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Ep 20 | Ask Dr. Vanderpoel Pt. 1

 

 

 

In this special episode, we sit down with our beloved Head of School Dr. Vanderpoel, who is retiring at the end of this school year. We reached out to our community to see what questions you had for him, and you did not disappoint! From questions about his personal life to life advice, Dr. Vanderpoel delights and intrigues through both his wit and his wisdom. Enjoy! 

 

I think it's always a good thing when we don't feel quite comfortable in our circumstances or in some of the things that we are encountering because it tells us and reminds us that we're made for another world. 

David Vanderpoel

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Transcript

Disclaimer: This is a direct transcript of the podcast audio and may not be grammatically correct.

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Intro 

Welcome to “Mind and Heart,” a podcast by Trinity Christian School in Fairfax, Virginia. In this space, we explore our calling to raise up the next generation to be salt and light in the world.  

Jo Wilbur: 

Hello, and welcome to “Mind and Heart,” a podcast by Trinity Christian School. I'm your host, Jo Wilbur:, and today we have a very special episode for you. As you know, our beloved Head of School, Dr. Vanderpoel, is retiring at the end of this school year, and before he does, we reached out to our community to see what questions you had for him, and, boy, did we get questions… from questions about his personal life to life advice. Dr. Vanderpoel, thank you so much for joining us today and taking time to sit with us and answer some of these questions. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

My pleasure. 

Jo Wilbur: 

All right, so starting off we received this question and it reads, “I wish I could ask Dr. and Mrs. Vanderpoel if they have any words of wisdom for mothers and fathers in the season of parenting, new adults or young adults as well as wisdom in that new season of marriage as couples experience an empty nest. We are enjoying this new chapter of parenting and marriage. 

I would enjoy hearing what the Vanderpoels have to say about the shifts in how parents listen to and counsel their adult Children, advice they have on how to help couples make the most of this new season, etcetera. Thank you so much. I enjoy Dr. Vanderpoel’s writing and hang on his words when he speaks to the faculty and staff leading us in devotions and prayer. 

I think the world of the Vanderpoels, and I could seriously sit at their feet for hours to hear things that they have to say. It's like the old commercial that said, “When E. F. Hutton talks, people listen.” They are wonderful and wise, and I will miss them terribly. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, E. F. Hutton has a lot more wisdom than I do. So, let's start with that. The question reminds me of something that struck me when I was a young pastor, and I was visiting older people in the hospital. And I sort of perhaps naively thought they had lived 70 or 80 years and therefore would sort of be prepared for the latter stages of life and dealing with illness. 

And I was surprised as I discovered that for most of them who had been healthy all of their lives, and for some of them, never having been in a hospital before, they really were off balance. They were off their game. They didn't know how to deal with some of those things. And certainly, the reminder that the Lord was their refuge and the Lord continued to be with them and that he would not desert them and that he would carry them even to hoar’s hairs was a precious promise. 

But I think that is applicable to other areas of life. The idea that I have special understanding as our children are adults now. The idea of how you deal with an empty nest or words for other parents in that season? I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint and just say “Ask me in five years,” because at this point I'm sort of on the vestibule and I'm not sure that I have much wisdom there other than to say that the Lord walks with us in every new twist and turn of our journey and has promised not to leave us in our pilgrimage. And I also think that in the different stages of life, the Lord teaches us that we're not going to feel totally comfortable or totally at home in any stage of life, nor should we, because we are meant for another place and another time, and we are meant for a city whose builder and maker is God. 

And so, I think it's always a good thing when we don't feel quite comfortable in our circumstances or in some of the things that we are encountering because it tells us and reminds us that we're made for another world. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Very wise words for any stage of life, which brings us to our next and much more serious question, which is “Which graduating class is really your favorite?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, if I take out the three classes that my sons were part of, then it would probably be whichever class I'm speaking to at that moment. 

Jo Wilbur: 

The secret is out. All right. Um, the next question is how do you recommend we deal with jealousy in friendships? For example, maybe close friends start making other friends, and that prompts us to feel those feelings of jealousy. Any words for that situation? 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

As we walk with, Jesus, are we jealous that he loves all of our brothers and sisters as much as he loves us? And I think that the Lord has created us with a great capacity to celebrate not only the diversity of friendships around us, but also use us to enrich the lives of other people. So, I think we need to see those things as part of a tapestry and rejoice as we see friendships around us, some of which include us more closely and some more loosely. 

But I don't think that jealousy is going to be a helpful response in a situation like that. And I think that our goal is to be the best friend that we can, and we can control that. We can't control what our friends are doing one way or the other to us or without us. 

Jo Wilbur: 

It's true. Like so many problems, I think when we take ourselves out of it, it gets a lot easier. The next question comes from a male student here at TCS who is anonymous. It says “I have a crush on a girl and I want to tell her, but I don't know how and I don't feel brave enough. What should I do?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

When in a fog, anchor. Now the best thing here to do is find out who her friends are and start making friends there, and you need several conduits of information that don't necessarily go through her. So, channels of communication need to be opened up and you will find that you will either get some encouragement which will help with the bravery, or you will get somewhat discouraged. And it might be a signal that you perhaps should move on to greener pastures.  

But if you do get to the point where you are brave enough to discuss some of your feelings with her, then I would suggest the first date at the Silver Diner, and I would brush up on some poetry and some other things just so you are ready to impress her… not only with the deep sensitivity which you possess but also with your erudite  scholarship and your ability just to speak on any variety of topics.  

And the nice thing about the booths at the Silver Diner is you can have a cheat sheet in the palm of your hand and keep it under the table and she will never notice it. So, it'll just be great. 

Jo Wilbur: 

An impressively strategic answer there. Our next question, “How did you begin your walk with Jesus? Was it challenging? And at what age did you give yourself to him? 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

I had the privilege of growing up in a believing household. My dad was a pastor, my uncle was a pastor, I had uncles and aunts who were missionaries, and so I can't remember a day when I didn't believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, definitely the recipient of prevenient grace. But surely there was a time I think in probably fourth, fifth, grade where I certainly understood my sinful estate and the need for a savior, but I think it was a continuing, deepening 

understanding both of my sin and the sufficiency of my Savior. So, I think from an early age I knew about Jesus. Actually knowing him is a continuing process that continues through today. 

Jo Wilbur: 

And can you, I don't know, could you be more specific about maybe what's a way that you've seen your faith grow or change over the years? 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

I've always been struck of why the Bible makes sense to me and doesn't make sense to others, many of whom are smarter than I am and I think are deeper and wider thinkers, and I'm left with the fact that God has given me eyes to see and ears to hear and a heart to believe, and as scripture says, if you believe in your heart in the Lord, Jesus Christ believe that God has raised him from the dead, confess him with your mouth, you will be saved. 

I am told, I believe that Jesus is the Christ, and I am told that flesh and blood cannot reveal that to me. I am told in scripture that no one can say that Jesus Christ is Lord except by the Spirit of God. And so, as I have continued to ruminate on those things and my assurance that I truly do believe those things leads me then to work both backwards and forwards. It moves me back before eternity to the fact that God set his love upon me, sent his Son to redeem me, gave me his Spirit to bring me to himself by his Word to convict me of sin and righteousness and judgment to come, but to show me the sufficiency and the loveliness of my Redeemer and therefore to work forward and to tell me that I am a part of an abundant harvest, that I too am going to be where the Son has gone to prepare a place for me, and that I'm going to be in heaven. So, these truths of scripture which surround me become nailed down, if you will, in my personal experience, that I know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. And scripture tells me how that happened, how that conviction was wrought in me. And I think that then grows my assurance both as to what God has done for me in the past and what he promises to complete and do for me in the future. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Our next question: “Which Christian, whom you have gotten to know through a book or in your life has had the greatest impact on you as a faithful servant of the Lord?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

I think John Calvin. I first read his Institutes when I was in high school, and the systematic way in which he laid out the truths of the Christian religion in his Institutes has struck me both for the magisterial breadth of it, but how it all tied together and reinforced each other. And I think as I then went not only to college but in grad school and wrote a master's thesis on Calvin’s doctoral work in the French Reformation, but continued to be impressed with Calvin's thoroughness, his fidelity to scripture, but also the way in which scripture was applied to every nook and cranny of life impressed me at an early age and continues to impress me even today ... 

Jo Wilbur: 

A ringing endorsement from Dr. Vanderpoel. Next question: “What is your ideal Chick-fil-A order?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

My ideal Chick-fil-A order would be four chicken strips, large waffle fries, a large sweet tea with two lemons. Light ice. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Now I hope everyone listening has written this down. If you need to replay that portion you can. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

I also, if it is in the a.m., will receive with joy a Chick-fil-A breakfast that has both the hash browns and the little chicken in the blanket things. But also I do take sweet tea in the morning as well. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Alright. Very good to know, good information to keep in our back pocket. “How do we explain bad things that happen to people without just saying ‘It's God's plan,’ since this often leads people to resent God, and this response can also be seen as trite or a cop-out.” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, I think might reject the premise there a little bit. It is God's plan. I think one needs to be sensitive about how one says that, but I think our hope and our comfort is that God is in this up to his elbows because if he's not, then we are truly at sea and truly lost. So, we want to know that even in the midst of bad and terrible things that occur that God is yet at work in these circumstances. God is making all things new. God is bringing us to an expected end. All things are indeed working for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose. So, this idea that we need to make God appear somewhat kinder to the unregenerate mind, I think is folly. We need to faithfully teach who God is and the only way we know who he is is through his Word and we need to be faithful to that Word. 

We don't have to edit it because we're afraid of what people will think because it's the unvarnished Word in the power of the Spirit that is able to convict and to help people to see the truth of God. Now, I think that there are circumstances in life that inquire great sensitivity and I don't think it's necessary to speak all the time into every situation. Scripture says there's a time to speak and there's a time to hold the tongue. 

And I think Biblical discernment is to know when this is not the time. But I think when someone comes and says, “Tell me about this,” or “talk to me about that,” then we want to be able to faithfully give them the scriptural teaching in that area. But when people are overwhelmed with grief, I think the ability to sit there with them in silence and to weep with those who weep and not to pontificate is clearly what God calls us to do in those situations. 

Jo Wilbur: 

So, the statement itself is theologically accurate, but we need to use tact about how and when we go about saying it. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, people are at different stages, we all know that we are open to hearing things at different times and in different places depending on what the stressors in our life are at that time. And part of Biblical discernment is knowing what area of scripture do I need to bring to bear at this time, at this place, for this individual, in these circumstances? What will be most helpful, and what will be most encouraging? What will be most comforting? At times, is this circumstance where they need to be convicted or is this a time when they need to be able to rest like the prodigal in the arms of the father? And so I think that, you know, calls for wisdom and discernment for all of us to exercise with one another. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Absolutely. The next question is “Is ‘Sola Scriptura’ biblically supported? Would that be circular?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, I think all foundational principles are circular. What we're saying is that scripture is self-authenticating. That is there's no higher authority than scripture itself. It is if it is your final authority, then you can't go and try and establish your final authority by looking for other authorities to establish your final authority. If so, it wouldn't be the final authority. So, archaeology is helpful. History is helpful, linguistics are helpful, but scripture itself bears witness that it is from God. And so, as the inspired and inerrant word, the spirit of God tells us that he will give sight to our eyes. He will give hearing to the ears and he will give us hearts to believe through this word. And so, I think that we move on to very shaky ground when we try to go to an evidentialist approach which basically is looking for other sources of authority to vindicate scripture when scripture itself is our ultimate authority for faith and for practice. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Hmm, well-said. Now, this is less of a theological question, more of a personal question. “What is your favorite thing about being here at TCS?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Oh, the Marketing and Communications Department, definitely. For sure. 

Jo Wilbur: 

I thought you might say that. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Exactly. People. Just the kids, the colleagues. It's just been with many of them for many years. It's just, it's a joy to come to work every morning. I feed off the energy. It's the people. It's a people business, the parents, the staff, the kids, alumni when they come back, I just think it's that sense of community that spans time as well, I think is the most precious thing about Trinity for me. 

Jo Wilbur: 

That's my favorite thing about being here too. How do you, this question comes from a student, “How do you take every thought captive and control your thoughts so that you don't think about bad things?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, I think trusting Jesus begins all over again every day and we all want some kind of experience that is somehow going to put us on automatic pilot and so that we don't have to daily take up our cross and follow Christ. So, I think it is a continual looking to him, it's a daily discipline, and I think it is knowing those things that can be triggers that are going to lead us down some pathways that are not going to be edifying for us and so some of us can handle those triggers and be fine with it. For others, that moderation maybe doesn't work. And so, we need to avoid going some places and be more thoughtful about what we're going to expose our mind to and some of that has to do with what we listen to, some of that has to do with what we look at, some of that has to do with the people we're going to spend our time with because all of those are going to influence the way in which we populate our mind with thoughts. 

Jo Wilbur: 

That's good. It reminds me of me and my sister. She loves the horror, scary genre, and I can't deal with that. It fills my mind with bad, scary thoughts. So yeah, just knowing, having enough self-awareness maybe to know. Alright, this one you may have already spoken to, so I'm not sure if you can come up with a different answer, but “Who is your favorite author and book?” maybe other than John Calvin, which you already mentioned. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, I enjoy Tolkien, I enjoy Lewis, I enjoy the fantasy genre. I would think “The Walking Drum” by Louis L’Amour. “Walking Drum” is a book about sort of in the in the early Crusades, it's about the great caravans that went from city to city trading caravans and Kerbouchard is an adventurer. 

But I remember always being struck with the way in which Louis L’Amour would bring these phrases in that I just used to love to put into my notebooks and write down: “A ship does not sail with yesterday's wind,” “A man's footsteps are always loudest when he's alone in the hall,” and just throwing those out every few pages. And I just thought, what a rich mind to be able to pull all of that in and put it into this great historical narrative. 

He was going to write a follow-up to “The Walking Drum,” which he never did. And I often wish that he had, but it has all of that knights and daring-do and adventure. So, I think that's certainly a genre I like. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Well, I'll add it to my to-read list, which is always growing and very rarely shrinking, unfortunately. I like this next question, I hope you're up for answering it. Can you tell us a funny story from your childhood, preferably about you? 

Dr. Vanderpoel:

Well, when I was in kindergarten, we lived in Wayland, Massachusetts. My dad was on a naval ship that out of Boston at the time, and it was winter, and there was a hill on the far side of our neighbor's house, Dr. Burke. And my brother and I were sledding, and one side of the hill had a much higher elevation and obviously promised a better run. And my brother said, “Don't go up there because you're going to have too much speed and you'll run into Dr. Burke's house.” And I said, “Well, my goodness, that's absurd. What you do is you just turn and steer the sled and certainly, I can handle this.”  

So, I went up to the top and went down and what I found was I was traveling at such a high speed that I couldn't turn the sled, it was going too fast to steer. And I did indeed run into his house and the overlapping shingles on it sliced off the end of my nose. And so, I ended up in Dr. Burke's office as he stitched my nose back on. And my sister would kindly refer to me as “Ring Nose” for most of my early childhood years. 

Jo Wilbur: 

That was good. I wasn't expecting such a good… Just off the cuff like that. Your nose looks amazing. You would never know. 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

Well, as you get older and the skin sags, it covers up a lot of scars. So that's one of the great things about aging. 

Jo Wilbur: 

All right, Our next question. Also another very interesting question and maybe as you answer, you can provide perhaps some context for the question. It reads “Was Noah,” I'm assuming biblical, Noah, “really an alien?” 

Dr. Vanderpoel: 

I don't believe so. I believe that he was as human as you or I. There are some who think that when it says that Noah was blameless in his generations, that this is not speaking so much about his moral uprightness as it is, if you have a view of genesis six that fallen angels were producing offspring with human women, that the lineage of Noah had not been in any way impaired by such coupling. 

There are those who think that part of what Satan is trying to do is to delay or to destroy the arrival of the promised seed of the woman, the Messiah, the chosen of God. And therefore, you will find Abel is slain by his brother. You will find that Abraham's wife is brought into the harem of Abimelech, you will find that Pharaoh is killing the male Children of Egypt, you find Herod slaughtering the Children, and the great weeping that is heard in Ramah, but there is this continuing 

war against the seed of the woman. So, I think some may have a view of Noah as escaping the corruption that may have been current at that time of the flood in terms of his physical lineage, but I am not learned enough, wise enough to really be able to speak to that other than I think that Noah was as human as you or I. 

Jo Wilbur: 

Yes, well, that's interesting. I've never heard that argument before. So much more learned than I [laughs]… 

That wraps up Part One of our “Ask Dr. Vanderpoel” segment, but stay tuned for Part Two. We have so many more questions that we asked Dr. Vanderpoel, and I know you're going to love hearing his answers. 

Outro 

Thanks for joining us for this episode of “Mind and Heart,” a podcast by Trinity Christian School. If you enjoyed this conversation, leave us a five-star review, and share this episode with a friend. It helps us so much. For more information, visit us at tcsfairfax.org. 

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