I was lucky enough to grow up in a Christian (specifically Lutheran) household my entire life and my parents are some of the most faithful, God-fearing people I know. I grew up going to church every Sunday and being involved in everything church-related – whether that be helping out with the children’s Christmas Program or volunteering for Vacation Bible School every year. And I loved it! Because I have grown up in that church, I know everyone and everyone knows me. It truly was, and still is, the best community. I absolutely love seeing everyone when I go home and am back with my church family.
However, when I moved to college, I suddenly lost the church community that I had consistently had my whole life. I started going to a local church here, but it felt lonely since I didn’t know anyone. I still went every week, but it just wasn’t the same as church back home. I could feel myself becoming less involved and I wasn’t as excited to go to church every week.
Then, sometime in the last couple of months, something in me shifted. I can’t pinpoint exactly what happened, but I suddenly wanted to grow deeper in my faith. Honestly, I credit a lot of this recent shift in my faith to my boyfriend. He is incredibly devoted to his faith, and he has encouraged me to connect with my faith even more. I see his love for God and it inspires me to be a better, more faithful person. His support has seriously changed my faith journey and helped me build a more fulfilling, personal relationship with God. In order to help myself feel closer to God and grow in my relationship, I started listening to worship music more regularly, finding Christian books and devotionals to read, and reading my Bible more consistently.
Without even making a conscious decision, I started only listening to worship music a couple of weeks ago. After a few days of doing this, I decided to see what would happen if I did this consistently for a week. My experimental week of only listening to worship music became a new habit for me and has now lasted well over a week. More often than not, it’s the only thing I want to listen to. Over the last couple of weeks, I have felt myself become more hopeful, joyful, and faithful. Listening to worship music has given me a peace that I have not felt since coming to college. College is such a hard transition for so many people, and personally, building a stronger relationship with God is exactly what I need right now.
If you are feeling the same way and know that you want to have a stronger relationship with God but don’t know where to start, I would love to encourage you to listen to worship music, start a devotional, and read your Bible more. If you need some worship recommendations, here are a few songs that I’ve been listening to lately. Some of them are songs I grew up listening to on the radio in my mom’s car, and some are ones I’ve discovered recently. I love listening to these hopeful songs, and I hope you will too!
Worship Song Recommendations:
- “He Knows My Name” by Francesca Battistelli
- “You Say” by Lauren Daigle
- “Emmanuel” by Hannah Kerr
- “Monday Morning Faith” by SEU Worship, Chelsea Plank
- “Stand Still” by Maverick City Music feat. Mara Justine
- “Light of the World” by Lauren Daigle
- “Praise” by Elevation Worship
- “Hard Fought Hallelujah” by Brandon Lake
- “Firm Foundation (He Won’t)” by Cody Carnes
- “O Come to the Altar” by Elevation Worship