The First Day of School

Ah the first day of school. I never thought I would have one of these again, yet here I find myself, as excited as I was to start the 3rd grade. I have my outfit planned out, my books in a neat pile, and my homework done (apparently in grad school you get homework before you even start). And I never thought I would feel this way, but I do.

I'm excited. 


I really am. After vowing to the world that I would never set foot in graduate school (let alone seminary) I sit before you now excited. It hit me yesterday when I was thinking about my upcoming classes. Tomorrow I start with New Testament Introduction (which sadly I keep spelling testament wrong...might need to work on that..) and all of a sudden I realized, I get to take a class on the New Testament. I get to study the books of the Bible with a professor. Matthew, Mark, Hebrews, all of them! How cool is that? In preparation I was reading supplemental books on reading the Bible as Scripture. It spoke of having to balance the Bible as a book of literature and a book of history, but most importantly as the scripture of God. One of the authors wrote that we must work to understand it fully, from all angles, for anything less would be disrespectful. I loved that, that this work of God through the written word of man is not to just be read, but respected.

I was enthralled by my readings. Many people here have said that seminary can be a dry desert for our faith, a graveyard for the common Christian. But for me, I think it will be different. Diving into my New Testament class alone I believe that my faith will be deepened by the knowledge and understanding of a Book I have read my entire life. It will be like seeing it for the first time, uncovering the layers and layers of knowledge, passion, heartache, and love that went into the writing of each section of the New Testament. I am sure I will get discouraged and lose sight of why I am here in the first place, but God is faithful and God is present, and I cannot imagine losing sight of the bigger picture while here in seminary.

I am sure you can all look forward to insightful updates as I share with you all what I am learning in my classes. Together we can delve into this faith we profess and see the greatness of God through greater knowledge and understanding. What a nice journey to be on.

Last year's "last first day of school." If only I knew then what I know now.

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