God brought me what I was looking for once I found out what I actually needed.
From David Ehrke’s first visit to Concordia, he felt that his place here was divinely orchestrated. “I came to Concordia on tour when I was a junior. I was planning on visiting Dordt as well, but there was a massive snowstorm on the day I was planning on going. So, I guess, God didn’t want me to go there.”
Even though he initially felt the purpose behind his being at Concordia, David still had learning to do. "When I first came here, I definitely felt like I was already grown. I was expecting to come and find deep friendships very quickly. It wasn’t until I realized that I needed to be that kind of person to others that I found the friendships I had been praying for. Feeling that loneliness in the first semester made me realize how much I had to lean on Christ, but then I realized that’s where I was supposed to be anyways.”
Where you’re supposed to be is a convoluted thing in college, but David has found that sense of identity by staying rooted in Christ. “I majored in education. My family has about 10 teachers on just my dad’s side of the family. I was kind of excited to join those ranks of teachers, but I don’t think it’s really where I’m going right now.” David is not allowing his major to define where he is led after graduation. After he graduates, he plans on trying his hand at starting a clothing business and pursuing a music career, which was not an easy decision.
“I’ve done music for my whole life, and I’ve been considering it for a long time, but I was always too scared to,” he said. “I was initially leaning towards doing more ministry related things, but not specifically music. This summer, I talked to one of my mentors about ministry, and at the end of the conversation, he talked about music, which was a topic I was intentionally avoiding. It felt like it was God’s voice quietly pushing me in that direction.”
David is now in the first semester in his senior year, taking classes for a major that seems to be disconnected from his goals after graduation. He is planning to take a gap year next year and take time writing his own songs, getting connected to musicians around the country, and doing small gigs where he can. “Sometimes it’s hard to be motivated when I know my immediate future will be so different from right now. But I need to remember that God has placed me here now, for a purpose.”