Faith based life on campus?

curran
Thu, 14 Jun 2012 16:20:14 +0000

I’m in the same position as you too- born again Christian and very conservative (socially and politically). I am not, however, from a like-minded town. It’s a fairly conservative area and my parents are Christians, but the kids I go to school with are very liberal. Over the last year or so I thought extensively about whether I should choose a secular or Christian school. I talked to my pastor, friends at church, and my family about it. And of course, I prayed about it too. After weighing all the pros and cons (detailed below) as they relate to my life, I came to the conclusion that I belong at a Christian school.

I’ll start with the pros for a Christian school-

One obvious benefit would be that you can grow spiritually in a Christ- centered community. Also, your education is a time to learn and grow intellectually. Therefore, it is best to learn from those who acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and teach from a biblical worldview. It is very sad to look at some of these secular schools, which do not teach from the perspective of absolute morals and absolute truths. Liberals worship the god of “open-mindedness,” which sounds intellectually appealing but is nothing more than a heartbreaking, satanic scheme to avert people from the Truth. It drives them crazy that we believe there is only One Way to heaven, through Christ alone. Additionally, I know that I am strong enough in Christ (as it sounds like you are too) not to fear being corrupted by our secular culture. God did not give us a spirit of fear so therefore I am not afraid. Fear would be the wrong reason to not attend a secular school. After much prayer and a good conversation with my youth pastor I discerned that. I really feel that at the end of the day, my reasons for choosing a Christian school are my opposition to what it stands for. It’s very much like the reason I choose not to eat fast food. It’s really not because I fear what it will do to me; it’s because I disapprove of what it does to other people, the sicknesses it causes, and the overall health decline of our awesome country. Very similarly, I despise the spiritual diseases our colleges cause even though I know I wouldn’t be infected.

That being said, I will explain some negatives to attending Christian schools:

The most important thing is this world is Jesus, spreading the Good News about Him and living a life to glorify Him. What better place to share the gospel than a place where not many people have heard it or believe it? We need strong Christians out there and I know some people on secular campuses who have seen God do some pretty awesome things through them for the glory of Jesus Christ. If God is calling you to a secular school than consider it a noble mission! I don’t know what your grades are but mine are on the brink of the top Christian schools (Wheaton and Grove City). If I don’t get accepted to either one of them, I will embrace it as God’s will and be just as honored that He wants me to be a light for Christ somewhere else.

Other factors: Consider what you want to study! I want to be a double major in Biblical Studies and Political Science (then continue to law school). Wheaton and Grove offer excellent educations in both, so that’s another factor.

Hope I could help and best of luck! I’ll say a prayer that God would lead you to where He wants you, and if you ever want to talk more feel free to message me!