Why Christian?
Why Christian?
The first day of school finally arrives. Your little one is feeling all the feels and so are you. Excitement mixed with anxiety and fear are often a normal part of this new beginning. Still, you wonder if you have made the right decision. You capture the significance of this special milestone by taking a few pictures. As you arrive on campus, you look around to see the playground, building, hallways, and classrooms where your child will be walking, playing, eating, singing, and spending their time over the next year. You watch and hear other families as they make their way to their destination. Your young child grabs your hand and smiles at you as you lead them to their classroom door.
This scene plays out over and over every year. Some parents may simply move from one school year to the next, without thinking too much about their child’s education–or not even realizing they have a choice. However, many Christian parents, prayerfully and intentionally make decisions regarding their children’s education. It can be wrought with questions, anxieties, financial strains, uncertainties, and more. Putting all of these concerns in light of Scripture should ease their fears as God teaches us over and over to not fear. Fear is more than just an emotion; fear is also an enemy. We are walking with the Lord, and not the enemy, so our decision should not be based on fear but truth. We are not running from fear but walking courageously toward His plan for our lives.
Most of us are very intentional about who we choose to help care for our babies and toddlers. At this age, they have no ability to talk or protect themselves. Whether we stay home, work part time or full time, we make sure that whoever takes care of them when we need to be away are screened to the highest degree possible. We make sure they share our high standards for safety, cleanliness, love for God’s children, and our faith. In fact, many even choose to partner with faith-based preschools in order to ensure that their children are protected and loved well according to God’s commands and character.
This same intentionality should continue. My goal is not to argue or debate the issue of public vs. Christian education for Christian children. The end result is usually a stalemate serving no good purpose. My goal is to ENCOURAGE Christian parents to at least CONSIDER choosing a Christian education for their children. The Bible doesn’t teach any formalized educational system or offer an easy how-to plan to educate your children. This seems to open the door for freedom of choice based on personal preference and convictions. However, all of our decisions should be filtered through our Biblical worldview. Yes, everything about us is being fit for heaven to glorify God for all eternity.
What is a Biblical worldview? As Christian parents, we have the responsibility to answer our children’s toughest questions about life and to model for them how they should act, survive, and flourish in the world. Where did I come from? What is my purpose? What happens when I die? Ecclesiates 3:11 tells us that we cannot “fathom what He has done from beginning to end.” Faith and trust are vital. In short, a Biblical worldview answers life’s questions based on God’s word. Teaching our children a biblical worldview is the foundation for them to be able to shine their light in a dark world.
Does it matter if my child’s education reflects a biblical worldview? The process of building a biblical worldview begins at home. However, formal education has the potential to help or hinder a child’s spiritual formation. A person's worldview is shaped by a variety of things such as Bible literacy and spiritual disciplines that are taught in the home and church, but it is also shaped by what they are being taught in history, science, literature, art, music, math and PE. There is no true education apart from Christ. Therefore, Christian parents should care deeply about what their children are being taught and who is teaching their children.
Jesus says in Luke 6:40 “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.” Knowing this, at Covenant we take great care to choose Christian teachers who are worthy of emulation. Who we employ to teach our children is just as important as what we teach our children.
The Bible clearly teaches parents that they are responsible and commanded to educate their children in the Lord–how to live righteously in this broken and sin-filled world. In Deuteronomy 6:6-7 God commanded parents, “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children 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.”
Throughout scripture parents are taught to be active in the education of their children. Proverbs 22:6 states, "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it." Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:4, "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." In 3 John 1:4 the apostle John rejoices saying, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." These are GOALS.
Education is never neutral. There is a battle going on for the minds and hearts of our children. Solomon knew the importance of the mind and heart as he wrote in Proverbs 4:23, “Above all else guard your heart, for from it flows the well spring of life.” His warning teaches us that guarding our hearts won’t happen accidentally. We must be intentional to guard our children’s hearts and put them in an environment where they can be protected, nurtured, and allowed to mature before we release them into the world.
Now back to that classroom door. Who and what is on the other side? Who is the authority in charge? Will you sense chaos and confusion or order and discipline? A few steps inside and you see that the Lord has been faithful. You recognize the familiar faces of school leaders that you met, observed and had the joy of getting to know recently or even over a lifetime. Your eyes browse the walls filled with important heroes and reminders of our faith. Over the doorway states, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” Proverbs 1:7. As you leave, you hear the teacher lead her students in a prayer of thanksgiving for bringing her these students. You hear her say your child’s name. You know your child will be known, loved and taught to love the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind and strength.
As Covenant Christian Academy began this year, we marked this event with a convocation ceremony. Our speaker ended his encouragement to parents with a profound statement that made me think deeply about this topic of Christian education. He said he was talking to a wise counselor once and shared his frustration of not understanding how his children could turn out so differently. He told him he raised them all the same. His counselor responded, “That’s not really wise. They’re not all the same.” I encourage parents to choose wisely who educates their children and the type of education they will receive.
I’ll end with a story from one of my former 5th grade students. It perfectly portrays the importance of educating our children in a Biblical worldview.
He picked up the oversized Dollar Tree glasses with huge lenses and placed them on his nose. As if the gigantic, dorky look wasn’t enough by itself, he had popped out the lenses and filled them with many tiny pictures that represented his worldview: the number 10 (his age) and 5 (his grade) a few balls to show his passion for sports, a skateboard, a bike, a book (love for reading), a family picture, a boy to represent his gender, and more. However, the most notable item was an oversized cross that he had placed strategically in the center of both lenses. After he completed his short presentation of his worldview, eager hands flew in the air to ask him the same question, “Why did you make the cross so huge that you can’t see through it?” His response melted my heart and showed me the power of God to train His children. He shared with them, “It is only through the cross of Christ that I can rightly see God’s world.”
—written by Kat Snyder, Educational Consultant. Retired Elementary Educator with 35+ years of experience in both the classroom and administration. Passionate about passing the faith to the next generation. Psalm 145:4