A male Christian surnamed Wen wrote a letter to a girl who is about to take gaokao, the annual college entrance examination in China, asking her to lower her expectation of the examination, look up to the Lord, and rely on the Lord for peace.
A Christian mother surnamed Ye told another Christian whose first name is Wen that her daughter Beibei could not go home for nearly four months due to the pandemic. In the 12th grade in Henan, the pressure on students is extremely high. She needs to get up at 5 o'clock, goes to bed at 11 o'clock, and keeps solving exam questions every day. Beibei called her and told her about an incident. A boy in her class was taken away by the police as he had a fight with a boy in another class who was stabbed to death with a knife. As the examination is approaching, the students are under great pressure, feeling miserable and depressed.
Wen wrote a letter for this girl, which is also a prayer letter.
Beibei:
I know that you have a solid faith since your childhood as you have learned foreign languages from Paster Lu who has nurtured you and built up your spiritual life. What a blessing!
You have not been studying in the traditional education system for many years, instead, you study at home. Just like the aristocratic education abroad, this helps to keep your optimistic nature and the growth of God's belief in life. Like my child, I still remember that when she went to kindergarten at the age of two and a half, she cried bitterly and was brutally left in a strange environment. Once, when her grandmother went to pick her up, she found that she had defecated herself and could only walk awkwardly, as she was afraid to tell the teacher.
Funny? No, it's pathetic! Sometimes education is like manufacturing one screw after another. It completely obliterates the child's nature and destroys the child's creativity and vitality, like producing standardized factory parts one after another. So, what is the college entrance examination? Will it determine our life?
I'm not advising you not to study hard. My daughter will take the senior high school entrance exam this year, and she also works very hard! But I just want you to take it easy because all these will become the past, but our blessing in the Lord Christ will last forever.
The college entrance examination is just an examination. After that, there are still four long years of college life, and there may be graduate studies.
So, Beibei, take it easy for the examination and relax. As you are at the most "busy" time now when you go to bed at 11 o'clock in the evening, get up at 5 o'clock in the morning. As you spend all your time studying, how can you take it easy?
It is about wisdom. You just need to do your best and lower your expectations with gratitude for the safe passage of every day. By meditating on God's words, you come to the Lord with silent prayer and receive the rest from Christ Jesus.
As for the bloody incident on campus, you can also take it easy. This world is not what we want it to be. We can only manage ourselves to live according to the teaching of the Lord Christ which is loving God and loving others as ourselves.
Beibei, no matter what happens, I believe that when the floods come, the Lord would sit as king. We cannot understand everything but believe in the One who loves us.
We should learn to turn our eyes to the Lord Christ Jesus when we are in trouble. Beibei, entrust your life, study and the upcoming college entrance examination to the Lord. No matter what the result is, it will be extremely good as long as it is the will of the Lord. We just accept it with joy.
- Translated by Oliver Zuo
一个基督徒弟兄写信给一个面临高考的女孩，让她降低对高考的期待值，转眼仰望主，靠主得平安。
一位姓叶的基督徒妈妈告诉另一个姓温的基督徒爸爸，她女儿贝贝因为疫情，快4个月没能回家了。在河南上高三，学习压力超级大，每天5点起床，11点多睡觉，天天刷题考试！贝贝给她来电话说了一件事：她们班一个男孩和另一个班男孩打架，在学校里当场把一个孩子用刀捅死而被公安局带走了。目前高考临近，孩子本来压力就很大，现在都非常痛苦压抑….
这位温姓基督徒提笔为这个孩子写了一封信，也是代祷信。
贝贝：
我知道你信仰根基扎实，自幼随卢牧学外语，也得了灵命的牧养和建造，真是有福！
而你多年没有进教育体系，是在家中学习，我觉得这正如国外的贵族教育，有助于保持你自身的乐观天性和上帝给你信仰生命的成长。像我家贝贝，我还记得她两岁半上幼儿园，惨烈地哭，但我们残忍地把她留在陌生、恐怖的环境，曾有次她奶奶去接她时，发现孩子拉裤子里，却不敢告诉老师，就那样撅着屁股走路……
好笑？不，是可怜！有时候教育是在培养一个个螺丝钉，完全抹杀了孩子的天性，而培养出一个个标准化工厂的零件，是毁了孩子的创造力和生命力。那么，高考是什么？高考是否决定了我们的一生？
我不是劝你不要好好学习哦！你我的女儿今年也要中考，也非常拼！我只是希望你淡看这一切。因为这些都要成为过去，我们在主基督里的福分才是永远的。
高考，只是一个分水岭。但高考过后，还有漫长的四年大学生活，大学之后还可能有读研、考博……
所以，贝贝，淡看高考，放松前行。今天你们正到了最“卷”的时候，妈妈说你们晚上11点上床，早上5点就起，所有时间都扑在学习上，如何能淡看？
这是一个智慧，就是尽上最大努力，但降低自己的期待值，让自己为每一天的平安度过而感恩，并且，藉着默想神的话语，默祷来到主面前，领受从主基督耶稣而来的安息。
至于发生在校园里这起流血事件，我想，也需要淡看。这世界，本不是我们想要的那样子。我们只能管好自己，让我们按照主基督的教导生活：爱上帝、也爱人如自己。
宝贝，无论发生什么，相信洪水泛滥之时，耶和华坐着为王。我们不能明白一切事和它发生的缘由，但我们相信那一位爱我们的主。
我们要学会在艰难之时，转眼仰望主基督耶稣。贝贝，将自己的生活、学习连同即将面临的高考交托给主，无论何结果，只要是主的美意，都是好得无比的，我们只管欢喜接受。
致即将高考的一个孩子的一封信
A male Christian surnamed Wen wrote a letter to a girl who is about to take gaokao, the annual college entrance examination in China, asking her to lower her expectation of the examination, look up to the Lord, and rely on the Lord for peace.
A Christian mother surnamed Ye told another Christian whose first name is Wen that her daughter Beibei could not go home for nearly four months due to the pandemic. In the 12th grade in Henan, the pressure on students is extremely high. She needs to get up at 5 o'clock, goes to bed at 11 o'clock, and keeps solving exam questions every day. Beibei called her and told her about an incident. A boy in her class was taken away by the police as he had a fight with a boy in another class who was stabbed to death with a knife. As the examination is approaching, the students are under great pressure, feeling miserable and depressed.
Wen wrote a letter for this girl, which is also a prayer letter.
Beibei:
I know that you have a solid faith since your childhood as you have learned foreign languages from Paster Lu who has nurtured you and built up your spiritual life. What a blessing!
You have not been studying in the traditional education system for many years, instead, you study at home. Just like the aristocratic education abroad, this helps to keep your optimistic nature and the growth of God's belief in life. Like my child, I still remember that when she went to kindergarten at the age of two and a half, she cried bitterly and was brutally left in a strange environment. Once, when her grandmother went to pick her up, she found that she had defecated herself and could only walk awkwardly, as she was afraid to tell the teacher.
Funny? No, it's pathetic! Sometimes education is like manufacturing one screw after another. It completely obliterates the child's nature and destroys the child's creativity and vitality, like producing standardized factory parts one after another. So, what is the college entrance examination? Will it determine our life?
I'm not advising you not to study hard. My daughter will take the senior high school entrance exam this year, and she also works very hard! But I just want you to take it easy because all these will become the past, but our blessing in the Lord Christ will last forever.
The college entrance examination is just an examination. After that, there are still four long years of college life, and there may be graduate studies.
So, Beibei, take it easy for the examination and relax. As you are at the most "busy" time now when you go to bed at 11 o'clock in the evening, get up at 5 o'clock in the morning. As you spend all your time studying, how can you take it easy?
It is about wisdom. You just need to do your best and lower your expectations with gratitude for the safe passage of every day. By meditating on God's words, you come to the Lord with silent prayer and receive the rest from Christ Jesus.
As for the bloody incident on campus, you can also take it easy. This world is not what we want it to be. We can only manage ourselves to live according to the teaching of the Lord Christ which is loving God and loving others as ourselves.
Beibei, no matter what happens, I believe that when the floods come, the Lord would sit as king. We cannot understand everything but believe in the One who loves us.
We should learn to turn our eyes to the Lord Christ Jesus when we are in trouble. Beibei, entrust your life, study and the upcoming college entrance examination to the Lord. No matter what the result is, it will be extremely good as long as it is the will of the Lord. We just accept it with joy.
- Translated by Oliver Zuo
Letter to a Girl Who to Take College Entrance Examination Tomorrow
