Things that you learn as an out-of-state college student: who your real friends are.

First off, I might want to add that this is not to bash anyone but to share my experience and what God has taught me through this.

I live in a small-ish town of 30,000 people in the thumb of Michigan called Port Huron and go to school in downtown Minneapolis which is about 12-13 hours from where I live. I have spent a good majority of my life in Port Huron minus venturing off to Texas for about 6 months and going to school. I normally go to a church here (that I have been going to since I was a freshman in high school practically) but God called me to a college ministry instead this summer. (The college ministry and the church meet on the same night.) I have done my best to keep in contact with people from both the church and the college ministry while I was at school...yes, a lot of people didn't actually respond to my attempts to keep in contact but a lot did...for some reason, as soon as I got back to Michigan, a lot of people from the church basically decided that they were going to ignore my existence (at least it felt like they were). I understand that people are busy but it doesn't hurt to do silly things like respond to text messages. Very quickly, I began to feel really alone and that nobody really cared. (thank you to the ones who did talk to me) It really stinks to be ignored. I happened to tell the girls in my college ministry about how I felt and the other girl who goes to school in another state just happened to be feeling the same way. Lesson 1: God will never let you go through anything alone. There is always someone that is going through or has gone through what you are that God will use to help you through it.


I did happen to go to that church last Sunday with my very good friend who attends school in North Carolina. I was sort of....joking around about how everyone was so excited to see her but not me. One of the girls told me, "Well, you're in the Port Huron area...you should be here."...fair enough, I guess. I'm not sure how this came up but I mentioned something about her never talking to me and she told me, "That's because you're never here." Even though I know her and know that was an innocent comment, that really hurt me. Just because someone isn't where you can see them, it doesn't mean that they don't exist. Sometimes people are called somewhere else for a season. I was talking to my friend about how that comment really hurt me and she made a good point, "Even if you're not there, contact should not be one-sided. We're supposed to be a family."... Lesson 2: We should all be very accepting of where God calls others and support them and encourage them, not ignore them because they're not where you are at that particular moment. I have had a hard time with doing this in the past but when it's you, there is a whole new perspective  and a respect that is acquired for people in your position. It isn't easy but being where God wants you to be is worth it.


Finally, thank you to my real friends. You know who you are. Thank you to my true friends in the past but we went our separate ways. Thank you to the people who have touched my life in some way. Thank you for letting God use you in my life.

Any other college students or people who got called elsewhere have stories about this?