Balancing Faith & School in a Secular World: A College Kid's Guide

The beginning of a new school year evokes different emotions in everyone. Excitement, fear, stress, and everything in between can be felt as the year kicks off. A new routine means change, and while I’m a big believer in routines, I’m also a fan of changing everything at once to make it easier to adjust. New habits and routines seem easier to implement when you’re already anticipating changes. If you’re struggling with your spiritual walk, now would be the perfect time to make some feasible adjustments to your life so that you can continue to grow as we move into fall. 

To give you some context, I never attended private school and I was never home-schooled. That’s right folks, I attended public school K-12 and am currently attending a public university. While the feelings and controversies surrounding Christian parents sending their kids to public school run the whole gamut, that’s not what I’m discussing today. Instead, I would like to share how my experience with the public school system allowed me to develop a personal plan to ensure that my walk with God was staying intact and share those tips with you. Hopefully, you will walk away with tools to help you build your own hedge of protection as we embark on this… unconventional school year. 

Establish a morning routine with quiet time

The importance of this time cannot be overstated. If you pick a time to solely focus on Bible reading, devotions, and prayer, your day will be better off for it. Planning what you’ll do in advance helps hold you accountable. After all, it’s harder to blow off something you’ve already prepped for yourself. Start a Bible reading plan, go over your prayer list, or start a new devotion book. It’s not easy. Getting started is the hardest part - you’ll be tired and want to sleep, you’ll run late, and all the excuses will quickly flood into your mind. But a morning routine becomes a habit that can set the mood for the whole day.

Use your commute more effectively

How do you get where you’re going? Do you drive, walk, bike, take a bus, or skateboard? Maybe you go solo, maybe you haul kids around to different schools. This year, your “commute” may just be into your home office or kitchen. But whatever your commute looks like, you can transform it into a time to set your heart and mind toward God for the day. It is so easy to get hung up on all the things that need to get done. Instead, listen to worship music, tell God what’s bothering you, and sing praises (out loud or in your heart.) It is so easy to be swept away that we forget to just worship God for who He is.

You’re a duck

The secular world is filled with things that are, well, secular. What else would you expect? You won’t be in it very long before you hear slurs, dirty jokes, and vulgarity spewing from the mouths of your coworkers like sewage. It can be easy to hear those things and let them soak into your soul, slowly distancing you from God. But just remember you’re a duck, and all those things are water on your back. You don’t have to process them and let them cloud your mind. It’s so easy to be dragged down by what we hear on a daily basis. Instead, go through Philippians 4:8, thinking of examples for each from your own life. It will help keep your mind on track!

Pray over your studies

Studying for a big test? Pray over it. Not as a headache thing, but because you want to focus on giving God everything in your life (which school is a part of). It helps build your faith and remind you that school is not the end-all be-all. Praying can give you a peace of mind like no other. God’s still bigger than the boogeyman (and that includes anything school throws your way!)

Time in the Word is never wasted

Sometimes, your Bible study gets pushed to the backburner. I get it, I’ve done it. But even if you’re brain dead from school, know that God sees you trying. God will bless your efforts if you do them with the right intentions. Pray and take some time to read just a little bit of Scripture and make a point to let it marinate in your heart. It may not seem like it does a lot, but it can hide itself in your heart and you don’t even realize it. 

Keep God as your #1 

School can wait. Focusing on God actually makes school easier. It sounds counterintuitive, but when you let God have priority in your day, your week, your life, everything else seems to work itself out. I have time to get things done, and maybe even some time left over. God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him (Hebrews 11:6b). Keep your priorities straight, even when you’re stressed. It saves you a lot of heartache in the end. 

Remember whose kid you are! 

Remember who you represent in a public venue. No matter where you are, you still have a testimony to uphold. The way you operate at school reflects your character. Be the best you can be at whatever station you hold in life. When you embody Chrsitian principles in a secular forum, the world can’t help but take notice. This will open up opportunities to be a light and witness to people - as you should be!

Know the cost

Being a light in a public school is hard and it comes at a price; sometimes physically, but often emotionally. It can drain your spirit to be “on guard” every day, but it helps prepare you for the world of secular work that most people will go into. Public school is a great place to be a witness to people because you’ll encounter the lost everywhere you go. No matter how hard the school system may try, they can’t take your free speech away. Even if they try to stifle that, they can’t take away your testimony. Public school can be the opposite of roses most of the time. You feel like the cards are stacked against you and it’s a constant battle. That’s because it is. But if that’s how you feel, then that must mean you’re doing something right. The world hated Jesus first, so they’ll hate us too (John 15:18).

By no means is this a comprehensive list to success. It’s just a few things I learned over the last decade or more of being a Christian in a dark place. It’s true the school system is worse than it was just a few short years ago when I was still in it. But that just means there’s even more of an opportunity to be a light there. I hope these gave you some motivation and practical ways to implement more healthy habits into your fall routine!