I bet I can guess what you’re thinking. It’s probably something along the lines of, “Wow, what a typical sorority girl thing to write about.” I can’t say you’re wrong. 

I’m not ashamed to label myself as just that: a sorority girl. I’m pretty proud of it, honestly.

Can I walk you through how I came to be one of these? A sorority girl? 

First, lets go back to recruitment week. I was BEYOND nervous. I didn't know what I had gotten myself into. I thought to myself on many different occasions, “This is a mistake, I’m not fit for this, I should really just back out now.” It was overwhelming, and I was exhausted from both talking my head off for hours at a time and not getting enough sleep. I would leave my dorm early in the morning, and often not return until late at night.

Even though I questioned my decision to rush the whole week, I can’t help but look back and laugh at myself now.

Being a part of a sorority has already done so much more for me than I could ever possibly do for it.

I’ve gained sisters, 150 of them. I’ve gained friendships that I’m sure will last a lifetime. And yes, I’ve gained future bridesmaids. I’ve developed a love for serving and giving back to the community. I’ve made memories I will never forget.

Ugh, I know. So incredibly cheesy. But also so incredibly true. 

However, sometimes sorority life is not always easy-breezy. 

It often keeps my schedule full. I've already spent many late hours working on banners. Study hours took up a lot of my time while I was a new member. Coming back after spending a weekend at home in time to make it to chapter is sometimes hard to do. I’m not always motivated to walk across campus in order to get points for going to a sisterhood or a career and personal development. I’ve mopped, dusted, vacuumed, and swept different parts of the house in order to keep it looking nice and neat. 

Sorority life has taught me how to manage my time. It’s taught me how to find the good in everything. It’s taught me to appreciate my free time even more. But most importantly, it’s taught me not to jump to conclusions. 

Before I joined one, I myself had my own idea of what being in a sorority was like. I had my own stereotypes of what sorority girls were like. 

We’re so good at that. 

We’re good at assuming. We’re good at accusing. We’re good at judging. We’re good at stereotyping and name-calling…just because we don’t know. We don’t know what it’s really like. We don’t put ourselves in someone else’s shoes in order to try and understand what they’re going through or where they're coming from. 

Instead, we decide to form our own opinion before we really know because we have an eagerness to jump to conclusions. 

It’s human nature, we all do it. We all judge based on first impressions or appearances. We all stereotype based on what we think we know, or what we’ve learned from what society tells us. 

But, just because we all do it doesn't mean it’s okay.

Our God holds us to a higher standard than this. We are not called to submit to a life that looks like the world. We’re not called to live like everybody else, and this includes being quick to judge or assume. 

Our God is a God of grace and love. He shows no favoritism. We’ve all heard it a thousand times, but He is the judge, not us.

Even though it's so incredibly difficult sometimes, I would encourage you to first recognize the grace and mercy God shows you each and every day. Think about this, remind yourself of it often, and I promise it will help you to remember to extend this grace, mercy, and love to others around you, rather than jump to conclusions. 

“For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Galatians 2:13