The transition to college is exciting, but it also can be scary. As a Christian, stepping into what the world calls “the wildest four years of your life” can be overwhelming, to say the least. That said, I’d love to address some common worries you’re probably battling. 

The Fear Factors

Fear of failing

College has the potential to stir-up the fear of failure. Whether on the field or in the classroom, more often than not, we let the fear of failure drive us. But do we ever stop to consider what we’re really fearing? What’s the absolute worst thing that could happen should we ‘fail’?

Seriously, consider your greatest feared failure. Maybe it’s a grade, a lost game or even a lost scholarship. Now grid that against the fact that you are a fully competent, complete winner in Christ, and EVERYTHING else pales. God says He knows you, imagined you and has a precise plan for your life. Do you believe that? If so, trust Him.  

Fear of falling

College is a time of extremes—extreme change, extreme growth, extreme challenge, etc. And most of the time, such extremes lead to extreme falling—falling toward or away from something (discipline, relationships, direction). Two of the most common falling fears are “falling from the top” (of your class, your team, etc.) and, “falling away from friends.” These are valid fears, but also far from insurmountable. (Note: There is a side to falling that isn’t healthy. It’s the side of falling into sin. We’ll touch on that later. The place I want to focus right now is the idea of falling in a good way: falling off our pedestals.

I’d be willing to bet that you’re a perfectionist. You like to be right. You like to be successful. And at all costs, you like to be (or be seen as) perfect. If so, you’ll always fear imperfection. The problem is that if you call yourself a Christian, you have to be willing to admit that you are imperfect. You have to be willing to say to God, “I realize that I’m not enough, nor will I ever be. I can never be good enough, strong enough, pretty enough or smart enough to earn Your favor.” And it’s at this point that you’ll be able to realize that Jesus is your only “enough.” He alone is your Perfection. 

Falling from our pedestals of success, approval, or achievement, might be the best thing that ever happens to us. Only in falling are we able to see that falling badly from our eyes means falling well from God’s, because it’s at this point we’re forced to fall into His arms. We are forced to surrender.

Fear of falling from your faith

This is not a fear to take lightly. An estimated 90% of church-going Christians fall away from their faith during the college transition. Thus, a healthy fear of losing your faith is a good thing. But it’s also one that needs to know great victory. These next four years don’t have to be prodigal years.

I look back on college not just as falling into my faith, but also falling in love with my faith. As with any experience, these years will change your relationship with God. But unlike any experience, college has the potential to grow your relationship with God in a way it has never known. The next four years will bring people, opportunities and encounters you could’ve never imagined. Choose wisely and fall hard into God’s freedom. 

-----------------

As I said at the beginning, the college transition can be scary, but I also said it can be exciting. Fears are realistic, but they’re never too much to bear. I’ve been studying Proverbs lately, and this book provides a great reminder that fear actually can be a good thing. It’s the beginning of wisdom, the path of understanding and the route to knowing God (see Proverbs 1). So if I could, I’d love to offer some advice/Biblical truth/prayer direction that will collide with our hopes and free us from our fears.

The Freeing Factors

Fear God

This is the bottom line and most basic principal to any step on our spiritual journey. When we fear man, we lose. Regardless of the topic (brains, body, boy/girlfriends), we never feel like we’re enough. When we fear man, we never look good enough, run fast enough, or simply are good enough compared to person beside us. God explains that our only hope of being enough is found in Him. By accepting His words, turning our ears to His wisdom and applying our hearts to His understanding, we can understand the fear of the Lord, find the knowledge of God and, thus, ourselves (see Proverbs 2:1-5).

Find community 

Unlike any other stage in life, community is a given in college. Like it or not, you’ll be surrounded by people in your same season. The question though, is whether or not these people will provide a healthy or unhealthy surrounding.

You weren’t meant to experience life alone. And you certainly weren’t meant to experience college alone. If I could offer any advice, it would be to prioritize a search for healthy community early on this fall. This doesn’t mean you’ll find the perfect church or the perfect friends right away, but it does mean you’ll make finding them a possibility. Whether through a local church, campus FCA or hall Bible study, you NEED fellow Christians. Be willing to know and let yourself be known.

Schedule daily time with God 

Call me obvious, but how often do we say this one yet rarely do it? On the flip side, though, how often do we prioritize sleep, working out or studying? If you think about it, it’s because the results of the latter seem more urgent. (If you don’t sleep, you’ll be tired. If you don’t study, you’ll fail.) But if we’re honest, not spending time with God has even more dramatic effects. Whether it be in our attitudes, confidence, joy or trust, spending time with your Creator does make a difference. If you want to enjoy your relationship with Christ, you’ve got to get to know Him. And just as knowing a person takes time, so it is with God. Learn to know Him as Father, Friend and as the Lover of your soul. He wants your time. Give it to Him.

Know your limits—not just with alcohol  

Physically, emotionally, spiritually—we all have limits, or boundaries, under which our bodies, minds and spirits are most effective. Unfortunately, these usually come through retrospective, post-failure epiphanies, but in this case, I’m challenging you to think through your boundaries before taking off this fall. If you get really ambitious, write them down or talk through them with a friend. It may seem cheesy, but it can make all the difference in the next four years of your life. (For a more on this topic, read “Boundaries,” by John Townsend.) 

Be weak 

Essentially, be willing to admit (to parents, friends, teachers, teammates, etc.) that this transition is challenging. One of the best quotes I ever heard was, “People will admire you for being strong, but they’ll love you for being weak.” As athletes, there is a lot in us that wants to be strong, and that is very admirable. But when we finally get to the point of realizing/admitting our weakness, we will be loved, which is what we truly need. 

Love and be loved

I’ll close with this, as it marks the foundation for anybody—college-aged, or not. You were created for love—loving and being loved. Nothing will satisfy you more than the love of God, and nothing will sustain you with less.

Have fun, enjoy God, and let Him make the next four years your most exciting ever!

Abbie Smith graduated in 2003 and is the author of “Keeping Your Faith in College” and its newly released Study Guide (both great for individual and small group use). See www.keepingyourfaith.com for more information.