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| Barrington Center for the Arts Gordon College MA |
This is where my oldest daughter spends the bulk of her time while at college:
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I've often asked my self "is it worth it? is a private Christian college education worth the investment in this day of no financial aid and just one academic scholarship?" I went to a Christian college here in NY and had a wonderful time....a good music teaching education rounded out by all the liberal arts courses. I think it helped my spiritual walk immensely to be surrounded by like-minded people.
But that was the 1980's.
What about today??
These thoughts have simmered in the back of my mind all semester.....actually, for most of the year....and yes...I do think it is worth the extra money. At least in my opinion. And in my daughter's opinion.
She loves New England. She loves Boston and the campus is close enough to the city to be fun yet far enough away to be "country". She loves the ocean and the beach is only 7 miles away! She loves graphic design and they have an excellent arts program. She loves her dorm......her friends....
She loves New England. She loves Boston and the campus is close enough to the city to be fun yet far enough away to be "country". She loves the ocean and the beach is only 7 miles away! She loves graphic design and they have an excellent arts program. She loves her dorm......her friends....
She is making very godly friends. And godly choices in her life-style. For that I am thankful.
She is surrounded by a diverse group of Christians...emergent adults, godly staff and professors of all ages. The college is a multi-denominational college meaning that there are many various Christian denominations represented on campus.
You can read about that here.
The reason I'm writing these thoughts, though, are based on something my husband and I witnessed over the long Easter weekend when she was home with us. She slept. A lot! She talked with us, her sister, watched movies, and met friends.......
.....and discovered that friendships from youth group days/high school days often are not the same when one leaves for college and then returns.
She was supposed to meet a couple of girl friends for the long-anticipated viewing of the Titanic 3D. She drove to the mall and bought her ticket. To make a long story short, without revealing too much information, let's just say that friend blew her off for a different movie. Courtney exchanged her ticket and began watching the movie of her friend's choice.
....and walked out.
She was so disappointed....tears of frustration and disappointment/sadness/hurt were in her eyes at dinner with us.
She was uncomfortable at this particular movie. She didn't elaborate but she did say it was surprising that her friend, who had been home-schooled all her life and a church-going gal was making these kinds of choices. We reminded her that it doesn't matter if a teen is home-schooled, private, or public school and brought to church all her life.....it is up to the individual to accept Christ and live a godly life-style. Kids don't get "saved" because their parents are! They repent because they want to change and live for Jesus. She knows this. But...she was so disappointed in this girl's choices.
.....her dad and I??
We were proud of her. Proud that she took a stand for her self and her values. If the movie made her uncomfortable, it must have been pretty "bad" because we have not been strict about movies,dances, books (other than ones that glorify Satanism, or denounce Christ), etc. and she attended a fairly liberal public high school!
We were happy to see that she is talking about God in a more mature manner....and living a life-style that is a true testimony to her Christian beliefs.
Is it worth paying all this college money??
You bet.....
She has become confident, more independent, and self-assured. She is studying His Word and applying it in areas that we've only talked about when she was younger.....
...she's realizing that not everyone from youth group is going to follow Christ as an adult.....she's realizing that she prefers being in the company of godly young men and women.......yes she has unsaved friends she is friends with...but she is learning that her true, close relationships that are nurturing and emotionally satisfying are coming from people who follow Christ whole-heartedly and with out shame......and......
It's worth it!
Please note: this is NOT meant to be a debate about public universities vs Christian colleges. My point is that I've been wondering "is a private education worth the money when she can get as good or sometimes more elite art education elsewhere?" and....YES...it's worth it on a spiritual level. We are well aware (my husband is an example) that some Christian teens do just fine on secular campuses. This is also not meant to denounce certain movies....movie viewing falls in the category of conviction area. :)
.....and discovered that friendships from youth group days/high school days often are not the same when one leaves for college and then returns.
She was supposed to meet a couple of girl friends for the long-anticipated viewing of the Titanic 3D. She drove to the mall and bought her ticket. To make a long story short, without revealing too much information, let's just say that friend blew her off for a different movie. Courtney exchanged her ticket and began watching the movie of her friend's choice.
....and walked out.
She was so disappointed....tears of frustration and disappointment/sadness/hurt were in her eyes at dinner with us.
She was uncomfortable at this particular movie. She didn't elaborate but she did say it was surprising that her friend, who had been home-schooled all her life and a church-going gal was making these kinds of choices. We reminded her that it doesn't matter if a teen is home-schooled, private, or public school and brought to church all her life.....it is up to the individual to accept Christ and live a godly life-style. Kids don't get "saved" because their parents are! They repent because they want to change and live for Jesus. She knows this. But...she was so disappointed in this girl's choices.
.....her dad and I??
We were proud of her. Proud that she took a stand for her self and her values. If the movie made her uncomfortable, it must have been pretty "bad" because we have not been strict about movies,dances, books (other than ones that glorify Satanism, or denounce Christ), etc. and she attended a fairly liberal public high school!
We were happy to see that she is talking about God in a more mature manner....and living a life-style that is a true testimony to her Christian beliefs.
Is it worth paying all this college money??
You bet.....
She has become confident, more independent, and self-assured. She is studying His Word and applying it in areas that we've only talked about when she was younger.....
...she's realizing that not everyone from youth group is going to follow Christ as an adult.....she's realizing that she prefers being in the company of godly young men and women.......yes she has unsaved friends she is friends with...but she is learning that her true, close relationships that are nurturing and emotionally satisfying are coming from people who follow Christ whole-heartedly and with out shame......and......
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| Courtney and Jang at Singing Beach Manchester-by-the-Sea near Gordon College c. courtneyeturner2012 |
Please note: this is NOT meant to be a debate about public universities vs Christian colleges. My point is that I've been wondering "is a private education worth the money when she can get as good or sometimes more elite art education elsewhere?" and....YES...it's worth it on a spiritual level. We are well aware (my husband is an example) that some Christian teens do just fine on secular campuses. This is also not meant to denounce certain movies....movie viewing falls in the category of conviction area. :)
3 comments:
Wow, Faith. That one brought tears to my eyes! what a good girl she is!!! That is so wonderful!! You must be so, so proud of her. We feel the same about Joe's son, Joey. Since grade school he has turned away from music and movies that his friends were listening to or watching, even when the school showed some movies he didn't feel comfortable with (and I was appalled they were showing!) he opted for study hall instead. College is more tough than high school years I imagine, but if you raise them in the way they should go, well.......you have some great girls Faith!
it was hard for her, Melanie..she still likes her friend but sees her making choices that aren't always godly ones or even safe ones....i reminded her that this movie (something with the word Jump in it) is a personal preference kind of thing and that if it made her uncomfortable as a Christian then she did the right thing. Glad to hear your stepson did the right things too!!
It's so exciting to see our kids making tough choices that are good choices. Good for Courtney.
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