Over the past 3 months, I have had the opportunity to sit
down across a desk or table with a lot of students to talk about upcoming
classes, possible employment and the direction that they see their life
taking. This isn’t unusual, it’s my
job. What has been unusual is the number
of students, even incoming freshmen who bemoan the fact that they don’t know
what to do “for the rest of their lives”.
For them, this big question mark complicates everything: what classes
should I take? Will they help me get a
job? Should I even be at college?
When I find myself in one of these conversations, I always
get a sly smile on my face and gently lean in to let students know I’m getting
ready to share some important pearls of wisdom.
I say softly, “I’m 37 years old, and I don’t know what I’m going to do
for the rest of my life.” Most students
respond to this statement with a look of concern. “What do you mean you don’t
know?” This conversation gives me the
opportunity to share something that I have come to believe deeply during my
time at Trevecca: the time that we spend
in college is about more than just getting a job. It is about more than getting a set of skills
that we will use to earn money for the rest of our lives. This may sound radical, but the truth is that
the time that we spend in college should be about learning about the world that
we’re a part of, learning who we are, learning about how to ask good questions,
learning about how to be a good conversation partner and learning to listen
closely for the still small voice of God that will guide us for the rest of our
lives. Yes, we will pick up some skills
that will hopefully help us to get a job. Yes, we will learn a lot of knowledge
in our major. But if that is all that we
have walked away with from our college education, we have missed out on an
incredible opportunity.
One of the exciting things about being a Christian is that
we never know where God will call us. I
graduated from my undergraduate program with a degree in Biology planning to
attend medical school. I never imagined
that I would be a pastor, a staff member in the Chaplain’s office, or a college
professor. But, as God called and opened
doors, I began to follow. Things that I
learned in my college classes, in conversations with my roommates, with
ministry that I did in the community all have been a part of shaping me to
answer God’s call on my life. And now, I
have the opportunity to challenge my students look at their college education
in this way. We are preparing for a lot
of things during our time at Trevecca.
We are preparing to be citizens of our world who know and care about our
neighbors near and far. We are preparing
to appreciate good books, beautiful art and masterful music. We are preparing to faithfully and justly
manage our money and take care of our world. We are preparing to listen for the
call of God and to answer, wherever that takes us.
So you don’t know what you’re going to do for the rest of
your life? It’s okay, it’s better that
way.
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