I might get a B this semester.

This might not be as unsettling to you as it is to me. You see, I have been terrified to get a B in a class ever since grades were changed to the letter system from the S+, S- system back in elementary school. Why are B's so awful to me? I have no idea.

You see, this isn't a standard I hold anyone else to but me. If you have gotten B's in school, I can guarantee you had a better time in high school than me. Or that you actually have your priorities straight. It may be that you have taken much harder classes than I have or that you have had unfair teachers.

My roommates and I have this talk all the time. Why do we hold ourselves to this unrealistic standard. Getting an A vs. getting a B does not mean that we have mastered the material any better. In fact, we may just be better at cramming, or we may spend three extra hours a night perfecting our assignments. This mindset that getting an A means that we are confident in our knowledge of that content is a fallacy.

My father did not get A's in college and he knows business better than anyone I know. Grades do not determine mastery. Being able to apply what you have learned to real life situations determines mastery. These are things that I know, and yet, I let my self worth be determined by grades.

God doesn't talk about grades in the bible. In fact, God even says "For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief" in Ecclesiastes 1:18. He doesn't want my opinion of myself to be determined by a letter. He doesn't see a report card as anything other than a piece of paper. He wants us to work hard and be determined to learn how to make our world a better place, but his plan cannot be deterred by a simple grade in a college, or high school, class.

In God's eyes, getting an A is amazing, getting a B is beautiful, getting a C is crushing it, as long as we are working diligently to further God's kingdom.