College: Week 2
So here I am. Counting welcome week, I've been at UCSD for three weeks. I feel like I've been here forever, and I really think that I've already grown a lot and learned a lot. God has been so faithful and so good to me. College really is make or break for your walk with God. Your parents aren't making you go to church anymore. There's always stuff to do at college. Nothing exciting, but you can always manage to find yourself too busy to pray one night or read the Word another. Going to fellowships, bible studies, and churches can take up lots of time. Dedication is demanded here. We have the long due responsibility for our own spiritual lives.
I've met so many Christians that are serious about their faith. It's really very encouraging. Just seeing so many people at a fellowship worshipping or sitting in a dorm with some strangers playing praise music just makes me smile at how God is moving. At the same time, there are plenty of fallen Christians. People who haven't been faithful in high school and a thoroughly discouraging group of Christians who have fallen because of the excessive temptation of alcohol and women in college life. Honestly, there are way too many pretty girls at this school for my own good. :-P If you're not yet in college, build up your relationship with God as much as possible before you get here. The Christians are being weeded out here. Everyone struggles that much more to obey Him. A strong foundation going in is your best bet. Waiting until later never worked before, and it definetly won't work now. To my high school peeps, it's really time to wake up and be living in His presence even during the non-emotional times when we're not worshipping.
To those already in college, I suppose I'm not the best source of advice. I'm a freshmen at the nerdy school of UCSD. But as far as I know, staying involved with some sort of church activity is necessary during the week. Sunday is already a given. Fellowships can take up as little as one extra day or really as many as you would like. If you don't feel like it, I don't care. Join anyway. There are soooo many too choose from. I've found Christian music to be very helpful as well. It's nice to be able to have a song in your head during the day to keep you going. And of course, quiet times!!! Gosh, we have enough time to sit at our friend's dorm for like 3 hours doing absolutely nothing but we don't have enough time for qts?! Don't give me that nonsense you lazy people! I'm lazy too. I admit it. But once you start doing qt's regularly, you'll see how much they really help.
And most definetely help each other out. Prayer or just inviting people you don't even know to bible studies, etc. is a very cool idea. Just keep bugging your suitemates to go to various activities, and eventually they'll warm up to it. If they're not Christian, tell them to go as an educational experience. That's why I first started going to church :-) But yea, I've really been convicted that this is the year that God's going to move. We're finally waking up and realizing that it's time to dedicate ourselves to the expansion of God's kingdom. And I'm really very excited. Seek and you shall find. God is calling every single one of us. Many of us don't feel it in our hearts yet. But seriously, ask God to help you hear his call. And pray that when you hear it you will say yes! For maybe a week or so, I've seriously just been thinking over and over "It's over, He lives now!" My time is over. His time is now. Rejoice in the Lord. Jesus loves you