Graduation Speech

The following is the speech I delivered on 5/19/12 at my homeschool graduation ceremony:  

“Thank you everybody for coming. I’ve been extremely encouraged over the past several weeks as so many of you have offered your prayers and words of encouragement as I enter this new and exciting chapter of my life.

I remember starting school 13 years ago and thinking of this day as if it was an eternity away. Things like driving a car, having a job, and standing here today receiving my high school diploma were all things I looked forward to, but I could hardly imagine what life would be like without my daily studies and summer vacation. Life has changed drastically for me over the past twelve months, and I realize this trend will only continue over the next several years. Yet unlike many graduates, I don’t fear what lies ahead; instead, I am excited to learn what blessings God has in store for me as an adult and trust His promise in Jeremiah 29:11 applies to me: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you saith the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil to give you an expected end.”

In 1 Corinthians 13:11, Paul wrote “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” As I’ve prepared for this day and new season of my life, this is one verse God has reminded me of time and time again. I understand that many of the things I’ve become accustomed to throughout my school years will no longer apply to me as an adult, such as the privilege of having an answer book to explain everything I don’t understand. Life will no doubt present me with many challenging situations throughout my future, but I resolve today to trust God in those times to fulfill His promise in Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and He shall direct thy paths.

Of course the accomplishment of my graduation would not even be a reality without the patience and determination of my mother over these past 13 years. She has taught me everything from learning how to read to learning how to tie my shoelace, and she deserves all of the credit for making this day a reality. I can’t begin to describe how much I appreciate her faithfulness to me and to the calling God has placed on her life to homeschool me and my sister.

I would also like to thank my sister, Bethany, for being a great sister and classmate; my aunt Shelley for coordinating so many great homeschool events with our local homeschool group; the Homeschool Foundation; and our state government for acknowledging the right of parents to educate their children at home.

Again, you’ll never know what your prayers have meant to me over these past several months and what it means to me to know I can count on your prayers in my future. I pray and trust that the days ahead will be as blessed as days gone by, and I thank God for the assurance that He will be with me every step of the way.”

The Trial of Your Faith

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.”

               -Romans 8:28

More than six months of car shopping culminated yesterday afternoon with the purchase of my first car….Well, my second first car that is. Back in January I had a not-so-pleasant experience with a ‘99 Ford Taurus that I owned for a grand total of three full days, discovering after less than 100 miles that it had a bad transmission that would ultimately cost more to fix than the car was worth.

Of course just like any other guy my age, owning my first car has always been a dream of mine and one I was excited to see become a reality. And even though the bank preapproved me for a sizable loan without requiring a cosigner, no amount of prayer could give me peace about starting off my adult life in debt. (Thankfully I have a great mom who let me drive her car to my part time job while I saved up enough to pay cash.)  So I worked and saved for six months, and then all of my prayers led me to believe I was supposed to buy the car that I had to return less than a week later. I was confused, angry and very discouraged.

Some would say I misunderstood God’s leading. After all, where does a bad transmission fit into Jeremiah 29:11? Even after grappling with this question for the past 2+ months I’m not sure I can give the perfect answer to that question, although I do think God had a purpose in all of what took place. Didn’t God say that the trial of our faith worketh patience (James 1:3)? Without trying to sound sarcastic, I certainly think patience is more important than a seamless transition into my first car.

Maybe you’ve never had a car go bad three days after buying it, but I’m confident a large majority of my readers have faced their share of situations they didn’t understand. Even after “praying it through”, know that you still won’t understand all of the unexpected curveballs that come your way in life. But even when nothing is falling into place the way you think it should, trust that God has a purpose much higher, wiser, and greater than you thought He did (Isaiah 55:9). He usually does.

 

That’s My King

Wow. I just saw this video and it’s very possibly the most anointed three-minute sermon I’ve ever heard. There are no words to describe the glory of our Savior, but this man comes as close as any man can. Watch and be blessed.

Q&A: Heavenly Rewards

“Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for My sake.
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”

               -Matthew 5:11, 12

I recently received an email from a follower that contained a very thought provoking question about heaven. In fact, her email has occupied so many of my thoughts over these last two days that I decided to go ahead and respond publicly rather than via return email as I usually do. Here is her question:

“When I read about Heaven, I get the idea that there are different rewards in Heaven. My pastor says all the time that what we do on earth, we will get rewarded for in Heaven. Why is that? There is no jealousy in Heaven. No one will envy another. So why would anyone care what rewards they will get in Heaven? They will be delighted and happy in Heaven because possessions and houses won’t matter. So why will our Heavenly experience matter by how much we do for God on earth?”

Any pastor who preaches various degrees of heavenly reward is absolutely correct in his thinking. Not only does it make sense that God would reward His children according to their individual obedience, but the Scriptures clearly indicate  that “every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor.” (1 Corinthians 3:8) Just as Christ taught that the Pharisees would “receive greater damnation” for their wickedness and hypocrisy (Mark 12:40), the doctrines of Scripture also teach that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:10)

Of course, as it was so aptly pointed out above, there will be no jealousy in heaven. It’s certainly hard to imagine my fellow brother receiving more treasures and authority than myself without harboring feelings of anger and resentment, yet we know that heaven is a place where “the former things [including jealousy!] are passed away.” (Revelation 21:4) In accordance with Romans 12:15 we will join others in their heavenly celebration, not pout because we’re discontent with what we were given.

I’ll admit, the idea of additional rewards in heaven seems redundant. Isn’t heaven itself enough? Yes, but I also believe that our heavenly Father’s ways are much higher, wiser, and greater than our own (Isaiah 55:8, 9). It didn’t make much sense in humanity’s eyes that God would choose a stable as the birthplace for His Son, or a poor, small-town couple to serve as His foster parents. Yet this is what pleased the Father and the very way He chose to author our salvation (Colossians 1:19; Hebrews 12:2). I can’t help but think the same is true when it comes to eternity and its rewards; God doesn’t owe us anything, but chooses to give us “exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” because we are His children in whom He delights (Ephesians 3:20; Proverbs 12:22).

Regardless of whatever treasures we may have waiting for us in heaven, my heart tells me  that I’m utterly unworthy of it all. Any Christian who serves God for material gain will one day realize they’ve not gained a thing, while those who go about doing their “reasonable service” will find riches beyond all comprehension (Romans 12:1; Luke 17:10).

 

“I Need You”

This week I had the great pleasure of getting to see and meet Matt Maher and Audrey Assad. Of all the concerts I’ve been to over the years, I must say this was one of the best and most-memorable yet. They’re both such talented musicians and play some awesome music on stage, so definitely consider picking up a few tickets next time they come to your area. This is a video I shot of them playing a beautiful rendition of “I Need Thee Ever Hour.”