Sickness, stress, and discouragement are arguably the universal traits of any college student during the middle of winter quarter. It's flu season and you've likely been (or are) sick, classwork begins to pile up, and it often becomes hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

But as Jesus followers, we hold onto a hope that is already working within our current circumstances. We are not just hyped up for when Jesus returns and when Heaven comes to Earth, but even in this current season of trials and hardships, we are a part of Jesus' mission to serve and live and be different than anyone else on the planet, much less different than anyone else on our college campuses.

To help remind ourselves of "the hope to which He has called [us]" (Ephesians 1:18 ESV), we need to turn to the Scriptures (the Bible), as our source of vision and hope for our lives and world during this cold, darker winter season!

One psalm I keep coming back to over and over is Psalm 30. In this poem of praise, the narrator recalls a specific time they became overconfident "in [their] prosperity," and watched as God "hid [His] face" (Psalm 30:6-7 ESV).

The beauty of this psalm (to me) largely comes from how God intentionally takes the narrator's bad situation and uses it to focus them on how good God is...which seems weird. This narrator is explaining how they're having a pretty terrible time, where they are "wailing," how they might "go down into the pit," and feel as if God Himself is hiding His face from them (Psalm 30:9, 11 ESV). Why would they then turn to praise God?

For me, everything made sense when I went back to square one. That specific time the narrator had confidence while "in [their] prosperity" is a major clue. The narrator didn't have confidence from God, from knowing that God loved them and valued them as His child. When the narrator was prosperous and when life was good, that's when they said "I will never be shaken" (Psalm 30:6 ESV).

And then the poem shows a major change in its narrative (the nerdy, literature phrase for this is a volta). Essentially: narrator feels unstoppable because of worldly prosperity, God recognizes how much this person's security is not from how much they love Him, He takes that prosperity away, and now that unstoppable feeling is utterly shattered.

But here's the cool part: this actually brings the narrator to rejoice in God. With the fixation on prosperity and "feeling secure" gone, the narrator's attention is brought fully onto God (Psalm 30:6 NIV). They recognize that despite hardship, God loves them and wishes to be in a relationship with them just as much as ever.

When I think about this quarter, and the current sickness and classwork and hardships I and every other student is going through, I think of this psalm. I am reminded that no matter the hardships we go through, we, as Jesus followers, have security in not our own prosperity, but in the fact that because of Jesus, we have been "brought near [to God]" (Ephesians 2:13 ESV). If you indeed have chosen to follow Jesus, you are already accepted into God's Kingdom. His Spirit is guiding you and is, in a figurative sense, a seal, a mark that assures you that you have been accepted into God's ever-expanding family. No disease, failed assignment, or mistake will ever take that away from you.

We can endure hardships together, in community, and help each other through this tough season of winter quarter. But above all else: we have a hope that transcends circumstance, as God is still the same God who wishes to be with us and one day bring our new Home to us, making all things right and new. In the meantime, we persevere, knowing just how loved and accepted we are by Him.