God Help Me go to Biola!!!

Going to bible school would be such a blessing in my life, beyond what I can even imagine. My high school, Lake Mead Christian Academy, gave me such an amazing biblical education, and I would like to further develop the strong biblical foundations I have by continuing my education at Biola. God has done incredible things in my life this year, and I have no doubt that, over the next four years, he will continue the good work he has begun in my life. In many ways, graduation has been both exciting and frightening for me, because I do not know what God has prepared for me. However, I fully trust that God has the best plan for me, and I know that my responsibility is to follow his perfect will and leave the outcome up to Him.

I am certain that attending Biola would dramatically develop both character and my relationship with God. It would also strengthen my faith, and allow me to experience that within the context of Christ-centered friendships with my classmates. At Biola, where the student body resembles the body of Christ, I would be surrounded by fellow believers, but at public and secular universities, I would need to look for Christ in the student body. Rather than seeking out Christian club at a secular university, all of Biola could be my community because the entirety of Biola is centered on Christ. I know that this would only help to improve my relationship with Christ, because the Christian life is meant to be lived in the context of community.

Beyond that, I know that the education and community that Biola could provide me with would not only enrich my faith and character, but allow me to become a powerful witness for God’s Kingdom when my time at Biola comes to an end. Whether God calls me into ministry, or into a secular career field, I know that I want to be used by God to reach others with the love and truth of the gospel. I firmly believe Biola is the best place for me to prepare to do just that. I also believe that by being trained in the Word and immersing myself in Christian community, I will be able to better discern God’s will and calling for my life. Until then, I know that I am still called to pursue Him, and hope that Biola can be the place where I continue to seek after God.

The powerful call I feel to attend Biola University is the primary reason I even decided to apply. While I never thought Biola would be an option for me, his calling has become something that I feel I cannot ignore. I believe that two of my instructors, Mr. Gregory Ambrose and Mr. Cris Cockrell, had demonstrated to me what effect a Biola education can have on your life, and as I continued to learn from them, I felt God calling me to Biola more clearly every day.

The only thing that was pushing me away from Biola was the cost of tuition, which caused me to doubt whether it was really God calling me to Biola initially. Even my mother expressed doubt when I told her I wanted to go to a school that was ten times the cost of the school I was planning to attend. I still felt that God wanted me to go to Biola, but I had given up because I didn’t see a way forward.

However, a few months ago, the senior class of my high school were on our senior trip to Zion, Utah. After Bible study one night, the Holy Spirit convicted my best friend, Josiah Sohus, who asked to talk to me one on one. According to Josiah, the Holy Spirit had told him I was going to the wrong college. I had never really spoken with Josiah about the calling I felt, and I was shocked to hear this from him. Immediately afterward, we sat outside and he prayed over me, along with my teachers Ms. Melanie Natividad and Mr. Cris Cockrell. I have never felt the Holy Spirit as much as I did that night. During prayer, the only college I could see in my head was Biola, repeatedly, as though God was trying to speak to me very clearly.

God was asking me to take a leap of faith, and trust His will for me even though I didn’t understand how things would actually play out. It was all or nothing. Although I kept having second thoughts about Biola, after what my friend Josiah said that the Holy Spirit was telling him Biola is the right college for me, and after feeling this calling confirmed in constant prayer, I am trying to step out in faith. I now know that God wants me at Biola in Fall 2021, and I am going faithfully put all my trust in God, trusting that He will provide.