Advice for Seminary

So, I’ve been asked by a couple people over the past few months what kind of advice that I would give someone who is either going or considering going to seminary. I honestly wasn’t entirely sure what advice I would give them. I think that I had to make it through a semester and then have time to reflect on what I’ve learned or wish that I would have known before starting. On the other hand, some of this is just good advice that I was given as I was getting ready for seminary myself.

1. Sift everything through the Bible. Seminary is a very interesting educational atmosphere. When you go to a state college, you expect to have to take everything that your professor gives you with a grain of salt. After all, state colleges make no claims to Christianity. What makes seminary so interesting is that you will encounter at least one professor who at some time or another will stop teaching Bible and start teaching his opinion. For this reason, you always have to be on your guard, even in seminary. Not to down play the offense, but it helps to remember that professors are human beings not God.

2. Recognize which hills are worth dyeing on and which hills aren't. Most professors that one encounters in seminary are professors for a reason. In other words, they know their stuff, and they know it well. They know exactly what they believe, why they believe it, why others don’t believe it, and how to disarm someone who disagrees with them. If a professor says something that you don’t agree with, and you feel compelled to either do the highly "unsmart" thing and outright challenge them or the smarter thing and start asking key questions that allow others to know and see your viewpoint without attacking anyone, be prepared to die. The extent and harshness of your death will largely depend on just how directly you challenged the professor’s view. It’s usually a loving death, but a death none the less. However, there are hills worth dyeing on, and it's important to recognize which hills those are.

3. Don’t compromise your personal growth. Sure, attending classes everyday means that you are constantly (or should be) digging into the Bible. Sure, going to chapel on a regular basis feels a lot like going to church, but its not. Just because your doing work for class and attending chapel doesn’t mean that any personal growth is taking place. You have to set time aside everyday for your personal quiet time, and you have to make church a priority. A seminarian gathering such as chapel is no replacement for church involvement. No, the Sunday school teachers may not be as good as your professors, but listen to their heart. Even though they may not do it well, they are trying to teach you something.

4. Get a good set of commentaries or get ready to spend a lot of time in the library. Actually, a third option is to be really nice to your roommate who happens to own said set of commentaries. I’m coveting the Expositor’s Commentary set right now. Maybe I’ll get it before my roommate moves out. Here’s hoping… Commentaries are probably the most expensive investment for students, but actually, it's good to have a wide range of resources such as theological dictionaries, concordances, and background and hermeneutical books.

5. Make a schedule and stick to it. The word seminary should be defined as a place where students get overloaded with work. lol. It has been my experience that every class has tons of reading and a minimum of two papers (aka 10-20 page mini books). Set aside a predetermined block of time everyday to work. Trust me, if you don’t work on it everyday, it will never get done. I usually average about an hour a day per a class. Since I’m taking five classes this semester, I usually study about five hours a day, except on Sunday.

6. Don’t panic after the first week of class. Everyone that I've talked to always gets very overwhelmed after that first week of classes. They've been assigned more reading than they've ever thought possible, they' ve been warned about all upcoming papers and projects, they've sat through at least one class where they have no idea what the professor was talking about, and it’s only the first week of school. It seems to me like most first semester students including me come into the seminary with a huge handicap. There’s a learning curve here unlike the one that was in place in the undergraduate program because everyone starts behind it. Hang on for a month or two, and things really do get better as you start to get a handle on both the work and terminology. Seminary has a language all its own.

The best advice that I can give though is just enjoy the ride. A seminary campus has an atmosphere that is unique from almost any place that you will go in life. There may be lots of ups and downs along the way, but just the opportunity to be a part of that atmosphere is well worth all the aggravations that it may create.

Reading, Reading, and uh Did I Mention Reading

So, the reading this semester isn't nearly as bad as last semester (aka I can actually stay awake through most of it). I only have one book so far that seems to drag on and on. However, the volume of reading is still pretty much the same. Right now it seems like all I ever do is read, but the papers will start rolling in pretty soon. Although that sounds like a bad thing, it's a good thing for me because I love to write. By the end of the semester though, I'll probably be begging for reading assignments again. I seem to only like to write so much. Then, I burn out, and with something like 12 papers due this semester, burn out is inevitable.

Blinding

Since my nails have been on a growing kick lately as opposed to their previous breaking trend, I've been on a painting kick. I've actually been taking the time to polish them about once a week, but I've consistently been using the same color polish so I doubt that anyone has noticed. This week I decided to dig a new color out of my nail bag. The color was a little funky since it was orange, but the shade looked tame enough in the bottle. So, I threw it on. Well, turns out that the color really isn't all that tame. In fact, it's rather blinding. I quickly realized why this color has gotten very little use, but since I had already painted one hand, I went ahead and did the other. It definitely has to come off before church on Sunday, but I'm too lazy to repaint them today. They actually remind me of some advice that Jessica gave me when she was probably about four or five. She determined that since I wasn't dating I needed to wear brighter colors (including makeup) with lots of sparkle so that I would get noticed. lol. So, for 48 hours, Jessica, I'm wearing a much brighter color just for you!

Another Sign of Fall

Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks. I don’t usually go to Starbucks this much nor talk about it this much, but because I have a gift card, I’m becoming addicted. Wednesday morning Starbuck runs seem to be becoming a definite habit. This can not be good…

Fall is Coming!

My all-time favorite season is just beginning to stick its head around the corner, and I couldn't be more excited. What's not to like about orangy-yellow leaves, pumpkins, mums, light sweaters, and planting bulbs The temperature is beginning to drop. (Yes, I know it's just a little bit, but I feel it.) There was even a nice breeze on campus the other day. The most exciting part about fall this year is that I'm actually far enough north to watch the leaves change colors. Of course, the most disappointing part is that I don't have a flower bed, but that's evened out by both the fact that the seminary has some gorgeous beds that will start blooming in late spring and the fact that I do have beds at home that are already planted. Maybe someone will send pictures this year, hint, hint. If it would just stay fall forever, I would be one happy girl.

This is a picture from a trip that we took to Mentone, AL a few years back.

And They're Off

School is in full swing again, and I have officially survived the first full week with only minor mishaps ranging from forgetting what time chapel started at (I was an hour early and without anything to study) to getting slightly lost while trying to find a class (not my fault, it was printed wrong). My survival was supplemented however by a midweek run to Starbucks for a white chocolate mocha compliments of my mother who gave me a gift card last week. Oh, and Chick-fil-A sponsored breakfast this morning too! The first week is usually the worst for me morning wise because I have to adjust to getting up early again, but since I had both mocha and chicken, all is well.

This is Just a Drill

So, we are sitting inside today confined because of tropical weather. It is seriously raining cats and dogs out there! My only hope is that by the time I fly out of here on Tuesday that all this rain has cleared out and that it didn’t cancel too many flights that will create a backlog. Actually, I don’t really see why they would have cancelled any flights unless there are some serious winds up higher. There’s just a stiff breeze on the ground, and that is exactly why I call this a drill. In the event of a true tropical emergency, electricity would be out, trees would be falling over, water and food would be stockpiled, and flights would have for sure been cancelled.