As a college professor, I often am asked for my perspective when a friend’s child is getting ready to navigate the college application process. These are big moments in a young adult’s life, and as recent news has revealed, some parents are willing to go to great lengths to help their son or daughter realize their collegiate dreams (or perhaps, the dreams their parents hold for them). When asked, I always try to provide whatever insight I may have, although generally it is not much more than they could get from reading the instructions on the university’s website. Still, it seems to provide some comfort to hear from someone who is daily immersed in the college experience, and I am happy to encourage them as they start the journey.
Although I am willing to share what I have learned with parents about to launch their kids into university, it’s not the question I want to be asked. Instead, I wish that I was more frequently asked how to help ensure that the child is ready for college. Making a college selection is just one part of the process; the bigger, and often more neglected piece, is making sure that they are ready for the challenges and opportunities that college holds. If you make a college decision but aren’t prepared for the college experience, there is little value in having navigated the application process successfully. Setting your kid up for success in college is more important than having the right introductory essay.
As of yet, nobody has asked me that question, But should they do so – this is what I would share: the most important thing that you can teach your child before they leave home is the truth of the Gospel. This means that they need to not only understand the fact that Jesus died and rose from the dead for the sake of their sins, but they need to understand the reasons why that is “good news.” Additionally, your high school graduate should know why you believe in the Gospel, the historical and archeological evidence in support of the Christian faith, and what other belief systems teach about eternity and how it differs from what Scripture teaches. Send your student to college with a clear understanding of what the Bible teaches, what that means for their life, and how to appropriately contend for their faith. Even if you are sending them to a Christian school, don’t relegate this most fundamental aspect of their education to someone else.
I would like to think that everything I have written above is readily accepted by Christian parents. In fact, when I originally started this post, I was going to write about something totally different, assuming that teaching our children the Gospel would be so self-evident that it didn’t need to be stated. However, after over a decade in higher education, I have found that it most assuredly does need to be explicit: if you send your child to college without a firm foundation in the Word of God, you are doing them a disservice. Many of them will be exposed to ways of thinking and lifestyles that they haven’t previously considered. When they are outside of your house, you will not be able to counter every false doctrine that they hear. Help them understand the reasons for the faith while they live under your roof. This won’t guarantee that they will walk with God, as ultimately that is the result of the Holy Spirit’s work on their life. But it does mean that you have helped them realize the futility of chasing things that have no eternal value. In other words, you are giving them every chance for college to be a success – not only preparing them for their future career but, more importantly, preparing them for a lifetime of service to God.
