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Episode 48: (RenewRec) Our Favorite “Creation, Fall, and Redemption” Books
It's nearly impossible to talk about the Christian worldview without a healthy dose of the biblical framework of Creation, Fall, and Redemption. Not only do these categories help us to the story of Scripture more fully, but they also give us a stronger foundation for knowing how to understand our own stories, our place in the world, and to see God's work in it.
Host Noah Brink introduces two book: "Creation Regained" by Albert Wolters and "Engaging God's World" ... our favorite Creation, Fall, and Redemption books. In unique ways, they both prove to be invaluable resources for anyone who's trying to think more intentionality of the foundation for a biblical worldview, but also how we should live it out.
Episode 47: “Jesus Dust”
Christian education must be far more than providing essentially secular models and practices of schooling with Christian components (Jesus Dust) sprinkled on top. Far too often, this ends up looking like finding a verse or Christian lingo to attach to a lesson, or praying at the start of it. But, not only is this bad both theologically and pedagogically, it trains students to think that Christianity is also a fragmented way of looking at life ... essentially a secular life with just some Christian components added in for good measure. Host Noah Brink offers helpful reminders about what Christian education must be and encourages the use of frameworks like the RenewEd worldview grid to enable us to have a freer and theologically sounder approach to our practice.
Episode 46: (RenewRec) *The Pattern of God’s Truth* and *Teaching Redemptively*
Frank Gaebelein's The Pattern of God's Truth and Donovan Graham's *Teaching Redemptively" are the two books at the top of our recommendation list for Christian educators. They both provide profound introductions to and foundations for Christian schooling.
Episode 45: Culture of Grace
Host Noah Brink provides a theological foundation for the necessity of grace - grace in our schools and in the life of the Christian. We'll also provide definitions, implications, and press us to understand the distinctives of the school that's more interested in grace than rules and rigidity.
Episode 44: Prioritizing Rest and Student Flourishing
An unhurried education. Is such a thing possible? How do we bring about more rest in our schools? How do we allow students to have greater ability to pause and grow within the community of the school, rather than hurrying through the day? Is it possible to reduce stress and anxiety?
Host Noah Brink discusses the theology of rest (and of Sabbath) and the cultural and pedagogical necessities of finding ways to slow down, to prioritize human flourishing above volume of content. We'll also introduce some practical ideas for creating the necessary space to nurture spiritual formation and student flourishing.
Episode 43: The Olympics, Sports, and the Christian School
The Olympics can teach us a great deal about ways to further engage our students into the lives of our schools. Students need to feel a sense of belonging, and sports natures this longing and connection in a unique way. The Olympics also has a profound ability to model what it looks like to bring people together. How can we use similar things in the lives of our schools?
Host Noah Brink discusses the great opportunity that the Olympics provides to nurture a sense of wonder, communal pride, and respect for individual gifting.
Episode 42: A Christian Worldview Reflection on the Attempt on Donald Trump's Life.
Christian School teachers have to be prepared to know how to respond to the most talked-about issues of the day. Events like that of July 13 are the sort that prompt students to come to class with countless opinions, looking for both validation and answers. While there's no way to properly prepare for shocking events like these, it's critical that we have the biblical frameworks in place to provide a foundation for our response.
Host Noah Brink discusses the ways we should talk about events like the shock of an attempt on a former president's life. This episode seeks to provide an example of what it should look like to provide answers, to cling to what we know to be true, and to model for our students that we are willing to allow them to enter into hard spaces with their questions.
Episode 41: Thriving on Mondays
When we put prioritize honoring God and recognizing our students' dignity as image bearers of God, we have to rethink our approach to what we require or expect of our students on Mondays.
Episode 40: Faculty Pay Structure
Every aspect of the Christian school ought be held under the lens of a biblical worldview, including the structures we put in place for compensating faculty. Of course, we need to figure out ways to provide even higher compensation, but the model we use to calculate that rate of pay is of the utmost importance. And, it should align with our philosophy and beliefs.
Host Noah Brink describes some key components and examples of the ways schools can determine the best way to pay their faculty with the objectives of properly honoring them as image bearers, building community, and nurturing a culture of growth.
Episode 39: Faculty Worldview Development Program
Taking a Gap Year between High School and College ought not be Plan B. In fact, it might be one of the greatest ways for a student to accelerate the process of maturity into adulthood. Host Noah Brink discusses the many reasons why students should take a hard look at the benefits of gap year programs, think deeply about using the unique gifts God has given them, and evaluating the best ways to further Christ's Kingdom in the process.
Episode 38: A Gospel Approach to Behavior
The fourth category of the RenewEd Worldview Grid asks, "Are we cultivating a culture of Grace-prompted obedience?" This question guides us toward having an approach to behavior that's consistent with a gospel-centered worldview. Host Noah Brink unpacks the question and provides reasons why the Christian approach to behavior is so radically different than what's seen elsewhere in culture.
Episode 37: The Wisdom of Gap Years
Taking a Gap Year between High School and College ought not be Plan B. In fact, it might be one of the greatest ways for a student to accelerate the process of maturity into adulthood. Host Noah Brink discusses the many reasons why students should take a hard look at the benefits of gap year programs, think deeply about using the unique gifts God has given them, and evaluating the best ways to further Christ's Kingdom in the process.
Episode 36: A Redemptive View of Eduction
The seventh category of RenewEd's Worldview Grid asks "Are we seeking and celebrating a restoration of all things according to Jesus's Plan?" and then applies this question to our approach and practice in Christian Schooling. Host Noah Brink unpacks the many ways Christian educators should think about the redemptive aspects of our task as we use the worldview framework ( RenewEd Worldview Grid ) to help make sense of the world in light of the Gospel of Jesus.
Episode 35: Teaching “The Grapes of Wrath” Through the Worldview Grid
While much of RenewEd's work to help teachers be better equipped to teach from an unapologetically gospel-centered, Christian perspective, we know that it's important to provide examples of what it looks like to apply parts of RenewEd's worldview framework to specific lessons.
Host Noah Brink describes how a Christian teacher could use the categories of the RenewEd worldview Grid in a literature lesson that's handling a work that isn't Christian, but still helps us see the realities of the gospel in unique ways.
Episode 34: Navigating Anxiety and Nurturing Resilience through a Biblical Anthropology
Not only does a well-developed theology of personhood enable us to respect the dignity of all people and provide a solid foundation for a key aspect of a biblical worldview, but Host Noah Brink helps us understand how it gives us the tools to combat childhood anxiety - both as Christian educators and Christian parents.
Episode 33: Christian Worldview 101
"Christian Worldview" or "Biblical Worldview" might be one of the most overused and (as a result) misunderstood phrases spoken within Christian education circles. But because the notion behind the phrase is central to the life of the Christian school, we should continue to use it, but with greater precision and clarity. That's the goal - to bring about greater clarity and move our schools (and their surrounding communities) toward greater consistency in our use of this vital concept.
Episode 32: A Biblical Anthropology for Education
Students matter. Of course, they do. But, we ought to have an unwavering answer why that must be so - not only for today, but in all contexts.
The Third of RenewEd's Worldview Categories asks how our communities celebrate the fullness of the nature of God in people. A well-developed philosophy of Christian education requires a clear, biblical understanding of what it means to be human. And, that foundation provides the context for how we think about every single aspect of education.
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Episode 31: Establishing Meaningful Milestones
Our children need the Boundaries, Motivation, and Celebration that setting meaningful milestones before them can create. It helps them to see where they've come (and learn from it and recognize what they've achieved), be grounded where they are presently, and nurture a healthy dose of what to work and look toward. These milestones are one of the most tangible ways to create a structure that fights our culture's tendency toward entitlement and anxiety.
Episode 30: A Practical Exercise for Christian Alignment
If your school were to narrow Christianity down to its simplest form using a handful of words, how clearly would you see those words tangibly lived out throughout your school? Host Noah Brink discusses a practical way to bring our school community together to foster greater clarity in alignment with our Christian commitments.
Episode 29: Dreaming of a Health Christian School Network
What if our schools did a better job of working together! Of course, it assumes that we do a better job of holding true to our distinctives, form partnerships that expand the interest of our communities in Christian schooling, and work with our local churches in strategic ways. If we could move in this direction, we can do a better job of engaging our entire communities and reflecting a fuller view of Christ's Kingdom to the onlooking world.