Grace Baptist Academy Baguio

No Coincidence - An Ode to GBA

Submitted by: James Kristoffer Rowlan P. Lontoc

“Most days of the year are unremarkable. They begin and end with no lasting memories made in between; most days have no impact on the course of life. You cannot describe great cosmic significance in simple earthly events. Coincidence; that is all everything ever is. There is no such thing as fate; nothing is meant to be.”

I came across this saying while writing a post for my blog. It came in the form of a text message, and after reading it, I could not help but ponder about it and later, disagree with it. I firmly believe in the providence and sovereignty of a divine being; of the one, true Almighty God, and the above quotation totally contradicts this. If it were fact that everything are but mere coincidences, then what is the point in believing, in faith, in religion, in life itself and everything else? If all were just coincidences, then what is the point of our Christianity, what is the point in our salvation? Believing in coincidence, I suppose, would be equivalent to declaring that Christ’s death was nothing but a mere miscalculated, unpredicted, turn of events and was utterly void and useless.

I know it to be the truth that Jesus died on the cross, according to God’s will and purpose, to save humanity from eternal damnation in Hell. I believe in the fact that God purposefully sacrificed the life of His only Son for a race of the worst of the worse sinners, because he loved us utterly. And in the same way I believe in this, I believe that my schooling in Grace Baptist Academy was no coincidence.

The truth is, the seven years of my education at G.B.A. were not the best of life. In fact, I had too much tough times, too much bloopers and blunders. I have never been the typical A.C.E student, and I lacked the motivation to strive, to do good work. Because of this, I was often times the object of my teachers frustration; I often got 60 minute detentions, because I did not finish my goals. However, it would be an injustice to the academy for me not to mention that despite all my excessive bloopers and blunders, I have kept many fond memories. I have always been a joyful person, and at Grace, I was allowed and able to have good fun. I was given the opportunity to create and develop bonds and ties with several people, and I was able to create numerous cherished memories with people who I now consider to be my best friends.

My schooling at Grace Baptist Academy taught me so many things that in turn, helped me become a better Christian. Because all students were required to memorize and recite Scripture (this seemed to be such a mechanical practice back then), I learned to love and adhere to God’s Word. Because in each PACE, the fruits of the Spirit and other character traits were defined, I learned to love the persona of Christ. Because all of us were required to set goals for the next school day everyday, I learned to be goal oriented. There are so much more that studying at G.B.A. taught me, like excellence, humility, the concept of grace, etc. and naming them all would be beating around the bush.

The point of all this is that most of my days in G.B.A. were remarkable. They began and ended with lasting memories in between; most of my days at the academy had impacted the course of my life. I can describe great significance in each simple earthly event I was part of while studying there, and I can proudly say that none of it was a coincidence. It was part of God’s will for my life, and was meant to be.

I am grateful that though I did not finish my high school education at G.B.A., for seven years, I was a part of it. So, Grace Baptist Academy, Happy 30th Anniversary, and cheers!