Higher Education
Many people strive to learn and achieve a higher level of education in their chosen or current profession, job or career pursuit. Most folks would like to not just be proficient at something but to become an expert at it.
Achievement for proficiency or expert level status is recognized through various means such as college diplomas, certificates of completion, licensing, special diplomas and trade cards. There are debates triggered by the cost benefit analysis of useful degrees, or higher education that can benefit oneself in the marketplace. How much cost/debt do you acquire, for attaining what education, and what is the financial payback for all of that?
Students, parents, taxpayers, and society at large want an educated population for good reasons, but more accurately, we need an educated people for every kind of positive progress. And for a fair and reasonable cost.
How many families get involved in schoolwork/homework as the children go from grade to grade Perhaps the older siblings help the younger ones. Maybe tutors, summer school, special extra lessons were employed. All for the goal of education.
Decisions are then made for furthering the education past high school. College? Military? Trade schools? How many years, how much cost, how much time, what occupation/career/trade? And even with all that, many jobs require advancement or upgrading your skill set through consistent or periodic training or education.
While all of us recognize the merits of a higher education, there is one area of education that seems to get shortchanged by too large a segment of our society. That is the church education. Overwhelmingly, the average church provides a couple services per week. Sunday morning and midweek. There are typically provisions in the average church for children/youth /adult education around both services.
Let蘑菇视频 do some math. Sunday school is 45 minutes, followed by children蘑菇视频 church or adult service, 45 minutes. Midweek service is 90 minutes. That蘑菇视频 a total of 180 minutes or three hours of instruction / classroom (service time) per week. If one attends 52 weeks at twice per week, that ends up being 156 hours of education, attendance and participation.
Let蘑菇视频 subtract 20 percent off of that for missing because of holidays, weather, sickness, family vacations, etc. That still comes to about 124 hours. Multiply the 124 by 12 years for typical grades one through 12 and the total is now 1,488 hours. I dare someone to compare that to how many hours it takes for college credits (which do vary). The Bible states in Proverbs 22:6 (New International Version), 鈥淪tart children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.鈥� The spiritual education that they and you get from a decent church will not leave your spirit. Like learning anything, you will remember what you need.
And in 2 Timothy 2:25 (King James version), the Word tells us to 鈥淪tudy to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.鈥� This reveals to us that we should be engaged in spiritual education. The Scripture admonishes and encourages us repeatedly to know God蘑菇视频 word.
What happens when we don鈥檛 send our kids to school, or deprive them of a chance at a decent education? They are shortchanged and we are charged with being neglectful. Can the same be said of families that ignore or shortchange a spiritual education for their children? Is this spiritual child abuse? When it comes to spiritual reality and truth about Christ, do you know enough in your time of need?
How many hours of church have been lost in your life or someone you love? While it is certainly acceptable to improve one蘑菇视频 mind, knowledge and experience in academics in the pursuit of livelihood, there should also be a spiritual pursuit to improve your faith walk.
I implore you to go, or get back to church, read the Bible, engage in conversation about it 鈥� you and your family 鈥� and pursue a 鈥淗igher Education.鈥�
Gardone can be contacted at www.traceygardone.com