The institute is designed to holistically educate its students, and that has been something I’ve been reflecting on during this trip. While in the Philippines this summer, I’ve had the joy of living with the girls who work with our ministry. Living together with them reminds me so much of student life back at the Institute for GOD in Nashville and all the things I’ve been taught as a Resident Assistant. Student housing at the institute has truly been an extension of the classroom—a place to live out the Word we are learning.
Philippians 2:3–4 says, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” This is the verse I shared with the girls earlier this week as I told stories from back home and explained how my friends and I have tried to live this out. I talked about the importance of this verse, especially when living in such close proximity to others who are different from you.
I’m so thankful for the years I spent in student housing with friends who were learning the Word alongside me and who were eager to pursue a holy environment together. I’m grateful for all those formative moments, because I’ve brought them with me—and they’ve given me something meaningful to share with the girls I’m living with in the Philippines. The values rooted in God’s Word that were instilled in me are now being lived out here as well.
Some examples of how “what we do here is what we do there” include waking up each morning and starting our day with prayer, having intentional conversations about how we’ve seen the Lord at work in our week over shared meals, and even discussing biblical themes we noticed in movies we’ve watched together.
My education at the Institute has taught me to view everything through the filter of God’s Word and has equipped me to offer it to others. Bringing God’s Word into every moment is not something I do just because I’ve been told to, or because I’m on a mission trip—it’s the way I’ve been taught, and it has become a part of who I am and how I live which I hope continues to be a gift to those I am around.