What Was The Goal? | Lydia Edmonds

The Peg and the Pen: "Penning words in order to shape culture and to train women to hammer with a peg the tyrants that the Lord has placed in their path of obedience."

This article was originally written for a school event and is therefore addressed to students. However, the truth is the truth no matter the audience and therefore there are ideas that many of us can learn from.

What Was The Goal?

by Lydia Edmonds

As we all close the final pages of this chapter of our education, I would like to take

the time to reflect on the goal of a Christian education and the mission that we ALL are

called to in light of our education.

A Christian education is discipleship. It is a handing over of Christian principles

and a training up of children in a Christian world-and-life view so as to provide the

children with the tools they need to build. Education gives them the bricks and mortar

they need to build their portion of the wall. It gives them the framework to fight the

good fight and to build their section different from everyone else while still being

unified. A Christian Education also provides its students with the swords they need to

fight and to defend what they have been given. Now, I would like to note that as

students, we cannot suppose that once we have graduated we have all the tools we could

possibly ever need. God gives us more tools and more supplies when we actually build

something with our first set of gifts. Because the fact of the matter is that a Christian

education never ends (Deuteronomy 6:1-9). It is always building and much like Legos,

you can’t move on to bag two until you have actually done something with bag one. You

are required to put what you learn into praxis. This requires wisdom and discernment

from God and I am very certain that those of you in this room understand the

ginormous piece that God’s Word plays in a Christian education. It is the foundation

that the wall is built upon as well the ultimate power of the sword and the origin of the

Christian worldview.

A piece of the puzzle that is often neglected when Christians think about

education though is something I have actually already mentioned: the sword. Many

Christians do not seem to have a problem with the building aspect that a Christian

education provides, but they certainly neglect the fighting aspect that accompanies the

building. Christians are called to tear down the high places and establish or build culture

that honors the Lord. We are commanded to call out sin and establish cultures that

think in Biblical categories (Deuteronomy 30:15-20).

With this backdrop in mind, I want to press in even further to the goal of

Christian education with a speech from General Eisenhower. This speech was given to

the men and boys who were about to set off for the D-Day invasion in Normandy.

“Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hope and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.

Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-

hardened. He will fight savagely.

But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The

United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, and man-

to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory!

I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will

accept nothing less than full Victory!

Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble

undertaking.”

We, in the present day, are not literally about to land on Normandy beach; we are

not literally about to encounter Germans in bunkers with machine guns. But, the principle is still the same. We as students have or are about to embark upon a similar crusade which we have been working towards these many years and many are waiting expectantly to see the outcome of all of this striving. We have a duty to build in the midst of the wreckage of this sinful world. It will be difficult; we are playing a long game. But know this, you will be joining a long line of faithful Christians who came before you having paved a smoother road for you to travel on. And our Lord “majors in victory” (Lennox Kalifungwa). He has given us the tools we need in order to be equipped for the battle and we fight in His strength. The ultimate victory is won for us. The head crusher came and conquered, therefore we fight in hope. To be sure, there will be battles, but

that is why you have a sword, and each time you learn something new and put it into practice, you sharpen your sword. How, you may ask? Because you better understand how to take dominion of God’s world now knowing something new about it. You now know how to care for God’s world in a whole new way. The swords to which I refer come in many forms and are useful in many different fields, and these swords are to be wielded by both men and women, contrary to what many Christians believe. Why? Because there will be no strong home front nor “great reserves of trained fighting men” without men and women who know how to wield a sword. Now, women do not wield swords with a mindset of actually taking life, but the battles we will face do not favor genders, and if our children are to wield their swords effectively, their mothers must

know how to train them to do so.

Therefore, let us now put plainly what the goal of Christian education is. The goal

is to train up Godly, competent, ambitious soldiers who know how to build and fight

effectively and skillfully. Soldiers who charge at problems standing on the foundation of

God’s Holy and inspired Word. Soldiers who proclaim the Lordship of Christ in every

sphere. Soldiers who call out heretics and who are unapologetically serious about the

things of God. This seriousness, however, does not lack joy. Because the jovial warrior

understands all that he has been given, he delights in the good gifts from God, and

therefore he thoroughly understands all that Satan seeks to destroy. He understands the

need for godly creativity both in home and in the world. He understands the importance

of courageous, competent women. He understands the need for Christians to take

ground in the workplace and in the arts. He understands that he is washed in the blood

of Christ, and that knowledge affects All aspects of his life.

So I ask you, now understanding the goal of your education, what are you going

to do with it? What are you going to build? It is not enough to simply say you have the

knowledge; you have to do something with this talent God has given you. You have been

given the capability to be skillful in battle. It won’t be easy. There will be days you will

want to give up, but God blesses the obedience of the men and women in the arena. So

get to it! Shout on, pray on; we ARE gaining ground. Be a lifelong learner. Put into

practice what you learn. Walk daily in the joy of the Lord. Sing Psalms to the King; be in

your Bible daily; and be in constant Prayer to our Lord. In the words of General Paton,

“Don't ever let up. Don't ever think that your job is unimportant. Every man has a job to

do and he must do it. Every man is a vital link in the great chain.” Further up and

further in!