If you are anything like I am you grew up in church. Every Sunday your family sits like ducks in a row on the same pew. Your family has probably be occupying that pew since before you were born, only growing in age and number.

Fast forward to finally getting out of that small town and moving away for the next four years. By now you have been going to church since you made your arrival approximately 18 years ago, and you know you love Jesus, but often catch yourself wanting to take a break. You eventually stop going to church and blame your college town on not having a church that "fit" you, and start getting involved in things college kids do. You drink, party, meet a significant other (which probably won't work because eventually you will realize the party boy is not the guy for you), smoke weed, start having sex (if you haven't already), and find yourself frequently hung over on Sunday mornings. One day you will wake up and wonder how did I get here? What changed in my life that led me to making so many bad decisions? Where's God, and how did I get so far away from him?

Don't worry Christian, you are not alone.

Surprisingly enough kids who grew up in church are more likely to wander off when they get the freedom of their college years. We grew up going to church three times a week, and depending on what type of church you went to you were probably taught more about all the sin and being condemned for it than God's grace, forgiveness, and unchanging love. Like the prodigal son, we wander and "live college up" pushing ourselves further and further from God's plan for our lives, but once we find ourselves among the pigs, we think about what happened to us. I often look around at friends who stayed faithful to God during those years and think "I want what they have." But I can't have what they have because what they have is God's blessing, and no matter how hard I try without God I can't have that life.

I have been living the life of the college party girl. I drank a lot, danced on tables, talked to guys I had no business talking to, and occasionally found myself wrapped around the toilet on Sunday morning. I realized one Sunday morning how far I gotten from everything that ever mattered. God doesn't expect us to live perfect lives. He sent his son to die because we are imperfect people. So when you too find yourself asking yourself what happened to my life, or think that you are too far gone for God's grace you should open your Bible and open your heart to these verses:

Isaiah 41:13- For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

2 Kings 20:5- This is what the Lord says: "I have heard your prayer and see your tears. I will heal you."

1 John 1:9- If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Psalms 37:24- Though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.

We are all sinners. So if you are going through a rough spot remember that God loves you, no matter how great the sin you are loved, repentance is not a one time event but instead something we constantly have to do. So don't let that rough patch you are in keep you from God's love because he is always waiting for us to come back to his loving arms. The musician Jordan Feliz explains it best in his catchy K-LOVE hit "Never Too Far Gone." It is easy to get caught up in this life, but you aren't helpless there is a Father who waits for you.