Before I was able to
enjoy the hot weather and Chilliwack beaches this summer, I took a university
course titled “Current Issues in Education”.
The course required that I travel to Dordt College in Sioux Center Iowa,
USA. Dordt College is a beautiful campus
with amazing facilities, and it is completely surrounded by thousands of acres
of cornfields!
On one particular
day my professor was lecturing about the importance of instilling a sense of
wonder in students. He showed us a series
of images of amazing landscapes and creational beauty meant to instill a sense
of awe and wonder in God’s creativity and power. He showed one photo that caught my attention,
a picture of a blue lobster. I was awe
struck, and perplexed. I was so thrown
off that I completely stop listening to my professor and began mulling over
questions in my head. Why is the lobster
blue? Is it real? Is this some sort of joke? Why have I never
seen a blue lobster at Save-On Foods? I pulled out my phone and did a Google
search, and after quickly scanning Wikipedia, discovered that 1 in 2 million
lobsters are blue because they have a genetic mutation. The blue lobster produces an overabundant
amount of protein causing the blue colour. This spurned more questions. Is the blue lobster creational intent? Is it the result of sin's impact on
creation? Is it an example of God’s
beauty and power or a sign of the fallen creation? This propelled me into more questions: Does God make good out of bad things? Is the blue lobster an example that God can
make all things good?
The image of a blue lobster forced me to ask
important worldview questions about God and creation. When students learn that over 1 million
soldiers died in the battle of Passendale in WW1 it must lead us to question
the nature of man and God’s role in history.
When students read, To Kill a Mockingbird, it must propel use to wrestle
with sin and humanity's fallen nature.
When students study about the use of fresh water and Canada’s natural
resources, it forces students to wrestle with questions of Christian
stewardship. Christian education is about taking every
thought captive to Christ; At Unity Christian our motto is “Learning and Living
in Christ.” Every course, every lesson,
every discussion, and every thought is captive to Christ.
