Being away from your family and home-church can be a lot for some people. Not being spiritually inclined in some way after going away to college can really affect your college experience in a negative way. This could include your social life, academics and even your mental health. We don’t always realize how essential our spiritual lives can be to us until they’re not being utilized or we can’t exercise our faith the way we want to. The following list includes a few quick tips to help you get spiritually grounded whether you were religious before you left for college or you’re just trying to get started.
- Read Affirmations & Scriptures
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Reading positive quotes, scriptures or affirming words can help you start or end your day on a good note. There are various affirmation websites, books and videos that can help you stay grounded. I would recommend researching Christian affirmations to help you find scriptures to memorize. Simply repeating the same bible verses or small prayer can help you grow closer to God. They get ingrained in your mind and you will be able to carry them with you mentally.
- Keep Your Faith
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Continuing a strong prayer life throughout your college experience will help you to have a strong faith. It’s so easy to lose faith in friends, family, and even yourself when you begin to lose faith in God. You feel as though nothing is going right, the world is coming at you, and nobody even cares. But guess what? God cares! Sometimes when you’re going through things it’s not always about how bad it is, it’s about how God is trying to shape you. Remember when you prayed for patience? Don’t be surprised when God brings people to test you. Or when you prayed for God to bless with something? He may have to take something else away first before the blessing comes to fruition.
- Be Aware of Your Surroundings
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The company you keep is very essential to your walk with God. We don’t always realize how much the people around us impact our decisions and mindset. If your friends constantly want to smoke, drink, and party but you don’t– how do you think that will play out? Especially when it’s you against three or four other people. Peer pressure can happen in more ways than one. When you have Christian friends, they understand the struggle of not wanting to do certain things just as much as you do. You guys can support each other and even pray for each other in those times of need.
Making these small adjustments in your daily routine could be just the beginning for you on your journey with God while in college or it could revitalize the relationship you already had with Him. It can be challenging to adjust to new scenery, people, and a new routine but it definitely doesn’t have to be with these tips in mind.