Graduation Season

I was up in rotation this week for the minister's column in our local newspaper, the Pine City Pioneer. Here it is for those who don't live nearby or don't get the newspaper.

We’re right in the middle of what I call Graduation Season. Like many other local churches, our congregation dedicated this past Sunday to honoring and celebrating with our graduating senior highers. Next Friday is commencement and, in the meantime, seniors are caught up in the frenzy of finals, scholarships, getting caps and gowns, paying fees, attending and hosting graduation parties, planning for fall, and on and on. This is the time it really begins to sink in for seniors that "this is it." Things are coming to an end for them as far as high school is concerned. Lots of "lasts" - last games, last classes, last time to see certain people, last school lunch!

I’ve been involved with students at some level for more than 30 years in my various roles as a youth pastor, volunteer, substitute teacher, assistant cross country coach, and as a parent. I love meeting and spending time with teens, and I have to say that we have some amazing students in Pine City. It’s always sad to see them graduate from youth group and school (well… most of the time, anyway!) It’s awesome to see how far they’ve come and where they are heading.

This year’s graduates have been through a lot in their high school career and have faced unique challenges associated with the coronavirus and our turbulent culture in general. Additionally, they have had to go through all the usual tribulations faced by all teens.

I am so thankful for the wonderful teachers in Pine City who work so hard to help them navigate these challenges. Our schools have gone through a difficult season, but our amazing teachers have worked diligently to come alongside these students and help them succeed. I’ve been a substitute at the high school for the past fifteen years and have seen how hard our teachers and staff work. Jesus once said that “everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.” (Luke 6:40) If that applies to our teachers, then these students couldn’t be in better hands.

Every year as I watch the seniors walk across the stage to receive their diploma, I’m reminded of a truism I often share with new parents: “The days are long, but the years are short.” It seems like just yesterday that… fill-in-the-blank: that they were born; that they took their first steps; that they started kindergarten; that they were a freshman in high school, that they started their first job. The years seem to pass by so quickly.

Of course, that’s true for adults, as well. It seems like just yesterday that we graduated, got married, had kids, and so on. It all seems to go by so fast.

That feeling is nothing new. In fact, thousands of years ago Moses prayed a prayer, recorded for us in Psalm 90, that addresses this very topic. He notes that our days “quickly pass, and we fly away” and so he asks God to “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” In other words, we have a certain amount of time available to us – whether it’s in school, in our job, or just in life, so it’s important to realize the brevity of our time and consider carefully how we are using it. We need to ask ourselves: Am I making consistent deposits in the things that are important in life? Because my time is limited, and my tendency, if I’m not careful, is to let the days slip by.

How do I get this heart of wisdom he talks about? Scripture says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” (James 1:5)

Graduates will be getting all kinds of advice over the next few weeks, but the best advice I know is to seek God and ask for the kind of wisdom only he can give. Which is probably pretty good advice for all of us.