Quote of the Week

A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.
-Theodore Roosevelt

I am thankful that I have a college education. I remember many times while I was in college when I thought “man, I can’t believe anybody would stop going to school after high school”. Honestly, I feel like I learned more in those 4 years of college than I learned in the entire 13 years of school before it. This doesn't mean, however, that I will push my children to go to college

The reason many parents blindly push their children toward college is because many people equate college with success. They believe that if their children go to college, they will be a success, and the parents in turn will be a success. Yay! Everyone wins, right?

There is a big lesson that society does not teach children, though, which I think is more relevant than going to college. This is the Biblical principle of hard work to provide for yourself. There are many people without college educations who are better at working hard to provide for their families than people with college educations.

I had a huge reality check when I got out of college and realized that those 17 years of education were not for kicks and giggles or even for the sake of knowledge. The whole goal of them was so that I would have the skills to get a job and provide for myself (taking into account God’s provision as well, of course) in the end. There is also the argument that an education allows one to become more discerning, which I would have to agree with.

Many parents ignore the number 1 responsibility they have to their children in favor of pushing an education on them. The number 1 responsibility the Lord entrusts us with is to teach our children to know and love Him. When we push an education, sports, or hobbies on our children which get in the way of that primary responsibility, we are not doing our number 1 job.

As for my children, I will give them the option to go to college if they feel that it really will further their future career. My husband is an engineer, and never could have been an engineer without college. But if my children decide that college is the perfect place to “find themselves” or study abstractions like Philosophy or hobbies like dance, I will encourage them not to go. I will also encourage my daughters who choose not to go into the workforce (as I hope they will choose to serve their families at home) to forego college or to study things that might help them at home (like nursing, teaching, etc.).

This might sound cold hearted, but this is coming from someone who studied political science, which has led to a job which pays probably not much more than a gas station attendant. It also put me in debt up to my ears. If I could do it all again, I’d pass.