On your way to college?

So you're headed to college, huh? That's an exciting time. There's lots of things you'll learn quickly, like:

• After you meet your roommates, you'll realize why they told you to bring shower shoes.
• The "Freshmen 15" is not a myth. Give those cuties you met at orientation a 16-week wait to see what 3 lbs. of chicken fingers a day will do.
• Your room does not clean itself. At home I have this thing that sweeps up, does laundry, and eliminates all messes automatically. I called it Mom. Turns out they don't sell it at Wal-Mart.
• You want to be ambitious your first semester and wake up early and pick early classes. That lasts all of...one semester.
• That thing you were good at in high school? There's about 3,700 people majoring in it who are better at it than you.
• You thought being 10 hours away from home wouldn't be too bad until you watch your parents leave to make the trip home without you.

You're going to be exposed to new faces, unfamiliar places, fresh ideas—yet it's easy to get caught just following the crowd. College is tough sometimes. It can be a very lonely place, especially for a Christian. Several recent studies show that about 70% of Christian freshmen heading off to a secular college fall away from their faith in less than 16 weeks! They probably thought they had everything under control. But with new temptations, antagonistic professors, and unexpected peer pressures, they became just another statistic.

We believe you were made for something bigger than that. We want you to experience God in ways you never imagined. We don't want you to just survive college; we want you to thrive. You have an opportunity to make a difference that will last for eternity.

Let me give you my top 3 tips for making sure college is a great experience for you: