Dorm rooms and shared apartments function like small laboratories of adulthood. They are imperfect, crowded and often uncomfortable by design. You learn quickly that no one is coming to enforce bedtime or remind you to eat vegetables. In that absence, habits quietly step in to fill the void. How you wake up, how you respond to mess, how you treat shared space, how you handle tension — these patterns begin to solidify long before you realize they are becoming yours.

In today’s world, where headphones, cellphones and endless scrolling dominate daily life, the simple act of saying “Hi, how are you?” and “Good morning” is long gone. Streets, neighborhoods and stores are busier than ever, yet somehow quieter at the same time. Places that once felt lively now feel like spaces we merely pass through while running errands. Even brief, casual conversations with people we encounter have nearly gone extinct.

On social media platforms, Baylor showcases images of its beautiful campus, smiling students and graduate success stories, all reinforcing a promise of personal, academic and professional achievement. While these photos of perfection and happiness are a nice visual, they do not accurately reflect the stress and competitive nature many students, myself included, experience behind the scenes.

The world is full of war, unrest, starvation and strife. America itself struggles with political turmoil, disunity and evil. While millions of things vie for our attention and beg to be fixed, one of our biggest defenses is compartmentalization.

At a time when conversations about immigration and national identity dominate American political discourse, looking to Scripture to find guidance and clarity presents itself to Christians as a dire and urgent matter.

The Bible counters self-love culture’s mantra of independence, and instead it teaches us that we are made whole through utter dependence on God and engagement with the community of the Church.