HEALED DURING COLLEGE CRUNCH TIME

BY JULIANA CHOANSA KO

It was my junior year in college, and there were only three days of classes left. I had almost finished one big 15-page paper and still had one more to go, along with studying for final exams. One morning I got up early, hours before anyone else in my dorm would be awake, and went down the hall to take a shower. I needed to get a head start on the day since it was "crunch time."

As I was in the hall bathroom, I began to lose my balance and consciousness, almost falling to the ground. I fought to stay conscious and quickly moved from the shower area back down the hall to my bedroom, where I quietly lay down on my bed and began to pray. I felt scared and startled because nothing like that had ever happened to me before.

Throughout my life, I'd had many opportunities to turn to God in times of trouble, and these experiences always showed me that prayer brings healing. I realized that rather than being worried and fearful about not being able to prepare for exams that day, I needed to reprioritize. What I really needed to do, instead of intensely diving into my work, was to dedicate some time to understanding and feeling God's love for me. This didn't have to require long hours of book study, but instead could be a recognition that His presence was right there with me, always taking care of me. As I shifted my focus from the overwhelming list of tasks I had to do, to listening for what God had in store for me that day, I began to feel calm.