It's that point in the semester when the holidays are close, but not close enough.
There's still a brutal two months of schoolwork that must be done with absolutely no motivation left to spare. You come back from class every day, plop onto your bed and bury your face in your pillow, saying “why, why, why” over and over again. (Or maybe that's just me.) School just seems to be so detached from the rest of your life and you wonder how you’re even turning in assignments at all at this point.
Let me tell you, you're certainly not alone. This point of the year, what I like to call “No-Show November”, hits all of us pretty hard. We skip class, we wait until the last possible moment to do assignments, we flake on pretty much all academic obligations. For some reason, it just becomes incredibly hard to find the will-power to keep moving on and pushing out homework until the holidays come around. During this time, it can feel like nothing's going to help and you're just going to have to suffer through until Thanksgiving. However, we're all going through a similar struggle and it doesn’t have to be the worst two months of your life (see Megan Weber's article, "When The Semester Makes You Bend And Snap"). For those of us lacking the motivation we need to finish strong, here are 10 of the best Bible verses to remember right now.
1. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28
2. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7
3. “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” – 1 Peter 5:7
4. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” – Proverbs 3:5-6
5. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” – John 14:27
6. “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” – Psalm 46:1-3
7. “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.” – Isaiah 26:3
8. “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
9. “And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame…” – Romans 5:2-5
10. “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” – Romans 12:12
