Do the Hard Stuff

     College is hard. I’m not going to lie. Yes, the school work is a little more difficult and the teachers are just as hard as the ones in high school, but life… Life is hard. As student heading into her second semester of college, I already know some of the choices I have to make. Which friends to keep and which aren’t sharpening me to be better for His kingdom. Where is that line between safe and too far? What does God want me to do? Maybe those questions were expected, but I also struggle with, “God…what is your standard? Where do my lines, morals, and beliefs need to be?”
I have beautiful and wonderful friends. I cherish the relationships that I make, but recently I have been convicted of what I am surrounding myself with on a daily basis. Proverbs 27:17 says this:

"As iron sharpens iron, so another person sharpens the other.”

     When I reflect on who it is that I want to be and what I want my life to reflect, I innately know that Christ is the ultimate picture of beauty that I want to portray. But surrounded by people, who, although may be nice aren’t Christians, how is that reflection made clear?
     I have to choose daily who’s team I am on. Youth leaders and motivational speakers make it seem so easy to just choose God when asking that question. At the big youth rally, everyone, almost unanimously shouts, “GOD'S TEAM!” Tell me. Is it God’s team that you’ve chosen when you choose to ignore that shy girl alone at the lunch table? Is it God’s team when you choose to employ a spirit of timidity. I pray that this isn’t the team that I signed up for. I want to bold for my God and I want to sport my team colors proudly every single day so that others know, “Hey, that chick is for Jesus.”

“Hey, that chick is for Jesus.” 

If you see me, ask me and challenge me. See if I am showing God’s team colors that day. Hold your friends accountable and make a stand for what you believe in. If you haven’t started seriously thinking about God and why it is exactly that you believe in Him, I strongly encourage you to do so.

If you have no idea who this God is that I’m talking about, and you want to ask any questions, please comment. I can’t guarantee that I will know the answer, but I can promise you that God will help me find someone who can help point us both in the right direction. Nothing is too petty to ask and I beg you to at least find out more.

Blessings of the Risen Christ to you all.

M