Last Lessons #63 - EDUCATION

"Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” James 3:1

I have learned that God sees to it that we are educated in the ways he wants to use us later in life.  Moses was educated in Egypt for a long time so that he could be used by God -- for a long time.  Paul was educated by Gamaliel for what he was to do later in his life.  God knows exactly how he wants to use each one of us, so he educates us accordingly.  And it takes a lifetime of learning.

There was no question that I would go to college.  My parents made sure that all six of their children would be educated.  We had no choice.  And indeed, all of us wanted college.  When I graduated from high school, by parents did not have money to send me to college (remember, I was the fourth child) but I was given a scholarship by the Business and Professional Women’s Club to go to Jacksonville Junior College (which later became the University of Jacksonville).  I wanted to become an English teacher.  Why? Maybe because my mother was a published poet and spoke correct English; but I believe it was mostly because my 12^th grade English teacher made me enjoy grammar and diagramming sentences and love literature. 

God was preparing me for what he wanted to use me for later in life.  I just didn’t know it.  All I knew was that I should become educated. What I was about to learn was that there are different ways of being educated besides going to college.  When I graduated from Jacksonville Junior College I wanted to go to the University of Florida and get a bachelor’s degree, but my parents had no money and neither did I.  So, still living at home, I got a job at the telephone company as a service representative.  I was driven back and forth to work by daddy who owned our only car.  I worked there for fifteen months and saved my money to go to the university. 

Working at the telephone company “educated” me in necessary ways.  I learned to obey directions, be on time, dress nicely, be polite no matter what customers said, think fast, and answer the phone after no more than three rings!  Plus, there was a supervisor who monitored everything that I did.  The working world really teaches a person a lot! 

After working for fifteen months, I thought I had enough money to go to the university, but I heard that the Education Department of the University of Florida gave scholarships to those who would agree to work as teachers in Florida upon graduation.  I applied for a scholarship and was awarded one, so off I went to the U. of F. living in a dormitory with a roommate.  Upon graduation, I was hired to teach 10^th to 12^th grade English in Apopka High School.  God provided me with a single PE teacher who had a car, and I rented a room in her little house.  I loved teaching and I am sure I learned more than my students did.

But my education was not yet finished.  God stepped in to provide me an opportunity to learn something new.  My sister Cecil told me that the US military was piloting a program to train occupational therapists in the Women’s Medical Specialist Corp.  They were selecting 23 college graduates to start their program.  Both of us applied and were selected.  Cecil decided to go to graduate school instead, so I went alone as a second lieutenant to the Medical Field Service School in San Antonio, Texas.  Wow, did I learn a lot there!  It was the first time I had lived outside Florida and, as it turned out, I would not live in Florida again until 2007.  In Texas I learned military discipline, the medical part of being an occupational therapist, and something that I would use extensively in later life – I learned craft making – woodworking, ceramics, jewelry making, copperware etc.  I already knew how to sew because my mother had taught me that when I was a child.  I loved what God was teaching me and I would use all of these things later in my work.

I am ashamed to say that I neglected my spiritual education during those years.  All I did was go to church on Sunday and read my Bible every day.  I forgot the verse that I had read: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”   Proverbs 1:7 But God, in his mercy and grace, was not finished with me.  He would give me what I needed to serve him later in a most remarkable way.  That’s another story.

To this day, God is teaching me that education is important, but formal secular education is not enough.  Without spiritual wisdom and understanding, we are impotent in the hand of God.  That’s why I continue to study the Bible, read commentaries, and listen to preachers.  I hope I can continue to learn until the day I die. 

Dear Reader, why am I telling you all this in such detail?  Because I want to remind you what a great God we have.  He intends to use each life to glorify himself and he must educate us in the specific ways we need.  He educates us through formal education, he educates us through work experience, he opens our eyes to new places and new people.  God educates us in detail, and it takes time. 

I want to give you the best advice I can think of: if God opens an opportunity for you to get more education – take it!