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Graduation is a fun time.  I love all the music, the ceremonies, the speeches and the flying hats.  It is a time of new found freedom.  It is a time of great change, a time when many decisions about the future are going to be made.  It is a time that must be carefully and prayerfully considered so that life will have its proper result.

Don’t Use Freedom Incorrectly

“Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God” (1 Peter 2.16).  Peter addresses what seems to be a general tendency in human activity.  We take any new freedom we are granted and use it find ways to please ourselves rather than choosing to keep our obligations and responsibilities.

Shortly after graduation, many people will move out on their own for the first time ever.  This results in a newfound level of freedom that can be quite overwhelming at first; there are whole host of new decisions to be made.  When will I go to bed?  What will I eat?  Where will I go get groceries?  When will I do my laundry?  When will I study?  When will I work?  Every day decisions that appear very insignificant must dealt with now; do not be deceived, they are important.

The schedule we choose to work can hinder our ability to grow as a saint.  Where we choose to work can make or break the rest of our lives.  Though you have the freedom to skip Bible class to do your laundry, that would be a very poor decision to make.  Though you have the freedom to skip worship services to study for classes, you would be allowing an evil to slowly creep in  that could potentially change your life forever.  Arrange your schedule, use your freedom, so that you can always do what you need to do.

Live Life as a Light

“ You are the light of the world...let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5.14-16).  Another part of using our freedom correctly is to choose to live our lives the right way. 

Everyday we find ourselves in a variety of different situations, only now you have the freedom to decide how to respond to them.  If a biology professor mocks Christianity, you have the freedom to stand up and defend what you believe.  In doing so, you will a light to those around you who believe but choose not to speak.  By showing up to work on time, every time, with a cheerful attitude and a joyful disposition, you will be a light to those who have no reason for hope. 

They way we live, the way we react to the world around us is a matter of our choosing to live the right way.  We have the freedom to make that choice, so let us use our freedom for good.

Remember why you’re here.

You were bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body—1 Cor. 6.20

We are unworthy servants;  we have only done what was our duty—Luke 17.10

It’s very easy to get caught up in all the changes that are taking place and making those new things the most important things in our lives.  Starting a new career is very important.  Attending and doing well at a new school is very important.  Those things, however, are not the most important things in life.  If we don’t constantly remind ourselves of that fact, it is very easy to lost focus on the purpose of our lives. 

Ultimately, the point of life is to glorify God in all that we do.  He is the one who created everything in the beginning, and he is the one whose glory is shown in all creation.  When you do something great, when you do something small, the one who has given you the ability to do those things is God.  The one who deserves the credit, all of the credit, is God.

Psalm 19 does a great job of making this point: ‘The heavens declare the glory of God.’  They do this without speaking, without acting.  The simple fact that they exist gives voice to the awesome power of the God who created them.  When we see the majesty of the Grand Canyon or the beauty of the salt marshes, we don’t praise the rocks or the grass, we thank God for the wonder of his creation.

The lives that we live, in the same way, ought to proclaim that greatness of the God who made us.  We should study hard in school not to gain glory for ourselves, but because God has given us our abilities and is glorified when we strive to make use of the gifts he has given us.  We should be diligent to work hard in all our labors, not to gain the next promotion but because God us glorified when we work hard for our earthly employers. 

Whether great or small, public or private, the choices we make in living our lives shape who we are and what we will become in the future.  We should strive to make sure those choices are constantly made to glorify the God who loves us, saves us, blesses us with so many wonderful things.