The Phil Files

One of the blessings I’ve had while living in Abilene has been the opportunity to teach freshmen Bible students. FIfteen hours of Bible are required for any undergraduate degree at Abilene Christian University. This means several things:
1. Every student has to take Bible
2. The emphasis on Christian education is a real curriculum commitment
3. Many students grow in the Lord and some meet Him for the first time in Bible class
4. A few students make life difficult for others because they don’t want to take it

Yesterday, all these realities collided in my class. The vast majority of the class was plugged into the focus of the day, the crucifixion of Jesus. A few were disruptive and disrespectful of the class and were disruptive of the focus of the day — they were plugged into a shared ipod, phones, and chatter. I asked several of them to leave. I hated to do it, but their behavior was bothersome and distracting. In light of the subject of the day, it was also incredibly disrespectful of the price that Jesus paid for us. My prayer is that they won’t let this interfere with finishing the semester in a strong way and will use it to help them think about what is important and what is not.

To top all of this off, I received notice that another student has withdrawn from school just a few classes shy of the end of the semester. What breaks my heart about this is that while he got off to a rough and slightly disinterested start to the class, he rallied to bring his grade up to an “A,” sat near the front, was always congenial and involved in the discussions, and appeared to be growing in the Lord. My prayer for him is that he finds his way and receives what he needs for the next steps of his journey from godly people who love them.

I won’t be teaching this class for awhile. Lord willing, we (Donna and I, our daughter, and some friends) will be going to Cologne, Germany in January to teach preachers and church leaders there. I will also focus upon the m6trix communication concept in the days ahead. I will miss the students who are eager to learn and those who find themselves surprised by what they learn about Jesus. For now, however, my prayers will be with those students whose lives took an unexpected turn in the last couple of days.