20:20 & Fusion

I know many of you are gearing up for exams in the next 2 months which can be a very stressful time for some. I completed my last exam in 2001 and i do not miss them in the slightest! As far as I'm concerned exams don't really test a person's knowledge/intelligence. In fact they are probably a more appropriate test of:

• how fast you can write
• how well you can cope under pressure
• short term memory.

Make your books, notes and essays more user-friendly with summary notes, headings, sub-headings, highlighting and revision cards. Try using key words or spider charts. Get tips on other revision techniques from teachers and friends - do what works for you.

Everyone revises differently - find out what routine suits you best - alone or with a friend; morning or late at night; short, sharp bursts or longer revision sessions.

Take notes of important points when revising as an aid for future revision or if you need to clarify something with a teacher. Try explaining the answers to tricky questions to someone else, or look at past exam papers and try answering some of the questions.

Ask for help if there are things you don't understand. If you're feeling stressed out, talk to someone.

DON'Ts Don't leave revision to the last minute.

Don't avoid revising subjects you don't like or find difficult.

Don't forget that there is a life beyond revision and exams.

Don't cram ALL night before an exam.

Read more from the Child Line site >>

On top of this i want to encourage you to not lose perspective at this time. God made us all unique with different gifts and abilities. Some of us are more 'academic' than others and therefore will be more gifted in studying subjects and acquiring knowledge. Others are gifted in creating things, others in sports or music. Others have fantastic imaginations and others are gifted in social skills. There are so many different gifts and abilities that God has blessed us with and no set of gifts is better than another. Sadly we have an education system that still seems to promote 'academic' gifts above the rest that leaves many young people feeling less valuable or even stupid. This is simply not true - to believe that is to say that God made some of us better than others and that would not be a God of love.

So do not let this exam time stress you out to a point that is simply unhealthy. Listen and take heed of what Paul says in Philippians:

Philippians 4:6-7
6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

So with that in mind i (and the other leaders too) would like to be able to pray for you as you go through this exam period. In order to inform us better it would be great if you could leave a comment with your exam dates and we will pray for you on those dates. If you don't want to leave a comment then e-mail the dates to me at neil-wpc@utvinternet.com, although a comment here would be better as anyone who visits the site will be able to pray for you.

All the best folks and roll on the end of June!!!