The frightening reality hits me as I think about college graduation. My mixed feelings are somewhere in between the excitement of waking up on Christmas morning, wondering what the day ahead has in store, and that utter terror experienced as a five-year-old when all the lights are turned off and your imagination decides to run wild. Alone, frightened, unsure of what is going to happen or pop out at you from the shadows, you feel the night drag on, each moment seemingly unpredictable and the prospect of falling asleep nearly impossible.
First, it is important to say that graduation is a beautiful season to celebrate. Class after class, day after day, week after week, month after month, and yes, year after year you studied, learned, and grew in and out of the classroom. Friends were gained, lessons were learned, and knowledge was passed down. My time at Geneva College has been invaluable to my development as a young Christian in pursuit of my undergraduate degree. Your education has, to some extent, contributed to the person you are today and has been a steppingstone in your journey to who you will become in the future. Each student has willingly become a member of the Geneva College community in dedication to the same mission, to reach that blessed day when we receive our diplomas. After commencement, some may already have plans for the immediate future, some may have internships, marriage, or even a potential job established! But in many cases, whether you have immediate plans lined up or not, things might seem slightly unclear at the moment. The future might feel quite distant, unnerving and hazy.
To be completely transparent, the prospect of life after college confuses me. Each graduating senior has experienced being the freshman rookie, the sluggish sophomore, the anticipatory junior, to now… the soon-to-be alum of Geneva College. Regardless of whether you have sought after the will of God, waiting to see what direction he may lead you, uncertainty can still remain. Maybe those things that you dreamed of happening haven’t happened yet, those goals that you once desired to accomplish might still be distant, and the hope of maintaining normalcy after leaving the familiarity of campus seems lost.
The truth is, while you sit here thinking that God isn’t guiding you or you feel like you’re in this sort of season of limbo with no possibility of parole, remember that He has been there the whole time. After four years of hard work, you are on the precipice of graduation because God has brought you to this moment. Those times when things were difficult and you kept walking on, attended classes, did your homework, completed credits, He was there. When you felt like you never heard a clear voice about which door to go through, He was there silently closing the door to other possibilities and opening another in its place.
As humans we make mistakes, which brings difficulty to making decisions in life, especially when it determines where you will live or work post-graduation. The fact is, God is bigger than the “mistakes.” His plans are above them. Through it all, God has been there and has led you even though you may never have realized it. He has foreknown of this season of graduation, and you have finally arrived.
There is no easy formula for computing exactly what comes next in life beyond the day of commencement. But in this season of uncertainty, I can tell you that prayer is important. We need God and are subsequently in need of His guidance in our life. How are we to hear His call if we are not in consistent communication with Him? The reason people say that decisions are hard to make is because we were never meant to make them on our own. God has allowed for this interpersonal conversation to happen between mankind and Himself. He made a way for us to talk with Him personally, the One who understands the universe, the One who not only can comprehend time and space but created it. He is the ultimate resource for life and we can talk to Him at any moment. That is crazy. The Lord is our helper in times of joy, in times of pain, in times of confusion, and in times of difficult decisions.
The God who created this world and everything in it, the God who put breath into your lungs and called you by name from the beginning, the God who created all existence, cares and loves you with an everlasting love that is larger, wider, deeper than anything you can imagine. He has been faithful in the past; He is faithful this very second, and I can guarantee that He will be faithful in the future. In scripture time and time again, we hear God referred to as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Do you know why this is how the Bible refers to God? Within the stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God worked in them and through them to fulfill His perfect plan. God utilized covenants in ways that encouraged each person to grow in their faith, trust in his promises, and believe in His sovereign control over all. That same God, The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is even with you, and He will never leave you. He was with you freshman year, sophomore year, junior year, senior year, and He will be with you in the years following graduation… even to the end of the age. Find rest in this, that He will never leave you nor forsake you.
There is a great future beyond the walls of Geneva College. There is a journey God needs you to complete. There is an adventure He has mapped out for you. Though the path is uncertain, He knows the way, He created the path, and He already knows your destination. In the meantime, trust, embrace this moment of graduation, this season (although uncertain it may be) and rest in Him. Rest in His arms as you wait for the journey to begin.
In 1 Kings 19, the prophet Elijah, after hearing of the killing of all the prophets by the hand of Ahab and Jezebel, fled for his life. Journeying in the wilderness alone, he asked God to let him die, saying, “I have had enough Lord”. He was weary in his journey, terrified for his fate, wishing it all to be over as his future was uncertain and unclear. Elijah then fell asleep under a tree. But the Lord did not leave him to die for He had much more in store for him. As Elijah rested, God provided him food and drink so that he could gather up enough strength to carry out the work the Lord had laid before him. He had to take that season, that moment of waiting, that moment to rest, that time to re-establish himself. For it was after that time that God provided for him, that he could then journey on, fulfilling the work He had set before him to accomplish, with full strength, vigor and perseverance.
If you are uncertain where you are going, where God is leading you at this time of graduation, don’t be overwhelmed. Rather, take this season, recognizing what you have accomplished thus far, and realizing that in due time God will lead you where you should go. In the meantime, pray for guidance, celebrate your success, and rest in his promise of a future. An uncertain future does not give us reason to fear, rather, it gives us an opportunity to walk by faith. The future before us is not guaranteed to be easy but it is one that is full of hope. Trust in this season that God has given you, and know He is will never leave you or forsake you.
“He Who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.”
-1 Thessalonians 5:24
Do you want to grow in faith and knowledge at a Christ-centered college? Learn more about Geneva College at https://www.geneva.edu or contact Admissions at admissions@geneva.edu or 800-847-8255.
-Abby Forton ‘22Opinions expressed in the Geneva Blog are those of its contributors and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official position of the College. The Geneva Blog is a place for faculty and contributing writers to express points of view, academic insights, and contribute to national conversations to spark thought, conversation, and the pursuit of truth, in line with our philosophy as a Christian, liberal arts institution.
May 2, 2022
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