By Ethan Rondeau
We are blessed here at Azusa Pacific University to be surrounded by so much support and strong followers of Christ. However, once we’re done here, how do we move forward into life as young, adult Christians without the support of our school and its resources? We can apply what we learn from APU in the next phase of our lives.
For the seniors getting ready to move on from APU, they have the chance to bring what they’ve learned into what’s next. Building community, creating habits that increase their faith, and managing their time using the resources given to them by God will all play a part in their lives, regardless of the field of work or continued higher education they move into.
When discussing opportunities at APU, Natalie Hultgren 26’ said, “Post college, I don’t think it’s going to look like that. It could, it definitely could. But I think it’s more about a daily obedience.”
For those still attending APU, we can use the rest of our time here to learn all we can about Christ’s amazing community. We can intentionally apply the things we learn from others in chapel and classes to prepare for whatever we’re heading towards after our time at APU.
Maryah Anderson, an APU student, said, “I think I can take a lot away from time management and just put God into my daily schedule.” Maryah was blessed with the opportunity to learn the skills necessary to create a strong community that is meaningfully connected. This is also a useful skill to have when moving into the workforce.
“You get what you put in,” said Hultgren, in reference to spending the time here on developing herself with the future in mind. Her advice, as a graduating senior to those who still have time at APU, is to intentionally engage in the community and invest in events, people, and resources while you still have them.
The strategic idea of learning skills now to later apply them was repeated among students from younger classes as well. Samara Rai 28’ said, “With the community APU has, you really need to reach out to people.” She emphasised that the time spent with God’s people is not something that comes to you, but something you must seek for yourself. God can speak to you, but you have to accept the call and reach out to the community He has given you.
Rai is an international student from India, and her experiences attending APU began without much social involvement, but she has since learned that she loves talking to people. Rai talked about how reaching out to meet others was helpful when building her faith.
“When you meet people, and you connect with them, and you seek them, you will find some sort of stronghold and ground within the community,” Rai said.
She talked about how when you talk to people, you can quickly tell how different you are, but also realize how similar you are through Jesus. Her involvement in Chapel Band as a leader in the coming year will continue to be a place where she finds that connection in faith and community that pushes her towards Christ.
APU students should spend their time here intentionally building towards careers with our faith in mind, because in the future, our faith will be challenged by simple changes in routines.
Hultgren recognized this and said, “The Lord has been challenging me to kind of redefine what ministry looks like in my life.”
She currently describes her faith at APU as, “Energy, service, hands on, leadership, development, interpersonal connection, one on one, etc.,” but understands that, as she moves on, God will call her to live out her faith in more simple ways. She asks if simply sitting in His presence will be enough for her, as opposed to the multiple chapel sessions a week and the constant, inspiring testimonies of others around her.
When you find yourself asking, “What’s Next?” take the chance to consider how your faith is going to look in that upcoming season of life. The chance to develop your faith with a strong support system and the constant motivation by testimonies, worship, and community is here now, so take it to prepare for whatever comes next.