For most of us, particularly academics, New Year really takes place not on 1 January, but on 1 September. Term might not have started yet, but the holidays are definitely over, the inbox is starting to fill up (again), and everyone around you is getting ready for the imminent influx of students. Happy New Year!
So what better time for some New Year’s resolutions?
There are plenty of resolutions you could make in academic life: read more, write more, be more active in various ways. But I’d like to encourage you to consider making some New Year’s resolutions to support your university’s Christian postgraduate group(s).
Perhaps your university doesn’t have such a group? You’re probably in a majority if that is the case: there are only a handful of groups we are aware of, and some of those are currently dormant (if your group isn’t listed, do let us know). But even if your university does have a group, it could be that the majority of its members have vanished over the summer! In either case, now is the most important time of year to breathe a bit of fresh vitality into an existing group, or to start thinking about starting a new group.
So here are some things you could resolve to do:
- Dream about what a Christian postgraduate group could look like in your context. In what ways would you be enabled to fulfil your calling as a Christian postgraduate if you were part of a vibrant community of Christian scholars at your university? You might like to read some of our first posts on this blog, from the start of 2014, on the why and what of Christian postgraduate groups.
- Pray that, if God wants such a group to exist in your university, he would make it possible.
- Plan to do something about it. Have a look at our post on the how of Christian postgraduate groups, which has some advice about setting up a group. My experiences of setting up new groups suggest that you’re likely to find lots of people who are interested. Or if you already have a group, now is the time to make sure people are aware that your group exists, and to start putting together a programme for the term. There are lots of resources out there: try the Subjects page on cpgrad.org.uk for some inspiration.
If you have any suggestions, why not leave a comment below, or on our Facebook page?
- From the observatory to the pulpit - August 30, 2016
- Whole-life hope - July 11, 2016
- The Whole of (Academic) Life for Christ - April 25, 2016
