We can celebrate Thanksgiving every day of the year and not just on the holiday. Here’s how.
Diversity in College
What are some of the most important lessons Christians can learn while in college? As a graduate who happened to be a believer on campus, I can comment on a believer’s stay in universities or colleges. We often get many underage students from different schools and from different areas of the globe. Among this diverse crowd there are believers that have spent every day of their lives under the teachings of God by their parents and Sunday-school teachers. In today’s article, we will discuss key points that every young believer must note before attending college or a university. All of these points hint toward the life of the average believer and what they might expect from the university. We will discuss some practical steps to avoid criticizing other people’s beliefs without deviating from our own. Now let’s get started as we unveil these truths about a believer’s stay on campus.
Develop a Robust Understanding of God’s Grace—For Yourself and Others
Youngsters love the taste of freedom, and college offers this on a gold platter. For the first time in their lives, young adults get the opportunity to get out of the home and to be away from their parents and their household rules. It is okay to feel out of place at first, since some practices on campus will surely go against your Christian upbringing. The alternative, apart from joining the vast majority, is to embrace your faith. Most Christian students become devoted to a college ministry.
By doing this, they separate themselves from the “unsaved,” labeling them as sinners. When undergraduate believers move around campus with this mindset, they start to deviate from the essence of God’s grace. Feeling morally superior to the way your peers act or behave in a certain manner is ungodly. Your love for your college classmates should transcend their beliefs and actions, just as Christ loved us first.
We love because he first loved us. – 1 John 4:19
The college experience is can be wild, especially for students that haven’t tasted freedom yet. Rather than condemn your peers that fall into this category, remind yourself of the biblical concept of grace—remembering that God loved us first, even while we were ungodly, wicked enemies of God (Rom 5:6-10). Without a proper understanding of God’s grace, we can ruin relationships all around us, and all in the name of Christianity. Grace teaches us to embrace others without respect of person (Rom 2:11-16; Acts 10:34).
Prepare for Suffering Today
While most college students are new to the hardships of living alone, some undergraduates have stayed at boarding schools, so they understand the suffering of having to cater for yourself without your parent’s help. While college can make you feel like the world is against you, more adversities will come. Just be prepared for them. Your college years should prepare you ahead time for seasons of difficulties like these. Life lessons learned on campus can last you a lifetime and prepare you for the working world.
Living a Christian life on campus can help you navigate life’s diversities. Coming to terms with God’s faithfulness before tribulations makes you prepared for whatever comes your way. We can brag about God’s love all we want, but only those that truly believe that His love remains in them can prevail in all situations. Acknowledging God’s faithfulness during our worst times is the strength we need to come out strong.
For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. – 2 Cor 12:10
College education exposes undergraduates to many beliefs, ideologies, and practices that are different from what the church teaches. There are many ways to get a scholarship in your first year, but not all are godly ways. Some good and godly ways of getting scholarships might seem tedious and require you to study often, but fear not; apply for these scholarships anyway. Just buckle down and study, but above all, remember that you don’t need to cheat or bride someone to get a grant. God will honor your honesty doing things the old fashioned way; with difficulty but with integrity.
Think about Heaven—A lot
One of the most important tips a Christian student needs to survive at school is to think about the second coming of Jesus. It is not enough that you believe in His death and resurrection. You must have that hope in His sure and certain return. This will help you maintain a close relationship with Him. We hear these teachings on Sundays in every church service at home: It is more important to keep the love of God and the return of His Son in our hearts at all times.
Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing. – 2 Tim 4:8
Now is a more important time for high school and college scholars to keep learning the things of God. The books of Colossians and 1 John 5 both emphasize the need for people to put more effort into the return of the Messiah. This would be difficult for 17 to 21-year-olds because heaven seems so far-fetched. What helps is setting your mind on the sovereignty of God other than our own lives.
Such complete worship helps us reshape our lives profoundly, with an emphasis on total surrender. It is more important for young believers to have the “on campus as it is in heaven” mindset. This is a great slogan for a good campus ministry known for pioneering young believers through college. Imprint the vision of the afterlife in your heart with worship to Jesus and God the father. Young and old Christians need to spend more time longing for heaven.
Keep Good Company
Living on campus can be wild, even for young believers. It takes continuous and deliberate efforts to stick to your belief in the righteousness of God and striving to live holy lives before God. Most young believers have fallen victim to tagging along with the wrong crowd not realizing that “Bad company ruins good morals” (1 Cor 125:33). With the right association on campus, believers can retain their stewardship and sonship with Abbah the Father. Always embrace the love of Abbah for you and others.
Conclusion
As we’ve seen thus far, the adversities of life will always find their way to a believer, “For we would face tribulations – but be of good cheer because the Lord has overcome the world” (John 16:33). Our best days as believers are yet to come. The fact that you’re not among the more important crew or recognized scholars on campus today should be the least of your concerns. Focus on God and obeying Him. Then leave all the consequences to Him. Even “if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself” (2 Tim 2:13).
Author’s Biography: This article was researched and written by Adam Johnson, a proficient writing tutor from PapersOwl.com. Adam is a religious researcher, who is well known for his numerous religious publications. He’s also helped mentor young believers through their campus days. Since he doubles as a researcher and mentor, he ensures to check paper for plagiarism in his several works on the teachings of our Lord and savior before publishing. Now, he offers high-quality tutoring on editing and writing all kinds of university papers.
Here is some related reading for you: 22 Awesome Bible Verses for College Students
Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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