“When you want to build a ship, do not begin by gathering wood, cutting boards, and distributing work, but rather awaken within men the desire for the vast and endless sea.”

 – Antoine de Saint Exupery      (thanks, Jamie Smith, for bringing my attention to this quote)

This simple and beautiful quote, attributed to the author of The Little Prince, pointedly states the proper metaphor for Christian education.

Are we merely teaching students how to pray, how to find the book of James, how to “be kind,” how to “put others before themselves” . . . or are we training their desires toward the Kingdom of God, after which the gathering of wood and cutting of boards follows necessarily?