As the calendar flipped from August into September, my family embarked on a new journey – a milestone that all must inevitably reach. We dropped off our oldest child for her first day of kindergarten. We were worried, of course, as all parents are. Is she ready? Will she like school? Will she be liked at school? Will she learn her letters and numbers? Will she listen to her teachers? Will she be a kind friend?
I know this newly minted kindergartener had questions and fears of her own as we walked up to the school gate. Yet, unlike her parents, she abandoned all fears and questions as she spotted an old friend. She let go of our hands and ran into school, hand in hand with a friend.
In the weeks following, her enthusiasm has not (yet) abated. Every morning, you’ll find her sitting on our porch minutes 30 minutes early, backpack on her, ready to go. The other morning, as I looked out the screen door to see the back of her head and her new shiny backpack, I couldn’t help but be filled with joy. There’s something so very special and sacred about a backpack full of empty notebooks, just ready to be filled with knowledge and new ideas.
I also loved school as a child. True, this dubbed me as a nerd, but even that designation never stopped me from the love of learning or the joy of an empty notebook or the desire to read more or the sheer pleasure of smelling a new box of crayons. I fully admit to embarrassing my daughter with my over-the-top excitement in buying her school supplies. I was so excited, in fact, that some of the items we bought that day are now sitting on my desk at the church office — a new pack of gel pens, new colorful folders and a brand-new composition book. My new notebook is also ready to be filled with new knowledge and crammed full of new ideas … organized in colorful ink.
Getting my daughter prepped and ready for her first year of school has reminded me that the joy of learning is never-ending — gaining knowledge is a life-long process. While it’s true that we celebrate our educational milestones in our first days and graduations, they never mark the end of our learning experience. They never mark the end of what God will do with us.
As a pastor, I have a front-row seat to the learning development of disciples of all ages. I get to witness children’s eyes light up when they first hear how Jonah was swallowed by a big, giant whale. I get to witness teenagers discern how they can make a difference in the world in service to God. I get to witness adults, who have been lifelong Christians, wrestle with Scripture in a new way and come to new conclusions. The church is a place where we all continually learn from Scripture, from God, and from each other — week in and week out.
One of my favorite things to come out of the pandemic is a weekly Bible study on Zoom with members of my church, all of whom (except me) are retired. This group has become a true learning community. We’ve wrestled with hard topics like racism and political divides. We’ve read difficult texts, like our study on Ecclesiastes, which left us all asking: is all hevel (Ecclesiastes 1:1)? We’ve held each other in prayer as we’ve gone through difficult times: illnesses, surgeries, losses and hardships. We’ve laughed as we’ve enjoyed each other’s company and personalities. We’ve asked hard questions about our texts, our world and each other. Together, we’ve learned and stretched and grown. We range in age from 40-80, yet we learn something new from God and from each other every single week.
We have learned what my kindergartner instinctively knows: that learning is better when it’s done together. For there is something so very special and sacred about walking hand in hand with our siblings in Christ, ready to fill our heads with God’s Word, our minds with questions, our souls with God’s love … and, perhaps, some colorful pens to record it all.
