Day 1 | Week of Welcome Devotional
Aug 21: Day 1I have two competing emotions when it comes to new beginnings like the first day of classes. On one side of my brain, I'm optimistic that this semester will be awesome. From this hope, I make lots of vows about study habits & preliminary commitments for my weekly schedule. This is the stuff that's easy to talk about on Day 1.The other side of my brain is struggling with low (and sometimes medium) grade anxiety. I feel this anxiety in the university parking lot, before I even get out of the car. It's a type of nervousness that's hard to put into words. It could be related to classes or school debt or finding friends; and it could be something else. You see, I don't really know where this low grade anxiety is coming from; I can't deny it's there even though I can't tell you why it's there. I walk into my first class - a mix of hope & anxiety. This is Day 1.There's a scripture that pops in my head in moments like this from Psalm 118:"This is the Lord 's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (v.23-24)Some of you might have grown up singing a song based on v.24. These words speak to my hope & my anxiety. It reminds me that any hope I have is rooted in a belief that my life is not random; that God is doing something in my life, and over time it's going to materialize into something marvelous. It also speaks to my anxiety. I am reminded that tension, even the hard to name tension, can still fit in God's plan for my life. I may not be able to feel it right now, but God is doing something on Day 1. Eventually all this anxiety will materialize into something marvelous.For UNF students, today is Day 1. Flagler classes begin later this week and JU starts next week. As you walk onto campus and into classes, filled with hope and/or anxiety, remember that God is doing something significant in your life. The first day of classes is a day that God has made with your future in mind. Whether we are hopeful or anxious, let's rejoice in knowing that God is with us.