Studies indicate that approximately 60%-70% of young adults who grew up in Christian homes walk away from their faith or stop attending church during their college years, specifically between ages 18 and 22.
So, what should a Christian student do?
Patricia Engler of Answers in Genesis recently offered tips on American Family Radio.
For starters, she advised comparing everything against God's Word. To do that, she pointed out that believers need to know God's Word.
"I understand that as a student, you have an awful lot of pressure. There's very little, if any, free time that you have available to you, but you need to prioritize your spiritual foundations," she told "The Stand Radio." "We always have time for our highest priorities, and if you're going to survive university, you need to be prioritizing spending time with God."
She said five minutes of prayer every morning is better than no prayer at all.
"Keep up those spiritual foundations of studying scripture, practicing a lifestyle of prayer and worship," Engler reiterated. "These are indispensable. Just ask God for wisdom throughout the day in your classes. Ask Him to prompt you to be able to catch those lies as they come without letting them accumulate."
Meanwhile, as students go through classes, Engler recommended they keep track of any questionable messages they are taught. When jotting those down, she suggested putting the information in quotation marks, which frees the brain from feeling like something is a fact.
"Then, when you have the chance, you can take that message that contradicts God's Word and break it down with a series of critical thinking tools," Engler continued. "If you can keep up with that, keep your spiritual foundations up, and then stay plugged into a biblical local church or connect with some sort of mentor — all of those strategies will be very, very valuable during university and college."
