The Quest Continues

Clifford E. Daugherty, Ed.D.

My articles for the past few Vision publications have focused appropriately on building the new Skyway Campus. Now that
students and staff in grades six through twelve are moved into the wonderful new campus that God provided, it is important not to lose sight of our most important building project. Of course, by that I mean the project of building the minds and hearts of our students. Bricks, mortar, wood, steel, stucco and paint are the ingredients of our beautiful buildings but the ingredients for building beautiful lives include challenging teachers, passion, commitment, Christian values, the Bible and lots of prayer.

A great deal of planning, quality construction and hard work went into building the new Skyway campus so that it will serve as a wonderful tool to help build the lives of students. While we thank God for the sacrificial efforts of everyone that God is using to build the campus, all of this effort is meaningless unless we are successful in building our students.

Recently, I was able to challenge our students during chapel. My challenge was to "Let your light shine" by pursuing excellence because Excellence Brings Influence™. I observed that early American Christians had a great influence in shaping American society and that Christian influence in the marketplace of ideas has greatly diminished in recent years. I asked:

• If Congress were to form the First Amendment today, would our freedom of religion be in jeopardy?

• If Congress were to cast our coins today, would our coins include "In God we trust"?

• If our Pledge of Allegiance were being written today, would it include the words, "One nation under God"?

Many students seemed to really hear the message that God has built Valley Christian Schools to prepare our students to bring a new respect to Christian values in the market place of ideas through their pursuit of excellence. I said, "As you excel in the various professions to which you will aspire, God will use your influence to bring a redemptive influence to our world because Excellence Brings Influence™!"

During the message I quoted J.P. Moreland, Professor of Philosophy at Biola University, who wrote the following in his recent book, Love Your God With All Your Mind:

I remember being in a meeting with Dr. Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, shortly after Ronald Reagan had been elected president. Dr. Bright came into the meeting late because Reagan had called to ask him to confer with other evangelical leaders in order to suggest a list of qualified evangelicals to serve in his presidential cabinet. With sadness in his heart, Dr. Bright said that after numerous phone conversations with other evangelical leaders, they had concluded that there simply were not many evangelicals with the intellectual and professional excellence for such a high post. C. Everett Koop was all they could think of and, as we now know, Koop got the position of Surgeon General. (NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO 80935, 1997, p. 56)

I suggested to our students that during the early part of the 20th century Christians were so busy trying to remain separate from the corruption of the world that they became disengaged from the world. It seems that the Light of the world was not reflected brightly because too many Christians were "protected" within the walls of their churches and Christian schools. Valley Christian Schools has a different purpose I told them. Our purpose is not to shelter our students from the world but to prepare them to shine brightly in the world. I asked, "Where were the Christians that should have prepared to become great attorneys during the 1930’s so they could serve as some of the finest federal judges by the 1950’s so that by 1961 the United States Supreme Court would have outstanding Supreme Court justices with strong Christian faith?"

Unfortunately, by the 1960’s Christian influence on the Supreme Court was so lacking that the Bible and prayer were removed from America’s public schools and by 1973, abortion became a legal choice.

During the message I pointed to Daniel and how he gained a Godly influence and position through faithfulness to God, prayer and because he, "showed intelligence in every branch of wisdom" including science, languages, and literature. (Dan. 1:4)

I affirmed that I believe our students will serve to help change the moral climate in America. "Even you will be amazed what the Lord is about to do through each of you," I said. "Positive changes are coming in our nation because many of you will gain great influence as you serve the Lord through your personal pursuit of excellence. A new respect for our Christian faith is about to invade the market place of ideas as you achieve outstanding positions of professional influence."

My message concluded with a challenge to pursue excellence because as God recorded in the Bible:

I am the Lord. I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, and I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the nations, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon and those who dwell in darkness from prison. (Is. 42:6-7)

Now here is the most interesting part of this story. Before I could return to my office after speaking in chapel, Angela (Angie) Morse, a freshman, wrote a stirring letter to me and put it on my desk. In part the letter said that she had believed since her early childhood that God had a special plan for her life. She said that she had dreamed of becoming a Supreme Court Justice someday but felt that the goal was most likely out of reach. She concluded the letter by saying that she was renewing her commitment to the Lord and her goal to become a Supreme Court Justice so that she could let her light shine.

I was anxious to meet Angie and I discovered that she has amazing qualities and tremendous challenges. Last summer, Angie prayed for God to direct her way to attend Valley Christian High School if possible. She has a single mom with all of the financial challenges that are associated with working in Silicon Valley. To help make ends meet, Angie and her mother commute 90 minutes each day from their home in Boulder Creek. When they lost the income from a person who moved out of their home this past summer, finding tuition seemed even more impossible. But Angie kept praying! To help with the finances, Angie got a restaurant job near the school to earn money for her personal expenses like lunch money, clothes, and student body fees. She works between 20 and 30 hours each week. I discovered that Angie is one of the most articulate and cheerful students I have met. In spite of working and commuting, she somehow managed to earn almost a 4.0 during her fall semester this year.

You may be wondering - how did God answer Angie’s prayer? The answer this year came through some special contributions to our Youth With Promise™ Program. It seems that God directed some very special people to make a generous contribution to the Fund so that students like Angie may have their prayers to attend Valley Christian Schools answered. Angie’s mother said they are going to make decisions about attending Valley Christian one year at a time. Unfortunately, there are many more youth with promise who seek assistance for whom funds are not available but we thank God for Angie and for those who are supporting her quest for excellence. As funds become available, more students will benefit.

Some have asked if it feels good to achieve such a great goal as building a new campus. Of course it is gratifying but it does not compare to the joy and elation I have about what great things God is building into the life of Angie Morse and in so many other students.

You may wonder what I did with the letter that Angie sent. It is in a special file. I plan to read it when she graduates from law school, when she passes the bar exam and of course when she is appointed to the Supreme Court!

The Quest continues!