There's A Place For Us.

Lately, it has come to my vivid attention that we go through all sorts of stages in our lives. When we are little, all we can think about it ourselves and the things that we want...I'm hungry, I'm tired of this show, she stole my tricycle. Then we become a little more aware of the needs of the people around us and we begin to show them that we care...I love you, here's a big sloppy kiss, I made you a mud pie. We enter school and we are bombarded by the thousands of very strong personalities we encounter in our kindergarten class...some people thrive and some people retreat. And even though we slowly mature all through elementary and middle school, the kindergarten dynamic remains relatively unchanged...we all desire to be that person that is deemed worthy of being considered someone's friend...we want to find people that we feel comfortable around, who (though we don't realize it) will probably shape our behaviors. This is the period of time when most Christians are saved and begin their new life in Christ, though there are many realization points along the way.

"God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago." --Ephesians 2:8-10.

And then we enter high school, where we are in classes with people whom we have never gone to school with before. We try to "be ourselves" while still hoping that people will like us, and find only seldom success. The problem is this: we are still being influenced by the idea that we obtained when we were younger, that our needs and wants are more important than meeting other peoples' needs and wants, though God has adequately equipped us to do the latter. High school, where everyone's ideas collide. We feel like there has to be more depth to the relationships that are formed there. Sadly enough, even the strongest Christians can be negatively influenced by the apathy and selfishness around them, because it has a permeating effect. High schoolers, for some reason, become much too concerned with what is expected of them according to society. I don't know what it is about the high school environment that makes it so different from college...maybe it's a mixture of some people wanting to grow up too fast and some people wanting to stay young forever...both thinking that they have learned all there is to know in life. This is normally when the grain is separated from the chaff...and, sadly, many of the people who committed their lives to Christ when they were younger forget their first love and instead run to fleshly desires for "satisfaction."

"Don't be selfish; don't try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don't look out for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too." --Philippians 2:3-4.

Then there is college...a breath of fresh air (normally). Where people grow and mature exponentially if they commit themselves to it. Where they can actually become the adults that God created them to be if they listen to His leading. I would venture to say that college is where most people find their identity in Christ...where they can truly be accepted for who they are. I think it has to do with moving away from home and learning how much responsibility it takes to live on our own. And then there comes a time when God shifts our focus and makes us realize that we do not belong in this stage of life anymore...that He has something better waiting for us. When everything is stripped away from us and all that we have known is suddenly miles away, we should realize the comfort that Christ has always tried to provide for us, though we were too stubborn to recognize and accept it when we were living our lives for ourselves.

"We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps." --Proverbs 16:9.

There's a place for us. And though it might take what seems like way too long for God to tell us where that place is, we still trust Him and know that He is taking care of us.