Sharpening Iron

“As Iron Sharpens Iron, So One Man Sharpens Another”- Proverbs 27:17

During our sophomore year, my friend Brooke and I decided that we wanted to decorate the living room in the suite that we shared in Devol Hall. We started by texting our other suitemates and asking them what their favorite Bible verses were. When Sasha responded by saying that she liked Proverbs 27:17, we kind of laughed about it. Iron? What? At the time, it didn’t really make much sense, but we plastered it on our wall anyhow, and I kind of forgot about it until last year.

During the fall semester of my junior year, there was a huge amount of conflict between some of the people who I now see as some of my closest friends. One drama followed another, and quite honestly it was depressing. I tend to feed off of the happiness of others, so when everyone around me was angry and bitter, my mood reflected that. With nothing else to do, I opened my Bible and began to read about relationships and friendships. Eventually, I came across this verse and all of a sudden it made so much sense. Sasha didn’t seem so crazy any more.

I’ve always said that God is really hard to ignore at Malone. We go to chapel twice a week, and almost every class examines the ways which we can integrate our faith into whatever it is we are studying. More than anything though, God presents himself in interactions with others. Who we are is shaped by the people around us, and I must say that Malone is full of some pretty amazing people…which is why I struggle so much with being at home.

Don’t get me wrong, I love being home. I have the best family that I could ever ask for, and I have some pretty great friends too, but the late night theological conversations and faith integration moments just don’t happen here. I spend a lot of my time alone while I’m home, which is in some ways good, because with all of the extra time on my hands, I have no excuse not to spend time with God. I think, however, that being in community with other Christians, is an essential part of a relationship with Christ.

The past few weeks have made me miss going to floor Bible study, worshiping at Celebration, and being able to hear what God is doing in the lives of all of my friends. It has also made me appreciate the awesome community experience that Malone provides. I miss being surrounded by friends and laughing at all hours of the day.

I guess what I’m trying to say, is that you don’t really know how important the people in your life are until you have to be separated from them! I truly feel as if God blesses me every day through the people he brings into my life. And while I can’t wait to get back to the amazing Christian community of Malone, I am going to try to build better relationships with the people that he as placed in my life for this season.