Believe it or not, I’m not going to college for a piece of paper. My motivation is not some degree that says I passed four years’ worth of classes. It’s not so I can get away from my parents and be independent. It’s not so I can live in a tiny room on a floor with 15 other girls. It’s not so I can find a boyfriend or so I can say I’m an “adult”. It’s not because I’m expected to go to college, or because I don’t know what else to do.
It’s not even because I love school so much.
And it’s most definitely not so I can get a good job, make lots of money, and ensure a successful future.
I am paying $34,000 a year to go to a small Free Methodist college because God wants me here.
He wants me here for the same two reasons he wanted me to live in North Adams, Michigan for the first 18 years of my life. They are the same two reasons he sends us anywhere:
- To learn to love him
- To learn to love his people
Simple, aren’t they?
Well, they seem simple, anyway. Those are the two greatest purposes Jesus calls his followers for. To learn to love God and his people passionately, more than we love ourselves. These are the two things he calls me to learn in order to more adequately do my job in the future. As a result of my time here, I should be able to participate more effectively in the ministry he has planned in my future.
These are not things I will learn in four years. I will be learning to love God and others for my entire life. But God has me here at Spring Arbor University right now because he has a unique plan for me to encounter him here in this place and with these people.
I am here to learn from this community where the fruits of the spirit are on display in the hearts of the people around me. I am here to grow into the woman God would have me to be. I am here to share my blessings with others.
Yes, college is all about challenging academics and meeting lifelong friends, but I also want it to be about encountering Jesus through the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.
College is about the experience, not the outcome.
It’s about what God does in my heart while I’m here, not about landing some six-figure job in the future.
I don’t want to be distracted by the homework and the tests and the classes and getting perfect grades. These things are good, and they will definitely facilitate learning and growth. But they can distract from my real purpose for being here. I want to be concerned with my relationships and priorities.
I am here to learn more about Jesus and about loving his people... because these are the things that will give me "success" in the future, the kind of success that doesn't equate to a six-figure salary but is measured in hearts and lives changed by Jesus Christ.
I don’t want to lose sight of why I’m here.
