Going to Church While Being Away From Home

If you grew up in a church-going family, or if you were like me and only went to church with one parent, it was part of your routine and you knew that Sunday mornings were spent at church. When you come to college, at first you are still on that routine, but then things start getting in the way and life happens. One thing I struggled with when I came to college was to keep going to church on a regular basis. I didn't have my mom there every Sunday to get me up and take me to church, she kept me accountable and when she wasn't there I got out of my routine.

One excuse I would use was that I didn't have a car, so I couldn't get to church. I still can't believe that I used that excuse, I had many friends with cars that could drive me to church and a shuttle would come and take students to a church. There is no excuse for you to not keep going to church when you come to college. When you get here, find a church home and start going every Sunday. If one of your friends is going to the same church, go together so you can keep each other accountable and on a routine. If you are like me and you get carried away with life, it is very important that you have someone in your life that is at college with you to keep you accountable.

I am lucky to have roommates who are very strong in their relationship with God and who go to church every Sunday. They are the ones who keep me accountable and on my routine. I know that every Sunday morning two of my roommates and I will go to church so when I don't feel like going to church, I start to feel like I need to go and decide to go.

Associating with Nonchristians

There are so many different people in college that you can find someone with the same likes as you. One thing that brings a lot of students together is their religion, this can be a great thing and it can also be somewhat of a bad thing. When you only associate or befriend people that are religious like you, you shut off the rest of the world and become narrow minded. I'm not saying that you should ditch all your Christian friends, I am saying that you should branch out a little and get to know others.

When you think about it, if you go on mission trips, you are befriending nonchristians. One thing that can come out of befriending nonchristians is that you can be a witness to them and help them come to know Christ. Having nonchristian friends in college is kind of like being on a mission trip all the time. By you being their friend, you are showing God's love.

It's important to stay on track with your relationship with God so that you do not fall into temptations that you may face while being friends with others. In order to stay on track, it is vital that you stay connected with your Christian friends so that you do not fall and they can keep you accountable. You can also turn to them about some issues that may come up with your nonchristian friends and get advice about how to bring up the issue and how to deal with it.

I am friends with some nonchristians and it has not had a negative impact on my relationship with my Christian friends or on my relationship with God. If anything it has made it stronger because I want to make sure that I do not fall off track. I also want to be prepared for the time that my friend will want to change their life and have a relationship with God. I want to have the answers to their questions and to be a positive influence on them.

Losing sight of what is important

When I came to college, I was encouraged to get involved in organizations and to keep up with school. As the years go on, I get more involved in organizations and the school work load keeps multiplying and it seems to take up more of my time. Because of this, something had to be put on the back burner, the thing I picked was God. This was a big mistake, I started stressing and not really living my life like a Christian. I stopped going to church because I needed to study and exercise, I stopped going to bible study because there just wasn't enough time in the day, and I stopped being really involved in activities that the Christian organizations were doing. Slowly, God fell off my priority list.

Thankfully, I had a good friend who called me out on what I was doing and I realized that I am able to do most of these things because God allows me to. Before grades were everything to me but now I know that grades are not going to matter when I get into heaven. The organizations I was in aren't going to matter when I get into heaven. My job and the money I earn aren't going to matter when I get into heaven. The only thing that is going to matter when I get to heaven is that I had a good, strong relationship with God.

It is important to not lose sight of God and what He thinks are the important things in life. It is so easy to get caught up in what the world sees as successful that you lose sight of God and what He wants. I have been there, I have lost sight of God and it is not pretty, my world almost came crumbling down on me. I started thinking like the rest of the world and it showed.
Some things that have helped me stay on track are having Christian friends that can keep me accountable, going to church on a regular basis, and being continuously filled with what God sees as important in life.

Quiet Time

One thing that I have struggled with since I became a Christian is having a quiet time every day. Coming to college has made it so much harder because of my busy schedule. It seems like homework never ends and organizations start piling up. If you have gone through this, you know how hard it is to keep up with being diligent about having a quiet time. After sticking to a schedule and having a quiet time most everyday, I have realized how my days seem to be better and I am not stressed all the time.

Last semester, I would get anxiety about my tests and after I took the tests, I would break down and cry from all the stress that I put myself through. Let's just say I was a nervous wreck going into the tests. This semester, I have been more committed to having a quiet time and it has made a huge difference with how I am when it comes to test taking. I am do not have anxiety, I am not nearly as stressed as I was, and I don't cry after a test, I am usually really happy that it is over.

I have realized that having a quiet time keeps you focused and in tune with what God wants you to be, not what the world wants you to be. You also form a stronger relationship with Him because you talk to Him and tell Him all your problems, it's like hanging out with a friend and dishing out all your problems and getting advice from them. You also learn more about God, Jesus and what being a Christian really means.

If you are like me and pretty much have a schedule for everything, set aside a time that you have available everyday and spend it with God. It will be hard at first, but once you get into that routine, it will be like a part of your day and when you do not have a quiet time, it will feel like something is missing from your day. If you are more of a go-with-the-flow person, have your quiet time when you have some time in your day. I think whether or not you need to schedule your quiet time or not, it is good to have it at the same time everyday just so that you are in a routine and you are less likely to forget.

I do my quiet time at night before I go to bed and it makes me sleep a lot better and have a good day the next day. For me, it's like getting wind down for the night.
There are a lot of positive things that come out of having a quiet time with God so, pick a time that works with you and be determined and committed to keeping up with it. Do not worry if you forget once in awhile, everyone does it, just make it part of your routine and your life will be less stressful and more joyful.

If you are having trouble choosing where in the Bible to start reading, here is a web site that has a path for you stay up with: http://www.dailybiblestudy.org/

Sororities and Fraternities

The stereotype you normally hear about sororities and fraternities are not usually good. They usually are seen as organizations that have parties every weekend with a whole lot of drinking. This stereotype is what usually keeps guys and girls away from rushing. Another stereotype is that they are for the preppy, blond, and ditsy girls.

I had these same stereotypes coming into college about sororities and fraternities, but it did not take long for me to change my mind. There are a lot of sororities out there that do have a lot of drinking and if you rush and get put into that sorority or fraternity, you just have to stick to your morals and ignore all the peer pressure. This is a good reason to be involved in church or in a christian organization to help keep you strong and resist the temptations. There are also a lot of "good" sororities, many girls that I have met through christian organizations are in sororities and they have stayed strong in their relationship with God. I call some sororities good because they are mostly comprised of christian girls.

My friends who are in sororities have told me that there is drinking at some of their parties and formals but they just don't drink because it is against their morals and ethics. Being in a sorority or fraternity is a personal decision and when you choose to be a sorority, you have to be able to withstand all the peer pressure that may come with it.

Fraternities are more likely to stand up to their stereotype. I have not heard of a lot of good fraternities where guys don't have parties and drink a lot. I was recently talking to someone who used to be in a fraternity and he said that is was mostly drinking and their morals were against what he stood for. It seems to me that guys are weaker when it comes to withstanding peer pressure from other guys. The ridicule they will get is much worse than what girls get from other girls. To be in a fraternity, I feel like you have to be very strong in your walk with God and are able to withstand the peer pressure and ridicule that you will most likely get from the other guys.

To conclude, I do not think that if you are in a sorority or fraternity, your walk with God will be broken, it might be strengthened. One important thing you need to remember though is that you just need to be plugged either in your church or in a christian organization at the school to stay committed to your walk.