When I was in kindergarten I thought I had to show all of my teeth when I smiled for a photo. It didn’t matter what clever technique my mother tried to use, I wasn’t going to grasp the concept of a natural smile. Needless to say, she didn’t have to worry about spending a ton of money on school pictures that year.
But as I got older, I actually became pretty good at smiling. Scratch that. I became great at smiling.
In fact, I became so great at smiling that I eventually decided it had to go hand-in-hand with my Christianity. I believed in God with every fiber of my being, and I knew He saved me. So how couldn’t I smile?
If I wanted others to know this God, they needed to see how happy He made me…right?
And my world fell in on me.
My grandfather is a minister, my father is a pastor, and I’ve worked in a church.
After living in four cities and being a part of three church-splits, I have felt my fair deal of pain. I have felt the confusion when friends begin doubting church leadership I have trusted. I’ve felt the anger when people leave the church without explaining why. I’ve felt the world tip sideways when a pastor’s secret life is exposed.
I’ve felt a lot.
But I don’t have to tell you that. The reality is if you are a Christian, you’ve felt a lot too by now.
I have now officially been in the “real world” for four years (as opposed to my first 21 years which were apparently fake).
College was rough in some aspects, but it also was the most incredible years of my life. I don’t regret anything to the point of beating myself up over it, but I do think if I had to redo the experience, there are 7 things that I would do differently. Hopefully these can help a young college “Jordan” out there (AKA a Type-A student that reads blogs like this to add to their “To Do In College List”).
I just bought $25 concealer for $7. I love Cyber Monday.
But most days, I don’t love the Cyber World so much.
Especially since I’ve began blogging. Now I’m beginning to think every day is Cyber Bully Day.
You know what I’m talking about. You’ve either been the perpetrator or the victim. Or both…I’ve probably been both.
If you want an example, open your Facebook feed right now, or click on a popular blog post and scroll to the comments section.