Long Before the Dorm Room

Growing up, academics were always valued in my home. (For some of you, your eyes are already rolling… hang on.) For whatever reason, I loved learning and enjoyed school. When I got married and thought of starting my own family, I longed for my children to have a great education and to value learning, too.Then I started working at a college.My beliefs and my expectations collided. Somewhere along the way, an excellent education became synonymous with no absolutes. Academia experienced this transition ahead of other elements of our society. As an admissions counselor at a selective college, I watched as the Christian high schools lagged behind other institutions in academic rigor with more money and more commitment to the latest teaching methods. It didn’t take long before my priorities were forced to shift. Having the best education became secondary to wanting my children to have a heart like Christ.Now, as we begin our journey into the college selection process as parents, I’m reminded of the environment that each of our college-bound children will experience. In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he wasn’t writing to college-bound students or their parents. Yet his warning to his readers in Colossians 2 should be sent out with all ACT score reports: ”I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments… See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit…” (Colossians 2:4, 8a). College is definitely the place where many plausible arguments will be presented… as facts.[bctt tweet="Children will leave a faith they've learned, they will not leave a faith they've lived."]I’m ahead of some of you in the parenting process… and behind others. May my voice represent those who have gone before you… If you have influence on any child or student, please do not delay in doing your part to help this generation become intimately acquainted with Christ. This means both factually and relationally. It cannot be one or the other. If you only speak facts, your child will abandon facts when plausible arguments are presented. If you present only relationship, they’ll be ill-equipped to defend their faith in their dorm room, let alone the classroom. Then live it. As you’ve heard before at Highpoint, “children will leave a faith they've learned, they will not leave a faith they've lived.”It’s never too early to start. Our influence will wane faster than any of us want to admit. Our children must have the freedom to question their faith and make sure their faith is their own. That’s to be expected. Yet if you’ve never been diligent to provide a foundation, what do they have to stand on? If you’ve never engaged in questions that they’ll eventually hear outside of their home, what are you waiting on?Perhaps this summer you pick one intentional way to engage in age-appropriate conversations with your children that will protect them from the plausible arguments that await them… long before they get to college. Also, prioritize building friendships with other families who follow the Lord. Help your children to see faith lived out in community.For those of you further ahead or currently in the trenches, I’d love for you to comment… What’s one thing you did/do/or wish you’d done to prepare your children for the plausible arguments, philosophy, and empty deceit they’ll face?