The Seven Year Plan, part 2

This picture is of the L-Abri ministry in England - a shelter for the student seeking a deeper spiritual life. I'd like to make a ministry here in Knoxville with the basics of L'Abri in mind...but with a wider purpose. Please read on.

Here is my burden: one of the most dramatic and traumatic times of a student’s life occurs at graduation: the changing of campuses. In more than one way, a graduating senior undergoes a major paradigm shift. He will change in:

physical location
decision-making opportunities
reality of worship and his "God-walk"
his circle of friends
financial matters
his position of dependent to becoming an independent

In realizing these needs of teens and young adults all over Knoxville, I’ve created this document in order to set forth a proposal to lay out a plan for the overall Bible training that can set an anchor at CAK and reach beyond the campus. Having been a teacher at three other Christian schools and a speaker/observer at over fifty others in the past twenty years, I truly believe that Christian Academy of Knoxville (CAK) to be among the top-tier schools in areas of energy, direction and desire when it comes to taking responsible steps in the scholastic and spiritual education of enrolled students. I feel, though, that the ministry on or near the CAK campus needs to have a longer reach - on toward college and beyond..

The Plan

Two truths come to mind that will give us an answer:

The James 1:22 principle: "Be ye doers of the Word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." The Bible education is not complete if it remains potential and is never activated as kinetic. There must be action following the education. Part of the proposed ministry is to take this principle beyond the May graduation.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism’s teaching of the duty of all Christians: "Question: What is the chief end of man? Answer: To worship God and enjoy Him forever." Yet many grads will not really understand how to continue on in a walk with God when they feel they’ve been "kicked out of the nest."
I would like to pursue a dream of taking teens into a deeper walk with the Lord.

I want to start a homestead ministry as a place for students to come and study God off-campus...take the next steps of spiritual maturation in walking with Jesus.

The L'Abri centers around the world have intrigued me. From the L'Abri site: "L'Abri is a French word that means shelter. The first L'Abri community was founded in Switzerland in 1955 by Dr. Francis Schaeffer and his wife, Edith. Dr. Schaeffer was a Christian theologian and philosopher who also authored a number of books on theology, philosophy, general culture and the arts.
The L'Abri communities are study centers in Europe, Asia and America where individuals have the opportunity to seek answers to honest questions about God and the significance of human life. L'Abri believes that Christianity speaks to all aspects of life."

WE SHOULD HAVE A L’ABRI HERE, RIGHT IN KNOXVILLE, NEAR THE CAK CAMPUS. We would call it "hepta", meaning "seven," for that would be the main focus of the ministry. We would concentrate our resources on reaching and assisting the CAK student through the seven transitional years - from the Junior year in high school to the first year out of college.

I will tell you more tomorrow.