What’s the big deal about entering university? I mean, most of us been through 12 or more years in the Singapore education system – isn’t college just an extension of the journey as a student?

So when I finally enrolled two years ago, to take my mind on the fact I was facing yet more mugging, I decided to throw myself into all the fun stuff. I took part in three camps before school started and tried things like kayaking and diving. I took it as my chance to try anything and everything I wanted to.

It should have been the best time of my life, but it … wasn’t.

First, I was starting a course that was my third choice. It wasn’t that I hated social science – it just wasn’t what I wanted to do, and didn’t sound very exciting to me. Second, I wanted to get out of school as quickly as I could – to go out and experience the world.

I didn’t know why God put me in SMU, much less the School of Social Science. I didn’t bother asking Him. I didn’t consider how He may have placed me here for something beyond just getting a degree.

But as the school days went by, God began to move, unexpectedly.

So now I’ve come to realise: I’m not just a student. I’m an ambassador for Christ, purposefully placed in my school.

I vividly remember one sociology lesson in which we discussed religions, and how cults are formed. As we argued about whether religion is real and how much of it is a social construct, my friend turned to me: “You’re a Christian right? What’s that like?”

My classmates were asking me to share Christ with them. In class! Some listened out of curiosity. Some later told me that they’ve been exploring various religions, and were especially interested in exploring Christianity.

I was stunned at how God could move. I wasn’t intentionally looking for a chance to proclaim the Good News, or actively looking for opportunities to bring my friends closer to Christ. But He made it happen.

A divine exchange: Lessons from my semester abroad

You know how it says in Matthew 9:37-38 that “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few”? I’d always doubted it. What harvest? Where? But when classmates and school friends came forward and initiated these divine conversations, I began to believe.

So now I’ve come to realise: I’m not just a student. I’m an ambassador for Christ, purposefully placed in my school. My job is to be faithful in loving people and bringing them closer to Him.

I was so focused on what school could do for me that I forgot to consider how God is working there.

Missing out on what God is doing, and simply getting through by university as quickly as possible, would be my loss.

If I could turn back time to when I first started university, I’d take more time to seek God’s purpose for me in the school. I’d change my mindset – not viewing university as just another four years of school, but learning to see the campus as my mission field.