It’s that time of year again. Graduation!
At Riverside where I’m blessed to preach we recently celebrated our seniors as they prepare to graduate from high school & go to college. May is a busy month for so many families as we go to graduation parties, Senior Sundays, graduation ceremonies & the like. It’s such a great way for us mark this moment in time remind these students that they have a crowd of people who love them & are cheering them on!
In my former life I was a Student Minister. Consequently I have a huge heart for student ministers, for teenagers & their families. And through the years I’ve noticed some things that seem to be true of those students who “make it” when it comes to graduating from high school but not graduating from God.
There’s been so much research in recent years & so much conversation about why our kids are leaving the church after they graduate from high school. I don’t have all the answers, & there are people much smarter than me that can speak intelligently into that concern… People like Kara Powell, Christian Smith, Chap Clark, Reggie Joiner & so many others.
But I can offer some observations for students who are about to head off to college. I’ve just noticed that these things seem to be true in the lives of the students who I know that entered into these formative college years & saw their faith grow instead of vanish.
5 Quick Tips for Graduating Seniors:
1. Friends Matter
Choose your friends wisely. They say, “You are who you’re with.” I believe that’s true. One of the most important things you can do right off is to choose your friends. Decide who you want to spend the majority of your time with.
I’m not saying don’t be friends with those who need Jesus. Absolutely, we all need people in our life we are trying to encourage. But gravity is real. It’s so much easier to be pulled down than it is to be pulled up. So keep that in mind!
Of all the students I’ve ever known who went to college & saw their faith in Jesus grow had a group of people who were following Jesus around them. We need all need friends of faith who can encourage us.
Make sure you’ve got a good circle of friends who are following Jesus with you.
[Tweet “You are who you’re with. So choose friends wisely.”]2. Find a faith family fast
One of the best things you can do is find a church that you can call home when you’re at college.
Again, I’ve known a lot of students who have church hopped through their collegiate career. I get it. Different churches offer different things, different experiences. Some even offer free meals for college kids if you come on a certain night to their devo! Play your cards right & you can get a good home cooked meal once or twice a week! Or at least some free pizza!!
But there’s something about choosing a faith family to be a part of, there’s something about choosing to be under the spiritual leadership of a group of Shepherds, there’s something about accountability & someone missing you if you’re not there on a given Sunday.
My observation is that those students who choose a church, a faith family to invest in, serve with, grow with, experience a growing faith in college.
[Tweet “Choosing a faith family to be a part of makes a difference in your faith.”]3. Remember what comes first
There is no substitute for your time with God.
College is a busy time. There’s always something to do with friends, classes to go to, assignments to turn in & so much more. But in the middle of all the frenetic activity, maybe the most important thing you can do each day or each week is to spend a few minutes in the presence of God.
Pico Iyer said in his book, The Art of Stillness, that… “in an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than sitting still.” I believe that may be true. And that when you take time over time to be still before God, something changes. And that something is you.
There’s simply no way to shortcut spiritual growth. Just like a plant needs time in the sun to grow, you need time in the Light of God’s presence to grow.
[Tweet “When you take time over time to be still before God, your faith will grow.”]4. Find Someone to Help You, Someone to Talk To & Someone to Speak Into
Here’s another observation about many of the students I’ve known who have seen their faith grow in significant ways in college.
First, they have someone helping them. A mentor of sorts. Someone older who they can go to, confide in & seek godly counsel. Someone who is down the road a bit & already been where you are in a sense. We all need someone to call on for advice & help. Having a mentor to call on can be a game changer.
But you also need a friend. Sometimes you just need someone to talk things out with. Not someone to solve the problem or fix anything, but someone to process with who has your best interest at heart. Back to number 1, having a godly friend or friends to talk things through & give you godly encouragement are so important. Having the opposite can be devastating.
And last, I’m a true believer that we all need to have someone we can speak into as well. Someone we can help, we can serve, we can walk alongside. If your college life is all about you & not at all about others, that’s a recipe for disaster. So find a way you can help someone else, someone younger than you & give yourself away. It’s often when we serve that our problems seem to diminish & we find the most joy in life.
[Tweet “We all need someone to help us, someone to talk to & someone to speak into.”]5. Call Your Mom
Maybe the most important thing you can do is CALL YOUR MOM!
Mother’s Day is coming up, so I couldn’t leave this off! But seriously, don’t forget to check in with he woman who gave you life & raised you. She’ll never forget it & you’ll never regret it. Plus, mom’s have a spiritual gift for keeping us out of trouble & reminding us about what matters most. You’ll need that!
[Tweet “Mom’s keep us out of trouble & remind us what matters most.”]Go & Be Blessed!
You’re going to love these next few years as you head off to college! My sincere prayer is that you will grow in your faith in more ways than you could ever imagine. In the words of one of my favorite prayers ever prayed, this is my prayer for you…
“When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”
– Paul’s prayer for his friends in Ephesus
Ephesians 3.14-19
For more of what I’ve written on the idea of passing on our faith to the next generation, click here.
