Advice for College Students Part 4

This is a continuation of "Advice for College Students" written by Blake Hudson. Part one can be found here, two here, and three here
 
7. In my spiritual life, there are things I have left undone or poorly done on many occasions because I was looking for an opportunity to be a "radical" Christian. Prayer is one of the hardest things to do consistently, often because it can carry with it so many positive and negative emotions. Praying for the salvation of a loved one can invoke worry, fear, and regret for not sharing the Gospel with them more or not at all. Praising God for His blessing and praying for Christians that you know well and have trusted you with deep, personal secrets can bring immense joy as you get a front-row seat to see how God is shaping them into the image of Christ. I wish that I had prayed more consistently for others, for missions, and for myself, regardless of how I felt during college and graduate school.

8. Many of my problems begin with procrastination, worrying, and a simple lack of preparation for many school and performance-related projects. Don't procrastinate.

Finally, some advice specific to Tallahassee/FSU
1. Go to at least one FSU football game. The games are fun and a great cultural experience, even for those who don't like or play sports.
2. Investigate some of the local restaurants. Tallahassee is an eclectic place because of the variety of people who live there, so don't be afraid to try something new.
3. Go to at least one "First Friday."
4. Go hiking, mountain biking, or walking through the parks around Tallahassee.

Advice for College Students Pt. 3

This is a continuation of "Advice for College Students" written by Blake Hudson. Part one can be found here, two here
 
5. Prepare for your profession seriously and well.
     There is no reason for you not to pursue the education that you are paying tens of thousands of dollars for with all that you've got. I think that this is one of the greatest signs of love for God in a Christian's life. Work is a gift from God; if you don't believe that yet, talk to someone who has been unemployed, even if only for a few weeks. If you have prayed and sought Biblical counsel about where you should go to school and what you should study, then you should already know this. People who are serious about school are serious about life. I have seen this benefits and consequences of this truth played out in people's lives in the private and public school setting, and it is the same in both. There are lazy rich college students and there are lazy poor college students, but there should be no lazy Christians. We should strive to gain proficiency in a field that earns money for provision and we should do so in a manner that glorifies God (Matt. 5:16). I'm not trying to make anyone worry, but in this economy, why would you jeopardize your future employment by being lazy? Even if you end up in a field outside of your major, the discipline you develop will carry you by God's grace to the job that He has for you. Honor God by faithfully stewarding your opportunities in school.

6. Learn to share the Gospel in a conversation.
     It is a rare thing to be able to explain the entire truth of the Gospel in one conversation with someone. Even in long conversations, the other person is often "hung up" on one issue or another and you may have difficulty moving past it. However, you will be able to share much more of God's truth with a fellow student, employee, or neighbor if you research it and rehearse for yourself. One excellent resource for this is "Tell the Truth" by Will Metzger.

Advice for College Students Part 2

This is a continuation of "Advice for College Students" written by Blake Hudson. Part one (with points 1 and 2) can be found here.

3. Be friendly to everyone. Make close friends with only a few people.
     I learned this lesson once during my last year and a half of college, and I learned it again with a new group of people in graduate school. While two, three, or four years seems like a long time when you enroll, the time whittles itself away pretty fast. This leaves you with limited opportunities to develop significant relationships, which means that you can't be close friends with everyone. Also, becoming close friends with a few people of the same gender makes it much easier for you to continue the friendship after graduation. After college, your housing will change, your diet will change, and your job will change from being a student to being a professional of some sort, but close Christian friends can and should remain the same, for the most part. It is most important that these friends are Christians and that they love God more than they love you. That way, they won't leave you when they get to know you :D.  We all have faults, and we need friends to point us to the truth of sin and Christ's sacrifice to put things in perspective. We don't need friends who won't tell us those things.

4. Don't try to become best friends with someone of the opposite sex.
     This subject is highly controversial and confusing in our culture, but it seems to me that making close friends with someone of the opposite sex is essentially dating. For a Christian who believes that God has ordained marriage to be a wonderful, sanctifying, and God-glorifying relationship, maintaining a close friendship with someone of the opposite sex that you do not intend to move towards marriage with is confusing at best and unloving at worst. That relationship will have to be removed from your life in order for you to marry somebody else, or you will realize that you are (and have been) dating your friend and that you should consider marriage together. This does not mean that you should not befriend people of the opposite sex! You absolutely should befriend believers and nonbelievers of both genders, and you should expect any relationship that leads to marriage to begin as friendship. If you are spending lots of time alone with someone, however, then it's time for a DTR.

Advice for College Students Part 1

I recently asked Blake Hudson, a former member at Grace Church and FSU master's student, to share some of the things that he learned during his time in college about how to grow in the "college season" of life. I thought he had some good thoughts so I asked him to type them out. Over the next few posts I will share one or two of thoughts. I think you will find them helpful for you and/or friends.


1. Read a significant portion of the Bible every day. 
    Commit to read several chapters in a purposeful fashion just like you commit to eat in a purposeful fashion (so that you won't die). While God ultimately gives us spiritual life and sustains us by His Spirit even when we don't read every day, we are instructed to read the Word and grow into maturity. The spiritual anemia that results from a lack of reading, studying, and meditating (three different processes!) on Scripture will exponentially reduce your growth and your joy in Christ.

2. Join a healthy church, and go as often as possible.
     Research several churches in the area. Visit at least two or three of them ASAP. Evaluate the healthiness of each church and join the healthiest one. There may be a time later in life when you join a church that is just starting or that is experiencing some major crises to help it grow. This would ideally occur when you are a more mature believer, quite possibly when you have a family, as well.  But your time in college is brief and your wisdom and humility are significantly less-developed than they will be later on in life, so for now you need older men and women to guide you and to keep you accountable as you balance ministry and schoolwork. The most effective ministry you can have is to go to church regularly. This seems backwards, but your ministry is anchored by your presence within the four walls of the church. Once you have established yourself as a member of the church, reaching out to other Christians and to nonbelievers and inviting them to come is much easier and is less awkward for them. When you invite someone to a church in which you are not a member, the likelihood that other people in the church will recognize that you have brought a friend and will reach out to them is significantly decreased because they won't know you that well, either.

How Was Jesus a Friend to Sinners?

Kevin DeYoung has a helpful article on the idea that Jesus was a friend of sinners.This is an important issue to make sure we understand biblically as it is a doctrine which is often abused. It is true that many need to be warned that Jesus did not come for the self-righteous but sinners. However, it is also necessary that, in an age of "tolerance," we are reminded how Jesus was a friend of sinners. There are many who want to think that Jesus loved people too much to care about their sin or to call them to repentance. But this is simply not the case. I encourage you to read DeYoung's whole article. After mentioning several passages which show Jesus associating with sinners, DeYoung draws this conclusion:

Jesus was a friend of sinners not because he winked at sin, ignored sin, or enjoyed light-hearted revelry with those engaged in immorality. Jesus was a friend of sinners in that he came to save sinners and was very pleased to welcome sinners who were open to the gospel, sorry for their sins, and on their way to putting their faith in Him.