Think a minute…These are the names of some of the most famous lawyers in U.S. history. Only one of them dropped out of law school. See if you can guess which one?
John Jay became a successful lawyer and later the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the highest judge in the land. William Wirt was barely 20-years-old when he passed his law exams in Virginia. He later became the United States Attorney General. Remember, one of these famous lawyers was a law school dropout.
Roger Taney started as a lawyer and worked his way up to become the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, and then the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Daniel Webster became a lawyer in Boston where he built a great legal record and reputation. He then became a highly respected Senator and was later appointed Secretary of State.
Salmon Chase became well known as a defense attorney helping slaves. Later he became a U.S. Senator and then the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, actually started as a lawyer, which helped prepare him for his exceptionally wise and strong leadership that kept the States of America united through its terribly divisive and destructive Civil War. Clarence Darrow became possibly the most famous lawyer of all for his case of the Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925.
Of these seven successful and famous lawyers, which one do you think was the law school dropout? It was Clarence Darrow: the one name so often associated with the practice of law. Clarence Darrow attended law school for only one year and then dropped out to study law on his own. But what is more amazing is those other six successful lawyers could not drop out because they never even attended law school! They all studied law personally on their own to pass the bar exam and become professional lawyers.
Actually, for every one of us, the school of life is always in session—whether we’re getting a formal education or not. We are designed to always keep learning our Creator’s ways of life. In fact, the word disciple means “lifelong learner” or “lifetime student” of Jesus, the Maker and Master of life. Won’t you ask Him to become the Maker and Master Teacher of your completely new life with Him today? Just think a minute…