sophomore slump

The same old, same old. The boring routine. The lack of excitement. For some reason, most of my sophomore friends have been feeling, like myself, that this semester is just not the same as last year. We are no longer freshman, so the novelty and excitement of college life and being away from our parents is gone (if anything, most of us wish we could spend more time at home). Next year will bring another wave of "new-ness" as most of us move off-campus and into our first apartments or houses. But for now, we are stuck in the sophomore slump.

I've been intrigued by this phenomenon ever since I started noticing it around me after fall break. Wikipedia, of course, even has an article on it -- it is "an instance in which a second, or sophomore effort, fails to live up to the standards of the first effort....commonly used to refer to the apathy of students." Freshman year was awesome; there is no doubt about that. I had a great suite of girls living in the best freshman dorm on campus, I got involved in organizations that I liked, and I loved being on my own and in a new town. So I guess you could say that this year has not lived up to last, a difficult task in and of itself. It seems to me that this "sophomore slump" is just a phase that most, if not all, second-year college students go through, but I think there are some things we can do to soften the blow.

Through my "slump" time so far this year, God has brought to my attention a few things that I needed to learn about myself.
1. I am in desperate need of a Savior. No matter how hard I try, I cannot save myself. I can try pretty hard to get my life into order, but ultimately, it will fail. My plans are so minute compared to His much bigger and greater plan for me. This is such a blessing because if I had control over every single thing in my life, I would fall apart.

2. This world is not where I belong. I can find a place here on Earth that I feel most at home, that I feel I belong to. But no matter where I am, I know that I have a much better place waiting for me in heaven. So I can't put too much value on things of this world because they will ultimately fade away. Matthew wrote, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)

3. I do not put my joy in the Lord, where it should be. Instead, I put my joy in things of this world -- my academic success, my future after college, my friends, etc., and when those things let me down, I lose my joy. J.D. Greear spoke about this a couple weeks ago at the Summit, and he asked the congregation if we were constantly joyful. He said, "If God is our delight, we WILL be constantly joyful." God never lets us down, so if our joy is in Him, then we WILL be constantly joyful. It seems like a simple concept, but it's one that I have failed on time and time again. (Listen to J.D.'s sermon here -- the one on power, it's awesome).

This all goes to say that I think the best way we can get over the "sophomore slump" is by putting our joy and our delight in the Lord. For me, that means spending some more time with Him and a little less time in front of the TV. Maybe it means starting the day off with a few minutes in prayer, rather than a few minutes on Facebook. Or maybe it's caring more about what God's love than the love and approval of your friends or the grades from your professors. All I'm saying is that there is hope, and that hope comes from the Lord.

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." - Psalm 37:4