Back to School

If you listen carefully you can hear it. The sound of crying and the sound of rejoicing. That’s because it is almost time to go back to school. That crying is coming from the students and teachers. The rejoicing is coming from the parents. The summer has flown by and now it is time to begin learning once again. Ready or not here it comes.

Many times, as adults, we think that learning and school are areas for the young. This however should not be the case. Paul in his second letter to Timothy gives us the example that we are to follow. He is in prison and he is writing to Timothy. At the end of the letter he asks Timothy when he comes, to bring his cloak and “the books, but especially the parchments.” There has been much debate about what he was referring to, but the consensus seems to be that the books may have been legal books and the parchments were probably Old Testament writings. Even in prison and nearing the end of his ministry, the Apostle Paul still was striving to learn. Here was a man who was already a brilliant scholar. A man who had spent a good deal of time after his conversion learning from God in the desert. A man who would write almost half of the New Testament, yet he was still seeking more.

What an example!

What about you believer? Are you still striving to learn? Are you growing as a believer? As Christians we must guard against “coasting” in our Christian walk. We should be ever growing. Daily Bible reading and prayer time are a must, but if we want to truly take great leaps in our faith we must set aside specific time to study God’s word. We must get into the Bible and partake of all of its wisdom and life-giving resources. What are you studying this week to prepare you for next?