Do You Know What You Need to Know to Be Successful?

Do You Know What You Need to Know to Be Successful?

Good Morning Friends,

High School youth graduated this last week and many of them will be going off to college. If you are or have one in your family, congratulations. Only a small percent of the world’s population are college students. And if you are one or have graduated from college yourself, then know you are part of an elite group. But also know it is one thing to begin college and another to actually finish and still another to make a significant contribution through one’s life. It is one thing to go and another to actually benefit from the experience. Most will drop out. Many will graduate at an unreasonable cost. Many will not be prepared for the experience financially, practically, spiritually, morally, philosophically nor academically. Do You Know What You Need to Know to Be Successful?

52Scripture: Top of Form

Bottom of Form

⁵Let the same mind be in you that was^* in Christ Jesus,⁶ who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited,⁷ but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form,⁸ he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. ⁹Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,¹⁰ so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,¹¹ and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:5-11 (NRSV)

And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years,^* and in divine and human favor.

Luke 2:52 (NRSV)

14’Now therefore revere the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. ¹⁵Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.’

Joshua 24:14-15 (NRSV)

Message: People may have different ideas about this but realizing that many youth enter college as practicing Christians and few graduate as such should give one pause. It seems like the essential thing is to prepare youth to make wise decisions…choosing what is best over what is just good. Preparing youth to live out their lives with a God centered purpose is needed. Before they get to college they need to have a sense of what this purpose is all about. And if it is self-centered then it will miss the mark. But if one is looking at life from a Holy perspective then certain behavior is expected. Face it, one cannot party all the time and still succeed in college. You have free will. Our all-powerful, all-knowing and all-loving God is not going to stop you from making a mess of your life. So read the Bible regularly. Join a church group and attend worship. Choose friends who are doing the right things. Just as study habits are critical so too are spiritual ones. No one is going to get you up in the morning and take you to worship. You need to decide this in advance. So remember who helped to get you there in the first place and that they are counting on you to have established some behavioral standards in advance and that means dating standards too. Of course you need to go with an open mind and be willing to learn and try new things, but do it without compromising your ethics, morals, or your dignity. If you are not shaping the world, it is shaping you. And to do that you need a personal ministry of some sort to help you experience God along the way. Share quarters at the laundromat. Tutor another student in a skill you have. Think this through now in advance…before the storm. And finally keep the end in mind. And no this is not just about graduation. How things end up is a choice about who you are going to serve…who you are going to become. And then pray you have a working knowledge of the philosophical issues of our time and the Christian response. This summer’s reading list should include the Bible with a focus on Paul of Tarsus for he was a student and a philosopher. But also it will be worth your time to understand the basics of other philosophers like Aristotle, Plato, Rene Descartes, Confucius, Thomas Aquinas, Avicenna, Zeno, Epicurus and John Locke for starts. The people in college think in ways that may not be familiar to you. These philosophers will give you a better understanding of what you will face. But remember to be prepared to serve God in the process. Know who you are following. Know that the best of everything is theological. Know Jesus is the way to best wisdom of all.

Pray youth get involved in the right activities in college. Pray they enjoy life but not abuse it. Pray they make the right choices. Pray they are prepared to own their faith. Pray we help young Christians to understand what they believe, why they believe it, and why it matters. Pray the incoming college students realize that the Bible, religion and morality are the most important knowledge they will ever have the opportunity to claim. Pray we all face the evidence and all realize we have an authority problem. Pray we all follow Jesus and learn of the wisdom that will increase in both divine and human favor.

Blessings,

John Lawson