Dear Theophilus,
Congratulations on becoming five years old and having such a fun birthday party. I look forward to seeing you at school everyday this fall. When you asked me what school was going to be like, you made me think for a long time about what I could say to help you look forward to what is ahead. So I decided to answer your question in a letter.
At school you will make many good friends over the next 13 years. You will get to know a lot about your classmates … and they will know a lot about you. You will learn about forgiving others and you will learn about being forgiven. You will benefit a lot by working side by side with other students coming from families who share the same goals for their children.
you will learn how the Bible relates to everything we study
At classical Christian schools like ours, we emphasize thinking and speaking clearly, and believe that studying subjects like grammar, logic, and rhetoric will help you to do that very, very well. You will become accustomed from an early age to addressing groups. In addition, you will learn how the Bible relates to everything we study. And above all, from the hymn-singing at the beginning of the day to the final bell, we learn together how the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ is important to everything we learn about the world we live in.
It will become increasingly important in life that you love to learn and are joyfully willing to work. While it’s true that the ways we learn in the classroom will help make it enjoyable, it’s still going to require a great deal of effort on your part. In fact, this work will often call upon you to make sacrifices and give up fun activities. Your calling for the next 13+ years is primarily to be a student. That’s your job. School is your workplace.
School is your workplace.
Later on there will come days when you question whether the work is worth it, especially as you grow to become aware that other families in the world around us have embraced different priorities and have made different choices. But we are always reminding each other to keep our focus on preparing for a life of fruitful service to Jesus. The challenges of your schoolwork will be an excellent way to help reveal ways in which you can develop more Christ-like character.
The challenges of your schoolwork will be an excellent way to help reveal ways in which you can develop more Christ-like character.
You will need to obey your teachers because the Lord Jesus demands obedience, and your mommy and daddy have placed you under their authority. Always remember that when people correct you, they are doing it because they love you. The Lord gives us countless training opportunities throughout life, and the Scriptures teach us that learning to accept correction is itself a path to wisdom and blessing.
I look forward to being a part of your high school graduation, which will come before we realize it. In the meantime, we will all be praying for your successful Cedar Tree preparation for a life of faithfully pursuing excellence with the gifts God has given you.
Love, Mr. Bradshaw
P.S. – Be careful next time you ask me a question, or you may become the subject of another article.
Tom Bradshaw has been serving as Cedar Tree’s headmaster since 2006. This essay was first published in 2012.
