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Four Ways Prayer Can Help Guide You Through College

In college, so much is at stake. Earning a degree provides opportunities to learn about yourself, the world, and your place in God's plan. At once, the need for a life guided by prayer becomes more urgent, but you find yourself with seemingly less time to devote to feeding yourself spiritually.

So when the rigors of class threaten to rob you of the peace of bended knees, remember these four ways prayer can help guide you through college.

1. Find God's Career for You

In college, pray that God will lead you to the calling He's chosen for you.

Whether you're leaving mom and dad's house for the first time or pursuing a second career, you should devote time in college to discerning what God has planned for you. Sorting through the possibilities for meaningful work and a meaningful life requires you to be rooted in God's leadership. How will you know where God means for you to be without your asking Him...every day?

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11.

2. Manage the Stresses of College Life

In college, pray for God's peace.

Maybe you're juggling life in a new city, countless new friends and ways to find fun, a roster of engaging coursework, and questions about how your life will speak to a broken world. Or maybe you're juggling a job, children, and a marriage while finding time for that online college course.

In either case, college will bring new stresses along with new opportunities. And only God's peace found through prayer can restore your soul. When you feel as though you don't have the strength to deliver all that college asks of you, remember: you don't need to rely on your own strength – you may rely on God's.

3. Draw Near to God's People

In college, pray that God leads you to people who will draw you closer to Him and His purposes for you.

Your college relationships are among the most important you'll form in your life. To make the most of the time spent earning your degree, you'll need a team of colleagues and mentors to help you see clearly where God is leading you, to lift you up when you need a lift.

But in addition to emotional support, the relationships you make in college can greatly affect your career. Your college connections can lead you to opportunities you may never have dreamed possible. Both professors and fellow students can open doors and make introductions that will change your life.

God knows your every need as well as where in the world you could be of the most use. Have faith that God has chosen those who will enlighten and lead you while you pursue your education. Pray that you find those people.

For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them. Matthew 18:20.

4. Set Your Heart on Fire

In college, pray for passion.

Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." Your college experience, whether on campus or online, should not break your spirit, but rather fill your soul.

The world aches for loving Christian leaders to come to its aide, and the right college will not only equip you to meet the world's needs, but also fuel your passion to serve.

No matter how deep the wound you mean to heal, no matter how high the mountain you mean to climb, no matter how cynical the doubt you mean to erase, you will find no greater tool in your ministry than a heart set afire in prayer.

Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20.