A Recent Speech

Let me begin tonight by stating that I am here as a private citizen. I do not represent Greenville Technical College at this event, nor am I here in any official capacity. I am a Christian that just happens to work in the public square. I am a Christian that cannot separate his beliefs from what he has chosen as a profession.
As I was considering my remarks this evening, I thought about how glorious it would be to share with you on some esoteric topic like “does the devil think he is really evil”, or “the role of social media in the current cultural crisis”. Rather than talking with you about one of those topics, I decided that it was better that I speak with you concerning something I really had some level of expertise. I think I want to share with you a more rudimentary issue that I believe lies at the foundations of our current cultural mess.

A few years ago I was conducting some research as to how a person’s faith had an impact on what was taught in the classroom. I interviewed 30 faculty members at 3 different colleges and found that there were 30 different ways these individuals infused faith into what they taught. As a matter of fact, I found that it was not just in the classroom that these people infused their faith. Now, that may not be so surprising to some of you, but I found that it was very interesting.

What I found most interesting was these people shared their faith for one reason and one reason only. It was not because they felt compelled by the Christian mission of the college; it was not because they felt some sort of Christian responsibility; it was not because they felt threatened by an overbearing administration that forced them to do so; it was not even because they thought that God had commanded them to. They shared their faith with their students because they cared. They cared that their faith was propagated to the next generation in a fresh and relevant way. These people shared because their faith was very personal to them and they could not help but share out of who they really were. One man described his sharing as winsome. Another described sharing his faith as weaving the horizontal threads of man’s knowledge with the vertical threads of God’s revelation; these working together to create a beautiful and intricate tapestry of education. I was awe inspired by many of these descriptions. These drove me deeper to find commonalities between various approaches to integrating one’s faith in education. The common thread that I discovered was a deep sense of caring – caring for the student that came into contact with the instructor. But it turned out to be much more than care for an individual student.

I looked up the term “care” and found the definition as being: “a state of mind in which one is troubled; worry, anxiety, or concern.” A STATE OF MIND IN WHICH ONE IS TROUBLED; WORRY, ANXIETY, OR CONCERN.

When I first learned about Dr. Page leaving Taylors First Baptist Church to head up the evangelistic thrust for the North American Mission Board, I sent him a personal email to let him know of my support for him during this time of decision. His response to me was quite telling of what was going on in his mind. He said, “This is a very hard decision for me. Please pray for me.” You see in his mind he was weighing, not the pros and cons of making such a decision, but what God wanted him to do. Frank was exercising care. He had to weigh his care about his present ministry against a broader ministry to which God was calling him. And the two were causing quite a conflict. God was pushing him to see a much broader horizon of effect. Frank was concerned about the church he was shepherding.

You see, that is what care causes. It causes anxiety and conflict. More importantly, it brings about clarity – clarity of purpose.

Now, Care is not a casual feeling or response. It is something that, if it is true, can be the most powerful motivating force known to man. Each of the persons I was researching cared, at some level, for their students. The motivation for that care was what drove them to greater heights of infusing their faith. It was not enough for some of the subjects of my research to relegate their efforts to just the classroom. Many of them used care about their faith to push broader issues at the college in which they worked. Many influenced college wide policies, general education concerns, program directions. Many used it to train other faculty members how to infuse their faith in the classroom. One actually published research on how a student’s ethical decision making was affected by the content of the courses taken.
You see, their level of care caused these faculty members to infuse their faith at all levels of interaction with students, faculty, staff, and administration at the college. I found that the depth of a person’s care about their faith determined the breadth of their involvement in the inter-working of the college.

Let’s turn to the issue at hand this evening – care about infusing our faith in the public square – for my purposes, in education.
We are all concerned about the education of our children in this country. I think it would be crass to think that some people do not care if a child learns to read or write, add and subtract. Some are more concerned and some are less concerned. And they demonstrate that concern by their level of involvement. Let me give you and example. Parent A over here is always at parent teacher conferences and calls the teacher whenever there seems to be a problem with his child’s grades. He is very concerned about progress reports and nine week grades. He makes sure his child is well behaved in school and that he understands that if there is a problem with behavior at school, there will be a problem with that behavior at home. Sounds pretty caring, doesn’t he? Now Parent B does the very same things as Parent A. Yet Parent B sees that not every student has a caring parent like Parent A. Parent B starts to make certain connections that if she becomes more involved with the process, then she can maybe affect positive change for all students and not just her own. Parent B makes sure she is at all the PTA meetings, volunteers for committees to strengthen the school, and even schedules time with the principal to meet about the library not having books that help students make the transition from elementary school to middle school. Parent B not only was elected as president of the local PTA, but is also president of the regional PTA. Parent B is asked to represent the PTA on a committee established by the local school board, and was asked to be the spokesperson at the next school board meeting to report the committee’s findings. Now, I don’t want you to blurt out any answers, but who is going to have the most influence with the principal where her child attends school? My guess is that Parent B is going to be that person.

What if Parent B happens to be someone who is not a Christian; or worse yet a Christian that is not grounded in the Christian Worldview? What if Parent B lives an alternative lifestyle? What if Parent B is Pro-Choice? What if Parent B believes that abstinence education should not be taught as the only way to avoid STD’s?

I would submit to you tonight that it is not that we don’t care as Christians. It is that we do not care enough, as Christians, to get involved with local, regional, and national issues. We have seen, over the years, an erosion of the principles that founded this country. We are discouraged. We think the country is going to Hell in the proverbial hand basket. And why should I get involved? The liberals have taken control. There is nothing I can do to change the system. It is hopeless. Who am I to take on the system? We are not concerned, we are suffering from depression. Concern drives you to action not inaction. Depression drives you deeper into inaction.

I remember the first time I involved myself in the political arena. It was at a local precinct meeting. I attended the Tigerville precinct meeting and before I knew it I was elected to represent our precinct to the Greenville County Republican Party. I wasn’t anyone special. I was just available. I just remember that I was encouraged by a presidential candidate to get involved at the lowest level and make things happen there. I cared enough to get involved in the process. I made a difference. And you can make a difference.

Take for instance the Greenville County School Board. Many people think that decisions are made at school board meetings. Nope, they are not. They are formalized there. In nearly all cases, decisions are made prior to votes at school board meetings. If you want to have an impact on local issues you need to voice your opinions at meetings of the “Committee of the Whole.” That is where decisions are made.

If you want to get on Channel 4 News attend County Council Meetings and cause a ruckus. You will look great on TV, but you will not score any points with County Council. You need to attend committee meetings where decisions are being made – before they are voted on.

The Bible gives us a story about a man who deeply cared for his homeland. This man was Nehemiah. Let me read to you about his concern:

The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa, Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. They said to me, "Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire." When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. Then I said: "O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses. "Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name. "They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand. O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man." I was cupbearer to the king.

Nehemiah’s concern drove him to pray, and then to act. He used all of his resources to gain success in rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem. He knew who to approach about his need. He took a chance and made his pitch. And he scored a home run. The king he was serving not only allowed him to go back and repair the wall, but gave him all the resources to do what is necessary. We need to have the wisdom to know how, and where, to voice our care and concern. It is not that we have to take back the country, we must care more deeply about our country than ever before and influence the PTA, the schools, and the school district. We don’t have to be violent, we don’t have to scream, and we don’t have to be mad. We have to care and care deeply about the issues concerning our local communities. We have to become anxious, we have to grieve, and we have to be troubled. When this happens, just like my friend Dr. Page, the result will be clarity of purpose: A purpose that will give us fortitude, a purpose that will give us a drive, a purpose that will change the direction of our communities, our state and this nation.

Two years ago, I visited Jerusalem. And on that visit I witnessed Nehemiah’s accomplishment – the wall that he and his followers built. It stands today in the middle of the Old City as a testament to what can be accomplished if someone truly cares. God can do miraculous things through you if you care deeply enough.

My question to this generation is this: What will be the testament to our level of care if the Lord tarries for 3000 more years?

My question to you is this: Do you care deeply enough about changing our society?

Thank you for allowing me to share some of my thoughts with you this evening.