I grew up in a small town. My senior class only had 88 people. I graduated in 2011, and moved to Troy not knowing a single soul. Upon arriving, I decided to join a Greek letter organization (GLO). It ended up being a decision I will never regret. I came into college only being a Christian for about a year, and being new in my faith I wish I had known these things I know now. Here are four things to remember when you join your GLO.
Know your identity: “In Christ” (Rom. 8:1).
Remember that in Christ, you are free from condemnation. Yet, you will quickly realize that you will not be able to please everyone. Besides, pleasing everyone in your organization should not be your goal. As Christians, our goal in our organization is to share the gospel. We need to make sure our foundation is strong. Look to Jesus constantly during this time. He is the author and perfecter of our faith. Our eyes should be on Him, not on what others think of us.
Realize that your performance will not save you (Gal. 3:10-13).
We need to be honest with ourselves here. We, oftentimes, try to cover-up our sin by saying, “I will try harder next time… I’ll go read the Bible more often… I’ll pray harder,” as if God wants our begrudging submission. No! God desires us to have actual joy in Him, and we must be reminded constantly that trusting in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus alone is what saves us and not how well or badly we perform.
Find a local church and join (Acts 2:42-47).
I cannot stress this enough. Joining a local church is key to our growth as Christians. Invite some of your pledge brothers or sisters with you. In addition to growing together spiritually with your fellow brothers or sisters, you’ll be able to go eat lunch together after church and build strong relationships, which is a Sunday-must. Also, realize that you do not need to wear a “mask” while you are gathered with other Christians. We are with our family on Sundays, not our jury.
Pray for brothers/sisters who aren’t Christian (2nd Thess. 3:1-2).
Everyone in the South says they are a Christian, and yet when you ask him/her how they know that is true, they usually answer “I prayed a sinner’s prayer” one time at age five or six. Without being judgmental, we need to remember that not everyone in our Greek lettered chapters are Christians. He or she may believe in a form of moralistic therapeutic deism, but that isn’t the same as biblical Christianity. It is therefore imperative that we pray for the Holy Spirit to convict the hearts of brothers and sisters who are unconverted, and bring them to repentance and faith in Jesus. We must share the gospel with our brothers and sisters in such a way that they are able to see our love for them.
Being Greek and being Christian can be difficult, but we must remember our values and our faith.
