can celebrate diversity, respect different views on religion, and “comply with the United States Constitution.”

How might we do that? According to the ADL we would do it by never endorsing any religious faith over another. We may teach about a holiday only if it furthers a “genuine secular program of education.” Furthermore, religious symbols are “not appropriate seasonal decorations” because “symbols of religious holidays make some students feel uncomfortable and unwelcome.”

The letter’s accompanying Quick Guide includes instruction that a creche (i.e., a nativity scene or even simply a manger) is never acceptable at a public school, whether alone or as part of a mixed religious display with multiple religions represented. (The guide states that the same holds true for any government property). Furthermore, “mixed religious and non-religious decorations” are never acceptable, and “non-religious seasonal displays” such as white lights, reindeer and snowmen are acceptable so long as “more than one holiday or religion is represented by the ‘non-religious’ images chosen.” Oh, and the Supreme Court has ruled that Christmas trees are “non-religious.”

Am I the only one struck by the incredible stupidity of guidelines proclaiming that religious decorations are never acceptable, and that non-religious ones are, so long as those non-religious decorations represent more than one religion?

I could delve into a very lengthy discourse on the absurdity of most of the contents of the letter and guide, but I will spare you. I could also engage in a discussion about whether or not a public school should acknowledge or celebrate any “religious holidays,” but I will skip that for now, too. Of course, there is a wonderful and very simple solution to this issue: Don’t enroll your student in a government school! And since Ms. Nielsen either doesn’t realize that Sunshine Bible Academy is not a government school, or feels that we are in need of her ridiculous guidelines anyway, I am sending her the following letter by U.S. Mail:

Ms. Nielsen,

I am in receipt of your recent letter regarding “the December holidays” and the ADL’s suggestions on how to “appropriately acknowledge” said holidays. I submit that I respectfully disagree with the vast majority of the contents of your letter and the accompanying Quick Guide.

I consider most of the guidance that your mailing includes for public schools to be in error. However, since our school is a non-public school, I will refrain from going into a detailed examination of those errors and simply ask that you remove our school from your mailing list.

As we celebrate Christmas next month we will be focusing on one “religion” and one religious observance—the birth of Jesus Christ, who came to earth in the form of a man to live a perfect life, die a sacrificial death, rise again three days later, and in so doing make possible the forgiveness of our sins. I trust you will know and celebrate the true meaning of Christmas this year, too. That will be our prayer for you and your organization as we celebrate next month.

On behalf of Sunshine Bible Academy, may I be the first to wish you a Merry Christmas!

Sincerely,
Jason B. Watson
Superintendent

Shining as Lights, part 5

November 2, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

Today I will wrap up the discussion of what it means to train students to shine as lights in our world.

The last area of this discussion is the one that most people undoubtedly think of first when thinking about why a school exists…the academic instruction of students. Like any other school, the effective Christian school exists to provide academic instruction of the highest quality. In fact, it has always been my conviction that a Christian school that fails to accomplish this has failed the students and parents of students in its school, even if it manages to succeed in providing quality spiritual instruction. The Christian school has a serious two-fold responsibility, and it is a both-and responsibility, not an either-or. The effective Christian school does not decide between providing either top notch academic instruction or in-depth spiritual instruction and discipleship; rather, it recognizes that one cannot truly be provided without the other, and strives to accomplish both at the highest possible level.

Let me elaborate. A Christian school cannot provide spiritual instruction at the expense of academic instruction because the spiritual instruction would lack all relevant meaning and application. A student who memorizes Bible verses, learns Bible stories, and even understands the essential doctrines of the Bible, but has no idea how to apply those things in his or her life or how the teaching of Scripture can be lived out in every day interactions with others will not be able to effectively shine as a light in the world because he or she will have no idea how to do so. This student will either fail to realize that he/she has a light, or will hide said light out of fear of interacting with the world. This student will have acquired significant knowledge, but will be lacking wisdom–the ability to utilize the knowledge that has been acquired. What this means, bottom line, is that the student has been given a powerful weapon but has no idea how to use it. There is really only one word for this–useless.

At the same time, a Christian school which treats spiritual development as an aside and is too timid to treat Bible as an actual class deserving of a grade and requiring actual work from the students will have committed an equally egregious offense against its students. While the relationship between a believer and the Lord is a personal matter, it is also a corporate issue. Believers have a responsibility to encourage, edify, and exhort one another in spiritual growth, and this cannot be accomplished in a mamby-pamby manner which refuses to provide genuine accountability.

Likewise, a Christian school which teaches its academic content in a spiritual vacuum, refusing to integrate biblical principles or apply biblical instruction to the study of science, math, history, English, etc. will have succeeded in training its students to believe that “religion” is to be kept separate from all other spheres of life…which is far from what Scripture teaches.

The successful Christian school, the one that trains its students to shine as lights in this world, teaches academic content at the highest possible level, demanding excellence from its students in every area, while simultaneously weaving biblical instruction and application into every subject at every grade level. Students learn the who, what, where, when, why and how of the academic subjects (acquiring the necessary academic knowledge) and then also learn how to take what they have learned and use it as a springboard for future learning, digging deeper into certain areas and developing applications for both the academic and spiritual knowledge they have acquired in a practical way.

What might this look like specifically? In the sciences, it means understanding the scientific explanations for (insert specific content here), including the secular arguments (read “Darwinism,” for example) while also learning the pertinent biblical content. Then, when given the opportunity, these students can recognize the secular approach, can discuss it intelligently and cogently, and can respond with a well-developed and articulate apology for the biblical position. Science is but one example; the principle holds true for any topic or issue.

Students who have not been equipped to recognize and engage in this manner have been handicapped. If they fail to recognize or understand the secular arguments they are likely to be sucked in by them at worst, or to have no idea how to respond to them, which is only marginally better. This is like equipping the student with a brilliant light, but hiding it inside of a black box or forgetting to show them how to turn the light on. On the other hand, equipping the student with the knowledge necessary to recognize the secular arguments and to respond, but failing to teach him how to do so in an articulate or winsome manner is akin to giving him the same brilliant light and forgetting to tell him not to shine it directly in someone’s eyes. Let us not forget that living in total darkness is much like blindness, but sudden and direct exposure to brilliant light can also cause blindness. What I mean is that boldly and, yes, obnoxiously shining the brilliance of biblical truth into the eyes of one who has to that point only known darkness can have the opposite effect of what we may intend. It can be offensive–even painful–and can drive someone deeper into darkness. The well-trained and properly equipped student has the light and he knows who to use it (including the discernment to know how much light is appropriate at any given time, and when is the right time to increase the light). Only then can this student effectively shine as a light in our world.

Shining as Lights, part 4

November 1, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

Thus far we have examined how shining as lights begins with our behavior–simply acting in a way that is contrary to the world and sin nature, and as a result serves to shine as a light in the darkness of the world. We also discussed the importance of teachers and staff members who live out what they are teaching, since actions speak oh-so-much louder than words. We examined the importance of learning and knowing the Word of God so that we can “hold fast” to it as Paul instructed. Peter addresses this issue as well, in 1 Peter 3:15, instructing believers to be always prepared to “make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you…” (ESV). Part of holding fast to God’s Word is knowing it thoroughly enough that we can explain what it means and how it impacts our lives when we are asked by others to do so. Students who are effectively taught from a biblical worldview and thoroughly grounded in biblical truth will be always ready; they will not need to request a “time out” to put together an answer and they will not stutter and flub their way through some garbled explanation that makes no sense to anyone (including the speaker!).

I am not suggesting that every student will become an eloquent speaker or a world class apologist for a relationship with Christ. I am, however, suggesting that students who are trained to shine as lights in our world will know, to borrow titles from Paul Little, both what they believe and why they believe it. Does that mean they will never need to look up an answer or say “I don’t know” in response to a theological question? Of course not. But it does mean that they are equipped with answers and they are ready to give them.

Immediately after the exhortation to be always ready with an answer Peter adds that said answer is to be offered in “gentleness and respect.” This is another part of training students to shine as lights in our world–teaching them how to be lights in the world in an appropriate manner. We are not to be gentle to the extreme of being cowardly; in other words, we are not to shy away from opportunities to speak out for our Lord or His teachings. Peter himself boldly proclaimed the gospel message even in defiance of the instructions of the Sanhedrin, stating that when the two are in contradiction it is far more important to obey God rather than man. But the answers that we offer, and the life that we lead, must not be offered in a way that is offensive. The message will be offensive, whether it is a spoken word or a lived-out message, because the cross and the teachings of Jesus are an offense to the world in and of themselves. We cannot hide the offensiveness of the message to the lost, nor should we ever try. We must never “hide our lamps under a bush.” But we must take care to ensure that it is only the message that is offensive and not the way in which we deliver it.

Several things are important to keep in mind here. First, we cannot convince anyone of the truth of Scripture or the need to accept Christ by our own persuasion or rhetorical eloquence; the Holy Spirit will convict hearts and draw unbelievers to the Lord in accordance with the will of God. Our responsibility is to faithfully plant seeds and shine our lights. Second, as believers we are not better than unbelievers, and we must never carry ourselves or present our messages in a manner which might suggest otherwise. We were born in sin, too, and until God, through His mercy, drew us to Him allowing us to accept the gift of Christ’s death and resurrection we were headed to hell, too. We are no better now than we were then–in and of ourselves. We are now members of the family of God, but “not by works of righteousness which [we] have done.” We did not do anything to earn or warrant salvation, nor could we have. So the only difference between the believer and the unbeliever is that the believer has already accepted the free gift of God. Accordingly, we must never come across as arrogant, superior, or more deserving.

It is not by mistake that in my discussion of what it means to train students to shine as lights in our world that I have not yet even touched on academic instruction. As important as that is, and as large a part as that plays in the training of the students, it will be for naught if the proper understanding of the spiritual side of this relationship does not come first and foremost. An individual can have all of the academic honors man can offer, but if he does not know Christ and understand the biblical instructions for believers to shine as lights in this world his book learning will benefit him not at all. That is why I have spent so much time trying to clearly articulate what this really looks like. The academic portion of the equation is important, however, and Lord willing I will address that part tomorrow.

Shining as Lights, Part 3

October 28, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

The next thing that is important to notice about Paul’s admonition to shine as lights in the world is that he follows his statement that believers are, to the twisted and perverse generation (unbelievers), “lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life….” What is the word of life? It is the truth of Jesus Christ, the gospel message, the Scriptures. A necessary part of shining as lights in the world is holding firmly to the truth of the Bible.

There are many people in the world who read the Bible but who have no idea what it means and have no conviction that it is anything other than great literature. I can still remember a class I was going to take in college, a New Testament course. The professor of the class made it very clear on the first day of class that he did not believe that Paul wrote all of the New Testament books that the Bible says he wrote, that the Bible is not true or inspired by God, and that we would be examining the New Testament with that background. I did not take the course; I dropped it immediately and took an intro course in African history instead. But that professor was a perfect example of the innumerable people in the world who know the Bible in an academic sense, who can carry on lengthy conversations about it and can dissect it in dozens of different ways, but who have no relationship with the God of the Bible and have no understanding of what they are reading. These people are like the Ethiopian eunuch who was reading Isaiah; prior to Philip arriving in obedience to the Lord’s instruction and explaining what it meant to the eunuch he had no idea what he was reading. These people profess to be wise, and from a purely academic and intellectual knowledge standpoint are wise, but their understanding has been darkened and they are, in fact, fools (Romans 1:22).

The first step to holding fast to the word of life is understanding what it means. Just like the eunuch needed Philip, we all need someone to come along side and explain what the Scriptures mean to us until we are able to graduate from the spiritual milk and chew on the meat of the Word ourselves. Students need a guide, a teacher, to explain to them the truth of God’s word. Parents have that responsibility, pastors and Sunday school teachers do, but so do the teachers in the Christian school. In truly Christian education every class in every subject is taught with biblical integration. There is no separation of Bible and history, math, science and English in a curricular program with a biblical worldview. Our relationship with Christ is not a Sunday-only thing. It is day by day, moment by moment, and should influence every area of our lives. This is the kind of instruction that students require in order to learn what it means to hold fast to the word of life. How does the Bible apply to friendships, decision making, relationships with parents, academic integrity, benevolence, service to others, and on and on. Only when students learn that the teachings and the truths of the Bible are pertinent and applicable and relevant to the situations they will find themselves in every day and the decisions that they will have to make, and only when the submit their will and natural tendency to the guiding of the Spirit and the teaching of the Word will they be able to shine as lights in the world.

Shining as Lights, Part 2

October 27, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

Yesterday I explained how simply not grumbling, complaining and questioning is a way to shine as a light in a dark world since such behavior is so contrary to what the world finds normal and expected.

Immediately after the instruction not to grumble or question Paul says that believers are to behave that way in order to be blameless and innocent. Of course believers do not lose their sin nature and we do not stop sinning after being born again. However, our sin nature should be continually put to death through daily decisions to live a God-honoring life. This requires moment-by-moment decisions; it is not something that happens once and is done.

The point that Paul is making, I believe, is that if we grumble and complain–in other words, if we act just like the word–there will be no effectiveness to our testimony or our witness. When we act like the world we are providing grounds for unbelievers to “blame” us. They can rightly point to our behavior and identify the contradiction between what we are saying with our mouths and how we are living our lives. There will be a disconnect between our talk and our walk. And as we all know, people pay much more attention to, and are much more impacted by, what we do than what we say.

Will we ever be innocent? Of course not. Not during this life time. But we should live our lives in such a way that when unbelievers are looking for glaring contradictions in our lives between our talk and our walk they will not be able to legitimately identify any. This means, of course, that when we do mess up (and we will) that we confess our shortcomings. We need to take ownership of our mistakes, apologize to those we wrong, and acknowledge when we fall short. This is almost unheard of in the world, too, because this behavior is also contrary to sin nature.

Paul goes on to say that we are to be blameless and innocent “in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation.” As wicked as our world is today, it was just as wicked when Paul was writing to the church in Philippi. While I may be in the minority, I have never been a believer in the idea that it is much harder to grow up today than ever before or much harder to live for the Lord now than it used to be. Have there been times in our nation’s history when God-honoring behavior was more the norm and more culturally expected that it is now? Yes, probably so. But the same possibilities for sin existed then that exist now, albeit in different forms. Ever since Eve, and then Adam, ate of the fruit in the garden, every generation has been “crooked and perverse.” When we read about Noah we read that the behavior of man was so wicked and evil that God regretted having made man. It was so bad that He decided to wipe out all but eight people on the earth and start all over.

Back to what this means in terms of training students, though, it means that teachers and staff members at the school must model for the students the kind of life that Scripture calls believers to live. Teachers must not grumble or question, even when they want to. Teaching is tough. Anyone who has ever worked with children for any length of time (their own or someone else’s) knows that eventually the patience of even the most calm and easy going person will be tried. How do we act then? Teachers and staff members must also model acknowledging wrongs and asking for forgiveness. There was a time when it was considered a huge sign of weakness for an adult to apologize to or admit a mistake to a child. In some circles that is still true. But what Paul is instructing us to do is, of course, contrary to human wisdom. When a teacher loses his or her cool in the classroom, or in any other way demonstrates behavior not consistent with Paul’s exhortation to be blameless and innocent, appropriate actions must be taken.

Next, teachers and staff members must expect this kind of behavior from the students in the school. Teachers must teach students how to behave in this manner, through words and actions, and then provide opportunity for them to do so. That means teaching students how to identify a wrong, how to acknowledge it, and how to seek forgiveness for it–from the offended person(s) and from the Lord.

Training students to shine as lights in our world goes beyond what I have described here. It includes preparing students to present an effective defense of the Bible, to proactively witness to the unbelievers around them, and to actively oppose evil in our world. But these things come later. The foundation to those things is personal choices and actions. So training students to shine as lights in our world begins right in the school with the relationships between students and teachers.

Shining as Lights, Part 1

October 26, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

I have always thought that a lighthouse is a particularly appropriate metaphor for the Christian life and the responsibility that Christians have to shine as lights in this world. I am currently privileged to serve as Superintendent of Sunshine Bible Academy, and the same metaphor could be used substituting sunlight for the beacon of a lighthouse. The passage of Scripture that is the basis for this metaphor is Philippians 2:14-16, which reads as follows:

“Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.” (ESV)

First of all, the very idea of light should be addressed. Light is the opposite of darkness, and there is no lack of darkness in our world. In physical darkness there is an absence of light. Rarely if ever have most people experienced complete darkness because there is often some light, however small, coming from something. In our homes these days, unless the electricity is out, there is often plenty of light even when all of the lights are turned off. We have digital clocks, which are themselves lights, on microwaves, ovens, alarm clocks, and DVD players. We have lights indicating “on” or “off” on all manner of electronics in our homes. If we go outside there are usually street lights, lights from car headlights, and/or light from the moon and stars. We have all of these lights so that we can see–either see where we need to go, see what we are doing, or see what time it is. But the bottom line is that light drives away darkness. When a light is turned on darkness is eliminated within the reach of that light source. Where light is, darkness is not.

It is interesting to think about the fact that when light is not present darkness naturally results. There is nothing that we have to do to create darkness. Once the sun goes down, darkness will result. We do not have to flip any switches, cover any windows or otherwise do anything in order to create darkness. It will come. Darkness is always lurking, ready to spread as the light fades. As light dissipates, darkness is already there. We never have to “turn on the dark.”

I’m talking about physical light, of course, but spiritual light and darkness are the same way. As a result of sin and the depravity of man we live in a world filled with spiritual darkness. We do not need to do anything to cause that darkness to be present or to spread. To paraphrase Mark Twain, the only thing necessary for darkness to dominate the world is for those who have the light to do nothing.

Looking back at our verses, grumbling, complaining and questioning are the natural outgrowths of man’s sin nature. We do not have to do anything for those to be present. When things are not going our way, when nothing is working out the way we want it to, when we need to do something we would rather not do…grumbling and questioning will happen without any effort required on our part at all. That’s because we are self-centered, and naturally express our dissatisfaction when things aren’t going our way. To not grumble and question then requires action on our part. It requires us to turn on the light of dying to self, putting our desires and preferences aside and doing what needs to be done without whining about it. Doing that is part of shining as lights in our world. Only one part, to be sure, but a definite starting point.

We will continue to look into this next time….

More and More Compromise

October 25, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ 1 Comment

Ken Ham, President of Answers in Genesis, and Greg Hall, together with Britt Beemer of America’s Research Group, recently published a book entitled Already Compromised. In this book the authors highlight a number of compromises on the biblical account in Genesis that are increasingly prevalent in the church. Ham describes these compromises as “attempts to add secular ideas of evolution and/or long ages into the Bible. This wave of compromise is hitting the church with even greater force today.”

Some of the examples of compromise positions being taught by church leaders and academics include these: that Adam is a metaphor for Israel, not a real person; that Genesis 1 is not a literal account of the origin of the universe but about the creation of a cosmic temple; that God took a couple of animals, gave them animal amnesia for millions of years and turned them into Adam and Eve, etc. (Ken Ham has examined such “compromised ” and erroneous approaches to the Bible in his own blog, too).

As part of the research for the book, faculty members at Christian colleges were surveyed to find out what they believe–and therefore teach their students–about biblical accuracy and the Genesis account. Without going into detail (I would encourage you to read the book!) nearly 78% of the faculty members in the religion departments of the surveyed schools hold to an old earth position, with another 7% holding to neither young nor old earth positions. That means only 15% of the religion department faculty at Christian colleges in the United States hold to the biblically-accurate young-earth position! Surprisingly (in my mind) there is a considerably higher percentage of science department faculty holding the young earth position, but that number is still only 57%.

I have written already about the importance of a biblical worldview, and I trust that these figures will serve to reinforce that for you. What I want to re-emphasize here, though, is the utmost importance of a biblical worldview. By that, of course, I mean one that is consistent with the teaching of Scripture and that holds firmly and uncompromisingly to the position that the Bible is the inerrant, inspired, authoritative, and self-consistent Word of God. Unfortunately it is not enough to simply accept a Christian worldview, because there are so many who claim to be Christians, represent themselves as Christians, and represent and/or work for Christian ministries that fail to hold to that standard. How sad for a family to send their child off to a Christian college only to have him or her inundated with anti-biblical instruction!

Instruction that is not consistent with Scripture, and at times is even aggressively opposed to Scripture, is to be expected in public and private non-Christian schools, whether at the elementary, secondary, collegiate or graduate level. But the wolf is still hiding in sheep’s clothes, and Satan is finding his way into churches and Christian schools, colleges and universities to undermine the Genesis account. Be on guard! Do your research, and know what kind of instruction your child will receive! There simply is no room for compromise.

Empty Praise

October 24, 2011November 16, 2011 ~ jbwatson ~ Leave a comment

In her book America by Heart, Sarah Palin writes about the dangers of empty praise and the “self esteem” movement that has swept the nation by storm. Specifically, she points out how dangerous this is for children:

Sometimes I think we try too hard with kids these days to substitute this inner strength with empty praise. Everyone’s into building their kids’ self-esteem by telling them they’re all “winners,” assuring them that every scribbled picture is a work of art and every chaotic soccer game is a triumph. I understand the good intentions behind this, but I also worry that we’re not giving our kids a chance to discover what they’re made of. Kids know the difference between real praise and empty praise. When we don’t let them fail, when we tell them every average effort is superlative, we’re keeping them from discovering that hidden strength. We may think we’re helping them, but really we’re holding them back.

In fact, we may be creating a generation of entitled little whiners.

Palin goes on to discuss the effect that this kind of upbringing has on young people as they enter the work force (hint: it’s not good) and the dangers that result from parents protecting the egos of their children while denying them the opportunity to experience, and the understanding of the importance of, hard work.

As parents, it’s natural for us to want to protect our kids from the dog-eat-dog competition of life. But do we really have their best interests at heart when we shield their little egos, finish their science projects, and sell all their Girl Scout cookies for them?

I would argue, as Palin does, that we do not have their best interests at heart and that we are, in fact, damaging our children when we fail to be realistic with them. There are many important lessons to be learned from assuming responsibility and working hard…and accepting the consequences for mistakes or failure to follow through on something that we were responsible to do.

The ultimate example of a parent, of course, is our Heavenly Father, and it does not take a scholarly grasp of the Scriptures to understand that God does not promise smooth sailing and a life free of disappointments to His children. On the contrary, He promises that life will have its share of challenges, trials, difficulties and even persecution. God uses these things to work His will in our lives, to shape us into the people that He wants us to be and to equip us for the future He has for us.

If the God of the universe, who could literally eliminate all obstacles in our lives and shield us from any heartache or disappointment has not only declined to do so but in fact promised just the opposite, can we really think we are being effective, God-honoring parents if we attempt to do so for our children?

Of course parents need to protect their children from unnecessary hardship and unfair treatment, but parents also need to let their children accept responsibility for their own actions and even, on occasion, go through the effort involved in working through their own problems. Parents should not do homework for their children, but they should be available to help their children if necessary. And if the homework does not get turned in, parents should support whatever consequences occur as a result, not try to excuse away the problem and facilitate the avoidance of consequences. If a child violates a school rule–from chewing gum to cheating on a test–the parents should support the consequences that result, whether a verbal reprimand, an after-school detention, or a zero on the test. The worst thing a parent could do is attack the school, verbally undermine the teacher or the school leadership, and be heard by their children making excuses for why their child wasn’t really cheating, or didn’t really mean it or know what he was doing if he did. Parents should defend their children to the nth degree, should support them to the utmost, encourage them early and often, and should be there for them regardless of what happens…but they should not, ever, under any circumstances, be the instrument of empty praise or the agent of avoidance for the justifiable and deserved consequences of actions (or inactions) of their children.