Most of us have heard the phrase, “Christian education doesn’t cost; it pays!” This is not entirely true…there is a cost. Yet, the statement is true in the sense that Christian education pays…it’s worth it – it is an investment.
From Kindergarten through the tenth grade, I was in a public school system. When my parents sacrificed to put me in a Christian school my junior year, it was not an easy transition. Yet, their decision laid a foundation that profoundly changed my life:
- I surrendered to preach while going to a Christian school.
- A Christian school teacher encouraged me to consider a Christian college.
- I met my wife in a Christian college.
- I have worked in Christian education in the same place for over two decades – but I met my pastor when he was a guest speaker at my college.
- My five children are being raised in a Christian school environment.
- My oldest daughter is a few weeks from moving into a dorm in a Christian college.
- I’ve had the privilege to teach over 2,000 alumni at a Christian college.
- I’ve had the opportunity to preach in most of the states and a few other countries representing a Christian college.
- I have some life-long friends I met in college, grad school, or seminary.
- Public education aimed at my head; Christian education changed my heart.
Here’s a little dating of myself. I graduated high school in 1990. As a junior in 1988, I had no idea this list you just read would develop. My heart was wrong; I was struggling to be independent. Yet, God’s grace was sufficient – that grace is why I am here today.
Not everyone has the opportunity to send their children to a Christian school – I get that. If that’s the case, then we must work even more diligently to ensure that their education is being filtered through a thoroughly biblical worldview.