PLAY!

So let me set this up. Last weekend I took a group of students from University of Pittsburgh at Titusville, where I work, to Jubilee, a christian conference for college students held each year in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh. This was my 6th year going and pretty much love it every year! 

At Jubilee there are: large gatherings, where students from over 30 or so colleges all come together to hear from amazing well-known speakers and sing along and worship together.....then, there are also workshops - or breakout sessions where students go to hear different speakers talk about how we can connect our faith to our vocation, careers, & passions. 

This year, speakers included author & director of Restore International, Bob Goff (look him up!), Tullian Tchividjian (Billy Graham's grandson), and author, Derek Mellaby. There are also exhibition tables if you're interested in seminary or summer camps or mission/social activism. 

This year, Jubilee also held an essay contest asking for submissions about where God is working in your life as a college student and how you hope to serve him in your career as a result.

The following article is by the winner, Brittany Tietje, a student at Slippery Rock (SRU) who submitted her story to The High Calling, a Christian magazine. 

Play as Work

Recreation, simply put, is the grown-up way of saying “play.” Play relieves stress, increases physical and mental fitness, and introduces new ways of learning. And the public is becoming more aware of the benefits of recreation as part of a healthy lifestyle. But in a world filled with “go-getter” attitudes, competitive spirits, and the drive for “keeping up with the Joneses,” where is there time for leisure and play?

I have often wondered this myself. A college senior and an avid lover of the outdoors, I would much rather go hiking, spend the day rock-climbing, or even sit in a tree and read than go to work or class. As I draw closer to entering the work force, I view my future with significant trepidation.

Most discussions with working adults who intend to offer their advice and support for my future include the forewarning that “college is the best time of your life, so have fun now.” While I appreciate their concern, I can’t bring myself to believe that God calls us into careers that bore and frustrate us on a daily basis.

I deeply believe that, though this earth is broken due to the fall, God works in and through us so that we can experience His goodness in our everyday lives. That includes work. Recently, I began to realize the potential for recreation itself to be a kind of work that shows this goodness.

Imagine this scenario. Your office team has been working on a big project, and while the deadline is rapidly approaching, advancement has suddenly stopped. Unfortunately, the team seems unable to refocus as a unit to finish this project. Your boss decides to send everyone to a team-building workshop. You spend the day on a ropes course having fun and playing games that challenge you and the team mentally and physically. The facilitator works through the elements to increase communication, encourage negotiation, highlight varied strengths and weaknesses among the team, and promote overall ability to function at a higher level together. The next day at work you not only have some valuable memories and laughable moments to reflect upon, you also have an experience to draw from that sets you back on track for completing that big project on time.

I am a Parks and Recreation major. My career goal is to glorify God through play. As I look to my future, I see the opportunity to be the facilitator in the above scenario.
God is glorified by people experiencing a community that knows and cares about its members. God is glorified by people discovering the strengths He has given them and how to use those strengths. God is glorified by children and adults learning in nontraditional methods about valuable skills such as teamwork, acceptance, forgiveness, endurance, and patience; all skills that can be developed through experiential education activities. That is why I see this scenario, and others like it, as a way for me to glorify God.

I still expect life after college will be a lot of hard work. Life in college is a lot of hard work. More importantly, I’ve realized that the key to enjoying my future as much or more than the present will be to choose every day to find some little way to play, and then use that moment to serve others and glorify God.

Post written by Brittany Tietje, a senior majoring in Parks and Recreation Management.

-- This article is the first of four in a series that will introduce the next generation of young professionals to our High Calling readers.

Epic Fail!

So....clearly I am a horrible, procratinating blogger...

• I do not follow through on blog goals
• I blog maybe 5 times a year
• I usually have very little to say until it comes time for (NHL playoffs)

But one of my New Year's resolutions was to at the very least blog once a month, and maybe, just maybe that will turn into twice a month, and then hopefully once a week!

Well...wish me luck!