Well, it’s that time of year. By now, many high school seniors have heard where they have been accepted to college. Others are still waiting. But all are beginning to think about the next stage of their life post-high school.

And for Christian students this time of anticipation can be particularly acute. It is natural for them to wonder, How am I going to survive at a big university as a Christian? Am I ready to handle the challenges coming my way? What if I don’t have all the answers?

Of course, this sort of angst is not just felt by the students. It is also felt (and maybe felt more) by the parents. After all, Christian parents have spent the last 18 years teaching these students the gospel, taking them to church, and trying to show them how to follow Christ.  It’s natural to wonder whether all this will be undone after just a few months in college.

So, what can be done to prepare? Just a few weeks ago I answered this exact question for the students at Regents School of Austin, TX. Their senior students have been reading through my book, Surviving Religion 101, and asked me to come speak to them before they graduated.

And I gave them six pieces of advice. Over the next few weeks, I will be going through each of these pieces of advice in a short six-part blog series.

And here’s the first thing I told them: [Read more…]