The Wednesday afternoon session lead by Dr. Michael Oh was encouraging and uncomfortable — in more than one way. It is hard to sit and listen to someone talk about uncomfortable facts from a foreign nation and equally uncomfortable, radical thoughts about how Christians should live their lives while your butt starts getting sore from the hard-wood bleachers in Chase. Oh’s ideas on how Christians should live addressed the need for a Christ-centered mindset instead of keeping their thoughts on, “what kind of job will I get? How can I get people to notice me? How do I better my own life?”
Faced with truth
Sitting in the chapel, we were all faced with the hard truth that our lives are not our own and that God desires us to edify him over ourselves. It has caused me to ponder about the motivation behind my recent and past decisions.
As I sat in the gym, all I could think about was why I chose to come to Biola. Being back home in Gilroy, Calif. was hard for me and I was seeking relief through all the wrong things in place of God’s peace. When I started applying to schools last year it was so I could get away from my hometown and plant my roots somewhere else because I was tired of being home with no friends and a dead-end retail job. I found myself in envy of my friends who were finishing their degrees and others who were still at school enjoying all of the fun events and loving their communities.
God at the center
I was living in a state of selfish envy. I wanted what everyone else had so that I could be happy, or at least what I thought would make me happy. It was tiring and I was constantly discouraged with everything I was doing back at home. Now, I am not saying that I am not supposed to be here at Biola, but I think my initial steps getting me here were clouded by selfishness and envy.
Sitting in the gym, I was reminded that God needs to be the center of all the decisions I make here at this school and in my whole life. Dr. Oh’s points were not just about evangelism and missions, they were also about putting God back at the center of our lives. I am here at Biola as a first-year transfer student. My mission field is my community here and the community outside of Biola in La Mirada or Norwalk.
Thinking about this year’s theme, “Witness: Go and See, Come and Do” in relation to Dr. Oh’s talk, our hearts were hit hard with the truth of who God is. He wants all of us so that he may be glorified through us because he is worthy of it. We are to witness his glory to everyone so that he may be glorified through every nation and so that every tongue would confess that Jesus is Lord. That is our mission in life.
