Archive - 2017

1
Wait! It Actually Meant Something?
2
Concerts and Kingdoms
3
I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas
4
Faithfulness to All Generations
5
It’s Okay to Go to Counseling
6
Give Blood—Play Rugby!
7
Beauty in Monotony
8
Orientation Week: Do Everything
9
Your Grades Don’t Define You
10
College Builds Confidence

Wait! It Actually Meant Something?

Coming back from a semester abroad is fraught with difficulties and joys. One of the hardest things is being asked: “What was your favorite part?” I spent three months in Belfast, Northern Ireland, living with 19 other JBU students. I traveled all over the country, spent a weekend in London, and then went to Edinburgh, Scotland on my own for five days at the end of the semester. How am I supposed to choose my favorite part? I loved all of it! My favorite part was, quite literally, absolutely everything. During the semester we were privileged to have JBU professor[…]

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Concerts and Kingdoms

This weekend was one for the books. Let me preface by saying that my favorite band by far is a group called NEEDTOBREATHE. I have been following them and their music for a long time, and have always loved it. Some controversial businessmen-politicians might refer to my fandom as being “YUGE.” So one could infer that I was pretty ecstatic to see them live in concert for the first time last Friday night in Oklahoma City. The trip down was an adventure in itself. After rushed astronomy tests, missed gas stations, hazardous U-turns, and fine dining at Raising Cane’s Chicken[…]

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I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas

As a missionary kid, I’m proud of my Guatemalan history. I love tamales, frijoles negros, freshly made corn tortillas (flour tortillas are a sad replacement), and the fireworks we light on Christmas Eve. I love going home and walking up the tile stairs to my room, walking through the patches of warm sunlight, being in the same house I spent the majority of my childhood in. The cracks in the wall are familiar to me, and being in that house is so comfortable. Even the smells are like old friends, unlike the foreign smells of the United States and JBU.[…]

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Faithfulness to All Generations

Late last night, I sat down at my desk to finally complete an assignment for my Old Testament class that should have been done much earlier. The assignment was to read the Abraham story (Genesis 12-25) and the accompanying textbook pages, and then answer a few reflection questions over them. My plan was to get this done quickly and move on with my day. Fortunately, God had something else in mind. Although I have read this story many times in the past, I think I have often failed to fully grasp it. I have always viewed Abraham as a hero,[…]

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It’s Okay to Go to Counseling

My sophomore year, I realized I needed professional help; yet, I was terrified and ashamed to admit it. Only after my roommate informed me that he was attending counseling did I gird myself, take a deep breath and finally go. I’m just going to get it out in the open: it’s okay to admit you need counseling. There’s a strange stigma of shame and embarrassment that people associate with counseling. I, for one, definitely felt that way in the beginning of my counseling journey. My counseling experience has been nothing short of excellent. My counselor listened well and offered encouragement[…]

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Give Blood—Play Rugby!

When you have three hostile ruggers converging on you, don’t just stand still with the ball. Run! Trust me on this one, okay? Rugby is not one of those games conducive to pensiveness and careful thought. It’s a game of explosive intensity, fearless aggression and full trust in teammates. You never stop moving, gaining ground or fighting back. College is the time to try things, to stretch your horizons and delve deep into relationships, ministries, classes, athletics and overseas study abroad adventures. At JBU, there are so many opportunities to try new things and to be involved. Some experiences will help[…]

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Beauty in Monotony

At two a.m. on Thursday morning, it finally set in. I typed the last word on my English homework, snapped my MacBook shut, and felt relief rush over me with the thought, It’s over. This relief lasted a full two seconds, replaced quickly by the realization, I have to get up and do it all again in 5 hours. At this moment, college became real to me. And not a good real. The pomp and circumstance of Orientation were over, and the grind had begun. As I thought it through, my predicament only became worse. There would be no end[…]

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Orientation Week: Do Everything

“I don’t know how we met,” I say, looking at one of my best friends. We’re en route to our dorm, walking together after a meal in the cafeteria. There’s a slight pause and then Hannah responds, “Yeah, I have no idea. It was during orientation at some point.” Ah, yes. Orientation week. I have some very distinct memories of orientation week—sitting in one of the art buildings figuring out my schedule, walking the longest possible way to Hutch in order to buy a book, sitting with my O-group under a tree, and somehow finding and hanging out with the[…]

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Your Grades Don’t Define You

“Your grades don’t define you.” The words were written on the whiteboard of my advanced composition class the morning after we turned in our first assignment. The professor explained that we were all defined thousands of years ago by God and our grades shouldn’t define us. I immediately agreed with this statement, though it’s still hard to completely accept. I don’t let my grades define me, but I know that these letters are an important part of how I view myself. I see myself as the person who always gets straight A’s and, if I don’t achieve that goal, it[…]

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College Builds Confidence

Before coming to JBU, I was a very shy person and didn’t like starting conversations with new people. Studying communication at JBU has helped me get over my shy nature in so many ways. In my first semester, I took news writing and reporting, a class required for my major. The first assignment was to write a man-on-the-street story, which required me to go up to random people and ask their opinions on student voting. I was told not to use my friends or even acquaintances for this assignment—just strangers. I was so freaked out that I even considered dropping the class because[…]

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