Some of you may need to sit down before you read any further because I seriously doubt you'll believe your eyes . . . Ready? I never really liked school! I was so glad to finish high school. Really didn't plan to attend college. Didn't really know what I would do for a living. Being a preacher, however, was always the most prominent possibility. Problem--I didn't like school.
After graduating from high school (1974 for those who just have to know!) I visited Freed-Hardeman College (now Univeristy). After make last-minute application I was accepted. Then I got sick. The thought of having to go to school more was overwhelming. I dropped more paperwork in the mail and then decided I would not go. Ever tried to retrieve something from the Post Office once you dropped it in the box? Trust me, it is no longer your property and you can't just get it back.
When I registered for classes at FHC I remember my advisor saying, "Well that's a good schedule; it ought to keep you busy." Yuck! I didn't want to be busy in a classroom. And I didn't stay too busy; I've got the GPA to prove it. I graduated, then entered a 90-hour Master of Theology (the most demanding Master's Degree offered in any field) program at Harding Graduate School in 1978. Then I entered the Doctor of Ministry program at Harding in 1991. A lot of academic discipline for a guy who never liked school!
If you've not sat down yet, you really need to now...it gets more shocking. Why all that education? Why do so much of something that I never really relished? First, please accept that I'm not sharing this autiobiographical insight to brag about any accomplishments; I just don't know how to make my point any better than through sharing this information. I have focused much of my life on academics because I want to understand God and Scripture as well as possible. Good enough, but not really. You see, I always felt that my salvation was conditioned upon obtaining the right information and then practicing it to the letter. Therefore, if salvation is mine it will be because I believe and practice everything correctly.
Imagine my surprise to learn that salvation is far more relational (that is, God loves me and I love him and my neighbors), than institutional (that is, get all the right information and practice it legalistically). Institutional religion cannot save; relational trust in the adequacy of God's love saves me.
Guess what? Learning more about relational faith has become a passion! Go figure.
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As one who gets to work with you on a day-to-day basis, I am blessed by your education . . . and blessed even more by your heart! Thanks for the blog!
ReplyDeleteThank goodness God doesn't base his love for us based on how much you know because I would be left in the dust.
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