This column is called “Words from the Wise.” That’s exactly what it is. It is a place in this newspaper and on this campus where esteemed faculty and administration share the wisdom with the student body. Our president, provost and various distinguished professors have written in this column.

As a member of the editorial staff for this section, I attempt to monitor the conversations that occur in the comment section for these articles. Too often, I see furious conversations happening on the latest political or cultural piece. It is rare that I see that same clamor on Words from the Wise.

Please do not mistake my using this space as an assertion of my own wisdom. I just wanted to use this space as a pulpit for a personal appeal. Our faculty and administration have been gifted by God with wisdom, intellect and a drive to share with us. Why are we not taking advantage of every opportunity to gobble it up? Why are we not diving into and devouring the information that they choose to give?

We take their gifts for granted. We treat Biola as “just” a school, and our classes as “just” lectures and our teachers as “just” teachers. This is a tragedy. Teaching is a spiritual gift from God, one that Christ himself had. What’s more, this is a place where God resides in spirit and strength, where he informs our education and where he blesses the way that we learn.

I said I was using this week’s column as a personal appeal. Here it is: Take advantage of these articles. Read them, digest them and incorporate the wisdom of your teachers into your daily life. Talk with your professors about them. Challenge them on what they assert. Allow them to challenge you. Please, take advantage of what these wise men and women have to offer.