This month 3.1 million students are expected to graduate from high school and hundreds of thousands will be receiving their college diploma. The teenagers and twenty-something’s will reach a milestone and have a new beginning for themselves. Here are a few pieces of commencement wisdom I would like to pass along to each graduate.
Rejoice and celebrate your achievement. Years have been invested to get to this point. Do not let it slide by without enjoying the moment. Achieving something is more fun when we celebrate the accomplishment.
Recall the people that helped you make it. No man is an island to himself. Thank your parents for any encouragement they provided and take a moment to understand the emotions they are experiencing, as their little boy or girl from years ago will soon be leaving home. Thank your teachers for their investment. Thank the friends who were always there.
Release the heartache connected with the journey. Your celebration may be bittersweet. Perhaps there is conflict within your family. Maybe you have had a hard time fitting in or you carry a broken heart. Whatever it is, you can choose to hold onto the pain or release it. Vow to let go of the past when you receive that diploma and embrace a new future.
Resolve to never give up. There were challenges in reaching this day and there will be challenges tomorrow. Researchers say that there was 27% of this year’s class that never made it to high school graduation and 44% that never made it to college graduation. You did. You overcame. Accept the fact that you will have obstacles, but resolve to learn from them and never give up.
Remember the Creator. A wise old King once said, “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth” (Ecclesiastes 12:1). It is very easy to forget God or to no longer believe He exists in the days of youth. A sense of adventure, a desire to question, being at the peak of energy and strength, living for the moment and a feeling of independence can all lead there. There are many benefits with youth, but also some drawbacks. In the zeal for life, the tendency to live for self and forget God is a major one. Yet, He has a way of keeping us in-check. God has said there will be a day of reckoning, where we all must stand before Him and give an account for how we have lived.
As you reach this milestone, may you make the most of it by becoming a follower of God’s only Son, Jesus. This is the best way to start this new beginning in your life. Turn from your ways and seek His ways, the One who made you and knows you best. May your Creator bring you hope for today and your future.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Forgiving Others
“I will never forgive him for what he did!” Have you ever said that to yourself about someone who deeply hurt you? Imagine if you are in a relationship and you are cheated on. It would be hard to forgive. Right now, the families of high profile figures like Tiger Woods, Governor Mark Sanford and former Senator John Edwards are walking through this.
When someone you trust lies, physically abuses, verbally intimidates, tricks or uses you – it hurts. It causes emotional injuries that swell up into resentment, anger or bitterness, which all lead to unforgiveness.
What can you do when someone hurts you? 1) Bury it and never talk about it again. 2) Sever the relationship ties through divorce, quitting the job or ignoring the person. 3) Get revenge and make the person pay.
Is there a better way? Yes. Forgiveness. The person who has hurt or injured you emotionally is a “debtor”. They owe you. They owe you an apology, the effort to make things right or just something for the pain they caused. Forgiveness means you choose to “write off” their debt so you are no longer demanding the person apologize, make things right or do something to take away the pain.
Why forgive? First, because it is realistic and pro-active. In real life, the person who hurt you probably will not or simply cannot make things right on your terms. Therefore, forgiveness takes the first step and forgives rather than waits. Second, forgiveness heals. Only forgiveness can heal the resentment, anger or bitterness. It is a self-healing medication that you have the power to give yourself. Otherwise, you will carry the injury for the rest of your life.
The ultimate example on how to forgive is found in God. You and I hurt God through our sins. They were an offense and angered Him. As a result, we became a “debtor” to God. Even so, in an act of amazing grace and mercy, He took initiative to provide a way for our forgiveness. He sent His Son, Jesus, to pay the debt for our sins against Him.
I pray that we can learn from God’s example. As He extended grace and mercy to us who offended Him, may we extend the same towards those who have offended us. Jesus said, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14). In Him may you find hope for today.
When someone you trust lies, physically abuses, verbally intimidates, tricks or uses you – it hurts. It causes emotional injuries that swell up into resentment, anger or bitterness, which all lead to unforgiveness.
What can you do when someone hurts you? 1) Bury it and never talk about it again. 2) Sever the relationship ties through divorce, quitting the job or ignoring the person. 3) Get revenge and make the person pay.
Is there a better way? Yes. Forgiveness. The person who has hurt or injured you emotionally is a “debtor”. They owe you. They owe you an apology, the effort to make things right or just something for the pain they caused. Forgiveness means you choose to “write off” their debt so you are no longer demanding the person apologize, make things right or do something to take away the pain.
Why forgive? First, because it is realistic and pro-active. In real life, the person who hurt you probably will not or simply cannot make things right on your terms. Therefore, forgiveness takes the first step and forgives rather than waits. Second, forgiveness heals. Only forgiveness can heal the resentment, anger or bitterness. It is a self-healing medication that you have the power to give yourself. Otherwise, you will carry the injury for the rest of your life.
The ultimate example on how to forgive is found in God. You and I hurt God through our sins. They were an offense and angered Him. As a result, we became a “debtor” to God. Even so, in an act of amazing grace and mercy, He took initiative to provide a way for our forgiveness. He sent His Son, Jesus, to pay the debt for our sins against Him.
I pray that we can learn from God’s example. As He extended grace and mercy to us who offended Him, may we extend the same towards those who have offended us. Jesus said, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14). In Him may you find hope for today.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Victory though Defeat
College basketball fans live for “March Madness”. It is about this time a particular name is remembered each year – Coach John Wooden, the legendary coach of the UCLA Bruins.
He is remembered for the coaching success at UCLA, that most sports historians say will never be matched or likely even rivaled. It is a voluminous set of records. The ones most well known are the ten NCAA national championships in 12 years, 88 consecutive wins over four seasons and 19 conference championships.
Many fans of Coach Wooden, 99 years old, would say he has been a winner throughout his entire life. As a player, he won championships in high school and college. As a coach, he had an 81% winning percentage covering 40 years of coaching along with the UCLA championships.
When you look beneath the surface of Coach Wooden’s resume, you can see he was not always a winner. He has known defeat. During the state title game of 1927 for Martinsville (Indiana) High School, he missed a key shot and lost the championship. Wooden says, “Losing that game was the most disappointing thing that happened to me as a player.” He started coaching in 1932 at Dayton (Kentucky) High School. His first season was six wins and 11 losses. It took him 28 years of coaching through the high school and college ranks before he won his first title. Then at UCLA in 1964, he finally captured his first of many national championships.
Victory often requires that we first walk through the doors of defeat. Then we find that which appeared to bring defeat actually launched us through the doors of victory.
Centuries ago, Jesus faced a torturous crucifixion upon a wooden cross. Political leaders, religious leaders, His disciples, family and friends thought He had been defeated. Jesus faced the cross and those around Him with perspective and resolve. When He died, it was a long, dark day. The sense of defeat was all around.
Then Sunday came. After three days, His tombstone was rolled away and He came out – alive! Angels told those who came to His grave mourning His death, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen” (Luke 24:6). Out of defeat came victory. The cross, which looked like it was going to be a symbol of defeat, three days later, became the greatest symbol of victory the world has ever known.
What has defeated you? Bring it to the cross of Christ. Lay your sin, pain and failures before Him in faith. Through Christ, find victory in your defeats. May that be your hope for today.
He is remembered for the coaching success at UCLA, that most sports historians say will never be matched or likely even rivaled. It is a voluminous set of records. The ones most well known are the ten NCAA national championships in 12 years, 88 consecutive wins over four seasons and 19 conference championships.
Many fans of Coach Wooden, 99 years old, would say he has been a winner throughout his entire life. As a player, he won championships in high school and college. As a coach, he had an 81% winning percentage covering 40 years of coaching along with the UCLA championships.
When you look beneath the surface of Coach Wooden’s resume, you can see he was not always a winner. He has known defeat. During the state title game of 1927 for Martinsville (Indiana) High School, he missed a key shot and lost the championship. Wooden says, “Losing that game was the most disappointing thing that happened to me as a player.” He started coaching in 1932 at Dayton (Kentucky) High School. His first season was six wins and 11 losses. It took him 28 years of coaching through the high school and college ranks before he won his first title. Then at UCLA in 1964, he finally captured his first of many national championships.
Victory often requires that we first walk through the doors of defeat. Then we find that which appeared to bring defeat actually launched us through the doors of victory.
Centuries ago, Jesus faced a torturous crucifixion upon a wooden cross. Political leaders, religious leaders, His disciples, family and friends thought He had been defeated. Jesus faced the cross and those around Him with perspective and resolve. When He died, it was a long, dark day. The sense of defeat was all around.
Then Sunday came. After three days, His tombstone was rolled away and He came out – alive! Angels told those who came to His grave mourning His death, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen” (Luke 24:6). Out of defeat came victory. The cross, which looked like it was going to be a symbol of defeat, three days later, became the greatest symbol of victory the world has ever known.
What has defeated you? Bring it to the cross of Christ. Lay your sin, pain and failures before Him in faith. Through Christ, find victory in your defeats. May that be your hope for today.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)