Where is the beauty in this corrupted college world?

It's so difficult to sit and watch. People streaming down the hallways, headed out for a night on the town. If I knew for a fact they'd all come back uninfluenced and unharmed, it would be so much easier. Yet all there is to lean on is a prayer for their well-being. I can't make those people, friends, and acquaintances make the choices I would make. I have to respect their differences in values, morals, and standards. It's a personal belief, it's a job commitment as a resident advisor, and it's an act of understanding and grace. Everyone has freedom to do as they wish. 

Feeling comfortable with the potential outcomes those differences in decisions could bring is immensely difficult. Thank goodness that little prayer, specifically directed for the safety and well-being of those headed into the college night-life scene, holds immense value in God's eyes.

Where, in that corrupt college world of excessive drinking and compromised morals, is the beauty? Where is the goodness, where is the unconditional love and acceptance? 

I see and hear stories of the corruption of God's beautiful world. Spring break stories, outings of the people in my building, and observations of the people roaming drunkenly across campus on weekend nights are plenty of examples to make one believe their is little hope. Sometimes, those stories make it really difficult to see beyond Satan's grasp on the college age bracket. He is placing so many temptations and people fall for them as part of the social norms. Go out. Go party. Get drunk. Where does God fit into all of that? And what can I do from my non-partying, atypical room?

There is no easy answer. Mostly, I have learned that I have to find reassurance in scripture that even the negative situations will be worked for the better. Underneath the misguiding and tempting atmosphere of the college night-life scene, God is at work. We might not always see Him and it might not be obvious that He is at work. But that is where faith does its wonders. 

In the Bible, Christ spent time with the poorest of the poor and the most corrupt of the corrupt. He did not discriminate and offered His healing, gracious influence on everyone's life. Even the least likely people and places were led to Him and were provided signs of His goodness. 

In Luke 7:36-50, Jesus did not judge a sinful woman, as another had recommended for Him to do. He forgave instead and recognized her faith.

In Mark 7:24-30, Jesus went secretly to a home and drove a demon out of a child.

Faith means we have to trust that in the corrupt college world, Christ is still working to make His way known. He will give us the words to speak, the actions to take, and the courage to do. Jesus provides His followers with all they need to engage in the spiritual turmoil and warfare necessary to overcome Satan's attempts to steal beauty from God's creations, we just might not always clearly see it. 

Faith being tested amid the college chaos is actually a beautiful thing in and of itself:

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance."
-James 1:2-3

Keeping faith and hope when surroundings say otherwise can be incredibly difficult, but that does not mean it is impossible. Seek the beauty where you least expect it and know that Christ is always working for goodness.