Curiosity Over Conformity: Building a Future Through Christian Education
Growing up in Michigan, I often thought my story wasn’t all that different from others. But, when I think about it, maybe it was. My father was a Lutheran pastor, and that did set us apart in some ways. While much of the culture around me didn’t center on faith, I was fortunate to have a strong foundation at home. Without that structure—and without the influence of my Christian education—I wonder if I would have been pulled in a different direction, like so many of my peers.
In fact, I remember moments where that contrast was glaring. Friends from the neighborhood would talk about things they were exposed to—ideas, music, activities—that I knew would have been detrimental to my faith if they’d become central in my life. But between home and school, I had an anchor. My Christian school wasn’t just about academics; it was a place that reinforced the values I was being taught at home. That combination made all the difference in keeping me grounded, especially as I navigated a world that often felt at odds with what I believed.
What stood out most about my Christian education wasn’t just the Bible verses we memorized or the songs we sang in front of the congregation, though those were important. What really stuck with me was how I was taught to think. We were encouraged to ask questions, to challenge assumptions, and to look for deeper meanings. This was true whether we were studying scripture, history, or even science and math. Our teachers weren’t interested in us simply repeating what we were told. They wanted us to understand why we believed what we believed, to critically engage with the material, and to see the bigger picture.
When I went to college straight out of high school in the late '90s, I was still carrying that mindset with me. Back then, even though universities were already known for being places of liberal thought, there was still room for critical thinking. You could disagree with your professors, and while they might not always love it, they respected that you were thinking for yourself. The focus was on engagement and debate, not just accepting the status quo.
But life doesn’t always go as planned, and I didn’t finish college at that time. I went back in the early 2010s to finish my degree, and that’s when I realized just how much the education system had changed. What I encountered then was something I hardly recognized. The focus had shifted completely. Education wasn’t about critical thinking anymore. It was about regurgitating the "right" answers—answers that fit within a very narrow ideological framework. Classes that once would have been arenas for discussion and debate were now places where students were expected to memorize, conform, and move on.
I’ll never forget sitting through open-book tests, where instead of being asked to analyze or critically think, we were just asked to copy answers directly from the text. I had this sinking feeling, realizing that the kind of education I grew up with—the kind that fostered independent thought and a deep engagement with ideas—was becoming a thing of the past.
That’s when it really hit me. This wasn’t just a change in education; it was a change in how we were preparing future generations to think, or more accurately, not think. The emphasis on intellectual conformity over critical inquiry was not just disappointing—it was dangerous.
This is why I am so deeply committed to Christian education today. Our mission, the mission of the Christian Education Growth Foundation, is about more than just teaching kids about the Bible or providing a Christian alternative to public schools. It’s about reclaiming the lost art of critical thinking—rooted in Christian values but relevant to every part of life.
In today’s public schools, Christian children are constantly being bombarded with messages that contradict their faith. They spend 8 to 10 hours a day in environments that are not just indifferent to Christian values, but actively hostile to them. Kids are being taught ideas about gender, sexuality, and morality that are completely at odds with what they’re learning at home or in church. It’s no longer just about getting a good education; it’s about protecting our children from indoctrination.
But my passion isn’t simply to shield kids from the world. It’s to equip them to engage with the world in a way that is thoughtful, courageous, and rooted in truth. I want Christian education to be a place where students learn how to think for themselves, to ask tough questions, to challenge the status quo when it contradicts their faith. We need to teach our children not just what to believe, but why they believe it, and how to stand firm in that belief when the world pushes back.
Christian education has the unique ability to do this. As Jimmy Scroggins and Trevin Wax emphasize in their book, "The Education Reformation: Why Your Church Should Start a Christian School", we need schools that go beyond just teaching the Bible. We need schools that teach children to think critically, to discern the truth in a world filled with lies, and to defend their faith with both their hearts and their minds. It’s not enough to tell them what’s right; we need to show them how to understand the difference between truth and propaganda. Our kids are being raised in a culture that is increasingly confusing and chaotic, and if we don’t prepare them to think for themselves, the world will do the thinking for them.
I believe that teaching children how to think critically is just as important—if not more so—than teaching them doctrine. Don’t get me wrong, understanding the Bible is critical. But if we don’t teach them to recognize when they are being led astray, to see through the manipulation that’s happening in so many schools today, then we are failing them. This is why apologetics is so crucial, especially at the right age. We need to give kids the tools to defend their faith in a way that is intelligent, thoughtful, and compassionate. But we also need to teach them how to discern when they are being fed an agenda.
It’s this passion that drives me and the work we are doing at the Christian Education Growth Foundation. We’re not just providing financial support for Christian schools; we’re fighting for a reformation in education itself. We believe that by building and supporting Christian schools, we are not only protecting our children from a system that is increasingly hostile to their values, but we’re also preparing them to engage the world as thoughtful, capable, and faithful disciples of Christ.
The stakes are too high to ignore. We are watching as the gap between the world’s values and our own grows wider every day. It’s not just about ideology; it’s about the future of our children, their ability to think, and their ability to live out their faith in a world that is constantly trying to pull them away from it. This is why I’m so passionate about Christian education. This is why I believe in what we’re doing. Because our children deserve an education that doesn’t just fill their minds with facts, but one that equips them to think deeply, love truth, and engage the world with boldness and wisdom.
Looking back, I realize that the structure provided by both my home and school wasn’t just about shielding me from negative influences—it was about fostering curiosity over conformity. It wasn’t enough just to follow the rules; I was encouraged to ask questions, to dig deeper into my faith, and to think critically about the world around me. That’s what drives my passion for Christian education today. In a world that increasingly demands conformity, we need schools that prioritize curiosity—schools that teach children to think, to question, and to understand why they believe what they believe. This mission is about more than protecting our values; it’s about empowering the next generation to engage the world with confidence, wisdom, and a faith that’s truly their own.
