Wisdom for students in a New Year
2 January 2025
Study is a privileged activity
God has given you a huge privilege. Easily less than 1% of Christians since AD 30 have had this privilege.
Don't treat it like an irritation or a burden. Show God you are worthy of further, greater privileges by wise stewardship of this one.
Study is a prayerful activity
Studying is hard, wearying, depressing work. You won't find deeper love for God automatically springing from your heart during the weekly grind.
It happens to everyone.
The answer to this is not to give up studying, but to do it in a prayerful, weakly dependent way on Christ, always remembering you're there to serve people you haven't met yet. Studying too much will harden your heart.
Ask God to soften it.
Study is a strengthening activity
Don't force everything you've learned on your church once you graduate. Much reading does not = wisdom. There will be people in your church who know less and are much wiser. Listen to them.
At the same time, you haven't just been filling your head with facts in seminary. The stress and strain has been strengthening your resilience muscles.
The stress of study helps to train you to endure hardship like a good soldier. You're being trained all the way through. Don't misinterpret it, or blame yourself, or your professors.
And finally...
Once again - whenever I talk about seminary - I'm saying that it's a good, even a very good thing, but only a good thing - not everything or the only thing. God trains his servants in many ways. A seminary degree doesn't mean you're better in ministry. In fact, if you miss #2, then the finest and most godly seminary in the world might make you twice a son of hell. Seminary is very/good, but never perfect.
