The video segment above is a speech given to the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington D.C. by best selling author and committed Christian Eric Metaxas. Metaxas is the author of BONHOEFFER: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery.
Not only is Mr. Metaxas a gifted writer, but he is near a stand-up comedian, able to make one laugh on command. He was in rare form at the Prayer Breakfast. I recommend you take 30 minutes to view the video above and be inspired by his message. I know many at Hillcrest have been.
Part of the inspiration received by Metaxas is his ability to blend contemporary culture and unwavering faith in the spiritual discipline of prayer. His commitment to prayer is pointedly communicated in his testimony in the video. Walking through nominal commitment to church in his early years, Metaxas makes a profession of faith following a Gospel presentation from a friend. Metaxas makes a call away from pious boloney to a heart-felt, real faith in God.
His message is a breath of fresh-air amidst a group of politicians who many times struggle in authenticity. His writings on Bonhoeffer and Wilberforce are sober reminders of the long and sometimes lonely road those who are committed to authentic faith walk. However, this type of unwavering resolve is what we pray God instills in each student who attends Hillcrest Academy. The type of faith that engages the world and seeks to redeem culture to Christ. This is what we mean when we talk about preparing students for a life of significance.
The video above is a recommendation from Chap Clark. Mr. Clark has been engaged in an indepth research project on teen culture. Clark has updated a number of his findings in a new book titled Hurt 2.0 and is beginning to work with the producers of a new documentary titled Finding Kind.
The trailer above reminded us of some of the intentional ways we've been working to address some of the hurts and battles girls and guys find themselves in. At the start of the school year we focused a number of specific chapel services on Biblical manhood and womanhood. With guys and girls meeting separately, the men and women staff at Hillcrest addressed their respective genders, giving a Biblical framework of manhood and womanhood.
Hillcrest will be taking another round of relationship-themed chapels in the month of February with the visit of Bob Tissot. Mr. Tissot's presentation on Purity and Holiness will involve various break-out sessions designed for specific genders. The small group break-outs will help students process and understand the Biblical model of manhood and womanhood. The emphasis on relationships is part of the holistic instruction that makes Hillcrest's education so much more than a diploma.
They nurture friendships on social-networking sites and then wonder if they are among friends. They are connected all day but are not sure if they have communicated. They become confused about companionship. Can they find it in their lives on the screen? Could they find it with a robot? Their digitized friendships played out with emoticon emotions, so often predicated on rapid response rather than reflection-may prepare them, at times through nothing more than their superficiality, for relationships with the inanimate. They come to accept lower expectations for connection and, finally, the idea that robot friendships could be sufficient unto the day.
The above quote is taken from MIT Professor Sherry Turkle's book Alone Together. The video above is an overview of her book. As a psychologist, her assessment of social media and the introduction of MIT's development of service oriented social robots is fascinating. What is almost more fascinating is desire to retain traditional relationships, a desire that is void of a Biblical foundation.
As Christians, we understand relationship to be at the core of humanity. In God's perfect creation the only imperfect thing was the fact that Adam was alone. God creates a divine pause within the Creation story, what can be said as a highlight to the fact that relationships are paramount to human existence and purpose. There is a similar divine pause as one reflects on the denial and reinstatement of Peter during the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. Jesus makes a very distinct point to highlight that salvation didn't just exist for mankind, but that it exists for individual people, people who have a relationship with God.
In his follow-up book, Hurt 2.0, Chap Clark makes a startling connection with social connection and social media.
The young have not arrogantly turned their backs on the adult world. Rather, they have been forced by a personal sense of abandonment to band together and create their own world—separate, semisecret, and vastly different from the world around them...Gaming is not always driven by the desire to win but to be part of a gaming community. Similarly, drinking is not about drinking but about community. We have abandoned this generation of young people and they long more than ever for communal celebration.
Many times when promoting Hillcrest eyebrows are raised at the technology policies within the dormitory. Some struggle to understand why we desire to curb technology in our school and dormitory. The reason isn't because we want to hinder students from developing an understanding of the technology. Instead, we desire to create an environment of contemplation and deep personal relationship with Image-bearers of God.
One of the aspects that makes Hillcrest successful in developing meaningful relationships is the 9:1 student to teacher ratio and the almost 6:1 student-to-adult ratio in the hallways. We encourage parents to take time and visit our hallways and chapel services to fully-grasp the reality of adult presence and mentor voice that is a priority for HLA.
The mentorship and presence of adults helps guide the students away from a self-indulgent view of society and moves them toward a God-honoring interaction with their friends, family and community. Meaningful adult influence, what students experience at HLA, guides them to live a life of significance.
Friday, February 3, 2012 at 9:00AM |