Welcome back to all of our listeners! I’m BJ Sipe, and you’re listening to the Set Your Mind Above podcast – where everyday ordinary events teach us extraordinary eternal truths. I’m so glad that you’ve tuned in today, I am excited to share my life and my faith with you, and I sure hope that you’ll do the same with me along the way.
The end of summer snuck up on me and I didn’t even realize it this year. I know technically it’s still summer and certainly it is still hot outside, but what I mean is “summer break” for all of our kids who are still in school. Growing up on the West Coast, the school year is scheduled very differently than it is here in Kentucky. In Oregon, we didn’t even return to school until after Labor Day in September, but we also didn’t start our summer vacation until early to mid-June. However here in Kentucky, the kids are out of by mid-May, but they return back to school early in August. In fact, yesterday was the first day of school for most of our kids here in the Danville area – and the only way I found out about it was “first day of school” pictures being posted on social media. Now it all makes sense, I couldn’t figure out why the aquarium was so packed on Tuesday earlier this week – well, because it was the last day of summer vacation so parents where all taking their kids somewhere fun to end the summer break with a bang. Our kids are still far too young for official schooling as our daughter turns three next week and our son is not even quite a year and a half old yet, but Kylie does a lot of work teaching and educating them already at home. It’s funny the cycle you go through in life regarding attitudes towards education. When you’re my daughters age or a young child, you can’t wait for school to start again. Ava talks frequently about when she’ll get to go to school and have her own backpack and pencils etc. Then as you progress through your education, you get to the point that you just can’t wait to graduate and be done with school! I remember back when I was in high school thinking, “I just can’t wait for the day that I’ll never have to do homework again!” It’s amazing the things we thought were big issues before we were introduced to the real world as adults. Of course, I continued my education after high school as I double majored in college, getting a degree in Bible & Communication. I also remember thinking during my junior and senior years, “Man, I will never be this busy again in my life! I can’t wait to graduate.” I don’t know, I guess I had this idea in my head that when I graduated college life would slow down or I wouldn’t have as much work to do because I was finished with my education. Well, now I’m married, have two young children, and work full time in ministry, and I am the busiest that I have ever been in my life – largely in part due to the fact that I am not finished with my education. What I mean is not to say that I am enrolled in an institution to pursue my master’s degree or anything, but that part of equipping myself to do the work of evangelist involves a great amount of continued education. I am constantly reading books, articles, magazines, listening to podcasts, sermons, or instructional videos to help make me a better student of the Bible and a better evangelist. So in a weird way, I’m always in school because I am always trying to further my education.
However, continued education is not something that is merely reserved for someone who has dedicated their life to the preaching of the gospel. In fact, I would argue that if we want to be good disciples of Jesus Christ, every single one of us needs to ensure that we are always going “back to school” so to speak. I want you to consider somewhat of an obscure passage of Scripture with me for a moment. It is found at the end of Paul’s second letter to Timothy. To set the scene, Paul is in prison in Rome once again and the winter season is about to be upon them. It would only be a few short years later before Paul would meet his end by martyrdom in Rome as well. So at this point Paul is aged, he is tired, and aside from Luke he is left alone by those who once accompanied him. So he writes to Timothy and says, “Do your best to come to me soon. For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry. Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.” (2 Timothy 4:9-13) This is one of those passages that I believe we can easily overlook and not dig into when we read through a text like this. I want you to pay special attention to what Paul asks for and why. He asks Timothy to bring him his cloak because it was going to get cold soon and he would need it, look also what he requested Timothy bring: the books and the parchments. While Paul was sitting there in prison, what he desperately wanted more than anything was Scripture to be able to study and paper to be able to write on. No doubt, Paul had more instruction to do through writing, but he also had study that he wanted to do for himself. Isn’t this incredible? Paul, the well decorated apostle, at an old age alone in prison desired earnestly to continue his education through the study of the Scriptures and perhaps other books. If there was anyone that you could have looked at and thought, “Na, you’re good – you know all you need to know at this point,” – it would probably have been Paul. Paul teaches us something important – it doesn’t matter your age or place in life, you must always continue to grow and equip yourself to be a better disciple of Jesus. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not talking about formal education – I couldn’t care less whether you go to college or not, that is not what I mean. But as Christians, we always ought to seek opportunities to learn and grow. There are so many areas that we need equipped more and more each day: how to parent, how to be a good spouse, how to reach the lost, how to be a good steward, etc. At no point should we ever get to a place in our life that we think, “I’m done with my education,” or “There’s nothing more I need to learn about this.” I remember one brother boasting one time that he knew all there was to know about a particular book of the Bible, that there was nothing that anyone could teach him because of how many times he’s studied that book. All I could think was that he needed to go read it again, because there were some parts about humility that he obviously missed. So let me ask you – are you continuing your education? Are you constantly trying to learn more and grow to become the kind of disciple, husband, father, employer or employee that you aspire to be? Or are you kind of “done with school” with how you live your life? No one can really tell you anything, you’re not challenging yourself, and where you’re at is good enough for you? If that’s where you find yourself, may I suggest that if Paul felt the need to continue to grow that you should rethink your position. As the old expression goes, “Be patient, God’s not finished with me yet.”
Thank you so much for listening to today’s episode. Tune in, Tuesday-Fridays, as a new podcast episode will be uploaded each day. Also, be sure to follow the Facebook page for the Set Your Mind Above podcast for future announcements and video sessions that are uploaded on Saturdays. As you have the opportunity, share these thoughts with your friends and family, and share with me what important lessons you are learning from every day, ordinary events. Until next time know that I love you, that God loves you, and may we all each and every day set our minds above.