Archer and Donald, today is May 31, 2014 and tomorrow your "poppy" will give a message for graduates who are connected to our local church. It's a tradition in the "church world" to offer words of wisdom on special occasions, although it isn't easy to add much to all of the words that graduates hear at times like this. It is my prayer that I'll be around when you graduate from high school ... but just in case God has other plans for me, let me share what I consider the "secrets to a happy and full life."
As you age, you will move from "graduation to new beginning" more than once. You will discover things that give you joy and you will experience things that give you pain. You will be confirmed and challenged, afflicted and comforted, certain and confused, loved and ignored... in no particular order and with no particular frequency. I know this because life is a journey... and journeys are all about discovery and fulfillment. Each of you is on a journey now, although you don't see it as such, and for you, it's only just begun. It's going to be more and more exciting, boys. The hills are going to get steeper and the rides are going to get faster. So... hang on... and remember these words:
1. Now is all you ever have. The past is gone, and while it can be recalled, it cannot be relived. The future belongs to God. Nothing has ever been done in the future. All things are done, discovered, and enjoyed in the now! Remember to live each moment to it fullest.
2. You have a purpose in life- find it, master it, and cling to it. I don't know what your faith will be as you go through life, but I can say that your life will be much richer if you discover what God wants you to do. Examine your tears, your passions, your abilities, and find your vocation. Remember this: your vocation is that which serves the world and also fulfills you. Find it and give yourself to it.
3. We are social creatures and our relationships are (other than our faith) the most important things we have. They really are priceless, and this is especially true of the one with whom you choose to spend your life. Remember this: if you are in the right vocation, have the right partner, and nurture your faith in God along the way, you will experience considerable joy. I promise.
4. Mother Teresa noted we can't do great things... but we can do small things with great love. Remember that. Remember that what we say and do matters. Remember that we may be an angel in someone's life, and even if we aren't, remember, too, that we fill important places in one another's lives- places that are sacred and irreplaceable.
5. A writer named Robert Fulghum has noted that "sticks and stones break our bones. but words break ou hearts." Remember this. Choose your words carefully and remember to always speak the truth in love!
6. The most important things in life are invisible. Things like love, honor, faith, hope, integrity... are unseen.... We can see their results, but we can't actually see them. They are THE stuff of life, and yet we cannot grab, own, measure, or control any of them, not even for a moment. Remember this when people tell you to believe only what you see.
7. Remember this: YOU are a child of God and God loves you in ways that you will never fully understand. Boys, your "poppy" is a pastor... and a man who discovered forgiveness, freedom, and purpose... by accepting Jesus as his Christ and Lord. You may or may not make the same choice, but please remember that God loves you in the fullest sense of the word.
8. You will encounter forks in the road from time to time. Some of them will be unimportant, but others may be life-changing, even life-threatening. They will not only affect the direction in which you go, but also the people with whom you associate and even the values that define you. When you will reach forks in the road that are really, really critical. remember to take the road less traveled... always...with no exceptions.
9. Every beautiful person I know... has known pain... because pain has a way of deepening us and giving us insight into who we are and what's really important. I don't want either of you to experience pain, but when you do, remember this: never let your wounds keep you down or define you.
10 Life is an opportunity which will be richer if you know who and whose you are! From time to time, people will say, "Where did the time go?" or "Is this all there is?" or "Why am I here?" They ask these questions because they have never learned what I am asking you (and all of our church members) to remember today: the purpose of life is to"live in and out of God's grace-filled love." Do this... and you will graduate with honors... from the school of life- the only one that matters in the end. Can I hear an "amen"?
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