sufficient

a functional pensieve

Sources are conspiring to get me thinking. Or at least get my thinking back on track. Shortly before moving to Nashville, my community group leader wrote each of us a letter. What I remember most saliently from mine was a warning that seeking power was not the way of the cross, rather the kingdom of God is a like a mustard seed and I should be faithful in the small things. Those thoughts have stayed somewhere near the front of my mind for the last 18 months.

Then last week, I had dinner on the spur of the moment with my sweet, wise friend Catherine, also my first friend in Nashville. I don't remember what led to it, but suddenly we were talking about education and City Church's role in bringing the gospel to bear in education in East Nashville. While I've thought a fair amount about my role personally in creating a just system of education for all children in the US, I haven't spent any time thinking about what the church's role in that is. But developing a vision for what that could like in East Nashville really excites me. Catherine suggested that I talk to TFA's executive director in Nashville who is a believer so that's on tap for Thursday.

Then, yesterday morning, I had breakfast with Garrett's dad, Craig. (Tangent: I continued to be amazed by and thankful for the Parkers, their hospitality, and genuine care for ALL of the people in their lives- that Craig wants to have breakfast with me, his daughter-in-law's best friend is a rare, precious thing.) Craig asks great questions and is also very wise. We talked about a number of things and then he asked me who in my field that is a believer do I look to as that's where want to be in 10/20 years.

No one. I cannot come up with a single thoughtful, gospel-centric Christian who is in a position of influence on education policy. In fact, I do not know of anyone who says they are a believer at all in the field, in a position of influence or no. The wisdom of his question was immediately apparent to me and I was troubled by my lack of a response. He recommended a couple of books, which I have since ordered. And he introduced me to someone who told me about a professor here in the ed school who is a believer.

One recommended book, In, But Not Of, is subtitled "A Guide to Christian Ambition." Currently, I am trying to wrap my mind around the tension between the idea that the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, that the Lord works in the small things, and the idea of Christian ambition, of Christians having big goals and vision in terms of seeing the kingdom brought to bear and turning back the curse.

I've gotten a lot of great research experience here at Vandy so far and at least from where I sit now, it feels like I've endured the epistemological crisis of transforming from a practitioner to a researcher. But I feel like I've lost something in the transition. I've gotten to do research looking at charter schools, principal leadership and coaching, enormous data sets, and now unearthing what it is that makes effective high schools effective and how that can be replicated.

But then I come across an article like this one or I listen to my sixth grade reading buddy struggle with Walter Dean Myers or hear middle school girls talk about how terrible their schools and teachers are and I get so frustrated with what I am doing in the day to day.

I have no idea where this rambling post is going or where this re-direction/ re-orientation in my thinking will lead, but I am thankful for wise friends and reminders of what I care most about.

posted by CP @ 9:31 PM 3 thoughts