Pat Anderson Today

This week our son graduated. He has finished his first 12 years of education (well, actually his first 18 years!) Graduation is an exciting and a nostalgic time for parents. We reflect on all the ways our son has developed into a young man and we remember all the incidents that have taken place to shape him into the person he has become.

During this time we also come face to face with the goal we set as parents of this child: our goal for our kids is to raise them to be responsible, capable adults. Now - reality is that they don’t belong to us. They’ve been in our care for the first few years of their lives and then we release them.

It’s easy and logical to say that we must release our kids but much harder to let it sink into our hearts. The state of “being ready to be released” puts a lot of pressure on parents; pressure to have done a good job. What does it mean to be ready to “be released”?

Is my son ready to face the world in which he will exist? Have we taught him to embrace life with passion? Is he capable of facing each day with a positive attitude? Does he have the skills to become excellent in his field?

But most important of all, does he have a strong relationship with his Creator? Jesus is the One who will fill him with passion and excitement; the One who will bring about the opportunities to build his skills; the One who will make life an adventure as our son discovers his purpose here on earth. Our responsibility as parents is to introduce him to this Jesus and then trust our son to put his faith in this great and wonderful counselor and friend.

We have taught him that knowing Jesus and letting Jesus lead is the only way he will find fulfillment and true purpose. Anything else will leave him feeling lonely and disappointed.

So ultimately, we have only one thing that we must be most concerned with during this time of graduation - have we been diligent in introducing him to the most exciting relationship on earth?!