I recently reviewed and then wrote a follow-up to a talk by Jay Seegert titled “How To College-Proof Your Faith.” 

If you’re entering college soon or you know someone who is, take an hour out of your day to glean from Jay’s wisdom. He’ll help you find core disagreements between you and the world, offer tips for conversations with hostile unbelievers, and even give some street wisdom specifically for the college environment.

I already discussed his surprising statement that “more damage can be done at a Christian university than at a state university,” but he also made another statement that I thought was worthy of mention.

As he started out his talk on how college might challenge one’s faith, he prefaced his remarks with this disclaimer: 

“College doesn’t really cause the problems; college tends to expose and actually amplify the problems.”

As Seegert sees it, it’s not often that a really solid Christian youth will walk away from the faith in college. Sure, many that seemed to be solid do walk away. But in his opinion, usually they were already struggling beforehand, and college exposed that. 

It’s easy for parents to lug their high-schooler back and forth to youth group, assume he’s doing fine, and then get totally blindsided when he veers off the path in college.

While many college environments share the blame (see my previous article), you can’t just assume that your kids were completely fine beforehand and so college must be entirely to blame. 

With this in mind, if you’re the parent of a high-schooler, middle-schooler, or for that matter, a child of any age, remember this:

College prep starts now.

You must have strong family discipleship now. God told His people to teach their children about His law at all times (Deuteronomy 6:7). Scripture admonishes us to bring up our children in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). 

And this was not only so that the kids would do their chores on time and avoid stealing each other’s toys. Yes, proper discipleship does make life in the home quiet and peaceful, but I believe its primary orientation is toward life after the home. 

Therefore, are you preparing them well for life out there while they’re still here?

You have to know how your kids are actually doing on the inside, because as Seegert warns us, those struggles that are hidden right now will likely burst forth once they’re in school. 

Pray over your kids diligently. Teach them God’s word diligently. Hold them accountable and encourage them in love. Basically, take the Bible seriously and apply it seriously to your kids.

Then, when your kids go off to college, bite your nails if you need to—but bite your nails for yourself as well, not just for them. Obviously, you will leave the results up to God, and you have no ultimate control over your child’s heart, but because of the incredible influence you wield over your child, you will likely bear at least some responsibility for how they turn out even after they move out.

There’s another aspect to the perils of higher education that I think deserves mention here. 

Has it ever occurred to you that Christians seem to have an inferiority complex regarding higher education? There are understandable and substantial reasons for this reaction—I mean, the system is pretty rigged against us right now. But Jericho was rigged against the Israelites, and God didn’t call them to an inferiority complex about it.

The tables turn quickly when we realize that God created the life of the mind and all it could ever venture to explore! There’s a reason notable Christian scientists have helped start many of the major branches of science, and why Christian thinkers have been some of Western civilization’s finest. 

Academia is God’s domain, not the enemy’s—the enemy is just a really good plagiarist. Yet, we Christians have a habit of sitting back and moping about those sons of Anak in those white lab coats. We groan about how we sure look like grasshoppers in comparison.

In all seriousness, is the inferiority complex all we have to offer? 

Do we send our kids off to college while clinging to the hope that they “won’t fall away?” What about sending our kids off to college while clinging to the hope that they turn the campus upside down for Christ? And in the hope that they become bright Christian scholars who reclaim the life of the mind for Christ and submit it to His lordship? 

I don’t believe God calls Christians to have a mere “survival mindset” when going off to college. I think a victory mindset suits the Christian much better. But victory requires training before you hit the battlefield. 

Hence, we’re back to the main point of this article: disciple your kids now.

The four years of college hold many individual exams in store for your rising scholar, but they also hold one gigantic exam in store for you. 

How well did you disciple your child while you still had him?