Standardized Society

    Our world is becoming standardized; students take standardized tests every year to assess if they are learning the correct information at the correct speed, universities must meet standard requirements in order to receive government funding, even relationships have taken on a standard script that must be followed. While many of the things promoted under standardization our beneficial, such as safety or assurance that students will be prepared for the work place, it does discourage people from being independent, radical thinkers. In Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, the narrators talks about "[a] person [...] who was creatively on fire with a set of ideas no one had heard of before." While such a person may have existed in Zen, in the real world these people are truly rare. We have allowed ourselves to grow lazy and to simply rely on the great thoughts of previous thinkers instead of working hard to generate our own ideas. This laziness is partly due to the fact that thinking critically is no longer encouraged in schools or in the home. In schools, students listen and write down the thoughts of the teacher (who probably got the thoughts from somebody else) and in the home technology takes care of everything so that thought is not needed. The internet has also made the thoughts of others so easily accessible that it takes less time to find someone else's ideas about something than it does to develop our own.

    It is interesting to consider what would happen to a person who might fit this description, one passionate about their original ideas. Sadly, I think that the person would be looked upon very skeptically. People often have an initial phobia to new thoughts and new ways of looking at something. This causes them to find problems in whatever new idea may come about, searching for flaws in the beholder of the ideas and whatever else they can find that may discredit the idea proposed. Although some people may embrace a person with passionate, bold ideas, most of society would probably resist him, holding tightly to past ideas and technology as a shield against him.

Respect in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Elements of wisdom, as defined by Caroline Bassett, can be seen clearly in Robert M. Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Although all four dimensions, discerning, respecting, engaging, and transforming are all evident in this story, the one that stood out to me as I read this week was the dimension of respecting. According to Bassett, this part of wisdom involves how the beholder treats others; he or she is compassionate to others and values seeing their perspective. These characteristics are seen in the nameless narrator of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. In the very beginning of chapter twelve, the narrator comments on the emotional state of his riding companions John and Sylvia. Instead of trying to "develop the[ir] characters" and relating them to his ponderings about Zen as he is tempted to, he respects something that Sylvia once said, "I don't like being an object!" (135). He explains that as a friend, he respect her by understanding that she is a human who does not want to be analyzed or put on display. The narrator may see great value in unpacking the characters of John and Sylvia, but he practices respectful wisdom by not doing so.

The respect that that the narrator of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance has for his friends demonstrates an angle of wisdom that I believe is often overlooked. It is this: people are often said to have wisdom when they are able to respect the perspective and beliefs of entire cultures that are not their own; little do they realize that respect must begin on a much more personal level. One is showing wisdom when they truly respect and empathize with their friends. It is just as wise to be a loyal, trustworthy friend as it is to be an advocate for other cultures. The narrator of this book demonstrates this well in the way he respects his friends. When giving an explanation for his decision to not talk about John and Sylvia, he says, "[t]hat's the way it should be with friends" (135). This is true. If one is not wise in the circumstances closest to him, how can he be wise on a larger scale? It is in the common, everyday occurrences and relationships where respect and wisdom must begin and be cultivated.

Wisdom

    Wisdom is an abstract idea that few people can articulate. While many, like Caroline Bassett, have tried to define wisdom, it remains abstract and illusive. Yes, enough ideas are formed that a person striving to obtain wisdom knows in which direction they should be moving, but the true application of wisdom is much harder to define and is often subjective and based on belief. It is for this reason that many colleges decide not to teach their students to recognize and practice wisdom. Doing so would invite students to stand out on issues and do things that the university does not agree with. This is especially true in many secular colleges; they do not want Christians to have a loud voice, and encouraging them to practice wisdom would be encouraging them to take action on issues that the university may want kept quiet. In their mind, it is more effective for the college to simply teach the students knowledge and ignore the deep application of it.

    At John Brown University, the desire to suppress Christian wisdom from being practiced does not exist. Instead the challenge keeping it from being taught consistently is possibly that the professors do not feel that they truly understand wisdom enough to teach it. This should not be the case, however, because students and teachers should work together to pursue wisdom. I believe that this is how the Honors program can most effectively teach students to recognize and practice wisdom. There must be openness between students and professors as they share knowledge and discuss its application on the world. Ideas presented should be thoughtfully considered and never simply dismissed. Teachers should act as guides, sharing their own journey in seeking wisdom; personal testimony is powerful and having an example to follow often inspires students to try harder. Peers should also be encouraged to work together in obtaining wisdom and to share their breakthrough moments when they believe that they did gain another piece of wisdom. It is through a secure community in which knowledgeable individuals are working together pursuing wisdom that the Honors Program of JBU will truly create students who appreciate and apply wisdom in order to change the world.

Of course, there is one other method: Prayer meetings. We could just go to class and pray, asking God for wisdom. J

    The world is a dynamic place; technology changes, the economy changes, the way things are done changes. Education attempts to teach students like me how to survive and participate in this constantly changing world. In "How Should Colleges Prepare Students to Succeed in Today's Global Economy?" studies show that company owners believe that universities are not doing a proper job preparing students to be a significant, beneficial part of the world. The Honors Program of JBU is attempting to change that by specifically challenging students in certain areas that will prepare them to be the employees that company owners are looking for. For example, company owners believe that much more emphasis needs to be placed on the liberal arts so that students can gain the broad skills that are developed as they participate in "core classes;" this is one of the goals of the Honors Program. Graduates from the Honors Program are expected to be knowledgeable and to know how to apply that knowledge, both to a specific field and to fields across the board. This knowledge comes in the form of facts learned in a variety of classes, but also in the skills learned "behind the scenes:" communication, good work ethic, and the ability to work in teams. The Honors program at JBU takes this core learning even further by challenging the students to come up with many of the answers as to how they can apply what they learn instead of allowing the teachers to just tell them. They also expect the students to have a good work ethic which motivates them to do their very best in all work, without constantly being told to.

    As I think about these areas in which students need to be competent in order to succeed in the today's economy, I wonder if I possess what it takes, of if I am even on my way there. Amidst my doubts, I do believe that I have made progress in these areas, even in my first semester of college. I came into college wanting to just get my core classes out of the way as soon as possible; I wondered why they are even necessary and how they will benefit my in the field of youth ministry. Through our readings for Honors Orientation, my mind has been slowly changing. I see the benefit in enduring and embracing core classes; and even though I can't claim that I love all of them and want to do the work for all of them, being able to see the benefit that I am and will be getting out of them is the first step. I find it hard to believe that we can love and enjoy every class that we take in college, but if we can at least see how it is beneficial to us, I believe that we will do better in it and that it will become more beneficial to us. I don't have to enjoy every class to allow it to prepare me better for the world that I will enter into at the end of my college years. I just have to trust that I am developing life-long skills if I put forth my best effort into the class. This is what I am trying to do right now, so even though my progress may not be monumental, it is progress.

Alternative Education

    As I was looking at institutions of alternative learning styles, I became intrigued with The Experimental College of Haverford. This is a "college" in which anybody (and everybody) can be a teacher; the classes are student run. Some examples of classes offered in this college are beginner ceramics, SEPTA and the real world, and Roman Baroque art. Classes are often held in dorm rooms and attendance is usually quite low. Homework is not encouraged and little is required of the students. Although this is an interesting alternative to traditional education, it seems rather humorous, almost like a joke. The classes are rather random and even though one may be learning some practical things such as how to use the bus system, he or she is not even expected to take class seriously. The is some consolation in the fact that none of these classes are for credit, but it seems almost as if this is a place for students to go if they want to experience the social life of college without the work.

The Experimental College of Haverford couldn't be more different than John Brown University. At JBU, classes are taught by experts in their area and students are expected to act responsibly in their courses. The aim of classes is to teach students not only about the course they are studying, but also to teach them skills that they can apply to all areas of life. At JBU, students are expected and taught how to use their brains to their fullest ability; the Experimental College seems to lack this aspect of education. Although the classes at Haverford sound interesting, I do not think they would be effective in developing my gifts and talents. To grow, one needs to be challenged. At ExCo this factor seems to be lacking; the website even says that teachers of a class do not need to know very much about the subject they are teaching. Challenge is essential in deep learning; if students are not challenged, they will not learn and grow. The Experimental College at Haverford is more like a summer camp than a college.

Quality

    I remember being in middle school and being told that I had to write a two page essay. I wrote with large handwriting and used as many words as I could in order to fill space. The first time that a high school teacher told me that she didn't care as much about quantity but rather wanted quality work, I was shocked. It was liberating, actually. My work ethic changed as I no longer had to worry about getting points marked off because something was too short; I could focus on making sure that what I was saying was important and well-said. I believe that this is an important aspect of "quality." It is focusing our efforts on doing an excellent job conveying important thoughts and concepts rather than reciting meaningless facts. Quality requires that we use all of our brain and not simply the memorization function; we must know the facts so that we can analyze them and apply them to current issues. Quality work cannot come about unless we believe that there is a reason for us to do it.

    College is not just a place for students to learn how to produce quality work – it is also a place for students to become "quality" persons. This happens through the disciplines learned during the college years. While individual classes are important, the skills and discipline that students learn because of the classes are most important. I can write a paper about the brain and while it may be good for me to understand how the brain works, it is essential for me to be able to discipline myself to write a good paper. In the process of that paper I would have to make decisions about time management, sleep, eating, and countless other things. The discipline that I develop in making those decisions is a very large part of making me a "quality" person. This is why even the core classes are important in college. I often allow myself to think that my cores are simply classes that need to get out of the way so that I can get on with my major. If I apply the concept of "education to become a 'quality' person" to my core classes, however, I must not have an attitude of inattentiveness, but must instead put my best effort into it. After all, this is loving Jesus with my mind.

Effective Education

    As I was reading chapter two from The Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paul Freire, my mind kept wandering to a novel that I read during my senior year of high school: 1984, by George Orwell. In this novel Orwell describes a world in which people are essentially robots; they are educated very specifically to believe what the government wants them to believe and individual thought is outlawed. They do not ask questions or attempt to understand the state of the world; they simply memorize what they are told and recite it. Although 1984 is an extreme example, this kind of system is how Freire paints the "banking concept" of education. He describes it as a system in which the teacher has total control and is simply filling the students' heads with facts and unquestioned beliefs. This system does not allow students to truly think. He criticizes this form of education and proposes another form which he believes is much more effecting: "problem posing" education. "Problem posing" education removes the distinct line between students and teachers and provides a place where everybody is required to think critically in order to find solutions to problems they are presented with. In this form of education, the teachers become students and the students become teachers because everybody has input in the class. Instead of creating robots who are able to memorize facts and regurgitate them, "problem posing" education creates thinkers who are beneficial to society.

    I have experienced both of these forms of education. During my freshman year of high school I attended a charter school in Colorado Springs that used a learning concept called direct instruction. This meant that the teacher would ask the entire class a question and we were all required to give the answer in unison. As one can probably see, this process does not allow for individual thought or critical thinking. We learned facts and were only required to tell them back to the teacher. It was rare that we were challenged to think critically about the facts we had been given. I also have experienced "problem posing" education. At my school in Peru, many of my classes operated this way. One in particular, however, stands out: novels. My senior year English class required us to think very critically about the readings we were given. One particular assignment we had was over the short book Metamorphosis. For our assessment we were required to discuss, in depth, the concepts of the book and how it relates to existentialism. Our teacher did not participate in the discussion except when absolutely necessary. We were forced to look into the piece and come up with the answers on our own. I remember Miss Murrell saying several times that she was learning new things from us despite the fact that she had read the book multiple times before. I don't remember all of the facts that I learned at my school in Colorado, but I do remember very much of the discussions we had in Novels when we were required to actively think about what we were learning.

What Others See

    "Where do you see me in ten years?"

    "Chasing two kids in diapers!"

    "Being married, having two and one quarter kids…"

    "I see you as a mother in ten years…"

    This week I was required to ask at least four people questions regarding my abilities, passions, and where they see me in ten years. When they got to the third question, about my future, they all responded as seen above. I had no idea that so many people would envision me in the same place, especially in that situation. This is not the only similarity in the responses to my questions. In fact, there were only two (I asked eight people) overwhelming themes in response to the first question about my passions: people and relationships. This came as no surprise to me as I too believe that my greatest passion is people. There are few things that make me happier than spending time with people and developing close relationships with them. I value my friendships greatly and will always make time for them.

    The second question I asked was: What do you think I'm good at? Several people responded as I expected, telling me that I'm good at listening to people and encouraging them. Two people, however, gave an answer that I was not expecting: "You're good at organizing things and making things happen." This came as a bit of a surprise to me as I have never considered myself to be a great organizer but after briefly reflecting on my life I began to see truth in the statement. I am a leader so it is natural for me to step in and make things happen. Even when I try to avoid such situations I often find myself being drawn in unintentionally.

     It was exciting to see answers from so many different people coming together to form one overall picture. Everybody I asked imagines me doing the same thing in ten years. Besides simply being a mother and chasing children around, they see me involved in youth ministry. Some were not so specific but their main point was the same: teaching others how to love and serve Jesus. The responses to these questions were encouraging to me. For many years I have been asking God to reveal his plans for my life and the gifts he has given; now He has. It is amazing how God has used tests, surveys, and now people to confirm that I am walking in his plan for my life. Our God truly is an awesome God to answer our prayers so clearly.

Strong gifts? Gifted strengths?

My Top Gifts: Hospitality Music Encouragement Pastoring Giving

My Top Strengths: Empathy Connectedness Developer Belief Communication

 

    I recently took two tests to see what my top strengths and gifts are. Unsurprisingly, the results from both of the tests complement each other well. For example, my strengths empathy and connectedness aid me greatly in using my gift of encouragement. In order to encourage people, I need to have an idea of what is going on in their lives. Empathy allows me see that and put myself in the same position; connectedness allows me to have an idea of why they are going through that particular challenge and to find the right words to use in encouraging them. I remember a time when I was able to use these strengths and gifts to help a friend. A girl in my class had just moved to Peru for a year because of her dad's job. I had recently gone through something similar and knew how hard it was to leave home. Jesus helped me to see her hurt and encourage her to make the most of her time and to reach out to Jesus like never before. At the end of the year she told me that my words had encouraged her greatly and that, partly because of them, she had enjoyed her time in Peru much more. These experiences fill me with joy.

    In addition to encouragement, empathy, and connectedness working so intricately together, I believe that all of my other gifts and strengths interact as well. I have the gift of pastoring (this is good, since I am planning to become a youth pastor) and the strength of developer. As a developer I see the potential in people and strive to help them work towards that. I believe that that is one thing that a youth pastor, especially, should do. The belief strength also interacts with the gift of pastoring. An effective youth pastor believes in what they are teaching; that is what makes pastoring fulfilling. Belief also inspires my gift of giving. I love to give to the homeless and the poor not only because my heart goes out to them, but also because I strongly believe that God wants us to do so. Some of the most fulfilling moments in my life have been the times when I have been able to give food to a child on the streets of Peru.

    It has been exciting to discover the gifts and strengths that God has placed within me. I know that He gave them to me for a specific purpose and I am very excited about what that is. Psalm 37:4 says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" (NIV). When I was young I thought this verse meant that God would give me whatever I wanted if I just read my Bible and prayed; I was wrong. God does not change His desires in order to please us. Instead, when we begin to truly delight in the Lord our desires change to fit the plans that He already made for us. The desire of my heart is to work with people and be a source of encouragement in their lives. God gave me this desire and He is now being faithful to give me the strengths and gifts that I need to fulfill it. He truly is a generous God.

    

My Spiritual Gifts

    Since childhood I have been told that every Christian has a special gift from the Holy Spirit. I've always believed this to be true but it wasn't until my high school years that I truly began to wonder what gift or gifts I had been given. Since then I have taken many different spiritual gifts tests and although the results vary to a small degree, the same gifts always make it near the top: music and encouragement.

    I am always excited to see music come up as one of my spiritual gifts. I am very passionate about it and find much joy in leading others into worship with our God. Although I am not an expert at any particular instrument, I have been able to use my voice to lead worship for about 4 years. God also blessed me by allowing me to learn enough piano to accompany myself when I need to worship Him alone. Singing praises to God is one way that I can release my emotions and get refreshed. I have not chosen music as my career but it will always be a passion of mine.

    If giving encouragement could be called a passion, I would surely have it as well. This is why it came as no surprise to me that encouragement is one of my top spiritual gifts. I find great joy in offering words of encouragement to those I come in contact with; this is one reason why I desire so greatly to work with youth. The proper encouragement can help determine what path a person will take in life. Youth are some of the most easily influenced people in this world and I want to have a voice in their lives. I can do this through the gift of encouragement that God has so generously given me. I am striving to use my Spiritual gifts to please God and to further His kingdom.     

Influencing Intellectual Youth Culture

I have a good friend who is currently attending Calvary Chapel Bible College in Lima, Peru. He once asked why I wanted to spend lots of money attending a Christian liberal arts University when I could spend much less time and money at a Bible college. I responded, “I am an academic person and I do well in school. It would be a shame to waste that.” Even though I could earn my youth ministry degree faster going to a Bible college it would mean sacrificing the opportunity to stretch my mind and learn to think critically about more than just the Bible. I am here at JBU to learn to truly think so that I can influence youth around the world that thinking critically on all levels and in all areas of life is important. I see myself influencing the evangelical youth culture to think in ways that they have never done before and subsequently helping to rise up a generation of evangelical Christian thinkers.
I believe that it is important to be able to apply Christian principles into every aspect of living this life here on earth. Jesus Christ commanded us to be in the world. We can’t do that if we only stay I our Christian bubbles, thinking critically only about areas such as spiritual gifts and the end times. As a youth leader, I would like to challenge teens to strive to reach their full potential as Christians in an intellectual, secular culture. Obviously I do not want to burden youth with more “schooling” at youth group, but I would instead challenge them to truly do their best even in high school. I believe that the high school years help to set a foundation for the way someone will think throughout the rest of their lives. I would want to be a youth leader who not only encourages students to study the Bible and know it well but also to apply what they are learning there to their “real world” studies. I believe that if youth took that seriously they would strive to do much better academically. After all, we are working with the mind of Christ and He created all of our minds. Christians have much greater intellectual ability than they realize, and I want to encourage the upcoming generation to truly develop that ability.