By Charles Jardine
Assistant Editor
Going into my senior year of high school I did not expect to find myself at Franciscan. At the time I was in an engineering-specific program and was waiting to hear back from the colleges I had applied to.
Just before school started I had a God-moment that made me realize that math was not something I wanted to be a staple in my future career.
I quickly changed out of as many math-specific classes as possible and started searching for what I wanted to do.
The next couple of months were an anxious time since I now did not know what I wanted to study or where I wanted to go, and I desperately wanted to know.
I spent time in prayer offering it up to God and asking for guidance, but nothing was satisfying the desire to know. This was compounded by watching my friends get accepted and seem like they had all their life plans figured out.
Around Thanksgiving time, I decided that I wanted to go into teaching or ministry and applied to the University of Dallas to study Theology and Philosophy. After the initial joy of getting in, I was crushed when I didn’t receive enough financial aid to attend.
This made me question whether the path I was following was the correct one. Why would God make me so sure about something and then not let it work out?
Not knowing what to I continued in the fall semester and continued to trust in God’s process for my life.
In late December I received an email from Franciscan University inviting me to apply, but I didn’t want to because it was so far away from home. However, my dad convinced me to put in an application because it was free.
I was soon accepted but remained hesitant because of how far away it was. A couple of months later, in April, still unsure of what I wanted to do I decided to take a risk and tour the school. I decided that if I didn’t hate it I would attend Franciscan.
Fast forward a little over two years later and it is one of the best decisions that I’ve ever made. I’m no longer a theology major but I wouldn’t have known that without trying. I have great friends and have had opportunities I would never have had elsewhere.
Looking back, all the anxiety and stress about where I was going to go and what I was going to do feels pointless. God taught me the valuable lesson of trusting in him and not basing my worth on my state in life.
God showed me that his plan truly is greater than anything I ever could imagine.
Coming to this school 1,300 miles away from home, not knowing another person coming and not sure how I would like the icy winters. God turned that into a music-blasting, podcast-listening 18-hour drive, possibly the best community found at any university and 50-degree weather during most of the school year.
If there is one thing to take away, trust. God has plans for you, specifically and uniquely for you that only you can accomplish, and there is power in that.
Keep an open heart and listen to the Lord. Most importantly however, is to take a chance and follow your gut. God gave you the intuition know what is good, so follow it.