Looking somewhere else when it's right in front of you.

I was sitting in my World Conflict & Terrorism class the other day and someone said something that made me have this thought. We had just convinced the professor to move our test back a couple of days so we wouldn't have to take it yesterday and so we decided to have a round table discussion on the two essay questions that were going to be on the exam.

At the beginning of each semester, we stand in really really long lines at the bookstore and we buy text books. For most of the classes they are required. Each book costs around $50 to a $100 dollars and maybe more. When I was a freshmen I rarely had to use the books so I just wouldn't buy them but now that I'm an upper level student I absolutely have to read my text books in order to make A's in my classes. What's the point of me telling you this? Well keep reading I'll get to that.

We were discussing state run terrorism vx. state sponsored terrorism and some people just weren't getting it. One student starts talking about how they were "studying" for this exam and she kept saying I was doing research online and I found this . . . or I found that. Or such and such website says this. I look over at her table and she has a book for the class but you can tell it's never been opened. By this point in a semester my books are all marked up and have a billion of those little colored tabs sticking out everywhere. So anyway I spoke up and said something to the effect of "the book sums it up like this" and after I got through speaking the student that had been looking all over the internet for the answers was like Oh that makes so much sense!

I have never understood the concept of paying that much money for a book and then not using it. It makes NO sense to me at all. It's a book that you KNOW is going to have the answers in it. Generally, unless the professor just stinks at picking books it's going to be a book that explains the concepts very well.

Yes if you're writing a 20 page paper you have to use outside resources but for an exam all of your answers are found in the text book or handouts that the professor gives you.

I think that sometimes people do this in other areas of life as well especially spiritually. We have a Bible it's Gods word. Believe me it holds all the answers! So why don't we use it??? If you are having a hard time understanding something in a text book you can always go to a professor for further explanation. If you cant understand something in the Bible talk to a pastor and ask for his understanding or better yet pray and ask God to open your understanding to his word.

The point I am trying to make is this. You have some of the best resources right in front of you as a Christian young person and if you actually make use of those you'll have no trouble passing lifes tests. You don't have to hunt for the answers they are right in front of you in your Bible (the text book) and in your spiritual leaders (kind of like the handouts we get in class).

I don't know if that makes any sense or not but read the Bible it's pretty much awesome. If you're a collge student either read the text books or stop wasting $300-$600 a semester on them!!

Yvonne