This summer I spent several weeks together trying to see the Good, the True, and the Beautiful with a group of students. These ideas are important if only because we ultimately find them in the Mind of God. Our quest begins with the fear of the Lord and it ends in our seeing God. This is the advice I gave those students at the end of the summer.
When we look at problems like Hurricanes Katrina and Rita such humility stands us in good stead. We can only hope to see God as Job did when he said (42:5), “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you, therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” Easy answers will not work. Answers that are good but not part of our own experience are not effective either. We need to experience what we claim and not just talk about it. How?
First, try to fill your life with beauty. Look at your room. Is it orderly? Does it contain art or is it a self-indulgent statement about self? Now look in the mirror. Do you look like a clone or are you dressing for your body type and God-created personhood? Try to decorate and dress to please God and to create lasting beauty.
Take an art class that is not required. Listen to classical music and to good contemporary stuff even if you have to go off the normal track to find it. Most of all go to live theater and live concerts. Avoid expensive shows and find the authentic concerts done by folk for the love of art.
Second, walk humbly before God. You had a chance to grow this summer. Not everybody had this chance, but they were given other gifts by God. What can you learn from them? Hesitate before saying what you “know.” Begin with listening and you can never go wrong.
This is especially true in dealing with authority in your life. How can you honor them? Do not presume to teach them. Instead honor what God has done in their lives and is doing in yours because of their willingness to send you to something like the Academy.
Don’t lecture your teachers. Listen to them. Ask good questions. If they attack the faith, then ask better questions! They may kill Socrates, but they can never silence his questions!
Third, remember that all three parts of your soul matter. You have a head: use it. Don’t fall back into the habit of consuming hours of media a day. Try to read as much as you surf the web or watch videos. Don’t let your heart grow cold as you learn. Read your Bible and pray every day. Every day. No excuses.
As you face the fall, you will be tempted to go back to easy answers. Avoid those. Instead, go for answers to the Bible and to great Christian leaders. Ask your pastor to point you to some of those. Good places to start are John Calvin, Martin Luther, John Chrysostom, and Justin Martyr. These are not easy authors, but they actually have something to say worth the time.