Dear College Student,
It sucks sometimes. I am not going to sugar coat anything. Your faith will be put to the test more than once. You are independent now, you don't have the crutch of your parents waking you up for church every Sunday or telling you to eat regularly and study. You are trying to acclimate to the classes and put yourself into situations to get to know people all while growing your intake of caffeine and keep sane. You have the freedom to live your life but you are yet still responsible for everything towards your future goals.
You are going to get hurt, you are going to want to change your major or turn your back on those who love you unconditionally because you don't feel adequate enough. You are going to want to turn your back on God, but I know for a fact your suffering is not useless or unnoticed. It isn't going to be perfect, the road is going to wind and sometimes you won't be able to see in front of you. The storms are going to be unpredictable, they will knock you off your feet and leave you spinning around in confusion and worry. BUT YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Everything you are going through is a lesson. Each one is building you to be a better and stronger you. He is walking alongside you; building you up through every valley and hurricane. He is the shelter you can always go to whenever your doors and windows are broken and damaged.
There are so many times where I have caught myself stepping back and wondering "Am I living for me? or am I actively living my life for Jesus?"
I have found that in these trials, God has shown me so many lessons that work into His calling for my life. You have probably heard the verse of Jeremiah 29:11 and Romans 8:28-31, telling you about God's plans for your life and how He is going to work in and through you. I want to share with you one more, it is easily looked over or not read at all. It's Ephesians 2:19-22. It says:
"You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home."
So while you are stressing out and crying about if you're going to ace your next big exam, or marry the person you have been dating for 2 years, God already has a plan for you laid out step by step. You are His child. You are His special creation. You are specifically destined to be a special part of His plan on earth, He has got you.
Just by changing the way you think and go about your life you could not only strengthen your relationship with your Father in Heaven but influence the lives of people around you in such positive ways. Knowing all of these things about your relationship with God are only one part. The next part is acting on them. Faith without action is dead. God is the one person that will never forsake you, trust and lean on Him in your darkest moments. I know it can be hard when you’re pulled in opposite directions by your social life, your academic life, and your extracurricular activities; not to mention your family life and your own personal sanity. But it can be the little things that mean the most, and you are stronger than you think.
Do not stress the things you cannot see, trust that the one greater than you holds you in his hands and will not abandon you. Don't let yourself forget about Him or believe that He is not there. Know that His plan is set in place for you, all you have to do is walk in it. Trust that this is all for your good. But most importantly, remember that He loves you unconditionally–at your worst and your best.
Life can be tough, but you are tougher simply because you are His. You are created in His perfect image.
Think about this...
"The stone wasn't rolled away to let Jesus out, but to let us in." -Louie Giglio
