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March 2009
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With Campus Cross Walk
Written by: CampUs4 5/9/2011 12:38 PM
Focus at the Finish By Steven Tramel Gaines In his blog post called "fans of finals,” Benson Hines encourages campus ministers, “Don’t be afraid to show yourself a true fan of academic rigor during this time." Quality education requires focus. Most students don’t always have the focus necessary to perform as well as they can. That was often true of me, and I frequently see it in the students I serve. One dynamic that complicates students’ attempts to maintain their focus is that they need to focus on many things. Educational responsibilities, spiritual formation, life in a faith community, and active ministry to and with the people around them are all important demands on students’ time, effort, and attention. Keeping those foci in a healthy balance, however, is frustratingly difficult. We know that “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and [people]” (Luke 2:52, NIV 2011), but the Bible doesn’t give us details about how the young Jesus grew in those ways or how he maintained a healthy balance of foci. Perhaps appropriate ways of dealing with this are as numerous as the students we love. Prayer, reasoning, and intentional scheduling can go a long way in helping students to find their own ways as faithful followers of Jesus in their educational endeavors. The necessity of wisely managing time and energy in focused ways becomes more noticeable around this time of year, when students study for and persevere through their dreaded final exams. My experience has shown that students tend to err in one of two directions at this time. At one extreme, some students give in to the temptation to neglect their faith development and ministry involvement while they devote all their time and energy to studying. This obviously is an unwise path, for it leads to spiritual plateauing, which immediately turns to a decline in vitality and commitment. As Jesus taught us, our primary task is to live as active participants in God’s kingdom. At another extreme, some students give in to the temptation to neglect their educational responsibilities in favor of other interests (of varying spiritual value). While we must encourage students to continually grow in their spiritual development and commitment to ministry, we also must consistently remind them that their educational opportunities are gifts from God that require faithful stewardship. Higher education is a tool that God can use to equip students for both present and future service as representatives of Christ. At this stressful time of year, campus ministry leaders, don’t lose focus! Remember your calling to guide students on their paths of spiritual growth. Christian spirituality is holistic; it includes educational formation. So encourage your students to persevere. Help them stay focused on all the important things in their lives. Empower them to grow “in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and [people].” Pray with them, and model the way of faithful decision-making and time management. Steven Gaines, Editor-in-Chief of Campus CrossWalk, is a campus minister in Spartanburg, SC.
In his blog post called "fans of finals,” Benson Hines encourages campus ministers, “Don’t be afraid to show yourself a true fan of academic rigor during this time."
Quality education requires focus. Most students don’t always have the focus necessary to perform as well as they can. That was often true of me, and I frequently see it in the students I serve.
One dynamic that complicates students’ attempts to maintain their focus is that they need to focus on many things. Educational responsibilities, spiritual formation, life in a faith community, and active ministry to and with the people around them are all important demands on students’ time, effort, and attention. Keeping those foci in a healthy balance, however, is frustratingly difficult.
We know that “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and [people]” (Luke 2:52, NIV 2011), but the Bible doesn’t give us details about how the young Jesus grew in those ways or how he maintained a healthy balance of foci.
Perhaps appropriate ways of dealing with this are as numerous as the students we love. Prayer, reasoning, and intentional scheduling can go a long way in helping students to find their own ways as faithful followers of Jesus in their educational endeavors.
The necessity of wisely managing time and energy in focused ways becomes more noticeable around this time of year, when students study for and persevere through their dreaded final exams. My experience has shown that students tend to err in one of two directions at this time.
At one extreme, some students give in to the temptation to neglect their faith development and ministry involvement while they devote all their time and energy to studying. This obviously is an unwise path, for it leads to spiritual plateauing, which immediately turns to a decline in vitality and commitment. As Jesus taught us, our primary task is to live as active participants in God’s kingdom.
At another extreme, some students give in to the temptation to neglect their educational responsibilities in favor of other interests (of varying spiritual value). While we must encourage students to continually grow in their spiritual development and commitment to ministry, we also must consistently remind them that their educational opportunities are gifts from God that require faithful stewardship. Higher education is a tool that God can use to equip students for both present and future service as representatives of Christ.
At this stressful time of year, campus ministry leaders, don’t lose focus! Remember your calling to guide students on their paths of spiritual growth. Christian spirituality is holistic; it includes educational formation. So encourage your students to persevere. Help them stay focused on all the important things in their lives. Empower them to grow “in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and [people].” Pray with them, and model the way of faithful decision-making and time management.
Steven Gaines, Editor-in-Chief of Campus CrossWalk, is a campus minister in Spartanburg, SC.
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