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Health & Fitness

Taking Ownership of Faith

Estimates and statistics say many high school graduates fall away from the Christian faith during their college years.

This past weekend friends and family of and Living Faith Christian Academy came together on the Fenton campus (which is still under construction) to put in several hours of sweat equity in the form of primer and painting classrooms. Seeing the classrooms with a fresh coat of paint immediately began to focus my thoughts towards the approaching school year and the work ahead of us at Living Faith.

As I walked around the unfinished building, I began to visualize what the multi-purpose room will look like when completed. I could imagine it as a worship center for Southwest and a recreation area for the high school students and the church youth group. I began to get excited about the possibility of watching volley ball and basketball competitions in such a space. It will be awesome!

I marveled at the sense of perspective a roof and walls brings to an enclosed space. When I walked the same area prior these being installed, I was concerned about the size of the structure. It appeared smaller than I expected and I feared there was a mistake made by the builders. As I walk through the structure now, I am amazed at how large the space really is! This switch in perspective was shared by others who saw the structure before and after the addition of walls and a roof.

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When we began the work to launch a new school, we didn’t really have anything to  show in terms of the building and classrooms. The architectural drawings were not sufficient to really give you a sense of what was coming – no more than the metal skeleton of the building without its skin was to help me understand the true size of the structure. But now, the vision is becoming reality more and more each passing day. Soon, we will finally have what we have been looking forward to for some time.

Even more exciting than this is the development of an important part of Living Faith Christian Academy’s mission. We’ve been sharing this mission as we have promoted the school and it is being well received by prospective family and students. I even had opportunity to connect with several pastors and ministers in the area to present our vision for the school and ask for their feedback. All have been very positive to the concept we conceived and have shared with us their ideas on how to give it legs and make it come alive.

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The aspect of the mission we shared was we see ourselves as not only Christian educators but as guidance counselors for students who desire to make their Christian faith their own. Academics are important and will always be a major part of our reason for being. However, for so many young people of faith today, many attend church and believe in God because it is what their parents do and expect them to do also. Several make it through their high school years attending church and youth groups because it may be something fun to do and other times they are obligated to attend. The commitment to developing their faith never really takes root. And if they never have the kinds of experiences and guidance that challenge them to take ownership of their faith, they may never really get a firm grasp on why they believe what they say they believe.

As evidence of this problem, a 2005 article posted by Youthworker.com reported data regarding high school graduates and their continued adherence to their faith. “Various denominations have estimated that between 65 percent and 94 percent of their high school students stop attending church after they graduate.” While this is anecdotal evidence that researchers Kara Powell and Krista Kubiak cite, their own research tends to support the claims the online article states.

The college years are a time of great freedom and transition from youth to adulthood. This unprecedented freedom sometimes exists in a vacuum without the benefit of Godly counsel. Many students in college are introduced to competing philosophies challenging what faith they may possess. Certainly doubt can enter the picture when their church support group back home is not readily available to help. The problem is compounded when highly educated professors or students make it a point to challenge someone who is apparently ill-equipped to defend their faith due to a shaky spiritual foundation.

It is with this in mind, Living Faith will strive to provide students the time and the training to be able to explore their faith. We want them to examine what faith really means to them by providing experiences, challenges and instruction to get them thinking and discover how faith relates to whom they are and what God has called them to be.

Seeing that vision take shape and become reality will be far greater than any fancy, new building big or small. Stay tuned for reports on the progress of our efforts and how this mission will play out in the lives of our students.

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