WORDS OF WISDOM

Here is another excerpt from our weekly school newsletter, written by Headmaster, Jason VanBemmel...

So we have a new president-elect. Some of you are excited that we finally have an African-American president and are looking forward to the change he will bring to the White House. Many of you are upset and even distressed that Americans would overwhelmingly elect a very strongly pro-abortion president. While the election represents a big step forward in the civil rights movement for African-Americans, it also represents a significant step backward in the fight for the civil rights of the unborn. At New Covenant Christian School, our vision is to
train up a generation of Biblically-minded servantleaders who will lead the church and the culture toward righteousness. As we have been fleshing out, as a staff, what this means, we have focused much of our attention on two very key characteristics for our students: Wisdom and Eloquence. You have heard me speak about the importance of wisdom for years. Proverbs emphasizes the central importance of wisdom again and again – “Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom.” (Prov. 4:7) Wisdom is the skillful ability to apply God’s truth to all of life. It begins with knowledge, which then proceeds to understanding and is finally culminated in wisdom, where knowledge and understanding bear fruit in the reality of life. When we live our lives based on God’s truth, we are wise. No other definition of wisdom is adequate or complete. It is not about how smart you are or how much you know, it is about how you live. As important as wisdom is, eloquence is also central to our vision for Biblically-minded servant-leaders. As we have seen in this election, eloquence is vital for social influence. President-elect Obama is one of the most eloquent men to step into the public square in America i n a long time. His ability to eloquently articulate his message and to connect with voters was central to his success. Very few leaders succeed in both wisdom and eloquence. Very few have God’s truth applied to life and the ability to clearly and effectively articulate their message in a way that has the power to be influential and thus transformative. Certainly, Jesus embodied both wisdom and eloquence, as He spoke the clear and life-changing truth of God in power and memorable ways. And the Bible as a whole demonstrates these twin qualities of wisdom and eloquence perfectly. The Bible is not only completely true and reliable and life-changing, but it is also a beautifully written masterpiece of literature. If we long for our children to be more Biblical and more Christ-like, we have to be striving after these two goals: wisdom and eloquence. We are seeking to do the best we can at New Covenant to train students in these two character traits. You can do much at home, too. In fact, in this area, as in every area of life, you have more influence over your children’s education and development than we do. What can you do? Talk to your children. Think through, reason and discuss tough issues with them. Help them to connect God’s truth to their daily lives. Give them stimulating and challenging things to read and then discuss them as a family. Does this sound too radical? In our culture’s current state of moral and intellectual decline, radical is exactly what we need. Going with the flow and doing things the smooth and easy way just won’t cut it anymore.

“And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.” – Mark 1:22