It’s not likely a principal from a school in Singapore actually wrote the letter (fake news) but no matter who the author is, it’s good information and I’m glad it went viral again. CLICK HERE TO READ IT.
I’m an educator. I believe in it. I have a Master’s Degree in Education and just lack my dissertation to have an earned PhD. My wife, kids and their spouses all have college degrees. I was principal of 3 Christian schools, consulted with 2 others, was a School Board President, Interim Director of an overseas school and have experience teaching in public schools. I even believe the Bible teaches the importance of education. But despite all that I have to say, success in school is not all it’s cracked up to be.
I say this because I’ve seen some parents so focused on good grades that they shred their child’s spirit when the child doesn’t meet performance expectations. Additionally, I have seen parents so concerned about their kids earning their degree from the “right” college that they stand by and idly watch – sometimes even continuing to fund – while the child’s spiritual life goes down the toilet.
Yes, we should encourage our children to do their best. Yes, we should make sure they know education is important, attendance is important, homework is important and yes, even grades are important. But they are not as important as character, spiritual sensitivity, obedience to the Lord and living a life of integrity before God and man.
The Most Important GPA
The GPA we should be most concerned about is their God Pleasing Ambition rather than their Grade Point Average.
Dawson Trotman, founder of the Navigators, impacted thousands of lives, many through ministry on university campuses. Dawson had a high school education. A.W. Tozer, one of the greatest Christian writers of our era, was forced to drop out of school to work his family’s farm. He had a sixth grade education. Ellis, one of the first missionaries sent by Commission To Every Nation, led college groups and medical/dental teams into remote areas of Guatemala with a high school education. (Read his amazing story here) The apostle Peter was “ignorant and uneducated.”
What good is it if your children graduate summa cum laude from the most prestigious college in the land, get an impressive job paying a huge salary but then use all that education, talent and resource just to serve themselves?
Encourage and inspire your kids to work hard and do their best at everything they do. (Afterall, they are to do everything as unto the Lord.) But then realize that God has a unique purpose for them and it might not be spelled STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Math).
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Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
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