Helping Young People Prepare for Higher Education (2)

By Jonathan Peters | May 30, 2024

“Lord, What Wilt Thou Have Me to Do?”

Originally given as a workshop at the 50th Annual Conference of the Keystone Christian Education Association and as a breakout session at the 82nd Annual Convention of the American Council of Christian Churches. Updated and revised.

Part 1 is here.

Choosing a Future Calling and a Field of Study

Explorations

As students mature, Christian mentors will want to offer opportunities for young people to explore different callings and discover their God-given talents. Christian schools, as they are able, may want to provide specialized or higher-level courses. Schools may also wish to compete in state, regional, and national fine arts competitions. Administrators, furthermore, may designate special career days for high school students to listen to panel discussions of professionals. These days could be used, moreover, by high schoolers to shadow these very same professionals in their places of work, whether it be the law office, hospital, foundry, or accounting firm. Christian educators can also encourage young people to seek out part-time apprenticeships with the masters in their trades. Churches and schools may wish to provide summer camps specializing in fine arts, medicine, engineering, politics, history, etc. Churches can offer ministerial opportunities for young people to serve in the nursery, choir, evangelism, mission trips, and nursing homes. As missionaries and visiting preachers come to town, families can be encouraged to host these guests in their homes so that their young people can learn more about these callings.

Questions

As young people are exposed to various callings, Christian mentors should pray for the Lord’s leading, and ask students very probing questions. Secular society often encourages young people to consider these pragmatic questions: What job will bring in the most money, popularity, pleasure, or power? How can this job be achieved? Mature Christians should ask young people rather to answer these questions: 1) How can you best serve God, the Church, and your neighbor?1 2) What does the Church (universal, and local particularly) most need (1 Tim. 3:1)? 3) Can you fill those needs with the talents and abilities that you have? Christian leaders should encourage young people to ask, “Lord, is it I” that should go forth into full-time Christian service? (If a young man) Is it I that you want to preach? Is it I that you want to send to a foreign land to preach the gospel of peace? Is it I that you want to teach in a Christian school? As one nineteenth-century pastor said:

Go where we may, we see more merchants than can find customers, more physicians than have patients, more lawyers than clients. Society has enough of them – too many. But to supply all our home destitutions, to carry the gospel to every one of the eight hundred million of pagans on our globe, the church needs a hundred times as many ministers.2

The Lord does not prepare everyone for these fields of service, but they should be considered first. If God is not calling a young person to these things, Christian leaders should admonish him to ask: “Lord, what wilt thou [then] have me to do?” (Acts 9:6). As students narrow down their options, mentors should likewise ask them: 1) Will any of the callings you are considering pull you away from the Lord, the Lord’s Day,3 or the Lord’s people? 2) Have you consulted people in those callings who know you and know what it takes to be successful?4

Christian leaders also should be careful not to promote a careerism for young ladies which denigrates 1) marriage (Heb. 13:4), 2) motherhood (Gen. 1:28, Ps. 127:3-5), or 3) the primary responsibility of keeping a home if/when they marry (Titus 2:5). Many, however, may still recommend higher education for young ladies as 1) they may be called to a lifetime of single service (1 Cor. 7:32-34) necessitating advanced studies or 2) they may marry one day, and the higher education they receive may greatly benefit them in keeping a home, ministering in a local church, and if need be, supplementing their husband’s income.

Choosing a Place of Study

Christian leaders not only can provide counsel to students about their future callings, but they can also assist them with choosing a place of future study. Young people often do not know what options are available, or what would be the best choice for them.

To better acquaint students with places of higher education, pastors and administrators can host college representatives and ministry teams for chapels, recruitment meetings, or other special activities. Christian leaders can also encourage parents to host college representatives in their homes so they can gain a better understanding of these institutions. Talks with old and recent graduates can give additional insights, as well as websites, podcasts, and journal articles. But nothing may be better than actual visits to schools to see what life is like on these campuses.

In all of this, pastors, administrators, teachers, parents, and grandparents must be careful that they do not imbibe the mindset which says: “I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas” (1 Cor. 1:12). Christian leaders must understand that there cannot be a one-size fits all approach for everyone in choosing a place of higher education (or, if they should even go on for higher education). There are several factors to be considered:

Factors

Major Field – Once a child knows what profession he should head into, he should be encouraged to select a major which will best prepare him for that calling. Then he should eliminate the schools which do not have that major. From those remaining, he should seek to find the ones with the best education. Depending on his calling, he might best be directed to a generic major for an undergraduate degree, and then a more specific major for post-graduate studies. Those studying for the ministry sometimes may wish to take a broad undergraduate degree in humanities, and then shift to a Master of Divinity in graduate school.

Cost – A young person ought next to pay careful heed to what he can reasonably afford. He should be cautioned against entering into severe debt, as it can hamper his life after higher education. Adults can encourage children to look into scholarships to help cut down on the costs.

Spiritual Preparedness – One of the most important factors in helping a child find the best school is the strength of his faith. Certain schools (and surrounding communities) may help build that faith, while others might hinder or destroy it.

Some young people may have clear testimonies and a strong, proven faith. Some may not have such, but their community support (i.e. local church) is able to keep them accountable. If this is so, secular institutions, socially conservative colleges, or broadly religious schools might be viable options. If any of these are chosen (especially the first), children must be admonished that they “really have to go in prepared for battle, because the academic atmosphere . . . [at these institutions is often] enemy territory in the battle for your soul.”5

Some children may not have clear testimonies. Their faith may be unproven or inexperienced. If this is so, it may be best to direct them to Christian institutions of higher learning, at least for the first few years of study.

Many Christian parents find that for undergraduate studies, their children are often most prepared for higher education at a Christian school like their upbringing in philosophy and practice. Many children are not yet ready to face all the challenges of the world fresh out of high school, and therefore they may need a buffer zone before achieving complete independence. Sometimes, Christian schools do not have the specific major one is looking for, so parents may opt to start their children out at a Bible college/institute for 1-2 years to get some more Bible education, before transitioning them to a secular college or vo-tech school.

Specific Areas for Christian Schools

If parents should choose the Christian school route for their children, there are some additional factors they may wish to consider. Christian leaders can encourage parents to contemplate these questions: 1) Will the school my child wishes to attend foster their spiritual growth? 2) Will it foster a desire to return to his local church (or one like it) when he is finished, or will it pull him away? Children cannot rely on the fact that the school had a good founding, or that it was a wonderful place of study when their parents or grandparents attended.6 The current state of the school must be of utmost importance.

Statement of Faith – Parents and children examining Christian schools should look to see if the institution has an orthodox creed which the faculty are required to sign and keep. Depending on their theological convictions, some families may also wish to see specific denominational distinctives written into that creed, while others may prefer something more generic.

Christian leaders should encourage families to look not only at an institution’s historic creed, but also at any statements they may have pertaining to contemporary moral, ethical, and religious issues,7 such as:

Gender Identity – In today’s world, matters relating to gender identity are extremely important. Conservatives schools should have clear statements about homosexuality, transgenderism, same-sex attraction, egalitarianism, and feminism. Christian leaders should also encourage families to see if the schools they are looking at permit LGBTQ advocacy groups/clubs on campus, even if not officially sponsored by the school. They may also wish to see how/if students are disciplined who promote such a lifestyle.

Creationism – Another pertinent issue to examine is a school’s stance on creation and the age of the earth. Families should check and see if a school teaches young earth creationism or theistic evolution.

Race – Thirdly, families may wish to see a school’s position on race and racism. Christian schools should oppose partiality in all forms, including interracial dating bans, critical race theory, and affirmative action.

History – Fourthly, Christian leaders may encourage families to examine a school’s view of history. Schools which seek to follow Scripture will “abhor that which is evil” from the past, and “cleave to that which is good” (Romans 12:9). They will not have a sentimentalized view of Christian history, nor a cynical one. Neither will they practice cancel culture towards people in the institution’s history who were godly yet blind to their infirmities.8

Chapel Platform – Families should also investigate the chapel platform, especially the sermon content, the speakers and their associations, and the worship.

Dormitory Life – The music permitted in the dormitories may also be a key area to examine, as it may differ from what is used in chapel. Families may also wish to investigate the community standards concerning movies, video games, and social media, as young people are often attracted to these things. Permitted off-campus activities may be another crucial factor to consider.

Recent Graduates – Lastly, Christian leaders should encourage families to examine the lifestyles of recent graduates from schools in question. Families may wish to see where graduates go on to work, what churches they attend, what lifestyle choices they make, etc.

Once a strong foundation has been laid at a Christian institution of higher learning, parents may then feel that their child is ready to go on to a broader religious/secular schools for post-graduate studies.[1]

Whatever higher education option is chosen, Christian leaders should encourage parents to stay involved in their children’s lives, possibly supplementing their education, as no school (Christian or secular) will be 100% identical to their home.

Jonathan Peters serves as an administrative assistant at Reformation Bible Church and Harford Christian School (Darlington, MD). He and his wife, Andri-Ellen, also lead Venerable History Tours of local battlefields. Jonathan was interviewed on the Pennsylvania Cable Network’s Battlefield Pennsylvania: Battle of White Marsh (2019), and he also transcribed and edited Our Comfort in Dying: Civil War Sermons by R. L. Dabney, Stonewall Jackson’s Chief-of-Staff (2021).

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 on Unsplash

[1] Zachary Garris, “R. L. Dabney: Master of Education,” The Confessional Presbyterian 18 (2022), 143-144.

  1. Dabney, “What Is a Call to the Ministry?” in Discussions, Volume II: Evangelical, ed. C. R. Vaughan (1891; repr., Harrisonburg, VA: Sprinkle Publications, 1982), 37-39. B. M. Palmer, Formation of Character (1889; repr. Harrisonburg, VA: Sprinkle Publications, 2008): 41-43. Richard Steele, The Religious Tradesman; or Plain and Serious Hints of Advice for the Tradesman’s Prudent and Pious Conduct (repr., Harrisonburg, VA: Sprinkle Publications, 1989), 29. [↩]
  2. Dabney, “What Is a Call to the Ministry?” 41. [↩]
  3. Young people especially should be shepherded away from recreational “professions” which play on the Lord’s Day. The London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689, Chapter XXII: “Of Religious Worship and the Sabbath Day,” Section 8 and Sam Waldron, The Lord’s Day: Its Presuppositions, Proofs, Precedents, and Practice (Pensacola: FL: Chapel Library, 2017), 132-133. [↩]
  4. Steele, 29. [↩]
  5. Greg Hall, “Decisions, Decisions, Decisions: Choosing the University That’s Right for You,” Answers in Genesis (October 29, 2016): https://answersingenesis.org/college/decisions-choosing-university-right-for-you/. [↩]
  6. R. C. Sproul, “Be Prepared,” Tabletalk Magazine (November 1, 2010): https://tabletalkmagazine.com/article/2010/11/be-prepared-sproul/. [↩]
  7. Many of the factors listed below come from Scott Yenor, “Are There Trustworthy Protestant Universities?” American Reformer (April 4, 2023): https://americanreformer.org/2023/04/are-there-trustworthy-protestant-universities/ and Ken Ham, “Why You Should Be Careful Which Christian College You Attend,” Answers in Genesis (February 26, 2023): https://answersingenesis.org/blogs/ken-ham/2023/02/26/be-careful-which-christian-college-you-attend/. [↩]
  8. Jonathan Peters, “Shem or Shimei?: Teaching History in the Midst of Cancel Culture,” Journal for Christian Education 28, no. 1 (Fall 2021), 21-25. [↩]
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