I was one of those college freshmen who asked a million questions before I moved on campus. I read every piece of paper that was given to me by the admissions office in great detail. If I was going to move to a new place in a new state, I was at least going to do all I could to prepare for what I might experience when I walked on campus. After all that work I still walked on campus scared out of my mind and realized I really had no clue what to expect.

Last week I had a brief panic moment when I realized our student’s move on campus in less than a month. This is the first year our team will be participating in the orientation and welcome week activities and on multiple campuses! I immediately started making my list of details that need to be covered and asking questions. Is it possible to adapt the promotional materials we’ve used with supporters all summer to appeal to college students? How many people do we need at each campus and what time do we need to be there? Did we order enough Frisbees?  In the middle of my frantic note making, I stopped and laughed at myself.

Here I am years later and I’m still asking a million questions.  We’ve worked hard to develop a good plan of attack for our first beginning of the school year experience and yet we still don’t really know what to expect once we step on campus. I feel like I’m preparing for my freshman year all over again! Fortunately, God’s been teaching me about these situations all year.

There is a lot that can be said for a well thought out plan. I believe the Holy Spirit guides us as we seek Christ, pray and plan. Spending our time and energy making preparations is definitely not time wasted. And after we poured ourselves into the planning, we must execute the plan to the best of our ability, completely relying on God to lead us in the moment.  One of the greatest things we can do as we make plans is to make sure we are keeping in tune with God’s voice.

As I look to the beginning of this school year, I’ve added some new questions to my list. Am I listening to the Spirit’s leading in the planning? As I sort through details, am I also allowing God to prepare me for what He has in store? How am I balancing my responsibilities in the preparations and leaning in and trusting God to work in the midst of it all?

He has entrusted us with a great work to reach out to our campuses, a responsibility we should not take lightly.  In preparation for this school year, I’m working on my balancing act.

[ BACK-TO-SCHOOL BLOGATHON HOMEPAGE ]

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Sarah Koutz has served as a Campus Ministry Recruit with Impact Campus Ministries since September 2009. She serves on the South Bend, IN team, which works with six area college and university campuses. Feel free to contact here at sarah.koutz@impacttheu.com or visit her blog at www.skoutz.blogspot.com.