Compare and contrast the following routines – what do you notice about them?
Person A: Wakes up around 10 or 11 am, drifts aimlessly through the morning, and grabs food while doom-scrolling for an hour. Maybe the day will start after that—or after a short nap. But the “short” rest stretches into a few hours, and suddenly it’s 3 pm. More than half the day is gone, and tomorrow will likely look the same. The guilt builds, but nothing changes.
Person B: Wakes at 7 am, immersed in a community of 30 others committed to growth and shared purpose. At 7:50, they gather to pray: “Christ, as a light, illumine and guide me . . . be in the heart of each to whom I speak, and in the mouth of each who speaks to me.” After breakfast and cleanup, classes begin at 9. The afternoon holds intentional quiet time, space to exercise, and meaningful conversation.
At first glance, it’s easy to chalk up the difference to motivation:
“Wow! Person B is disciplined. Person A needs to get after it.”
But what if motivation isn’t the real issue?
It’s possible that Person A and Person B have similar levels of motivation. The difference lies in the presence of a structure that aligns with the wisdom principles of Psalm 90:2 (NIV): “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
Choosing to set aside time before starting college can be a profoundly wise decision. As sobering as it may sound, our days are limited, and how we spend them truly matters. The pressure of countless options is real, and each choice carries long-term consequences, whether for better or worse.
Having graduated with a different major than the one I originally started, I’ve seen firsthand the value of carefully weighing the options and reflecting on one’s giftings before committing to college studies or a particular vocation.
But here’s the catch.
Extended time before college or career is often deceptively appealing. What masquerades as intentional preparation often ends up serving as a scapegoat for procrastination. Instead of fostering clarity, it becomes a barrier that hinders young people from the growth it promised.
Summit’s Gap Year program is designed to interrupt the very pattern that Person A experienced.
And rather than offering bare accountability, another voice saying “don’t waste your time,” Gap Year provides a formative environment: guided self-reflection and soul-care, networking opportunities, extensive biblical worldview development, and rhythms that shape the whole-person approach.
Students are not just kept busy for a year; they are cultivated to leave with direction and with joy to love Christ and their neighbors.
As Herman Bavinck aptly notes:
“…by his Word and Spirit he persuasively impacts the entire world. Because of him there radiates from everyone who believes in him a renewing and sanctifying influence upon the family, society, state, occupation, business, art, science, and so forth.” Dogmatics III.437
Across the three Gap Year small groups and classes I’ve been part of—as both a student and now the Gap Year Classroom Manager—students have come from diverse backgrounds, with different family experiences, career interests, theological instincts, and, of course, distinct personalities. Yet all of them have been microcosms of the body of Christ: broken, but redeemed, coming together to seek the Lord in every area of their lives.
Yes, Christ is present as the rock of our salvation. Gap Year daily reminds our students of this. He is also present in the mundane tasks that careers call us to. He is present in uncomfortable interpersonal conflict. He is present in the discovery of our giftings.
We are never alone and are not meant to navigate seasons of transition atomistically.
The Heidelberg Catechism reminds us of the call to steward our lives in union with Christ:
Q55: What do you understand by “the communion of saints?”
A: First, that believers, all and everyone, as members of Christ have communion with him and share in all his treasures and gifts (1 John 1:3; 1 Cor. 1:9; Rom. 8:32–39; 1 Cor. 6:17). Second, that everyone is duty-bound to use his gifts readily and cheerfully for the benefit and well-being of the other members (1 Cor. 6:17: 12:13; 23; Phil. 2:4–6).
Left to ourselves, time slips by and goals collapse. Intentions fade quickly. But in structured environments shaped by truth, goodness, beauty, community, and purposeful rhythms, each day becomes another step in a life lived in wisdom.
The question for our students is whether they will drift into their futures or step into them with purpose.
By Noah Lykins