Some of you may know this and some of you may not…and most should probably not even care…but I don’t like the idea of Christian private schools as they currently exist and from what I’ve experienced/observed. I’m not saying that in every situation they are bad or wrong, but they are just not for me, or for the way that I want my family to engage with the world around us. So, know that I’m not being a hater or trying to be judgemental…
But when I came across a Facebook group called “I Am So Happy I Left FLCS!!!” I couldn’t help but broadcast this. Here’s a screen shot from the groups page, and please read it before moving on…
Doesn’t this just seem a bit strange to anyone else?
Does it confuse anyone else that a student would complain about being taught the Bible at a Christian school? (there are numerous ways to look at this…I both agree and disagree with this at the same time)
Am I the only one who finds it sad that parents would shell out for private school just to have their kids hate it? (or walk away from God all together as one person on ‘the Wall’ says)
I’m sad about this because I relate on some levels. I also went to a small Christian school for college and I understand where these kids are coming from. Just because a place says ‘Christian’ doesn’t mean that everybody gets that it’s supposed to be oriented around Christ. I certainly didn’t get that…Christian school is where I smoked, drank, and partied more than anywhere else! Not everyone who enrolls their kids or who is enrolled loves Jesus and is sending their kids to be educated around a Jesus orientation. (…most likely if students encountered Jesus in a radical way the result would be inverse to the original desire of sending a kid to Christian school.)
My thinking is that if we are going to call schools Christian schools they ought to be a lot more about Jesus than simply a safer, more predictable alternative to public school.* I don’t get the point of duplicating educational options just to put the name ‘Christian’ on it. I believe that if we are going to use the word Christian…which means Jesus…to describe our schools there better be something life-giving and culture shaping about them. They should have the same calling, as educational institutions, to be salt and light to the world…not just more light to light and salt to salt. There has to be a way to redeem Christian education and those of us who are a part of it.
But for now…this group may have just done did it for me never wanting to send my kids to a Christian school…I would rather my kids be ‘little Jesus’ in public school than to have them resent God because of talking about Him in science class. I would rather my Maisie learn to find God in all things and in all places than be spoon fed a form of Christianity for a grade. (oops..that was a bit to revealing) I think that we need to pray for wisdom and ask how Jesus would want to us to engage our world.
*Random Fact: the school in question in the Facebook page is 93% white compared to 73% of another local school.
I just wrote a long response but I fear it was a little too soap-box-ish, so I’ll just say: AGREED.
I feel you on this one for the most part. The one part of our reality that I am scared of, is statistically- our kid’s won’t be “little Jesus” if he goes to public school either. Studies have shown that public schooled children are LRAST likely to follow any ideology they are raised at home in. Public education teaches polytheism, and unfortunately, where a child spends most of their time, they will be shaped. In America, it was the original goal of institutionalized education to “socialize” foreigners to adapt to american ways. “American” today = even less God.
I don’t care for private schools, either. The disturbing part is that kid’s just do mimic other kids. If it is popular to scoff, there are 30 kids and only 1 christian teacher. I am afraid you may be headed to homescoolville, haha.
Sounds like you guy’s are having a great time out there- we miss you!
oops. Sorry for the bad typing! I meant Least & Homeschoolville. haha
And I could hop on my soap box too….but my response would be the same as Diane’s. AGREED.
Sorry about the anonymity, but I absolutely LOVE and agree with everything you just said!!
AMEN! It is really nice to read this one week before I send my precious 6 year old off for first grade at public school. I know that not one bone in my body want to pay for her to be…how did you put it?…”spoon fed a form of Christianity for a grade.” In the community we live in I feel like there is a lot of pressure to dole out the big bucks and “protect” my children from public school, and an equal amount of pressure to keep them in my home and educate them myself! I don’t often find the words to convey my thoughts and emotions on this topic…what I do know is that I am a Christian in this world, this country, this state, this community…and my children will learn to be the same thing. I want to put them out there in the real world and give them the tools and support to stand up tall in their beliefs. Whoops, this is turning into the soapbox that Diane and Christine were avoiding! Sorry! Thanks for this though!
hey everyone…I say…soapboxes welcome…I’ve had my share of time on them. I think that this topic hits close to home for a lot of us. I think that it touches on our fear and regrets, and exposes some of our core beliefs about what we believe about God’s protection, Spirit, and guidance. Scripture says, “He who is in us in greater than he who is in the world”…Our battle isn’t about kids in school, curriculum, peer groups…it’s against an enemy that is already defeated, but fighting for a lost cause. When we choose to play life as though we still have something at stake, we are missing out on taking hold of what Jesus has done for us this life. Sure we’ll face persecution, and we may ‘be crushed but not destroyed, persecuted but not abandoned’…this is just part of following Jesus and trying to live right-side up in an upside down world.
I would guess that our passion on both sides of this issue is somehow related to wrestling over this greater theme. God, give us all wisdom, courage, trust, and grace!
We too left that school, but for another Christian school. I would homeschool before I would send my precious boy to a government school. I agree that we are to be salt and light. And that can be done anywhere. To send your kid to a government school and say be salt and light and, by the way, ignore all the things that they are teaching you that is completely against the Word of God is crazy to me. We began in public/government school and left when they had Michael reading books that had cussing and vile elements in them and said that it was acceptable reading for a 3rd grader. (All from a “Christian principal) We are to be different from the world. Very different. And if Christian school is a part of it…Great. There is also a difference between private school and Christian school. We have found a Christian school and KNOW that this is where the Lord has led us. To not be here would be disobedient. So, we share Jesus in the world. With our mouths and our actions. And we pray for our friends that are in government school. That God would protect and strengthen them where they are. Give them wisdom and that the Lord would reward their boldness by protecting their grades when they do disagree.
I appreciate your response Justin. Having gone the ‘private’ school route for my girls, and seeing who they got hooked up with as a result….(oops, that would be you and Jason!
) JK. Seriously though, as I keep trying to weave myself through the American church system, and desperately look there for a glimpse of Jesus. You know…Jesus…He who is not hidden behind comfortable sermons or surface conversation. I have veered away from ‘organized’ self absorbed ministries which really don’t teach the way He did/does because how in the heck am I going to live like Him, if I don’t intimately know Him?
This is my pitch for the new book by Steven James, Sailing between the Stars…musings of the mystery of Christ. You will see Jesus in a whole different, and bit more understandable, light. That’s who I want my kids and grandkids to know. And they are more likely to get that based on the foundations set at home, than those in an organized Christian ministry. That’s why I love what I do. It’s messy.
Oh. And I think I know who the ‘wimp’ is…or at least want to think I do!
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Is it against the rules to have two replies? As I was talking to the Lord about my comment, He showed me that when I get irritated about something, I often lose sight of the issue that is closest to His heart. The real problem is not the Christian schools out there (unless they are teaching contrary to or eliminating His Word) The real issue is that this person who wrote the facebook post is lost. That even though they were surrounded by Christians everyday that were probably nice people they are still lost. And that is sad and a reminder for all of us that are saved. If it happens in school, it is happening in church, and in Christian homes. When you lose sight of the truth of that, you get caught up in issues that don’t matter. Just teaching the history of the Bible and things ABOUT the Bible isn’t enough. The gospel must be taught, preached and believed. Romans 10 says how are they to be saved unless we preach the gospel(my paraphrase). And then after it is preached it must be obeyed. We must give our lives to the Lord, because He gave His for us. There is a song that The Kry sings that says “I believe in God and the Son that He sent that He came and He died and is risen again. Every Word that He says, every promise is true, I believe it, I believe it”. But, it is missing the part about sin and why Jesus came to save us. We are sinners and that is why we need to be saved. 1 Corinthians also says specifically what the gospel is. And Jesus says that unless you are born again, you cannot enter the kingdom of God. And the whole Bible says that Jesus is coming back to judge the world. This is the real issue. That people don’t believe this to be true. So, instead of trying to defend where I send or don’t send my son, I want to fight to share the gospel. Jesus does not need me to defend Him. But, I will because He did and is defending me to the Father. I have been bought with a price and I am not my own. And neither are my decisions. They are for the One who died for me. Pray for this facebook person and for those in your churches that don’t believe. Then act on it. And please forgive me for my first rant. It was true, but wasn’t necessary to get irritated over. God is sovereign and in control. I believe it, I believe it.
Hey Justin,
Thanks so much for this post. I don’t know either way what I think about this. It’s interesting though because as your experience at the Christian school was that of smoking, partying etc, mine (at the same school) was opposite. Though I did feel at times that I was in a bubble, I welcomed being able to share my love and thoughts about God to others. Where as I did wrestle with that freedom at the public high school I went to. But then again, I partied a bit before school and was able for the most part to get that out before attending PCC. But I have never really been one to be rebellious in that sense (until I hit my 30′s….whoops did I say that out loud!)
Anyway..it is a tough decision because every child is going to take something different from wherever they are.
Even enrolling Ethan and Avery in the public school here has me a bit nervous based on what I hear that Ethan and his neighborhood friends talk about while they are playing lightsabers. Ethan just shared with Jason last night that one of the little neighbor boys asked him if he wanted to play GRAND THEFT AUTO. WHAT???!! This kid is 11!! And Ethan’s ears have been exposed already to scenes in the movie SAW.
But then again, the OTHER neighbors who are outspoken believers think it’s okay to play RESIDENT EVIL in front of their 6 and 8 year old kids. So there you go. I think that wherever the kids go, there is going to be conflict because of what they are allowed to talk about or see in their homes. All I can do is have open communication with my kids and talk to them about what God desires of us, and why taking notice in some things of the world might not be the smart choice. So far, it has been a success and Ethan has been very honest with us in the conversations he has even if he knows we might not agree. We never make him feel bad, but just have open conversation. I just think that is so key. I don’t remember whose comment talked about the influence of others. I agree. There are going to be bad influences WHEREVER our children go. It’s NOT just public schools. There were a LOT of bad influences in the Private College I went. I just CHOSE not to follow that route. And I hope and pray my kids will make the same decision. But I will love them, when they fall down as well.
Way to stir the pot Justin!! Now you got a topic here that’s got some opinions going. So now I guess it’s my turn.
I don’t know where I am going to go with this. So I will just start and see where it leads. Public school for me was fine. However, it is my belief that public school 20+ years ago was nowhere near what it is today. Heck, when I was a kid we had two options to entertain ourselves – play the Atari or go outside and play. 99% of the time, I chose the latter. And sometimes we would even read (GASP!) or some other constructive thing. Maybe I just had a boring childhood, I don’t know. But things were different then.
Today, kids seem meaner (mayve they aren’t but just my impression), play video games, curse, show disrespect to adults with no reservations or regrets, play with their iPods and video games and cell phones, and think the world revolves around them. Maybe being a kid itself is no different when I was a kid but it sure offers a whole lot more challenges to raising one.
In some ways, I dread the day I have to turn my son over to schools (any schools) and the influence of peers (esp today’s peers). I have been on my soapbox before about limiting TV, video games, iPods, cell phones, etc and how my son won’t have these things or will have limited access.
So what does this have to do with school? I don’t know that it is where they are educated as much as it is the challenge of the culture they face today. And that is probably true whether it is a Christian or public school. I read above where two people went to the same Christian school and had vastly different experiences. And surely you were all taught the same. Kids at public schools turn out better than kids in Christian or private schools and vice versa. If you really want to heat things up, throw home schooling into the debate.
You make some really good points and I think it is the parents’ job to instill the values and beliefs in kids at home. No matter what they are taught in school if they don’t see it lived out at home where the influence is most felt, then it doesn’t matter. It’s the culture and choices kids have to make that matter. And that comes from within now where we are taught. I think either option can be fine but it is up to each child, the parents, the home, the influences, values, morals, etc to help shape them wherever they go to school.
So I don’t have an answer to this and respect parents’ choices as to whatever they choose. I think the real difference in a child’s life, his education, and how he chooses to live starts and ends at home. We can’t make the decisions for our child or protect them from everything they face but we can only give them the foundation for how to live and look at life from a God perspective. And then from there, it’s in the big guy’s hands as He leads our kids.
Off topic – Justin, not sure if you meant this or not but the link to Jen’s blog from your blog actually takes you here – http://allmyish.com/2008/08/19/blog/. It doesn’t go to allmyish.com. I have checked it randomly over the last couple of weeks and only now realized the link is to a specific post about her url change. So I didn’t think she had updated it until I realized it wasn’t directing to her main page. Not sure if that was intentional on your part or not. I know everyone uses her blog to get to yours but not me. So maybe you can just fix it for me.
Ok, sorry to go off topic.
hey everyone…I appreciate the interaction with this post…most of all, I hope that each of us wrestle with two things: Is our capacity/desire/ability to trust God with our kids lives increasing? Second, I hope that each of our wrestling with the how we are called to redeem this world along with God so that “His Kingdom come on this earth as it is in Heaven.”
Jeremy, thanks for the comment, it’s inspired me to post something else about my childhood now…