I grew up going to church with my parents every Sunday, and there were no excuses not to go. I grew up in private Christian schools, one for elementary school and one for high school. I was poured into by so many believers while I was there.
So why did I choose to go to Purdue University, a place where I knew my faith would be tested, my beliefs would be questioned, and I would be judged for being different?
Here are just three reasons.
1. I wanted to be different.
2. I didn't want to live my life in a bubble--it's totally okay to live in the world. Just don't give in to worldly temptations.
3. I knew that I would have a better chance of ministering to my peers.
I knew it would be difficult finding other Christians who had similar interpretations of the Bible as me, but I didn't let my fear of being different keep me from going to Purdue.
Since I started at Purdue, going to church and Bible study has been more of a choice than an expectation for me. I don't go to church because my parents take me every Sunday. I go because I want to, and I love being in Christian fellowship with the people I am close to. I love that I can throw my hands up in the air and praise God for what he does.
I seek out opportunities to serve and lead in the church. I volunteer more for worship team and can hardly wait for the Sundays that I do get to lead worship.
By attending a secular university, I have begun to recognize my calling. I'm not necessarily called to work in a Christian company someday. I could be called to work in a business where I am the only believer. And that's okay! Because of Purdue, I have a better idea of how to reach out to non-believers and understand their life circumstances.
A Bible study for college kids was not where I was meant to be.
During my first semester at Purdue, I stopped attending a Bible study that I felt was too surface-level. One day, I had an epiphany, and God told me that wasn't where I needed to be. It had been a Bible study solely for college kids, but I realized that I didn't want to be with people my own age. My faith is very mature for my age, and I knew that I wanted something more in-depth. So I began going to the Bible study that my mom has been involved with since I was little.
I have felt God work in my life so much more since I started going to Purdue. In high school, there were certain times of the day that I was used to praying in my classes. But once I got to Purdue, I had to force myself to remember that I needed to pray. While it's been a major adjustment, Purdue has caused me to realize that not everyone is going to be like me, and I ought to learn how other people think so that I can understand our differences.
To sum everything up, I love that I go to Purdue because it has taught me not to take my faith for granted. I know that people see that I am different, and I'm sure they wonder why.
If you follow me on Instagram, you know I'm different because I post about my faith occasionally. I get lots of opportunities in the organizations I'm involved in and my classes to share my faith, and I wouldn't want to go to a school where everyone is exactly like me.
