I attended a High School graduation ceremony this week. It was a celebration of accomplishment and achievement for the honorees. Though it marks the end of their high school education, it is really the beginning of the rest of their life. It is an important achievement because that education will affect everything they try to do. They will need the diploma to get into a college or vocational training programs. Many employers see that diploma as a minimal qualification for employment. They need someone who is dependable, can follow instructions and can get things done.
I remember my own High School graduation. I was so relieved to finally be finished with school! Little did I know my education would never end and I would “graduate” many more times. When I joined the Air Force, I completed Basic training and then went on to technical training. For the next 24 years I attended classes, self- studied for countless hours and took hundreds of tests to learn my job and compete for promotion. I even attended night classes to get my Maintenance Production Management degree.
When I joined the State Department, they trained me for six months before giving me my first assignment. Over the following 16 years, I attended another 12 months of classroom instruction, plus at least that much self-study.
Though I retired I am still learning. I attend Church services and Bible studies. I have my personal devotional time and do more informal learning on the internet. I also write stories that make me think more about how GOD is working in our lives.
Why do I need all that Bible study? Am I trying to work out my own salvation? Do I plan on teaching or preaching? No. I want more of JESUS. I want to fill up on Him and be ready to be a witness to those who are lost. Someday I will be part of another “graduation” ceremony, when GOD will say “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Mat 25:21 KJV). Not because of my achievement, but because “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 KJV). I hope to celebrate that “graduation” with you!
Wayne Lance (2017) – That’s Good News to Share!