Graduates

Hey, everyone!

Hope you’re having an awesome day! Hope you’re having a day as awesome as some of y'all will have later in the week or next, on…Graduation Day! It is an awesome day when one of your "children" graduates! 

Someone asked me the other day how many children we had. I had to stop and think…

“Children?  We have four awesome kids and four awesome kids-in-law, but technically, the only children (as in, “little children”) we have are eight grand kids and one grand-on-the-way!  And now we know why they call them "grand"! They really are!! 

But all our “children” are (sniff, sniff…and at the same time, Praise God!) grown-ups! And they’re all taller and/or smarter than we are! God is so good to us!

I remember our first multi (three)-generational graduation…Grad/Parents/Sibs/Grandkids…It was an awesome one! Even though they always try to make it as boring as possible! Maybe they do that on purpose because they know that parents and others in “the fam“ are so excited and “pumped” about “our own” walking that stage, if they didn’t “bore it up” a little, the audience might start spontaneously singing for joy and square-dancing right there in the middle of the ceremony! 

One thing that is so amazing at graduation is that everyone is there for the same reason.

And everyone is there for a completely different reason! 

Everybody is there to scream, cheer, and clap for those dressed in black robes and square hats. 

But for everyone, it’s someone different! Everybody’s there for THEIR kid, husband, brother, sister, wife, mom or dad! 

As each grad walked across, some politely clapped. But some student had folks with more enthusiasm than that! And it started! They commenced screamin’ and shoutin’! More got the idea and more cheered their grad…

“Wendy Von Stickleberry…”

“Yo yo, Wendy!! Way to go, Wen!! You rock!!”

“Burt Mortleson…”

You go, Burt! Wooooooo!! Buuuuurt!!

Somebody thought to bring a cowbell when their kid’s name was read.

I thought, “That’s what a graduation needs! More cowbell!”

“Charles Andrew Job…”

When our shouting faded, Henry (almost three years old at the time) yelled out, “Way t’go, Uncle Charlie!” 

(Sniff.)

Everybody in the crowd had their eyes on one square hat. Their heart beat for the one under it.

After the whoopin’ 'n hollerin’ really got rolling, when a student walked across with no one to cheer…usually it was a foreign student with parents who couldn’t come from China or India…the silence was painful.

Know the feeling?

Ever feel like you're doing your best to serve those in your life and do what you do because you love Jesus, but it seems no one ever sees or knows. You might feel like giving up sometimes.

I wish you could hear what it sounds like in heaven! Psalm 32 says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go…

and I will counsel you with my eye upon you.”

He sees you! His eye’s on you! With all that’s going on, He’s watches you like you're the only one graduating! 

And He cheers you! 

“Way to go, you!! Wooooooo! You’re rocking it today!!”

Heaven will be full of praise! We’ll praise Him forever! But Paul says, “He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and…at that time each will receive his praise from God!”

He’ll cheer for you!

When you hear it, you’ll know…all the late nights, all the tears, all the work…it was worth it! 

“Way t’ go, you!!!!”

And btw, Congrats, grads!!