As Christians, we’re called to live all our lives coram Deo, before the face of God. What should that look like for a college student?
Faith
Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls. (Jer. 6:16)
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Tim. 3:14–15)
If you’ve been blessed to come from a Christian home, praise God for that heritage. But even if you haven’t, the ancient paths provide guardrails to secure your greatest happiness in this world. God is not some kind of cosmic killjoy. All scriptural prohibitions are designed to enhance, promote, and maximize our joy in this life and the one to come.
In your college years, build spiritual habits that will become instincts: Begin each day with God, praying honestly about the struggles and challenges you anticipate. Take in a few chapters of God’s Word though a Bible reading plan. Ask God to illuminate the truths of what you’re reading so that you can put it into practice. Regularly attend the services at a Bible-believing church and take the time to forge at least a few real friendships there.
Notice how much time the Apostle Paul spends at the end of his letters greeting the saints by name (Rom. 16), in some cases speaking into the challenges they were facing (Phil. 4:2). The Bible knows nothing of a lone ranger Christian. In the New Testament, being a Christian and belonging to the visible church were synonymous (Heb. 10:25). So, it must be the same for us if we are to withstand the temptations toward worldliness in our day.
When you encounter new ideas that challenge the credibility of Christianity and the Bible, know that others have wrestled with those same challenges. Seek help from your pastors, parents, and other wise individuals whenever necessary. You will become stronger for having wrestled through these matters for yourself.
Academics
Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. (1 Tim. 4:12)
Take ownership for how you spend your time, for the effort you exert in class and out of class, and for your attitude toward the learning process. Work heartily unto the Lord (Col. 3:23). Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might (Eccl. 9:10). God calls us to love Him with all our minds, so aim for excellence without idolizing perfection.
In the scientific and mathematical fields, we’re invited to seek God’s thoughts after Him. Just as God sends rain to the just and unjust, He showers Christians and non-Christians alike with rationality and reasoning skills by which they can discover the patterns that God has ordained for our flourishing. Similarly, in the study of history, literature, music, or philosophy, the truths, goodness, and beauty we encounter find their origin in the same triune God.
It’s not within your power to determine your grades. It is in your power to prepare: attend class regularly and punctually, pay attention, take notes, do your homework, and study the key concepts until they make sense to you at a deep level. When you do this, your grades will take care of themselves—and God will use those grades as markers of your skill level, leading you into certain lines of work, and perhaps out of other lines of work. You don’t need a perfect GPA to rest in the satisfaction that you honored God by making the greatest use of the intellectual faculties with which He’s entrusted you.
If success comes more easily for some of your classmates, don’t let it provoke you to envy. Be genuinely happy and willing to learn from them. They may be working smarter if not harder than you. Have enough humility to get help when you need it, both from other students and from your professors. That said, don’t measure yourself by comparison to others. Rather, with God’s help, strive to be the best version of yourself. We are each accountable to steward the talents we’ve received, not the talents of others.
Friendships
Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise,
but the companion of fools will suffer harm. (Prov. 13:20)
You will become like your closest friends. Therefore, choose wisely. We rub shoulders with all kinds of people in class, on teams, and in part-time jobs—and that’s fine. But choose as your closest companions those who have an iron-sharpening-iron effect on your joy in all that God is for you in Christ. Choose those who strengthen your convictions rather than weaken them. Choose those who share your deepest values and worldview rather than oppose them. Only then will your life be marked with the spiritual vitality that influences your non-Christian friends for their good.
Every day is a chance to make the most of this unique season of training. A thousand little decisions will shape who you become. But don’t be paralyzed with fear about making wrong choices. As you obey God’s revealed will—given to us in the pages of Scripture—the Holy Spirit will renew your mind so that your decisions increasingly flow from rightly ordered affections. It is also good to cultivate relationships with older, wiser Christians who can speak into your life.
The choice of a major, a summer job, and where to live are the kinds of decisions we can make with prayer and an honest assessment of the pros and cons. There’s often more than one reasonable answer. We don’t have to fear missing God’s will—He wants us to follow Him more than we do. He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it (Phil. 1:6). Stumbles will invariably come, but God will work even those for your ultimate good (Rom. 8:28).
Ligonier Ministries