That advice arrived in response to a prayer letter I sent out as a wide-eyed new staff gal in New Jersey. It was my second semester on campus and I had recently discovered that my job was hard. I was discouraged. This piece of advice from my dear friends who have walked with God for more than twice the number of years I’ve been alive has guided me through the depressing (though short!) dark month of February for the last 15 years of campus ministry.
An interesting observation, isn’t it? And yet we can’t avoid inviting people to make major life decisions during this month. Big Break registration requires full payment to reserve your spot at the Edgewater. Summer project applications need to be filled out, as do stint and internship applications because the briefings are in two months. On top of that, our students are making weighty decisions about majors, careers, jobs, roommates, and relationships. Avoiding major life decisions in February just isn’t realistic, especially this year: its a leap year so February has a bonus day.
If my octogenarian mentors are right, then this month people tend towards the lament side of life. Using the Five Things to evaluate options can mitigate the emotional pull towards a specific decision by adding a little more of a judicious and deliberate perspective.
Need other ideas to keep February fresh or just want to freshen your vision? Start following Sending 100 on twitter, the 100% Sent team’s social media account geared towards “mobilizing every graduate from every university to live missionally for a lifetime regardless of vocation, location or perceived qualification.”
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