By Chloe Pool
Senior
In fewer than three months, I will leave behind my life as a student at Bryan College. At the beginning of this semester, I never expected to feel the way I feel at this moment, especially so close to graduation. I expected the bittersweet, leaving behind a beautiful season of life while also anticipating the new. Yet, the bitter has far outweighed the sweet as of late, amidst the mess of institutionalism.
What will become of this precious place where humility is valued, where students are encouraged to pursue truth by looking at the world not only through their own eyes but also through the eyes of those who believe differently than they? Will our school continue to recognize that the authority of God’s word is primary, but we, as fallible humans, must hold loosely our understanding of that word?
Truth has always been found in weighing every argument and finding that which is superior, all under the banner of “Christ above all.” After all, everything William Jennings Bryan believed does not fit under that banner, as an imperfect person; perhaps our motto, in line with these changes, should more accurately be, “Christ above all, unless our institutional legacy is at stake.”
On this campus, I have experienced the fullness of pursuing truth. I have been touched by all this institution has to offer: rigorous academia, mentors, friends, joys… Even the ruthless pain and sorrows of life have shaped my perspective of truth, glory be to God.
I admit, I feel as if I am leaving behind not only the glory days of college but also of my institution. Yet, here, in the midst of the disappointment and pain of leaving Bryan in this state, I see a silver lining: the events of the last few weeks serve to remind me that God, not my institution, has accomplished the transformation of so many lives on this hill.
He, YWHY, God who provides, has shown Himself mighty, all according to His mercy and power. Yes, the men and women of Bryan College have been the very fabric of that work; I will never be able to express how blessed I am to have received so much from their daily love and sacrifice (#BCFAD), and I am grieved to think some of the men and women who have influenced students most will likely leave as a result of these decisions. But, as 2 Corinthians 4:6-7 so aptly reminds us, our hope has never been in men, “for God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us (ESV, italics added).’”
We students have many reasons to be disenchanted. In many ways, the vibrancy of our institution seems to be being diluted, and, if things continue on in this manner, will only grow more so. We should feel pain, for any person who has truly invested in something will naturally suffer at the loss or diminishing of it; and all this, for the Class of 2014, is happening during the hardest months, those of saying goodbye. Yet, I pray this disappointment and pain will remind us of the truth: our hope truly lies in the “all-surpassing power” of God. I pray we will continue to hope in Him as we wait to see what will become of our alma mater.