I am just a couple weeks from returning to school for my last and final year of undergrad, Lord willing. I have mixed feelings regarding my return to school for several reasons. First, and probably most significant, I will need to be much more disciplined. If you recall, last year I attended Greenville Tech. I grew accustomed to throwing on some shorts, a shirt, and a pair of flif-flops and running out the door off to school. This year I will be attending Bob Jones University once again and… well, let me just say that I can’t come to school in that sort of outfit. Futhermore, if I was running late for class at Greenville Tech for one reason or another, they didn’t have a problem if I was tardy or even absent. I was held responsible to make up my own work. Bob Jones does not look too kindly on absentees or those who play hooky. Needless to say, I must clean up my act. Secondly, I am going to be jumping back into third semester Greek (which I am told is the hardest), and I have not been in Greek class for over two years. It is a bit daunting. The reality is that I am human and sinful, and it will be God’s grace and humble obedience that will enable me to continue in spite of my weaknesses.
On the other hand, I am excited about returning to school because it is my last and final year. After fours colleges and three different majors, I will at last be finished. I tell people that my education hasn’t come through the classes as much as it has been the through the process. After twelve years of this leg of the journey, I will be prepared to enter the next.
Perhaps the greatest truth that God has used to prepare me for this last year has been His faithful illumination of the gospel of Christ. The gospel of Christ has become more real to me than ever before. I can return to school with kids almost ten years younger than me, submit myself to the seemingly burdensome rules and yet rejoice in all this for the sake of Christ. It is my pride that will keep me from boasting that I have opportunity to display the Gospel of Christ to those whom God will place in my life this year. Certainly my weaknesses are great, but I have all the more reason to boast in the cross of Christ.
If you scroll down a few posts to the one entitled “Mr. Clean goes camping,” you will see a recent picture of me. In case it is not obvious, I shaved my head for the summer. Well, due to certain rules at BJ, I cannot be a student with a shaved head, so over the last month I began to grow my hair back. In Acts, Paul took a vow, shave his head, and entered into the temple for the sake of the Gospel. He was willing to put his comforts aside so that Christ might be lifted up. This is my chance to let my hair grow back out and enter into BJ for the sake of the Gospel. I am sure that Paul, by far, had a better understanding of the gospel than I do, but hope that even through this year, God will continue to illuminate my heart and mind to the truth of the Gospel.
Quick update: my laptop is still in the shop, we just got high-speed at home just in time for my desktop to die. So, I am using my lifelines – my family and the library.
This is “grace at work”
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