katie stromwall's blog

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My goal is for this not to sound snooty, self-exaulting, opinionated, arrogant or offensive… I hope it actually sounds the opposite. This is just one story. One journey. One life. So I want to humbly share some changes that I feel God has convinced me of in my heart.

A lot has changed for me, spiritually, in the past six years. After taking some classes, investigating what Jesus says, and praying for four years about being baptized by immersion, I felt led by God to be baptized since becoming a true believer in Christ in college.

The biggest paradigm shift that I’ve had is that the bible can be trusted as the Word of God. This doesn’t mean that I take the bible literally for every word, but it means that after reading its messages in the context of who wrote them, who they were writing to, and why they wrote the things they wrote, I can trust it to be the Word of God and a message that should not be changed or added to.

Paul, Silvas, and Timothy wrote a letter to fellow believers in Christ in Thessolonica. Among other things, they praised the Thessalonians: “And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. ” (1 Thess 2:13)

So, as I’ve searched the Word and the contexts that portray how, when, and why baptism takes place, I felt the Lord putting it on my heart to be baptized.

It was really a vulnerable experience wearing a funny robe barefoot and standing in front of friends and family members sharing the work Christ has done in my life. Yet, it was so sweet and humbling to stand there and be laid bare, open in front of people in my life, exposed and real, and literally dripping wet from head to toe.

Baptism through immersion was so significant in my understanding of what happens to our bodies and souls when we believe in Jesus.

Galations 2:20 says “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. The life I now live I live by faith in the son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Baptism represents exactly that- that it is no longer I living, but Christ living in me.

The significance of going all the way under water in baptism by immersion represents death, which we deserve because of our sin, and coming out of the water represents life, which is given to us because of God’s mercy and pardoning of our sin through the work of Christ. It was really amazing to experience a glimpse of what it will be like when God raises us from the dead like Jesus, what it will be like to be made new, holy and perfect, like God.

Coming out of the water did not mean that at that moment, I was filled with the Holy Spirit for the first time. The Holy Spirit has already baptized my heart, so coming out of the water was an expression of the inward work He has already done in my heart. This is one of my favorite ways of how God works- that we don’t need to go through rituals or follow any rules to receive His grace and mercy in our hearts.

Salvation is something outside of our human control. The Holy Spirit can enter a heart at any time that God chooses to awaken it. I love that we cannot control salvation- that it is an act of mercy from God that acts independently of our own knowledge or understanding.

Mark 1:4- 8 says…. “John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

In the bible, repentance had to precede baptism, and I have come to believe through observing the bible that baptism was not the means by which sins were forgiven but rather was a sign indicating that one had truly repented. And, apart from being baptized with water, Christ baptizes us with the Holy Spirit in our hearts.

I don’t think Christ would love me less if I had not gotten baptized because the true baptism in my life took place when He came into my heart. This happened after I genuinely repented to Him, which I believe to be somewhere in my junior year of college. But I am not the ultimate judge of when God got a hold of my heart, He is. So I cannot say exactly when He made a place to dwell in my soul, but I don’t think I ever experienced His peace or what it meant to surrender and trust in Christ until a few years ago. I needed Christ to be something FOR me, and that was something I did not understand previous to college. I perhaps understood intellectually, but not in my heart.

My decision to be baptized was not out of youthful zeal or jumping on board with a popular spiritual bandwagon. Actually, coming from my background it seems rather unpopular or strange. Yet, I am filled with joy and peace to be baptized now that God has truly regenerated my heart! It brings me so much joy to share what an amazing savior He is. If every person I knew could experience the great freedom and joy of knowing Christ, the great help of his Holy Spirit momentarily- I would be constantly rejoicing for them- because Christ completely lifts all of our burdens and restores our brokenness. He allows us to lived unashamed and forgiven- guilt free.

After being baptized, I can see that God knows what He is doing and it is a beautiful and humbling experience to stand as a grown adult and acknowledge that I am a sinner in need of Jesus Christ. My age has nothing to do with my understanding of Jesus- and life experience does not mean I know everything about God. There was a man in his forties who was baptized, and how humbling for him to be laid bare even as a mature adult. This is the authentic work of the Holy Spirit- it comes into each believer’s life at the exact time and way in which God ordains it, independent of our age or former knowledge.

There were about 25 people, friends, family, and fellow church members who came to support me. Other candidates also had many people there to support them. As I stood on the alter dripping and wrapped in a towel over my robe, the people who came to support me all came up to the alter and circled around me (which I was glad for because I was freezing!). They laid their hands on me and prayed, thanked God for me, asked God to help me and to be with me. I cannot describe what this felt like. To feel so many hands embracing me, to hear the joy of fellow believers praise God for His act of mercy in my life, to feel so embraced as a sister in Christ. I realize more and more how important this community of people is in my life. They are the people who I call upon for help and accountability in my life, and to have them there praying was truly humbling. To know that my relationship with God is sustained by a team of people, who remind me of the truth and encourage me, is so uplifting. I am not alone because God has provided His people to walk through this life with me.

I am convinced that God is concerned about the purposes of our hearts much more than our outward religious appearances, which scared me when I was 21 because I knew that the purposes of my heart at their core were jealousy, anger, pride, covetousness, slander, bitterness, and selfish ambition… I knew that most of my actions were motivated by these things. If I’m honest, even my “good” actions were motivated by pride, jealousy, or to gain more spiritual status. So, I took a risk as I prayed to the Lord. I admitted that I was sinful and that I need God to change me.

My journal in August 2006 reads…

God, I Pray…

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139: 23-24)”

And wow is that NOT a small prayer! The Holy Spirit came into my heart at this time in my life in a different way than ever before. He found me when I was journaling, in class, working out, listening to music, reading books and the bible, walking down the street, in the car- I could feel Him guiding me and changing my perceptions of who He was everywhere- it was truly the first time that my life did not feel compartmentalized. I was free to experience God’s grace in my daily life because He drew near to me.

What was significantly different about when I prayed Psalm 139 was that I was actively asking the Lord to help me and to help me fight the sin in my life. Before that, I didn’t care that I was disobedient. I was apathetic. I knew I was breaking God’s commandments, but I didn’t care. I began to care when I was twenty- one. I began to see that I want to learn to love God and to love his ways, but I needed help. It was the first time I wanted to fight sin. Jesus says to his disciples in John 14:15-17 says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. He goes on to tell the disciples that He will still be with them after His death in John 14:26, “But the a Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” Jesus is the Holy Spirit, and He is alive in the hearts of believers. Its amazing that we don’t have to perform a ritual or be anywhere other than in the presence of God- and this can take place anywhere throughout our days.

In my observation of God’s idea of the Holy Spirit is that it is God, but not in visible form. In God’s wisdom, He chose to communicate with our hearts rather than with our eyes, until He comes back or until we meet Him face to face.

The Holy Spirit is…
* the one who helps
* the person who is truthful
* the person who never leaves believers
* the person who dwells in us
* the one who teaches us things
* the one who brings things of Christ to mind
* the one who bears witness of Jesus, allowing us to do the same
* the one who is coming for our advantage
* the one who convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment
* the one who guides us into truth
* the one who magnifies Jesus

He has helped me tremendously since I have begun to trust in Him. Before that, I use to depend on myself because I thought I was a righteous person, a rule follower, and a good person. But, slowly, in college, I realized my weaknesses and that I have no real strength at all. This is what led me to ask the Lord for His help, and He really gave it to me!

He has conquered the passions of my former flesh, the idolatry of my body image, my obession with pleasing people, and he has helped me understand what the gospel truly means! It means that my life is no longer about my performance, but about what God has performed for me and what He will continue to perform through my life. I no longer measure myself based upon standards because Christ is the standard- He was the perfect one. I am not. And I am no longer a slave to what people think of me or even to what I think of me. The peace of Christ rests in me and has made the approval and opinions of people in my life of very small importance. I trust this is what happens when we are trusting in Jesus to stand in our place to remove the judgment of wrath that we deserve. We can trust that His death on the cross was enough, so we no longer have to judge ourselves. The Apostle Paul did not value the opinion or criticism of others or even himself because He was so secure in the promises of God. He said in his letter to the Corinthians in chapter 4:3-5… “But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.”

I realize that there are a lot of differing beliefs about salvation and baptism, and I welcome the thoughts, ideas, and opinions of others. Faith in Christ is a life-long journey, and I rejoice with Christians of all denominations and backgrounds at what Jesus has done on the cross. I feel no barrier from one Christian to another if beliefs about baptism are different. However a person experiences the intimacy, forgiveness, and a new life in Christ is authentic to how God is working in their life, and I rejoice with every brother and sister who has found Christ to be their true treasure, freedom, and joy. I also welcome viewpoints and thoughts of brothers and sisters who do not believe in Christianity and feel genuine love without judgment towards all people in my life. There would be no basis for me to ever judge another soul because I don’t have a higher status than any other person. I am quite an average woman, full of weaknesses and areas to improve in, but there is a power in my life that I cannot describe. It has nothing to do with me and everything to do with Jesus Christ.

I cannot wait to walk on in faith to bring God glory and to see many more come to know Him in this life.

Have you not heard of it?! I was highly unmotivated to walk fifteen minutes (which would have been 30 all together if you count the walk home) in the -30 degree weather today in the literally frozen tundra of Minnesota to the Rec Center, so I chose a new alternative. And I can bet your bottom dollar I will be feeling the burn tomorrow morning when I try to lift my poor muscles out of bed. I did Exercise TV! Its totally free, and I really feel like Cindy Whitmarsh is my friend!

Yes, I did it. I pushed the couch and coffee table aside, perked up my laptop on some pillows and pressed play. Before I knew it, I was doing all crazy kinds of commands from Cindy like leg kicks and arm punches, something called the spider man, and of course…the plank (You know that thing where you fold your hands together on the ground and make your back really straight and your toes touch the ground)… major oucher. Sweat was dripping off me as though I were emerged in the Mississippi River. Cindy told me to work at 100%, so that’s what I did. She also challenged me to do this 30 minutes a day. I just might until these negative temps cease!

I really hope I didn’t freak out the neighbors below us with all of my wild stampeding up here on the third floor of #B8. Whoops. Forgot about those lovely peeps below us.

Exercise TV is the perfect solution to my winter exercise dilemma! I do get myself to the Rec with Nick a few times a week, but I gotta say, we are just WAY more active in the spring and summer. And I seriously dislike having to put on ridiculous amounts of layers just to avoid getting frost-bite on my to-and-fro walks to the Rec and home… the benefits are off the charts!

See, this winter I have gotten trudgy. And maybe a little pudgy? I eat really healthy, but I have had so much trouble getting my behind out the door to walk to the rec. I use to go almost every day, but these negative temps have trapped me inside for too long! I thought I was doomed today… the coldest day EVER… I had a committment to exercise and I was dreading the loooonnnngggg, ccccooooolllllddddd walk- But Then- I heard about exercise TV! Let me tell why its so colossal.

I don’t have to bundle up at all or do the whole take-my-slushy-boots-off-and-put-on-my-tennies routine or fight like a mad woman to get a machine at the overinflated hour of 5pm at the ol’ Rec. I don’t run the risk of being awkwardly stared at or haunted by mirrors reflecting every angle of my body to a room full of people. I just have to move some stuff around, and SHIZAM! I am gettin’ buff in my own apartment!

Everyone- YOU MUST TRY EXERCISE TV! If you are crunched for time or have the winter blues like me- its amazing! I don’t recommend this be the only form of exercise because I do think its a ton more fun to run or workout with other people, but for the days where you just need to squeeze something in or don’t want to go out in the winter frozen land, I’d give it two thumbs up!

And Cindy Whitmarsh rocks. After certain body movements that are really hard, she likes to say, “Oh, I love that one!” which in turn makes me feel like I love it too. K. Now get off your bum and try this! I recommend the “Less is More” workout. Its only 30 minutes. You can do it. Just click http://www.exercisetv.tv/ and you wont regret it.

Get ready to jump, flail, kick and sweat!

Cheers to your FREE workout!

This past Christmas Season was my favorite yet. Spending it with my husband for the first time and feeling hungry for more than just a holiday experience made it different than ever before. I’m not saying I didn’t get caught up in the negotiables of Christmas- you know- Christmas cookies, gifts, traveling, putting up the tree, etc. But there are non-negotiables on Christmas. Things that simply HAVE to be a part of it, or else it is just merely a holiday experience and not truly celebrated.

I can have a lifetime of wonderful Christmas experiences, but its not truly celebrated unless it dawns upon my soul that this holiday marks the first time in history that God chose to show us how understanding he is of us. He didn’t just rule from his throne, which he could have done, but he made himself one of us. He dwelt among us… had to be nursed, changed, raised as a child, adolescent, and young adult. It is quite possibly the greatest act of humility that God ever chose to carry out, save for his death on the cross. An all powerful and all-knowing king made himself a helpless baby to show us all his understanding of mankind.

We are not foreign to him. He can sympathize with all our temptations and all our needs. This reality hit me on Christmas Day. I was listening to cheesy Christmas music (which sometimes makes me want to gag) on the way to the Vanderheyden Family get together. Normally, I am preparing for intense social interaction on the way to these large family functions, but this year I was driving along in the Christmas madness with tears in my eyes completely detached from the Christmas experience and completely swept away in the Christmas reality- the reality that God did something he didn’t have to do, but he chose to make himself one of us, to actually live with us. Dwelling upon this act of mercy made it the most satisfying Christmas I can remember.

So, now its January. I was out of town for about two weeks celebrating Christmas with Nick’s family and then we spend a week in Milwaukee for the annual Christmas Conference put on by Campus Outreach. Our theme this year was “Free.” Nearly four hundred students came, and we had a blast. I learned too much to write about in this entry, but I am going to make it a goal to post about MCC08 this week. The most amazing part of the conference was seeing twenty new college students come to know Christ for the first time. Their lives have been eternally changed. The best part was seeing college students being transparent and real, acknowledging their sin and finding freedom to fail and to be accepted no matter what because God is merciful.

But, like I said, its January. Its real life again. Its working full time again. Its still negative temperatures outside. Its still dark by 5pm and not light until 8am (That’s a lot of darkness!). There is no more Christmas music (sort of a good thing!), and it would be weird if I started baking Christmas cookies post- Christmas. This is the time of year most northerners probably dread the most. I want to continue to experience joy and happiness because of the light of Christ who is in the world and alive in my heart, but I often get down during this season. As I drove to work today, I fought to tell myself… this is just a season.

Its also easy to have a wonderful and intimate experience worshipping God with believers at conferences and be totally impacted by the testimonies of students and the messages from the speakers. In fact, I think the talks given were some of the best I’ve heard at a conference. Conferences are really like a glimpse of heaven… being surrounded by worshippers praising God for his mercy and kindness… living apart from the bondage of worldly expectations… feeling total freedom to open up to others and share life. A lot of students don’t even have the time to evaluate life, much less evaluate their beliefs about God. So, it’s a beautiful experience for students (often bogged down from the weight of school and pressures of life) to come and just take a break. To come to an environment where the world is shut out and they can be surrounded by a community who does not judge them or hold expectations for them. They are free to come as they are and learn about their identity.

Christmas Conference is definitely a mountain top experience. It is a spiritual high, but the sad part is that for some, it is just a high and that’s it. Its not a life change or a catalyst for further growth, just simply another life experience to tag onto the endless years of summer bible camps. I’ve been to enough Christmas conferences and Christian events to know what happens right after they end. We go back to real life and often times, we go back to old patterns and relationships that don’t help us grow closer to Christ at all. We don’t know our own weaknesses or vulnerability to sin. We don’t know its creeping around the corner at just the right moment to attack us when we leave the mountain top.

We quickly forget the boldness and freedom we felt to worship God and talk freely to others about who He is. We come home and stick ourselves right back into the blender. We turn it on and blend until we cannot be seen. We don’t turn the blender off. We just keep blending. To not stand out. To not claim any beliefs. To just mix in. We push God’s promises far away and seek only to “fit in” with our fellow fruits(peers, families, culture, etc).

But in the back of our minds, we remember our hands lifted in praise, we remember that late night authentic conversation, that day at the coffee shop when we sat around and talked about life, fears, doubts, and God without ridicule, without feeling awkward, without persecution. We remember the tears that came to our eyes as we sang about Christ, we remember the fun and silliness. We remember how our desires changed. We remember how we saw the freedom in some of our peers… and we longed for it. We remember the commitments we made, the hope we found, the love and acceptance we experienced.

But now, its January. We’re home. Our old friends and family members are calling us, asking us to do the same things we did before, placing invisible pressures on us and expecting that we are the same person we were before. But the truth is that we aren’t the same anymore. We have been eternally changed. But will we ever admit that? Maybe we’re too scared, but the truth is, we aren’t the same at all. We want something more than this provincial life. We are now on a teeter-totter of living for the world or living for Christ. We have been challenged to let go of false securities, to behold Christ as a greater treasure than internships, jobs, school work, pleasing parents and peers, etc. We’re coming off of the mountain top, and I’d be willing to bet nearly half of the students from conference are now in a valley (if they’re anything like me!). We thought we could be strong on our own, but we’re so weak, we’ve already slid down the entire mountain and are on our faces in the valley. Some of us will survive. Some of us wont.

Some of us were really changed, and the conference wasn’t just a social shin-dig. There is no going back for us. Some of us couldn’t stand to go back to the old, unsatisfying lives we were living because we’ve experienced the tasteless emptiness and have been unsatisfied for way too long. But we don’t often realize that we have no way out of the old temptations without God’s faithfulness and without community and His Word to help us fight.

Some of us will go home and just continue blending in with the patterns and traditions of society and continue seeking the most praise from people that we can. Others of us cannot stand this anymore. We’ve lived for it for so long and have experienced its empty rewards. We cannot keep living like this, where we feel zero freedom and complete bondage to the expectations of other people. We have to get that job to impress… we have to go to that party and get wasted to be cool… we have to be X amount of pounds to be pretty… we have to build our resumes so that we get hired… we have to shove our beliefs about God under a rug so that people like us… we have to get our life plan in order… pretend we are always doing ok…

Let me tell you something. The day I surrendered all of that anxiety to Christ and told Him I was willing to give up my life to follow Him, I have never felt FREEER. I have never felt MORE productive and purposeful. I have never felt so satisfied. I no longer live to meet the expectations of friends or family whom I love dearly. I live to be satisfied in my relationship with Christ alone. I live to show others His grace and mercy. I don’t live for fame or success or praise from anyone. I live in the freedom that I’m totally accepted by Christ because he has lived perfectly for me and he has canceled my record of debt (Colossians). When I surrendered everything I thought I knew, all of my doubts and fears, and trusted Christ to lead me, you’ll never believe how my life began to fall into place! I met my husband, began singing and playing guitar more, I found awesome jobs, and God provided for me financially and relationally with great friends and a great church. I knew God’s promises, but I also had to let go of my low-risk life and begin to pursue spiritual growth with everything I had.

I was not partial anymore to who God was, I threw my entire heart and soul into knowing Him more. Some people in my life thought I was turning into a freak, but would I rather have their approval or an all-satisfying relationship with Christ? Losing a few people’s praise and friendship really doesn’t feel like a loss at all in comparison to how many friends and how much joy I’ve gained from knowing Christ. I love and care for these friends deeply and hope that they too will find joy Christ. I am learning to rest in not feeling total approval of everyone and its so sweet to relish in the satisfying friendships that I do have.

It’s a harsh reality to say that we can’t be the ones to decide if we will survive or not when we are in the valley. That really depends on the people we are surrounded with. Its like entering a war without an army if we just go back to the same crowds who influence us away from Christ. We are alone. We don’t have a chance at changing. But if we prioritize our relationships and who we spend time with, we just might be a survivor. We may have a chance at conquering the war if we have the army of believers and God’s strength. We maybe able to break away from our sinful patterns of living, but its not going to be easy. We may have to make some different decisions, but if we are following Christ, we will delight in making decisions that glorify Him! If we aren’t following Christ, we’ll see no need for change and it would seem pretty koo-koo to do things differently.

Would we be willing to become that one college student who lives a little differently than the mass crowds? Ok… this “one student” is starting to sound really weird to their friends probably and to the rest of the world… maybe even to their families. But this one student is also the one student who is breaking free. This one student is finding true life and reality in Christ. This one student will be satisfied and filled up, rather than temporarily happy and puffed up. Their reward is in heaven, and it will be unbelievable.

Lest this one student sound better than others, let me assure you they aren’t. They are just living for something different, something more freeing. Who I was before I knew Christ was not anything like the “one college student.” I didn’t value sexual purity. There are certain people in my life that I had to have a beer (or more) around every time I hung out with them because that’s how I could gain their approval. I had to go to parties to maintain my social status. I had to primp myself a little extra if I were around the opposite sex. I acted like whoever I hung out with so that I could be accepted. I didn’t go to church every Sunday. I sure as Jamaica didn’t read the bible. I cared unbelievably about success and having titles to my name. Then, I met the real God. The real God who accepts me if I am trusting in Christ. Who accepts me weather I am a success or a failure. And let’s be honest, I am a failure daily- a failure as a friend, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a child of Christ, etc. But I’m ok with that! I’m free to admit it! It means nothing about my identity in Christ. I am not loved any less.

To be “that one student”… is not to say that we can’t hang out with certain people- that would be totally unbiblical. Jesus Christ hung out with tax collectors and sinners. He spent most of his time with his disciples, teaching them about the mysteries of God and sharing his life by example with them. He was fed and nourished in the community of believers. This enabled him to go out into the world and befriend prostitutes, tax collectors, and sinners.

What’s interesting about Jesus is that he is a lot harsher to the religious leaders than he is with prostitutes, tax collectors, and sinners (Read the book of Matthew!). Jesus is more angry at the people who “practice” religion and have an outward appearance of obedience, but they love their own glory more than God’s (Definitely the old me!). Their practicing of religion makes them seem better than everyone. It makes them wealthier than everyone because they used the church as a marketplace. I don’t know the historical account of this, but I imagine it was something like using the church’s profit for their own personal lives rather than for the kingdom of God. Jesus is furious at this false example of following Christ. He yells at these people. He’s furious at pretending, outward appearances.

But he is gentle, kind, and compassionate to the beggars, the outcasts, the prostitutes. These people are poor and needy and repentant. When Jesus reveals himself to them, they believe. The religious leaders come face to face with the son of God and do not believe at all. They are the ones who supposedly read the bible and have all of the knowledge of the prophesy of Christ coming into the world, yet they see him and do not believe. They crucify him instead.

So, I ask myself… will I be a pretender? A two-face? A hypocrite? By God’s grace, he will protect me from becoming like the religious leaders he was so angry with. After reading the book of Matthew, I am convinced that I have only two options in life: To follow Christ or not. To follow Him is not to be taken lightly. I either completely surrender control, pray for His will to be done in my life, and let go of old bondage of sin, or I try to live for the world and for Christ- which is basically not truly living for Christ. The scary part is that the choice I make will lead to eternal life or eternal death.

If Jesus is a lunatic or a liar, then all of this is hocus-pocus nonsense. Our pursuits of Christianity are in vain. But I believe that what he says is true and that it may heap up persecution and trial in this life, but it keeps me hoping for the day that it all will end. The day that I will live in complete satisfaction and glory with my God forever. If I choose to follow Him, to let Him be the author of my entire life, it wont be easy, but it will be worth it!

The journey of following Christ has just begun for many new students as it did for me 3 years ago. I fear for them like I fear for myself. I am prone to wander, prone to worship people, marriage, job titles, money, what people think of me, physical beauty and success rather than God. My prayer is that these students would be stronger than me! That they would be sustained by God’s grace and strength and empowered by Christ to live differently than they were living before- differently than I lived most of college. I pray that they would not be ashamed to share their experience of knowing Christ to the friends and family in their lives. If they really are hoping in Christ, would they be willing to die to themselves and find true life in the life of Christ?

May Christ be glorified in the lives of the survivors! May their Christ- experience NOT be just a season, but a a lifetime!