How do we help students to take steps of faith?
I think it’s a big part of what we do.
I think it plays a HUGE role in helping students to make their faith their own…
But how do we get them there?
How do we help students move from:
- doubting the leading of God,
- fearing how,when, where, why and in what context God might want to use them, and
- needing to control absolutely everything in their lives
to living lives that:
- seek the LORD always,
- trust in God, and God’s plan, fully and
- walk faithfully in every circumstance
While we cannot walk by faith for our students… I believe there are a few things we can do to help encourage them along the way:
- Share stories — Sometimes it can be hard for students to make the jump from what they read in the bible to everyday life. If we can expose them to stories of faith — ours and others — it can serve to bolster their courage and minimize the fear associated with risk.
- Model it — It’s one thing to talk about it… it’s a whole other thing to live it out, and for students, to see it being lived out is HUGE. We need to find appropriate ways to let our students in on the circumstances of our lives that require us to step out in faith and allow them to experience the process — up close and personal — the good, bad and ugly.
- Point out opportunities for them to take steps of faith — We need to be close enough to our students, and the circumstances of their lives, that allow us to speak discerningly about how and when they can step out in faith. We should never push them, but take every opportunity to encourage them, to take bold steps of faith!
What do you think?
What would you add to this?
4 thoughts on “Helping Students Take Steps of Faith”
I would added that helping them remember their own stories and experiences is equally important. If we can alsp help them connect fast personal experiences with Biblical narratives we can provide firm anchors to which they can hold during times of doubt.
Hey Nathan! That’s a great point! Especially given the fact that students are often quick to miss, or dismiss, their own experiences as something insignificant or coincidental. In my Old Testament classes I feel like I’m constantly expressing to my students the ‘ordinary-ness’ of all of the people that God used, but ‘extraordinary-ness’ of their faith, which is what caused them to stand out and made them useable by God. Good word Nathan!
Do you have “faith” classes in every US college?
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