Personally, deciding where to attend college was a tough decision. Coming into my junior year of high school, I convinced myself that I was going to Freed-Hardeman (where my mom went) and majoring in either Youth Ministry or Computer Science. Obviously that didn’t happen. I grew up in a sports family. My dad who attended Alabama “back in the day” is a die-hard Alabama athletics fan which eventually rubbed off on me, but my fandom turned into more than just a fandom. It turned into a passion for talking, writing, and basically breathing sports. This led me to do some research into the sports journalism major, which brought me here to the University of Alabama. There was only one problem… I wanted to be in a good Christian environment. I honestly knew nothing about any campus ministry, so I thought that there was no such thing as a good Christian environment at Alabama. Entering my senior year of high school, I was still going to Freed-Hardeman, even though I really wanted to pursue Sports Journalism. Then came the day that changed my mind.
I had not given up on the idea of coming to Alabama, I had seen Tide 4 Christ advertised at places like Lads 2 Leaders so I decided to check it out. We decided to visit Central Church of Christ to see what it was like. After meeting some of the college students and Will and Rachel, I realized I found that good Christian environment I wanted. I was blown away by how quick everyone was to welcome me. I felt immediately connected. I wasn’t even a student there yet and I felt like I was part of the family. My mind was made up. I decided to attend The University of Alabama.
In my last year of participating in Lads 2 Leaders, I found the Tide 4 Christ booth and met some more college students that were already involved. Later that day I got a text from Will Sharp asking when my song leading event was. The fact that they showed up and wanted to come to that was incredible. It was another way that I felt like I was part of the family. It made me feel like I made the perfect choice in choosing to come to Alabama.
In the world when you are trying to find a job, connections are important, especially in my major. Alabama has already given me tremendous opportunities to get out and connect with professionals in the Sports Journalism community. The same thing applies to our spiritual lives. During college, getting connected to a group of people that have the same interests as you is very important. For me this is the group of people in the Tide for Christ Student ministry.
The transition from high school to college is tough. Tide 4 Christ has “Get Tide In” week where the students get to meet each other and spend time hanging out. This is the first big opportunity of the year to get connected with fellow Christians. This is where I started making good connections and friendships with other people. Without my friends in T4C, I don’t know where I would be. It’s not only a group of friends to hang out with or to help you in classes, but it’s a group of people with the same ultimate goal: to get to Heaven. The college years are a big test of how dedicated your life is to God. I know that by connecting with this group, it is a whole lot easier to reach that ultimate goal. Surrounding myself with the people from Tide 4 Christ is one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life.
“Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
Aaron Miles
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