{"id":301794,"date":"2009-03-27T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2009-03-27T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/living-life-the-college-way\/"},"modified":"2009-03-27T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2009-03-27T15:00:00","slug":"living-life-the-college-way","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/living-life-the-college-way\/","title":{"rendered":"Living Life the College Way"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>College students, ever wonder about dating, drinking, good and evil, church attendance, or the authority of Scripture?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/web.familylifetoday.com\/fl2009-03-27.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:","filesize":"13.68M","filesize_raw":"14346264","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2814],"tags":[4705,4299,5053],"podcast_series":[7637],"cwp_profile":[9160],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-301794","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-releasing-your-child","tag-college","tag-faith","tag-witness","podcast_series-welcome-to-college","cwp_profile-jonathan-morrow","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/301794\/living-life-the-college-way","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/301794\/living-life-the-college-way","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"0g4KqFChCZ\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/living-life-the-college-way\/\">Living Life the College Way<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/living-life-the-college-way\/embed\/#?secret=0g4KqFChCZ\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Living Life the College Way&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"0g4KqFChCZ\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg",508,508,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"kfairris@familylife.com","author_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/author\/kfairrisfamilylife-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"College students, ever wonder about dating, drinking, good and evil, church attendance, or the authority of Scripture?","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylifetoday.com\/fl2009-03-27.pdf","transcript_content":"<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> As your son or daughter heads off to the college campus, one of the things he or she is going to hear is that there are a lot of different paths that lead to God.\u00a0 How do you respond to that kind of thinking?\u00a0 Here is a suggestion from Jonathan Morrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> All religions, fundamentally, are exclusive.\u00a0 Even Bahai'ism, which excludes the exclusiveness. The idea, then, is, okay, let's just take three big ones \u2013 Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.\u00a0 Christianity says that Jesus is the Messiah.\u00a0 Judaism says that He was not the Messiah, and Islam says He was a great prophet.\u00a0 All can't be true.\u00a0 They can all be false, but they all can't be true, but if there is truth, then which one is true?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> This is FamilyLife Today for Friday, March 27th.\u00a0 Our host is the president of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine.\u00a0 We're going to spend some time today unpacking the kinds of conversations that take place on a lot of college campuses.\u00a0 Stay tuned, dude.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tDude, welcome to FamilyLife Today, dude.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Bob, I'm going to \u2026\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Dude!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> I am going to completely interrupt reality of what FamilyLife Today usually is.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> I thought I already did when I said, \"Dude!\"\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Well, it was a good try.\u00a0 It was weak, but \u2013 but \u2013 maybe this will be better.\u00a0 I want you and me to do our best to pretend like we were back in college \u2013 not back when we went to college, but like we were going to college today and put on the mindset of what a 17 or 18-year-old young adult, going to college, what he's thinking, and begin to pepper a world-class expert.\u00a0 And I want you to think, out of all the people in the world that you could call, who would you call if you could have two high school seniors peppering a world-class expert, Bob \u2013 out of all the people in the world, who would you call to be able to ask these questions of?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Whoa, dude.\u00a0 I don't know, dude, I mean, whoa.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> I'm not going the dude route, by the way, in this suspended reality.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Whoa, I don't know \u2013 you know, like, Jonathan Morrow, somebody like that do you think?\u00a0 Whoa, he'd be cool.\u00a0 He'd be cool, if we could call him.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> He's really good, because he has written \u2026\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Dude.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> \u2026 a book called \"Welcome to College, a Christ-Followers Guide for the Journey,\" and guess what?\u00a0 We just happen to have him here with us on today's broadcast.\u00a0 Jonathan, welcome.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Hey, good to be here.\u00a0 I'm not sure, after that \u2013 setting me up a little bit for some high expectations, I think.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> I think you can handle it, Jonathan.\u00a0 You've been married for seven years, got a couple of kids.\u00a0 You're going to be sending those kids off to college in virtually no time \u2013 15, 18 years.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And you've been close to the college campus.\u00a0 You were a student, as it says on the back of your book, at a \"large state school,\" and then you got a graduate degree at Biola University, so you've been on campus, and now you live in a college town, you pastor in a college town, so you've spent a lot of time with students.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Well, he's written a book.\u00a0 He's got 42 chapters.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And set Dennis straight \u2013 do they say \"Dude\" all the time like I was just doing?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Some do.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Dude, see?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Okay, so what we want to do is we want to pick some of these chapters and just ask a question around them and help us know how to go to college with the right mindset, thinking Christianly.\u00a0 And what you mean by that is \u2026?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Just having a worldview, a way you view all of life, and that's how God defines reality through His Word and through what He's made and then kind of taking that money more in through Saturday night as well as Sunday morning.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Okay, so I'll throw the first one at you, all right?\u00a0 So I know there's this book that came out, like, a lot of years ago about kissing dating goodbye, and it says you shouldn't date until you're ready to get married.\u00a0 Is that in the Bible?\u00a0 Do I have to not date when I go to college?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> You asked him a pretty tough question, Bob.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Well, start and get on into, yeah, no \u2026\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Throw the fastball right down the pike here.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Yeah.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Well, the word \"dating\" is not in the Bible, you'll be happy to know that, but the Bible does give us principles about it.\u00a0 And so what that book talked about, the kiss dating goodbye principle, some principle honestly should kiss dating goodbye for a little while.\u00a0 And I don't know your background or your history, but sometimes relationships can come to an unhealthy place where you put too much on the other person.\u00a0 Emotionally, you're getting your significance from them, things like that, and you become attached in a way that's unhealthy, and you probably should kiss dating goodbye for a little while.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut then there's another side of it where that's just part of growing and relating to a person of the opposite sex and learning about yourself and things like that.\u00a0 And so what you need to do is think about, \"Okay, what do I value in a relationship?\u00a0 What is the kind of person that I'm looking for?\"\u00a0 Because is it a matter of the first person that I come across who likes me?\u00a0 Will that do it?\u00a0 And the reality is, is that's not going to be a good fit for you, especially if you are a Christ-follower, if you're following Christ, then you're looking for a certain kind of person.\u00a0 And starting with those things in the Bible, the generous, they love God, they interact well with others, they spend time with God.\u00a0 You're not the highest priority in their life.\u00a0 That's a great place to start.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> You know, that question that he just asked \u2013 you could have asked that question when I went to college a few years ago.\u00a0 But there are questions that transcend time, and this one I'm going to ask you was a big one for me as a college student, and it's a big one today, and it's Chapter 15 in your book.\u00a0 It's about how the Christian faith handles the problem of evil better than any other religious system. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBecause what's going to happen when young people go to college today?\u00a0 They're going to be in a class where a professor is going to throw this up \u2013 the whole issue of the problem of evil, and what are you going to do with it?\u00a0 How can God and evil coexist?\u00a0 How do you answer the question?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Well, the first thing you have to realize is that everyone has a problem of evil.\u00a0 It's not just the Christian who has to have an explanation here.\u00a0 And so the two other broad worldviews you have to work with besides Christian theism or where there's a God.\u00a0 You've got atheism, which there is no God so at that point you're like, \"Well, exactly what is evil?\"\u00a0 Because you're borrowing even that category from a Christian worldview.\u00a0 Evil assumes that something ought to be good, and there is a deviation from it or a way things ought to be.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And you're saying if there's no God, there is no good?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Yeah, yeah, I mean, as a ground for it, you know, as a foundational level issue. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> If there is no God, there is no standard.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> There is no definition of good.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> So therefore you can't say something is good or evil.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Right, it's on borrowed capital.\u00a0 Now, I'm not saying that atheists can't live good lives, I'm just saying that they can't ultimately find a ground for that.\u00a0 Or there is a pantheistic or an Eastern religion view that says evil is an illusion, and that's a fundamental difference from Christianity where because \u2013 I don't know about you, but I've had things happen in my life where it didn't seem like an illusion to me.\u00a0 It wasn't a matter of just denying myself to a point where I get over that.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd so the Christian worldview, fundamentally, what we have there is the best answers.\u00a0 You notice I want to use the word \"best\" answers because it's not ultimately satisfying yet because we live in a broken, fallen world.\u00a0 But it's the best answer out there where a God of the Universe created us to love Him, to know Him, and is broken and things aren't the way they ought to be, and yet He entered into that and walked right through it with us and on our behalf on the cross.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Okay, Bob, your turn.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Oh, okay \u2013 Dude, now we're back to me?\u00a0 I was just thinking about that Eastern thing and about reality not being real.\u00a0 Speaking of reality not being real, you know, let's talk about cannabis, okay, you know?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Are you talking about weed?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Yeah, dude, I'm talking about God created all things for us to enjoy.\u00a0 Doesn't the Bible say that somewhere?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Yes, it does.\u00a0 So wouldn't marijuana be one of those things that God created for us to enjoy?\u00a0 Isn't that okay?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Well, one of the things I think we need to answer a question like that, we need to look at, for example, the question of alcohol in the Bible.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Right, right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> In the Old Testament, and it's actually used in a positive sense and a negative sense throughout the Bible.\u00a0 It's not monolithic on that sense.\u00a0 It doesn't \u2013 it gives clear parameters that it's not good to be drunk on wine, we shouldn't cause others to stumble, we shouldn't violate our own conscience, and we should obey the laws of the land of where we're at, that's Romans 13.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd so the idea for the Christian life is that we are not to be controlled by anything other than the spirit of God in that sense, and that's the point of Ephesians 5:16-17, where we're filled with the spirit.\u00a0 So the question there is are we using whatever God has made in accordance with the way God has given us guidelines to use it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Okay, and I'm \u2013 you know I'm not trying to trip you up here, but you know what college students think.\u00a0 Okay, so are you saying \u2026?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Oh, yeah, you are.\u00a0 You're trying to trip him up.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Are you saying that as long as I'm not controlled by the marijuana, it's okay for me to use it?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Well, no, I'd say, first, is it legal.\u00a0 That will be the first bar.\u00a0 And then the second thing is, is it something that controls you?\u00a0 Obviously, the first bar is going to get you, I mean, honestly.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Well, but, okay, do you drive the speed limit all the time?\u00a0 See?\u00a0 Do you \u2013 I'm just going the way that \u2013 so you break speed laws, so isn't it okay sometimes, I mean, they really have \u2013 the purpose of that law \u2013 you've had these kinds of conversations with college students, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Oh, yeah, absolutely.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> So how do you work it \u2013 if they say, \"Okay, the legal thing, I'm okay.\u00a0 Yeah, if I get caught, I'll pay the $100 fine, that's what they just adjudicated in Massachusetts.\u00a0 If you've got an ounce on you, it's $100.\u00a0 Okay, I'll pay that, and they just charge me an assessment fee for my pot.\"\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Yeah, well, I mean, again, you're going to get back to the idea of, okay, what is the purpose of this, number one.\u00a0 And how am I viewing this?\u00a0 Am I viewing this as an escape, anything \u2013 I mean, there's fundamental principles that will inform all these conversations.\u00a0 Ultimately, it's not just, you know, the Bible doesn't speak specifically, and so we apply principles, and so I think the principles we apply with alcohol would apply to marijuana and things like that.\u00a0 First, it's not going to be legal, and if it is medicinal, in that instance, then you use it according to the prescription, and then beyond that, is it something you're dependent upon, that you're putting your trust in, that you're using to feel significant, or yourself in a situation and if you're using that in that way, that's obviously not a good thing.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> All right, I've got a question on church, okay?\u00a0 Because, dude, church is like really boring, and, I mean, I just quit going.\u00a0 That's basically it.\u00a0 First of all, Sunday morning is the wrong time to have church when you're in college, don't you agree?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Right, yeah, you've got to sleep in sometimes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> That's right.\u00a0 And then, secondly, when you do go, it's like \u2013 it's just boring and irrelevant.\u00a0 So \u2013 and I went to the campus ministry thing that they have going on here, but some of those people are just losers, you know?\u00a0 So here's what I do \u2013 I go out on Sunday afternoon, and I just go out into the park, and I take my guitar, and I just sing some songs, and I feel really close to God when I do that.\u00a0 That's okay, isn't it?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Well, it's certainly okay to do that, feel close to God in those ways.\u00a0 He has created this beautiful world we live in, but the idea of the church and the New Testament involves other people in the body of Christ, and one of the things that's so important for students is to be around other people in the body of Christ \u2013 old, young different backgrounds, diversity so that we can be encouraged and built up.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd it may not be the most exciting service in the world, but that's \u2013 the point is not all the flashes and the bells and the whistles.\u00a0 The point is, is there authentic community, is there truth being proclaimed, do I have fellowship with other believers, am I being encouraged and challenged to grow closer to Christ, and those kind of things are fundamental for a church.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> So if I'm going to this church, and none of that stuff is happening, then can I sleep in?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> No, you need to find another church where you can get connected and plugged in and be a part of the body of Christ.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And I think, as you say that, I think a lot of people want to view \u2013 a lot of college students want to view the church from a distance or from the back row and say, \"Here is what I observe, and I don't like it,\" rather than getting plugged in, rather than making some relational connections, and finding themselves in the middle of it.\u00a0 Because church looks different if you're inside, in the middle, with a bunch of people if you've tried to press in, than if you're sitting in the back row just kind of observing, \"What do I think of these people,\" right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> It does.\u00a0 And so once you \u2013 it's kind of the idea of tasting and seeing that this is good, and the idea of putting yourself in and serving and learning while you are obedient, and those kinds of things, and getting in there and meeting people and asking questions and being apart, as opposed to living on an island, which so many students do.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Dude, you got a question?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> I do, I do, in fact, this is another one that was there when I was a college student.\u00a0 I hate to keep asking questions that have endured over the centuries.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> But they do seem to keep coming around, don't they?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> They do.\u00a0 It's the problem of all roads leading to God, you know?\u00a0 This exclusive \u2026\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> That is so exclusive.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Exclusive Christianity \u2013 Jesus is the way.\u00a0 And I remember when I was in class, they attacked that saying, \"Does that mean the person who is in Africa, in this dark place, who has never heard the name of Jesus, does that mean he's going to hell?\"\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And how can you tell me that my friend, Isaac, who is Jewish, or my other friend who is a Muslim, how can you tell me that they're going to hell just because they don't think that Jesus is who you say Jesus is?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Right, and so one of the things we want to do in that situation is back up just a second and say, \"Does truth exist, period.\"\u00a0 And if truth exists, then truth, by definition, is exclusive in the same way that when I was in elementary school, 2+2=4, it doesn't equal 5, it's an equal opportunity offender, okay?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd so the idea, then, is, \"Okay, if religions\" \u2013 let's just take three big ones, Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.\u00a0 Christianity says that Jesus is the Messiah.\u00a0 Judaism says that He was not the Messiah, and Islam says He was a great prophet.\u00a0 But they all can't be true.\u00a0 They can all be false, but they all can't be true.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Well, okay, so shouldn't we, then, just really look at people's lives and look at who the good people are and figure that what they believe has got to be true because they're good people.\u00a0 And if that's the case, man, you Christians are in trouble, because there are a bunch of phonies and hypocrites, and I don't agree with their Republican religion, either.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Yeah, and so one of the questions that we'd want to ask there is what is good?\u00a0 You seem to be using that, and so if we were talking, I would say, \"Hey, well, what do you mean by good?\u00a0 And, actually, how are you informing that?\"\u00a0 Once we establish that, then I would say, \"Well, let's look at these things and how good is good enough?\"\u00a0 And then we'd look at all the different religions and talk about how they talk about goodness and God and how we relate to them and Christian is \u2013 we have Christ who lived a perfect life for us to be good on our behalf and perfect on our behalf so that we trust Him, and so that's a very different answer than the other religions.\u00a0 And so that's where we'd want to go.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Bob's asked multiple questions, and I'm going to ask a multiple one.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> All right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> You're turn, dude.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> I remember this one as a college student.\u00a0 In fact, I loved this class.\u00a0 It was a philosophy class that talked about the existence of God \u2013 how can you know there is a God?\u00a0 You can't prove that He is there.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd my kids went to college, kids are going to college right now, and their faith is being tested by professors who are asking shrewdly designed questions that undermine a young person who is not a keen thinker, who has not been properly prepared in his faith in God to know how to defend it.\u00a0 How do you answer that question?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> I think one of the things we need to talk about there is you mentioned the idea of proof and, honestly, there is very little in life you can prove.\u00a0 Proof works in mathematics and logic, and that's about it.\u00a0 So there is the vast majority of things that anybody cares about, you can't prove in that level of certainty.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBeyond that, what you do is, okay, what makes the best sense of the world we live in.\u00a0 And so you'd want to look at moral values, okay?\u00a0 Why are some things wrong and others right?\u00a0 Why was the Holocaust evil?\u00a0 Why do we want to call it that way?\u00a0 And what makes sense of that?\u00a0 A moral lawgiver, or the desires that we have in our own hearts, where the beginning of the universe, the design of the universe, or any of those kinds of things, and so we could talk about those kinds of issues for the argument, the resistance of God, that make good sense in the world we live in, because you need to tell a story that captures all of that, and not just one little piece.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Okay, here is my last question \u2013 should I pledge a fraternity or not, dude?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> That depends.\u00a0 And, honestly, I mean, it depends on the situation, the person, the background, the community.\u00a0 I mean, my situation was I did pledge a fraternity as a junior in college, as a believer, and was very clear about my convictions from the beginning, and I actually had a great experience with that.\u00a0 And some students, afterwards \u2026\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> They didn't make you guzzle down a bottle of champagne or something? \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> They made others but not me.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Really?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Yeah, and that was \u2013 it was an interesting relationship, but it wasn't a (inaudible) thing, it wasn't, \"Hey, I'm better than you,\" but these are my convictions, and I'd love to be a part of this, but \u2026\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> But I'm not playing your little game.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Right, and so if they had insisted on it, I would have walked away from it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> And, Jonathan, I have one last question I want to ask you before we get away here, but I want Bob to share with our listeners who really want to do a good job of preparing their teenager for college, and I would say that I would not wait until their senior year to begin this process.\u00a0 I think it starts in junior high \u2013 well, actually, it starts when you start raising them.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> That's right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> That's the way it starts, but, really, in earnest, to get a book like you're talking about, I think you can begin to dig into something like this and address the issues over the dinner table, and interact with your children and not be afraid of doubt \u2013 not be afraid of visiting some places where you may not have all the answers, because those are chances and opportunities that you take with your children that really can hammer out an effective faith later on in their lives when they're on their own.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Wow, dude, that was heavy.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> That was heavy.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Wow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Yeah.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Yeah, the book that Jonathan has written \u2013 okay, I'll be serious now.\u00a0 The book is called \"Welcome to College,\" and we've got it in our FamilyLife Resource Center.\u00a0 You can go to our website, FamilyLifeToday.com to request a copy.\u00a0 Again, it's FamilyLifeToday.com. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIn addition, I just want to mention this \u2013 Dennis and Barbara Rainey have prepared a CD for parents that is all about what we need to do to prepare our teens for this launch.\u00a0 It talks about making sure you have helped your student be ready in areas of relationship, life skills, character development, spiritual development, and the CD comes along with a gift that you can give to a student as a graduation gift.\u00a0 It's the \"Congratulations 2009\" CD that has music from groups like Stellar Kart, Hawk Nelson, Sanctus Real, Relient K, some of the best-known groups in Christian music today.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThere is also a companion DVD for student here.\u00a0 So you've got a gift you can give a student at graduation, and you've got a CD for a mom and a dad to just review and say, \"Have we covered all of the bases with our student.\"\u00a0 And the information about both the graduation gift and the companion CD for parents is available on the website at FamilyLifeToday.com as well.\u00a0 Or call 1-800-FLTODAY, 1-800-358-6329, that's 1-800-F-as-in-family, L-as-in-life, and then the word TODAY, and when you get in touch with us, we'll let you know how you can get any of the resources you need sent to you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSo \u2013 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Bob, I'll be glad when we no longer suspend reality.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> What, I'm not doing \"dude\" anymore?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> You're not doing the dude deal anymore, but Jonathan Morrow has been a good sport.\u00a0 Jonathan, thanks for being on the broadcast, and thanks for your work on this book, \"Welcome to College,\" helping young people know how to navigate some pretty challenging and treacherous waters there.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou went to a state school, and I have a question for you, because I just wonder what your opinion is on this \u2013 should young people today go to a Christian university or a state university?\u00a0 What are the pluses and minuses, as you see it, for Christian men and women as they head off to college?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> And we're going to play this back when your children are college age, so you better make sure your answer is a good one, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> No pressure whatsoever, that's great.\u00a0 No, I think the answer would be maybe.\u00a0 It will honestly depend on the child and the student and kind of where they are at \u2013 how they're gifted, built, are they ready for an environment like that?\u00a0 And so the pros of going to a state school are that it's not going to be popular to be a Christian, most likely.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Now, wait, that's a pro of going to a state school?\u00a0 That it's not going to be popular to be a Christian?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Jonathan:<\/strong> Yes, because I'm going to get to that when we come to the Christian schools because is your faith real or not?\u00a0 Because the big thing students have to do when they get out of high school is own their faith \u2013 is this real?\u00a0 Do I really believe this?\u00a0 And so what they do is, they'll go to a school where there's not little groups that they form for you to be Christians.\u00a0 And so you will have that.\u00a0 You will have diversity of ideas, and so you'll have to walk the walk if this is real.\u00a0 So that's an opportunity and also a challenge with the influences and the ideas and things like that.\u00a0 If you're not prepared for those, that's a con.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tNow, I'll flip it around on the other side for a Christian school, and obviously there's a lot of good Christian schools out there, but some of them don't look a whole lot different, honestly, than state schools when it gets down to the classroom level.\u00a0 But the great thing about being at a Christian school is that student may need that environment, that broader community where they are encouraged in their walk with Christ, and in the classroom they can see a professor model for them.\u00a0 What does it look like to engage these issues \u2013 to see all of God's world through a lens and then understand that and apply that when we go into life.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd so that's \u2013 and there are some specific things you can learn.\u00a0 If you have a particular ambition, then a state school might be better for you because when \u2013 people look at degrees differently.\u00a0 Did you go to this XYZ school or a Christian school?\u00a0 And certain ones are going to value a secular school over a Christian school.\u00a0 So it kind of depends on ideals, hopes, background, experiences, did they come to faith later in life?\u00a0 Are they solid?\u00a0 Do they have good friends with them?\u00a0 Those kinds of a questions.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Bob, your children have gone to both state schools and to Christian schools.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> That's right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> What do you think about his answer?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> I think he's right \u2013 you have to look at the personality, you have to look at how God has wired your student, you have to look at what are the issues in that student's life at the time that college comes up?\u00a0 You have to look at what are their vocational objectives or what's God leading them into?\u00a0 And then you've got to make a wise decision.\u00a0 But I'd say this \u2013 if you are looking at a secular school, whether it's a state school or a private school, you need to look carefully to see is there any spiritual life around this campus?\u00a0 Is there anyplace to plug in and get connected and find some friends and stay grounded?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd I'd also say, if you're looking at a Christian school, you need to ask the question, is it Christian in more than just its name?\u00a0 Because there are some schools that may have \"Christian\" either in the name or in the \u2013 underneath the logo, and I think it's dangerous to send students to a school where Christian seems to be a part of the culture, but everybody is living like the kids at the state school are living.\u00a0 And that can be just as dangerous as sending them off to the state school where it's pretty obvious who the Christians are and who the non-Christians are.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong> Well said.\u00a0 The issue in both cases, though, is prepare your children for life.\u00a0 That's a parent's responsibility coupled with the local church, and, as parents, you need resources to do this, and if you haven't already called, pick up a copy of Jonathan's book, \"Welcome to College.\"\u00a0 It will equip your son or daughter to navigate treacherous waters successfully.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tFamilyLife Today is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas \u2013 help for today; hope for tomorrow.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts to you.\u00a0 However, there is a cost to transcribe, create, and produce them for our website.\u00a0 If you\u2019ve benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/site\/c.dnJHKLNnFoG\/b.3782043\/k.384D\/Support_Us.htm\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCopyright \u00a9 FamilyLife.\u00a0 All rights reserved.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/\">www.FamilyLife.com<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 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