{"id":9527,"date":"2019-10-29T10:45:38","date_gmt":"2019-10-29T10:45:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifesworld.org\/?post_type=conexion&p=9527"},"modified":"2019-10-29T14:06:25","modified_gmt":"2019-10-29T14:06:25","slug":"aliens-thieves-and-priests","status":"publish","type":"conexion","link":"https:\/\/ifesworld.org\/en\/blog\/aliens-thieves-and-priests\/","title":{"rendered":"Aliens, thieves and priests"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

I remember the anxieties of starting university. I didn\u2019t even\nunderstand my timetable, let alone my major. Where was I meant to be when? What\ndid all those letters and figures mean? How was I going to survive?! I didn\u2019t\nhave the answers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

But there was one thing I knew a lot about: God. Early on I met some people who were part of the Bulgarian Christian Student Union (BCSU). They invited me to go along to their fellowship meetings, and I was glad to start attending. They didn\u2019t know it, but their invitation was to lead me to three significant realisations and change the course of my life for ever.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Always a student<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n

Before long, the first thing I realised was that I\u2019d been\nwrong: I really didn\u2019t know much about God. I\u2019d previously read the Bible as a\nnovel, skimming the pages without much interest. BCSU challenged me to think and apply\nthe Word of God in my life, to ask questions and to explore my own worldview. I\ncame to understand that in God’s kingdom, I will always be a student who is\nlearning from Christ.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

The second thing I realised was why this student group exists. At first, I\u2019d thought it was just a gathering for Christian students to study the Bible. But in fact, the student group was the perfect place to invite my friends who didn\u2019t know Jesus. What better place for a student with questions about God? Many of my friends then heard about God and attended BCSU events and Bible studies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n
\n

Aliens, thieves and priests<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n

My third\nrealisation, I confess, didn\u2019t happen while I was at university. Unfortunately,\nit took me a long time to discover it. And that\u2019s why I wanted to write this\narticle, so you will not make the same mistake.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

In my student\nyears, I thought the university was a place that would give me knowledge for my\ncareer. I thought it was a place to invite friends to study the Bible in the\nhope that they would meet Christ and be saved. 1 Peter 2 talks about believers\nas being \u2018aliens in the world\u2019. I saw myself only as an \u2018alien\u2019 \u2013 someone who\ndidn\u2019t belong to the world. My job was that of a thief: to \u2018steal\u2019 others out\nof the world and make them aliens too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

But 1 Peter 2\nalso talks about the believer\u2019s role as a \u2018priest\u2019. The two are inseparable\ncharacteristics of God\u2019s people. No, we are not from<\/em> the world, but at\nthe same time we are in<\/em> the world, and we are to carry God\u2019s presence.\nThis was what I missed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

\u201cBut you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God\u2019s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light\u2026 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.\u201d<\/p> 1 Peter 2: 9-12 <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

At university I did not act as a priest. If I had, as well as\ninviting my friends to study the Bible, I would have asked my classmates and\nteachers questions about what we were learning. I would have been part of the\nstudent council or the theatre club. I would have tried to keep Christian\nprinciples in everything I did. I would have brought the voice of Jesus into\nconversations happening around me. But I did not.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Fortunately, this sad story does not end so sad. I am not a student anymore, but I am still allowed to be part of the university literary club (I love to read!). So at last I’m active at university! <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

An appeal to students<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n

Don\u2019t make\nthe same mistake as I made. You can<\/em> live out your role on campus as a\nroyal priesthood. Perhaps you will ask a question that will change the mind of\nyour lecturer forever. Perhaps you will hold a position regarding a theory that\nwill make a lasting impression on your classmate. Perhaps you will do something\nthat will make people curious about your faith. Perhaps a bold act will turn\ninto an echo that will change your university, city or even society.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

I challenge you to be priests now, to be present at the heart of\nthe university. As you walk into the corridors and enter the halls, know that\nyour steps are the steps of Christ, and your presence is the presence of Christ\nin your university.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

So do not be thieves like me, but be priests, because you are\ncalled to this.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Desi, BCSU Bulgaria graduate                                                                               <\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"featured_media":9568,"template":"","area":[555,458],"theme":[9,1219],"class_list":["post-9527","conexion","type-conexion","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","area-bulgaria","area-europe","theme-engaging-the-university","theme-my-story"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAliens, thieves and priests · IFES Conexi\u00f3n Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I remember the anxieties of starting university. I didn\u2019t even understand my timetable, let alone my major. Where was I meant to be when? 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