I saved this one for last, and I think it's the most important.You
can get along with the authorities, love the classes, and have great
friendships, but still fail completely at college. But I've seen people
who fought the authorities and acted like a snot to their roommates and
acquaintances, but then God got hold of their heart, and He changed them. Your heart, and how much of it God has, is the single most important factor to spiritual success.
Remember that the devil is actively trying to discourage you. That is, he's trying to remove your motivation, your courage.
1.
Don't go thinking of plan B, if this doesn't work out. You should be
determined to finish what you start. If God wants you there, and He's
confirmed it in your heart, plan B is just rebellion. Go with that faith
that God is leading you, and determine to let God show you that it's
His job to get you through. My husband and I both had seemingly
insurmountable financial challenges, and I got pretty sick two years in a
row. The sickness caused me to fail some classes! I remember asking God
what I was doing there, when I couldn't have success. That year is one
of my most precious memories, and the things I learned about God's
presence in my life are with me today. God can use anything that happens
in our life, as long as our faith line remains connected to Him. Unplug
it, let doubts come in, and they can ruin what God wants to do!
2. Modern day me again. Hannah, your mom told me this one. Read
your Bible every day, and touch the throne of God every day, just to
pass time with Him, and not to pass a class. Study for classes is good,
but it does not ever, ever replace time set apart to be in God's
presence. You need it. Make it a priority. Find your place to be alone
and do it. (My place was in one of the upper classrooms of the North
Auditorium, and this very annoying young male student liked the same
room, so he beat me to it, and I had to go find another room. In
auditorium part of the building, a student would worship God and pray
while he played the piano, so my devotions were usually accompanied by
this music. He is now serving God on a mission field on the other side
of the world, and the guy who stole my prayer room is now my husband.*)
You will hear a hundred times this year, "Bible college is the easiest
place to get backslidden." ad nauseum. Because it's true. Well, any
place is easy to get backslidden if you are relying on yourself.
3. Modern
day me again. Morgan, your dad told me that "doing" was not nearly as
important as "being". Working for God vs. being His child and loving
and knowing Him. I kind of understood him, but it took some time for
that truth to hit me fully. I'm still learning it! Activity
does NOT equal God is pleased with you! Anywhere you think that God is
pleased because "I'm doing _____" or "I'm getting this blessing_____"
or "everyone thinks ________ about me." is a dangerous, dangerous place
to be spiritually. You are right with God when you get on your face in
His presence every day let Him change you. When you die to the flesh
and carry your cross. Activity is good, but it's only a product of our
walk with God, and sometimes when we get comfortable doing certain
things for God, we think we can swing it without Him. Actually, my
flesh is always confident in this manner. And it's the thing that makes
me want to quit when I make a big mess of things doing them without
God's Spirit. Hypocrite, isn't it?
This isn't as long
as my other posts, but I hope you take it to heart. If you went to
Bible college because you believe God wanted you to, then give Him
liberty in your life to do what He wants with your life! The "big
secret" to spiritual success (and you will hear tons of sermons on this)
is very simple-being full of the Spirit, walking with God, and getting
out of His way. It can't get old to you-it's your lifeline. It takes
day-by-day checking, tending, and repair.
My love and prayers are with you!
Oh,
one more thing. If, for some odd reason, you find yourself sitting in
chapel, and exhausted. maybe your blood sugar levels are,
hypothetically, weirded out by too many strange snacks and not enough
sleep, and you might find yourself having a very hard time keeping both
eyelids open. Let's say you might have a pack of Listerine Pocket
Patches in your purse, and after fruitlessly pinching yourself, chewing
on your tongue, squirming and trying everything else you know of to stay
awake, it occurs to you that it might be a good idea to use one of
those little strips to "wake yourself up". Refreshing and all that. If
such a thing happens to you, and I'm not saying it will, or that it
happened to me or anything like that, I'm just saying it might, you know. Don't put it under your tongue. Just don't.
*For the record, my husband wishes it to be known that his version of this story is that some cute girl periodically stole his prayer room. Whatever.
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