A Note from Mr. Bolen

December 6, 2025 - Faith: Faithfulness

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude, Justice

Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had.

And Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison. But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph's charge, because the Lord was with him. And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.

But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. (Genesis 39:1-4, 20-23 and 50:19-21)

You may recall Joseph’s story. Sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, then falsely accused of wrong-doing and thrown into prison, then pardoned and made second in command of all Egypt.

When we read Joseph’s story, we see a story of God’s faithfulness and how Joseph’s faith in God fueled his own faithfulness, a faithfulness that was worked in out both small matters and large.

Joseph’s story begins when his father Jacob honors him above his brothers, putting him in a position of authority over them. When Joseph uses that authority to give his father a report about how his brothers were managing the flocks, the brothers persecuted Joseph.

Then, even though he is purchased as a house servant, Joseph shows himself faithful to Potiphar, who raises him to a position of authority. But things don’t go well for Joseph then either – even though he remains faithful to his master, ends up in prison anyway.

In prison, Joseph again demonstrates that he is faithful, and even here, Joseph is entrusted with authority. While in person, Joseph faithfully interprets the dreams of two prisoners, asking the one who will be freed to put in a good word for him – maybe get his sentence reduced. But again, things don’t go well for Joseph. The freed cellmate forgets him, and he continues in prison.

Finally, Joseph is remembered, and after interpreting Pharoah’s dream Joseph is given great authority in Pharoah’s government.

Do you see a pattern? In each of those circumstances – even when persecuted, falsely accused, and forgotten – Joseph worked to be faithful in whatever situation he was in. He did not act vengefully. And he did not allow the injustices done to him to determine his actions and character. He simply showed himself to be trustworthy, diligent, and loyal. He was faithful to obey God and serve him in all circumstances. Rather than complain and grow embittered, Joseph worked as if working for God.

How did Joseph practice such faithfulness? By remembering God’s faithfulness to him. All of the actions that others meant for evil in Joseph’s life, Joseph trusted that God had a plan to use those things for good. Because Joseph had faith in God’s faithfulness, Joseph was able to practice faithfulness in the work that was set before him.

As we continue through the Advent season, let’s rejoice in the faithfulness of God as fulfilled in His Son Jesus Christ. And let’s respond with faithfulness to God’s call to live before His sight with trust and obedience – no matter the circumstances.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

November 29, 2025 - Justice: Equity

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude, Justice

Oh sing to the Lord a new song,
for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
have worked salvation for him.
The Lord has made known his salvation;
he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody!
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord!
Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who dwell in it!
Let the rivers clap their hands;
let the hills sing for joy together
before the Lord, for he comes
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
(Psalm 98)

Tomorrow marks the first Sunday in Advent, a time when we reflect on the “advent” of our Lord Jesus. The word “advent” refers to something that “breaks into” the status quo. An adventure, for example, is an event that “breaks into” the normal flow of ordinary life, disrupting the status quo with which we have become comfortable, and setting a new course for our story.

During the season of Advent, we remember both the first time Jesus broke into history to work His salvation, and we also look forward to His promised second Advent, when He will break into history again to completely overturn and undo the lingering impacts of sin and death in the world. The first Advent won the Lord’s victory over sin and death and ushered in the “last days” – a period of time in which we still feel the impacts of sin and death, and yet live by faith that Jesus has already won the victory over them. The second Advent will be the culmination of all history, when the conquering King consummates His victory, bringing it to its fullest completion. The first changed the status quo by showing us God’s “right hand and mighty arm” to bring the Gospel. The second will change it by bringing final judgement and justice and equity to all peoples.

Psalm 98 tells us that, for those who live with Christ as their King, this second coming is cause for extreme rejoicing. His judgement will come in the fullness of His righteousness, when His righteous character overwhelms and destroys all unrighteousness, leaving the pure, unmarred goodness of His glorious character. His justice will also come with equity – an impartiality that judges all people according to God’s righteous standards, not the standards of the sinful world. God tells us about this equity throughout Scripture (for some examples read Isaiah 2, Matthew 23, Philippians 2).

Those who are impoverished and downtrodden; those with whom life has dealt harshly and are overlooked, ignored, or further oppressed by the systems of the world – they will be exalted. But those who benefit from and contribute to those systems, people who are currently exalted by the standards of the world and receiving its rewards – they will be laid low. Eternity is at stake, those who rejoice are those who bow to this King of justice by imitating His justice, working to bring justice to the oppressed (Matthew 25: 31-46).

As imitators of God, Christians are to be a people who work for justice in society and seek to bring, in part, the equity that the second Advent of Christ will bring in full.

As we enter into this Advent season and consider the virtues we want to instill in our children, let’s focus on what will last into eternity. Let’s learn for ourselves and also teach our children to know what God requires of us – that we should “do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly before God.”

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

November 22, 2025 - Fortitude: Courage

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude, Justice

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

. . . and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus. (Acts 5:27-32, 40-42)

“Fortitude” is one of those words that we don’t commonly use nowadays. The most direct synonym or definition of Fortitude is courage or boldness.

I don’t know that we need to work hard to make a case that courage ought to be a virtue we want to cultivate in ourselves or our children. We naturally want our children to practice being bold to tell the truth, to defend a friend, or fight for justice. We also know that it takes a great deal of courage in certain situations to show humility or admit fault or to love others, even our enemies.

In this passage, we learn a couple of truths about courage.

First, we can see from Peter and John that the primary thing we should have courage about is obedience to Jesus. When our “courage” is misplaced or used for a self-serving reason it is not really courage, but closer to arrogance or bullying. Real courage is always in obedience to some truth as revealed by God. He tells us what is right and true and good and noble and worthy of praise. He defines justice and righteousness, and we ought to be courageous and show Fortitude in living in accordance with His righteousness and truth and goodness and justice. We should be bold to praise what God defines as praiseworthy, and condemn what God defines as sinful.

The second truth we learn about courage here relates to the source and effect of true courage. Our passions can drive us to be assertive, but courage is not the same as being assertive. Courage is something that comes in circumstances of danger and threat. Peter and John courageously opposed the Pharisees to align themselves with Truth in obedience to God. But doing so put their lives at risk. True and meaningful courage comes from security in the love of Christ, and its effect is the ability to be joyful in all circumstances.

Peter and John aren’t boldly proclaiming truth because they are uniquely courageous or because they have an “I don’t care what you do to me” defiance. They are courageous because they know, no matter what happens – whether they are simply beaten and let go or stoned in the street (like Stephen will be in just a couple chapters) – their hope and security is in their eternal life with Christ.

When we (and our children) are deeply rooted in our identity as children of God, we can practice Fortitude, the courage to love kindness, be a just person who works for justice, and walk humbly before God in obedience.

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

November 15, 2025 - Temperance: Self-Control

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude

And David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from working salvation with my own hand! For as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has restrained me from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, truly by morning there had not been left to Nabal so much as one male.” ~ 1 Samuel 25:32-34

You may recall this familiar story from the life of David.

It comes during the time that Saul is king of God’s people, but David is clearly God’s chosen one. David and his men are “in the wilderness” evading Saul’s attempts to eliminate him as a threat to the throne. David is without resources to feed the 600 or so soldiers who have sided with him, so he reaches out to a man named Nabal, whose name means “fool” and the Scriptures describe as a harsh man and “badly behaved.”

David sends messengers to Nabal, reminding him that his men have been camped out near Nabal’s flocks and shepherds, and rather than take what they needed from Nabal’s wealth, David protected it. Would Nabal, in return, provide something for David and his men to eat on the upcoming feast day?

Nabal, however, makes it clear that he sides with Saul. He dismisses David, insulting him and his men in the process. David, upon hearing the news, decides to take 400 armed men, kill Nabal for the offense, kill all of Nabal’s servants, and take all that Nabal has.

David was not wrong to be offended by Nabal’s dismissive, disrespectful answer, and clearly Nabal is not siding with the man of God’s choosing. But instead of trusting the matter to God, David lets his passions get the best of him, taking matters into his own hands, and his human response is sinfully disproportionate to the offense. Nabal offended David with his words and attitude, and in response, David set out to commit mass murder and theft.

Here, David stands as an exaggerated example of intemperance as he wildly overreacts to an insult. While our everyday responses to stress aren’t as exaggerated, if we’re honest with ourselves, we all struggle at different times with keeping things their proper perspective. We tend to let our emotions control us, and we react more harshly than we ought to others who offend us. If we don’t control our emotions, then our emotions will control us.

But God saved David from his intemperate overreaction.

Nabal’s wife, Abigail (called a woman of “discretion,” that is, a wise and prudent woman in contrast to her fool of a husband), hears about what’s going on. So she gathers a supply of provisions and meets David in the heat of his fury. With a calm, gentle word, she helps him see the sin he is about to commit in his passion, and he comes back to a place of trusting in God to be his vindication.

Our ability to control our own emotions, see things in their proper perspective, and regulate our passions comes when we are secure in our relationship with our Father. We mature in true Temperance as we mature in Christ. We need to continue to mature in that way as adults primarily because one of the largest parts of our job is to help our children do the same. It’s how we prepare them, by God’s grace and for His glory, for a mature, flourishing adult life of their own.

May the Spirit of the living God mature us in Christ, so that we can train our children towards maturity in self-control.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

November 8, 2025 - Prudence: Practical Wisdom

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude

The king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate, and of the wine that he drank. They were to be educated for three years, and at the end of that time they were to stand before the king. Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. And the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego.

But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself. And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs, and the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who assigned your food and your drink; for why should he see that you were in worse condition than the youths who are of your own age? So you would endanger my head with the king.” Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, “Test your servants for ten days; let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat the king's food be observed by you, and deal with your servants according to what you see.” So he listened to them in this matter, and tested them for ten days. (Daniel 1:5-14)

The seven core virtues are foundational to all other virtues. Each of the seven contains in it other common virtues that grow out of these fundamental traits.

One aspect of Prudence, for example, is simple, practical wisdom.

Wisdom itself is best thought of as broad principles that get applied to specific life situations. Prudence, as practical wisdom, is the ability to read a situation and apply the appropriate broad principle in a way that is appropriate to the specific circumstances.

Daniel gives us a perfect example of practical wisdom at work. Daniel knew that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” so when he was asked to eat the king's food (which would have been dedicated to and “blessed” by the Babylonians gods) he knew that he could not comply. He had to act in a way that showed the Babylonians where His loyalty lies. He could not simply eat the food and believe whatever he liked in his heart. He needed to act in a way that showed who was his God, and who was not his god.

But rather than simply respond with defiance, Daniel asked a respectful question, presumably prepared to receive whatever answer was given. When the Babylonian guard shared why he was inclined to refuse the request, Daniel offered a solution – let us be obedient to our God and judge the results.

Daniel found a way to navigate a situation with respect and worked towards a mutually agreeable solution while still maintaining his ultimate allegiance to the living God. He was willing to put his life on the line, essentially saying “If your way is better, then deal with us how you see fit.” And in their calm, respectful obedience to God, Daniel and his friends flourished.

As we watch our society become increasingly polarized and reactionary, men and women who are able to exercise Prudence will become more and more important as calming forces. Not for the sake of finding compromise, but for the sake of demonstrating the flourishing life and peace that is found in obedience to God in Christ.

So let’s keep our focus on the end goal of our parenting and investment in our children, raising adults well practiced at exercising the practical wisdom of Biblical Prudence.

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

November 1, 2025 - Love: Kindness

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:4-13)

The first three of the core virtues – often called the Theological Virtues – come from this passage in 1 Corinthians. Of all Biblical virtues, these three “abide” or nourish us with and for eternal life. And the third of the Theological virtues, Love, is “the greatest” of the three.

In some ways, we don’t have to work hard to validate the place of Love as an essential virtue. Any reading of the Gospels and other New Testament letters easily shows that Love is a core characteristic of God, seen in Christ, and a central marker for what it means to be a follower and imitator of Christ.

At the same time, Love is a word that is so commonly used that it has a host of counterfeits. For instance, as it is defined by the world’s way of thinking, Love is a compelling feeling, an emotion rooted in psychology and body chemistry. If we like or prefer something past a certain internal threshold – we love it. If something stirs a passion or produces a dopamine release in us – we love it. If we feel a sentimental attachment to someone or something – we love it.

On the one hand, it is 100% true that God made us as whole creatures, with emotions and passions and affections for things and people. Emotion is an important and fundamental aspect of our identities. At the same time, God does not primarily define Love in psychological, physiological, or emotional terms. He defines it primarily as an act of the will.

As we read Paul’s description of Love in 1 Corinthians, it is full of conscious choices we make, despite – and sometimes in opposition to – how we might feel in any given situation.

We practice Love when we choose to be patient and kind. We practice love when we choose to relate to others without envy or boasting or arrogance or rudeness. We practice Love when we choose to give up “our way” (our personal preferences) for the good of a person or community. We practice Love when we choose to overlook a wrong, forgive, and decide not to keep a record of wrongs. We practice Love when we choose to denounce sin and rejoice in righteousness and truth. We practice Love when we choose to receive others as a blessing (rather than a burden) and we choose to think the best of others (as opposed to thinking the worst of them).

That’s a tall order, and it requires the grace of the Holy Spirit to be at work in us.. But it’s also what we’re commanded to do – practice Love, whether we feel like it or not. And as Paul describes his own experience, it’s in the practice of Love (along with the other virtues) that we mature - we learn to think and live, no longer as children, but as men and women of character.

So as we focus on what it means to mature in virtue, let’s take Paul’s summary to heart, practicing Love by choosing to be patient and kind with one another.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

October 25, 2025 - Hope: Assurance

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude

And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. (Hebrews 6:11-15)

The first of the seven essential virtues is Faith. The second is Hope, and our ability to have real hope depends on where our faith really lies.

When we put our faith in ourselves (or in government, human leaders, human ingenuity, or any other human institution), we’re trusting in promises that can’t be kept – the “salt land” of Jeremiah 17, barren, empty, and unable to sustain life. Consequently, any sense of hope we derive from such a faith is a false hope, and any sense of assurance or confidence we have is held in vain.

The writer of Hebrews warns us against such false hope and encourages us to trust in the One who keeps His promises. When we put our faith in the certainty of God’s word, we have a sure foundation, a solid place to rest assured of receiving genuine life. The real, meaningful Hope that comes from Faith in God, says the writer, is an assurance to our souls that allows us to live with confidence.

Abraham is the example that the writer gives. A man of 100 years, childless, living a nomadic existence in a foreign land – no one would have blamed Abraham for losing hope in God’s promise to possess the land and father a great nation. But despite his circumstances, Abraham chose to trust God, patiently waiting on God. And though it happened after Abrahm’s earthly life ended, the promise was indeed obtained. Because Abraham put his trust in God’s word, he was able to live patiently and with confidence, despite the circumstances.

And isn’t that the type of maturity we want to see in ourselves and our children? No matter what trials and challenges come while the world continues to languish under the effects of sin, God's people can yet live lives of quiet confidence with a real and enduring assurance of Hope, a Hope that comes from placing our faith in the Creator-God who made and rules the universe and who chooses to place His special care and love upon the people of His choosing.

Faith – trust in God's word – fills us with the assurance of Hope, allowing us to live with quiet confidence through all circumstances in life.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

October 18, 2025 - Faith...Trust in God's Word

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude

Thus says the Lord:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength,
whose heart turns away from the Lord.

He is like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see any good come.
He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”

The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately sick;
who can understand it?

“I the Lord search the heart
and test the mind,
to give every man according to his ways,
according to the fruit of his deeds.”
(Jeremiah 17:5-10)

We all live by faith. The only question is, what faith?

Furthermore, we all live out a faith, which aligns, or not at different times and in different degrees, to the faith we profess. Or to paraphrase another writer, we all have the faith we say we believe, and then there’s the faith that gets worked out in the way we live.

God, in His mercy, challenges us to examine our lived faith to see if it aligns with a true faith in Him and His word. He also, because of His great grace and mercy, tells us the difference between the two faiths, as well as the consequences involved. We can either trust in God’s word, making it the ultimate guide for our thoughts, attitudes, and actions, or we can trust in ourselves on the belief that the best policy is to “follow your heart.”

This passage in Jeremiah reminds us that our hearts deceive us. We need new hearts that are submissive to God’s authority as communicated by His word and preserved in the Bible. This faith sustains us to live fruitful and meaningful lives. It gives us deep reserves of spiritual nourishment to stand firm and thrive in a fallen world. Trusting in God’s word is the Faith that leads to life.

By contrast, trusting in our hearts to lead us in right and wrong is compared to a “salt land,” a barren, empty place incapable of supporting life. If you want a visual image of what God is describing, Google up pictures of the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah – a dusty void that looks like the surface of the moon, where nothing can live. The salt prevents life from thriving in any way, and in the same way, trusting in ourselves and making ourselves the ultimate authority in our lives will lead only to empty meaningless and languishing.

So as we focus on our purposes and aims as a school, Faith is one of the core virtues we hope to cultivate (as much as we are able) in the hearts of our students.

One aspect of Faith is “Trusting in God’s living word, the source of true life.”

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

October 11, 2025 - Seven Core Virtues

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Seven Core Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:3-8)

Cultivating wise and virtuous students is a fundamental distinctive of classical Christian schools. It’s the primary distinctive that makes classical Christian education a more “humane” education than either modern secular educational philosophies.

Modern secular educational philosophies view people, and our children, primarily as economic units with their main function in life being work and consumption – working to produce goods and services that other people consume, and consuming goods and services that other people produce with their work. Modern secular education aims to equip students to be good workers and consumers.

Classical Christian education knows that humans are far more than worker-consumers, but rather, creatures made in the image of their glorious Creator. Humans are intended by God to live lives that reflect His divine nature and character. If their education reduces humans to anything less than this purpose, it does not equip them to be fully human and therefore is not “humane.”

Embracing the reality of human purpose, classical Christian education sets out to impact the inner person of the student, cultivate wise and virtuous citizens. This includes the student’s readiness for college and career, and it includes being both wise and virtuous as creatures who work, create, and participate in all aspects of society. But classical Christian education assumes that wise people of virtuous character will participate in government, commerce, and all the other aspects of society in wise and virtuous ways. The way we go about our business as people is an outworking of our inner person.

But as we think about the practical aspects of growing in wisdom and maturing in virtue, one question that arises is, “Which virtues should we focus on cultivating?”

Last school year we looked back to the historical heritage of classical Chritian education, finding that our forebears adopted seven core virtues as areas of focus. Those seven core virtues – Faith, Hope, Love, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, and Fortitude – form a framework that support all other true human virtues.

For the rest of this school year, we’ll cycle through those virtues, looking at how they lead to and support the living of a godly and virtuous life.

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

October 4, 2025 - Together in Christ

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us] for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth in him.

In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:3-14)

Christians (particularly us American Christians) usually think of our union with and identity in Christ as individual. And while individual responsibility and personal faith is important, it is also interesting to note that most of the Bible addresses the corporate life of faith.

When reading this familiar passage from Ephesians, for instance, it’s helpful to notice a few details. First, the passage repeatedly uses the word “predestined” and otherwise references the concept that God has established a plan for His people from the beginning of time. The passage also repeats the phrase and concept of being “in Christ,” so unity with Jesus is an important focus for Paul here. Third, all of the pronouns (including the use of “you”) are plural. Paul is not addressing individuals about God’s ordained work or their union with Christ. He is addressing a community in a corporate sense.

So for Paul, it seems to be the destiny (the ordained purpose) of God that Christians should experience the spiritual blessings of Christ, know the will of God, experience redemption, obtain God’s promised inheritance, find hope in Christ, and become sealed in the Holy Spirit – not primarily as individuals in individual relationship with Jesus, but in the context of a community joined to Christ.

In other words, my (and your, and our children’s) union with and identity in Christ is incomplete outside of the corporate unity and identity of Christian community. Without a connection to Christian community, the individual cannot fully experience the full and meaningful life that God made humans to experience. We can try to grow in Christ on our own, but it will always be less. And there are counterfeit communities that promise connection, but the life they fill us with is also counterfeit. Only in true Christian community can we be truly connected and grounded in the source of true life.

As we continue through this school year, let’s work together to cultivate a truly Christian community here at the school, one that binds our hearts to Christ and to each other in true fellowship.

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

September 27, 2025 - Pursuing Excellence

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Do you see a man skillful in his work?
He will stand before kings;
he will not stand before obscure men. (Proverbs 22:29)

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom 120 satraps, to be throughout the whole kingdom; and over them three high officials, of whom Daniel was one, to whom these satraps should give account, so that the king might suffer no loss. Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. (Daniel 6:1-3)

Humans are made in the image of God, and therefore capable of imitating the excellence of His character. Because of our sin, we are constantly making ourselves the standard for our own excellence, which is a counterfeit excellence, and therefore, no real excellence at all. But through His great and precious promises, God makes His people to become partakers of the divine nature, calling them to live out His own glory and excellence as He does His good work in them.

God works in His people so that His excellence can be seen in them and worked out in their salvation. And it comes out in the most practical of ways.

If you’re familiar with the story of Daniel, you’ll remember that satraps and other high officials of Darius’ court used their craftiness (the world’s “wisdom”) to trap Daniel with his own excellence of character. Daniel stood out among them because, with his heart and mind captivated by the excellencies of God, Daniel worked to pursue that true excellence in his own life. Daniel didn’t pursue the marks of excellence set out by the culture around him. He set out to pursue the marks of excellence found in God’s character.

Two things resulted. First, the excellence in Daniel was recognized as superior to the measures of “excellence” in those content with the counterfeit offered by the world. Second, Daniel became a target of those who love the world’s standards.

In Daniel’s case, the Lord delivered him from the schemes of sinful men, giving him a long life of service and witness to God’s glory. But Daniel didn’t know that at the time, and he was willing to take what came to him as a consequence of his pursuit of God’s excellence.

As we raise our children before the sight of an excellent God, let’s spur them on to pursue His excellence in all that they do. That’s no small task. It requires courage and endurance in the face of hard things. But through the power of God’s salvation, we can do the hard work of growing, maturing, and pursuing His excellence for His glory.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

September 20, 2025 - Maturing in Virtue

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Him [Jesus] we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. (Colossians 1:28)

God’s word teaches us that the flourishing, meaningful life available to us is one of continuous maturity that stems from wisdom. And the essential element that fuels that continuous maturity is salvation in and union with Jesus.

The New Testament writers, under the inerrant, infallible, and authoritative inspiration of the Holy Spirit, teach us how to live a Gospel-driven life with a fairly simple three-fold pattern. First, they warn us about the counterfeit of sin and its consequences. Then they show us the true life in Christ that He won for us in His death and resurrection. Then they challenge us to grow and mature in the life of virtue and loving obedience that marks redeemed people of God.

Adding the practice of virtue to faith is a core understanding of right living that we inherit in Christ. The early fathers of the church, who would have nearly all inherited the ideals and distinctives of the classical education in the Greek world of their up bringing, appropriated the four “cardinal virtues” of the classical world, and added to them three core theological virtues needed to give the classical virtues lasting and meaningful value.

Adding Faith, Hope, and Love to Justice, Fortitude, Prudence, and Temperance, the early and Medieval church built on the foundation of the teaching of the Apostles and Prophets (with Christ as the cornerstone) a framework for living a deeply meaningful life. One that lives out the gospel in every aspect – personal, familial, vocational, and communal.

Even as we seek to equip our children with the educational skills and knowledge needed for their chosen careers, let’s also work to cultivate the whole child to be a virtuous person, carrying the Gospel everywhere he or she goes in both word and deed.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

September 13, 2025 - Grow in Wisdom

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

When I was a son with my father,
tender, the only one in the sight of my mother,
he taught me and said to me,
“Let your heart hold fast my words;
keep my commandments, and live.
Get wisdom; get insight;
do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her, and she will guard you.
The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
She will place on your head a graceful garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.” (Proverbs 4:3-9)

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men. (1 Corinthians 3:18-21a)

No one can live a meaningful and flourishing life without wisdom. More specifically, no one can live a truly meaningful and flourishing life without the wisdom of God.

God teaches us over and over again in His word that there is a true and meaningful life that we can live, and then there’s a counterfeit life, one that appears meaningful but has no substance or value. Here, for example, through Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, God teaches us that the world has its own “wisdom” – a shrewdness about how to live that supposedly gains us something, perhaps an advantage in business, or a little extra money in our pocket to pad our chosen lifestyle, or a way to leverage a relationship towards some self-gratifying end.

But through Paul, God also calls such “wisdom” what it is – “craftiness,” which is a word that is intentionally meant to remind us of the craftiness of the serpent that Satan used to tempt Adam and Eve into original sin (Gen 3:1). What’s more, the fruit that God forbade Adam and Eve to eat was all the more tempting because it was “to be desired to make one wise” (Gen 3:6). What appears to make us wise by the world’s standards, in reality makes us fools before God. And in turn, what makes us truly wise, appears to be foolishness in the eyes of the world.

Growing in wisdom is, by definition, one of the major goals of a classical Christian education. So it makes sense that it should be intentionally noted in our focus statement as a school. But as we focus on being a “joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together,” let’s remain equally focused on the reality that none of this happens without the grace of God’s salvation, none of it amounts to anything if it does not serve to highlight His glory, and none of it is even possible apart from being in union with Christ.

In the end, being willing to look like a “fool” in the eyes of the world for the sake of gaining eternal life with God is worth it. So like the loving father of Proverbs 4, let’s partner together to cultivate God’s wisdom in the hearts and minds of our children.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

September 6, 2025: A Joyful Community of Scholars

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. (Mark 12:30)

An intelligent heart acquires knowledge,
and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge. (Proverbs 18:15)

As defined by mission, Holy Trinity is a classical Christian school.

We work to be distinctly classical in our educational style, tapping into those things that have proven for centuries to endure, equipping students to be flourishing men and women who contribute to the flourishing of society.

We also work to be distinctively Christian, recognizing that Jesus is the King of all creation and the Truth that makes all other things true. Without Him “front and center,” we cannot flourish as intended by God, and all that we do is vain.

Of equal importance to our mission is that we are a school. We are not primarily a social outlet – though we want students to feel connected, have a sense of belonging, and cultivate community. We are not primarily an activity center – though we do see value in theater, sports, and other activities as a school. We are not primarily a church – though we do align with and complement the work of the church as a partner with parents in the discipleship of their children.

As a school, our primary work as a distinctively Christian institution is the work of education. And being unapologetically intentional about that, in no way, diminishes the distinctively Christian aspect of our mission. In fact, working to be good scholars, prioritizing learning, and exercising our minds at a high level is a natural and expected outworking of a “whole life” love of God.

The intelligent heart that loves the King of creation wants to know more about the creation and its King. The person who delights in the wisdom of the Lord will turn his or her attention towards always learning more broadly and more deeply. When we cultivate the life of the mind with rich stories, high ideals, big ideas, precise and creative thinking, insatiable curiosity, and a delight in learning about the world in all its parts, it points to the immense glory of the God who made it.

Let’s model for our children, in our homes and in our school, a love of learning and scholarship so that they might learn how to love God with their whole mind.

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

August 30, 2025: Holy Trinity will be a joyful community

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. ~ Romans 12:1, 9-13

We often read the opening verses of Romans 12 in isolation from the rest of the chapter and as a command to the individual. There Paul tells us that worship is a “whole life” act, one that is not conformed to the patterns of the world, but transformed by a Spirit renewed mind. It’s interesting that the next several verses go on to address, not primarily what it means to live as an individual Christian in the world, but what it means to live in community with other believers.

Verses 3-8 teach us that the community of God includes a variety and diversity of gifts and dispositions. And the section begins with a warning against a common pattern of the world – making my own personal preferences, inclinations, or gifts the standard of measure for everyone else around me. Rather than thinking too highly of ourselves, we ought to have “sober judgement” about the value of diversity within the body of Christ.

What’s described in verses 9-13 is a joyful community. One that is not characterized by judgmentalism and criticism that makes individual preferences the measure of what it means to be Christian. Instead, it is characterized by genuine love, affection for one another, honoring the diversity within the body, zealous service together, rejoicing, hoping, being patient in times of hardship, helping one another as needs arise, and being welcoming and hospitable to one another.

That sort of joyful community – a joyful unity of diverse individuals – needs a commonly understood “fence” that marks out the limitations, creating the boundaries within which we can enjoy freedom together. At Holy Trinity, the commonly held bounds of Christian orthodoxy is found in our Statement of Faith. The principles in that Statement represent the Christian commitments on which we refuse to compromise. But they also mark out a broad field that leaves room for diversity of Biblical and theological understanding. It leaves room for a generous and joyful Christian community.

As we continue into this school year, let’s work to resist the patterns of the world – acrimony, derision, division, judgementalism. Let’s sacrifice the human tendency to elevate personal convictions to the level of universal standards. Rather, let’s be transformed by the renewing work of the Spirit, unified and unmoving on the foundational truths, and also joyful and generous when it comes to the diversity of gifts and perspectives inside the fence of orthodoxy.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

August 23, 2025: For His Glory!

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,
for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!

The Lord has remembered us; he will bless us;
he will bless the house of Israel;
he will bless the house of Aaron;
he will bless those who fear the Lord,
both the small and the great. ~ Psalm 115:1, 12-13

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God. ~ Gal 6:14-16

It’s built into our school crest. It’s etched into the concrete on our front walkway. It adorns our spirit wear and sports uniforms.

SDG. Soli Deo Gloria. To God alone be the glory.

It is only by God’s grace that our work as a school has any value. Without that grace, we might be a great looking school, but in reality, our efforts would be vain and futile, a counterfeit currency that leads to a shallow and self-centered life.

But thanks be to our Father in heaven, that by His grace, our hearts and minds are turned from petty self interest to our true purpose – stewardship of God’s creation, and participation with Him in His redemptive work. By His Spirit, He has found us as “dead men walking,” made us to be new creations with life in Christ, so that the life of Christ will live in us and through us through the good works set before us, that we may walk in them.

Let us never overlook those letters etched into the walkway. May our school motto never become so familiar that it’s just words that we say. And as it rests on our awards certificates, our sports uniforms, and our diplomas, may it never become reduced to a mere logo while we puff ourselves up with our accomplishments.

Instead, from the overflow of thankful and humble hearts, let us delight in the glory of the Lord as we grow in the wisdom of God, mature in the virtue of Christ, and pursue the excellence of His name in all that we do.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

August 16, 2025 - By God's Grace

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8-10)

I didn’t know I was dead. I breathed. Walked around. Did things. In fact, I did whatever my heart led me to do. I was my own authority. I made up my own mind according to my own understanding. I trusted the sincerity and goodness of my inner self and lived freely according to my own conscience. My life’s motto (if it can be said that I had a motto) was something like: “Cause no harm, find contentment, and do a little good along the way.” As far as I was concerned, I was as alive as any man.

Regardless of what I felt, though, God tells me in His word that I was dead in my trespasses and sins, following the spirit at work in the sons of disobedience, by nature a child of wrath (Eph 2:1-3). There was no amount of “cause no harm” or “do a little good” that was going to change that. I appeared to have life – and a fairly good example of one at that – but it was only an appearance. It was a counterfeit life. Like a phony $100 bill, it appears to have value, and it might make you feel good walking around with it in your pocket, but when you count on it to pay a debt, it’s worthless. It has the appearance of value, but the substance of value is not there.

And then comes the two most powerful words in human history. “But God” (Eph 2:4). Two simple syllables in English. Only six letters. And yet the eternal fate of every human soul turns on them. Apart from Christ, we have the appearance of life, and yet we are dead.

But God according to His mercy and grace brings us into true life in Christ.

This is just as true of us as a school as it is of us as individuals. We can have a rigorous curriculum, exciting classroom instruction, special events, great test scores, and championship banners on the walls. And by superficial standards, that might make us a “great school.”

But would it really? Would we really be able to pat ourselves on the back, give one another an “attaboy,” and have truly accomplished anything of meaningful value if we simply trust in our own strength and measure our work by the standards of a dull and rebellious world?

Of course not. We’d be a counterfeit school. We’d have the appearance of doing good things, but not the substance of it that endures. We wouldn’t really be living out what God has in mind for classical Christian schools. That only comes by God’s grace. We cannot work hard enough and do well enough to earn anything of lasting and meaningful value. God gives that as a gift, so that no one can boast in themselves.

And yet, “good works” are still something we are made for. Being a strong academic school is a worthy pursuit for God’s glory. Pursuing excellence in the classroom and on the field of competition is a work that is worthwhile. It’s what we were made for – good works, that we may walk in them.

So what does this passage teach us about living the Christ-centered life as individuals and as a school? It teaches us that we only have life, and that any good work we do comes as an outworking of God’s grace in the lives of His people. We are only walking the path on which God, by His grace, set our feet.

As we celebrate the first days of school, let’s remember that God’s people are His workmanship – the special recipient of His redeeming grace. Let’s strive to walk out the good works that He has already prepared for us. And let’s humbly rely on God’s grace to make us a school that “grows in wisdom, matures in virtue, and pursues excellence together in Christ.”

In Christ,
Mr. Bolen

August 9, 2025 : Focus Statement

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. ~ 1 Peter 2:9

Throughout Scripture, God gives His people statements or declarations intended to focus their attention on what it means to live out His plan for them. In this passage from 1 Peter, for instance, God focuses believers on our identity as holy priests who should live out the excellencies of the Savior who called us into His marvelous light.

As you read Scripture, you will find other statements that picture God’s people as a city on a hill, or a temple of living stones, or living tablets on which God’s word is written and “read” as we live public lives that seek to show the work of God’s redemption.

It’s helpful for us to have short, memorable statements that help us focus our attention towards the truly important matters. So many little things try to spread our attention thin and keep us busy doing and doing in an unfocused, scattered way.

As we came into teacher in-services this school year, we set a statement in front of us to help us focus our attention on the high ideals and values that make Holy Trinity unique and distinct from other schools in our area:

By God’s grace and for His glory, Holy Trinity will be a joyful community of scholars, growing in wisdom, maturing in virtue, and pursuing excellence together in Christ.

Holy Trinity exists by God’s grace and for His glory – it’s on our motto, Soli Deo Gloria! We work to form joyful scholar-citizens who will impact the communities that God calls them to as they step into adult life. We want to equip students for a lifetime of cultivating wisdom, virtue, and excellence in themselves and all that they do. And we want that to happen on the solid bedrock of Truth, Goodness, and Beauty we find in Christ.

We begin this school year with this statement in front of us, and we’ll spend the year exploring its parts and using it as a litmus test for the “why” behind our activities as a school. We’ll use it as a goal to hit in the classroom, on the court of competition, and in our life as a school. And we’ll ask the Lord to infuse us with His Spirit, on whom we are dependent in all things, and through whom God does His good work in us.

We are excited about what God has been doing at Holy Trinity, and we’re excited to see what He’ll continue to do as we focus our attention on His calling this school year!

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

August 2, 2025 : The First Question of Education

Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
and rivers in the desert.
The wild beasts will honor me,
the jackals and the ostriches,
for I give water in the wilderness,
rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
the people whom I formed for myself
that they might declare my praise.

~ Isaiah 43:19-21

My first year as a teacher 16 years ago nearly killed me. I taught Literature classes and separate Grammar & Writing classes for 7th and 8th grades. I taught three separate Bible classes, one each for 9th, 11th, and 12th grades. I was the faculty adviser for Student Government. Then, during the start of year in-services, a 6th grade typing class was tossed in at the last minute. I taught each of those classes in a different room, and to top it off, the 8th grade class that year had 13 students – 11 of them boys. Boisterous, talkative boys, mischievous boys.

It was almost both my first and last year in education.

But a few weeks after the last day of school that year, I realized that my chosen profession includes a special element in its rhythm. A chance to reset and start fresh. An opportunity to let the dust settle from the fray of the past school year, reflect, and be renewed and strengthened by our good Father for the work ahead.

Isaiah brought the word of the Lord to the people at a time of challenge and hardship, encouraging them with the reminder that they belong to a God of fresh starts and new beginnings. Like springs of water and rivers in a desert, God sets the past in its place and does a new thing that refreshes, restores, and gives us reason to praise Him.

This new school year brings us both new faculty and staff, as well as familiar ones in new roles. It brings students to a new grade level, and it brings new students to our school community. It gives us the opportunity to renew friendships after time away, and to welcome new friends. And it comes with the promise to learn new things about our God, His word, and His world as He takes us into a new phase of growth and maturing.

As we begin this new school year, let’s receive it as the gift of our loving Father, turning our hearts, minds, and strength towards Him in praise.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen

July 26, 2025 : New Beginnings

~ Isaiah 43:19-21

It was almost both my first and last year in education.

As we begin this new school year, let’s receive it as the gift of our loving Father, turning our hearts, minds, and strength towards Him in praise.

In Christ,

Mr. Bolen