On Finishing the Semester

Despite this unsettling new atmosphere, we are still capable of concluding the academic year with a bang.

By Sydni Wolpert, Staff Writer and Artist

As impossible as it may seem, finals week is fast approaching. The nationwide transition to socially-distant life and education has left many students rattled and stuck in a weird space as the semester draws to a close. As we all continue to live with these monumental changes and deal with them to differing degrees, know that they will not last forever. The Lord provides us with time to be empty so that we are reminded of our need for Him and can be filled again.  

A passage that I have found appropriate in these times is Lamentations 3:19-26:

I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore, I will wait for him.” The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.

This verse is reminding us that even in times of anguish, discomfort or unsettling, it is important to remember that the Lord will care for us because he is love. His mercies are fresh each morning. Better days are on the horizon.  

There will be a time when we can gather together again, and the fact that we have been apart will make that reunion so much sweeter. We will find our way back to normal, embracing the friends we haven’t seen in months, breaking bread together at the DC, oversleeping morning classes and all of the other small parts of our daily routines that we had unknowingly cherished before COVID-19. 

So finish strong this semester; online college is still college. Head into finals with the confidence that these times are temporary, your dreams and aspirations are not put on hold, and you are still just as hardworking and capable sitting in your bed with your laptop as you are in the classroom on campus. You are the keeper of your success, and no matter where you are right now, the Lord is for you, and HU is waiting to welcome you back home.