Learning the Hard Way

So some people who read my blog (when I put up the occasional post) may know that I have been in University, and am finishing up my freshman year! YAY! I survived!
I learned so much this past year... even this past month I have learned so much. I am not talking about learning from books (though I have done that too), but I am talking about the practical life experiences I have learned (most the hard way) in my first year of university. I'll put a few in bullet point, then I'll explain...

• Spend time ALONE
• Spend time with God, in groups and separately
• SLEEP at decent times
• STUDY and READ THE SYLLABUS carefully

It is important to spend some time alone. It is healthy to spend time alone doing things you enjoy. Even if you just want to sleep, do it. Spend some time away from people so that you can recharge and relax your brain. Living with a ton of people around can make it tough, and it is easy to be annoyed or annoy other people. Spending time alone can help with that. 

SLEEP... I cannot stress how important this is... my goodness... when you get a good night's sleep, the next day is so great. You can actually focus in class, pay attention, and it helps you to be more patient and less cranky. Trust me, I learned from experience... and so did my close friends. (Thanks guys! <3) 

Studying and reading your syllabus... let's not talk about the paper I got a 0 on because I missed one direction on the syllabus... yes, it was 25% of my grade for the class, and yes I was upset. I learned how important it is to really read and understand the directions given to you. (If you don't understand, ask the professor!) Also, actually studying for a test can give you a 96 instead of an 80... just saying.

Now, back to what the most important thing is... spend time alone with God and in a group. Putting God first when you have so much to do is so difficult. Trust me, I know, I've been trying to learn how to put Him first all year. I have found though, that on the days I do put Him first, spending time in His Word and praying early on in the day, I do much better that day, and am in a much better mood. It affects the people close to you too. Personally, I have found when I am intentionally spending time with God and in His Word regularly, and praying often, I am in a much better mood, and in a much better frame of mind to deal with anything that I could come up against. 

So, my point? Pretty much all I wanted to do is show you that you aren't the only one struggling. Tons of people have the same type of struggles. My list has tons more on it too, of things I have learned this year. I have something else I will be posting about, probably in the next week, that is a little more beneficial than what I posted today. 

My challenge to you: 

Try to spend time alone with God, in prayer and reading His Word. Also, take a moment to listen. You never know, He may have been trying to tell you something, or He has something to tell you. Just take a short time out of your day, even if it is 5-10 minutes to spend with Him. He loves you, and wants a deeper relationship with you. Put in your 100%, cause He sure is.