Galatians 6:14

But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Learning to Thrive at College

Dear Friends,

As some of us consider college and such, we need to look at our motives for why we want to go...to have fun? Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord? Flirt? Take a look at your motives as you prepare for this time in your life.

This blog post from desiringgod.org sums up absolutely everything I believe is true about this season in our life:

College should be a temporary season of academic preparation and personal growth to propel a lifetime of effective service to God and neighbor. It should be a launching pad into all that goes with responsible Christian adulthood. Yet for some, it’s a time when they abandon the Christian faith, displaying that they never really belonged to Christ (1 John 2:19). For others, their faith remains intact, but they waste their college lives with video games, partying, and other frivolities—an expensive vacation funded by Mom, Dad, and debilitating student loans.

Today, seven out of ten high school graduates immediately go on to college, but about 30% will never become sophomores, and about 50% will not have graduated even six years later.1 Many who do graduate move right back home with their parents, assuming little responsibility and armed with little ambition for Christ.

Thrive at College
I’m convinced that you should not just survive college but thrive at college. Don’t just maintain your faith, but really come to own it — growing thick, strong roots (1 Timothy 4:12). Don’t just squeak by classes with as little effort as possible, but strive to discover your calling — what God uniquely wired you to do — and to love God with all your mind by giving it your very best (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
Socially, college is a season for making life-long friendships — not just the kind you have a great time with (good as that is) but the kind that spur you on to love, trust, and follow God. Pursue relationships that help you put away childishness, grow in maturity, increasingly make wise choices, and “expect great things from God and attempt great things for God.” And who knows? Maybe one of these friends will become a fabulous husband or wife.
College is a time for assuming responsibility, for becoming a disciplined steward of time and money, for recognizing that recreation is a gift of God to be enjoyed in measure but never to dominate our lives. Rather, when properly pursued, recreation empowers us for our work rather than distracting us from our work.
As a student, remember that your work is learning (studying) so that you can, for a lifetime, increasingly love God with a well-trained mind, a mind that can identify key questions, pursue understanding, dissect arguments, discover logical fallacies, and communicate effectively.

Be Trained to Make a Difference
College is an opportunity to get the training you need to make a difference in the world — by becoming a business person, an engineer, a doctor, a teacher, a historian, a physical therapist, a husband, a wife, a parent, who sees God’s lordship extending to every area of life and every corner of the globe.
It’s a time to take the gifts God has given you and develop them into finely-tuned skills — the kind that can really serve and benefit other people (some of whom may even pay you). It’s a time to become a man or woman with unshakable character and faithfulness — the kind that can be given increasing areas of responsibility, and who can eventually rise to leadership. It’s a time to honor all that your parents did for you by learning to own your decisions, even your mistakes, as you embrace a full-orbed, God-dependent adulthood

This post taken from John Piper's ministry desiringgod.org
 
 
So spend some time in prayer before you endeavor on the journey through college.
 
God bless!
 
 
Forever in Him,
Charity

3 comments:

  1. Thanks Charity, that was really helpful!

    Mel.

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  2. Hey! I was searching for a picture of Laminin yesterday, and whilst I have seen websites that have hosted that picture before, I was drawn t this blog; by whom I believe to be God. I'm sure you have plenty of other articles relevant to my life, but this one stood out in particular since I am beginning university this week. It is so true what you're saying! I am enrolled in a degree in Classics, but for a while I have been wondering how it shall allow me to be able to serve God more. I am thinking going into politics (as that is a possible route from Classics) and helping to represent Churches in the UK, but I'm not sure if that is the exact route that God has chosen for me and that I'm simply guessing at what God wants. Both this article and your one about becoming a missionary for Jesus and giving your life completely to Him have made me think a lot more about where I need to go! I am certainly going to try at this course, but you've allowed me to not worry about changing my course/university if it doesn't work out. Sorry about the length of this comment - you just gave me a lot to say! God bless.
    Athina

    ReplyDelete
  3. Athina,

    Thank you so much for the comment! I will definitely be praying for you as you seek God concerning His direction in your life. May I encourage to stay close to Him. He will show you the way. No worries about the length of the comment :) God bless, Charity

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