Part 5 of the "Alleluia: Believing the Risen Lord" Sermon Series

Love is an act of praise. To our graduates, who have graduated from a school or maybe just from a school of thought, ready to come to God with a new attitude or new opportunity, this is your message and challenge: Love one another. Make no distinction between people. Commit to live like the Lord and you will be successful. You will be made new. When you find yourself in the valley, find a way to trust. Find a way to praise. Find a way to love. And find a way to commit to the call that God wants you to accept. When we love in the valley, we admit that we go into the valley often. We are filled with despair. We are filled with doubt about our capabilities. The world tries to stop us from being more like God and from being active, encouraged Christians in the world. But if you find a way anyway to trust, praise, love, and commit, you will be able to find your way in whatever way you take. Do not forge your own way. Take the path that someone has already laid out for us. Whether you used them or not, they put advisors and professors in our lives during college for a reason. Most professors actually want to spend their office hours talking to you about your challenges. Why would God be any different? Walk boldly through this challenging world, for nothing out there can overpower the goodness and the glory of God. Nothing can stop you from being faithful to God’s plan if you choose not to let it. Nothing, that is, if you let God lead you through the valley rather than choosing to walk alone. May you take this blessing with you in everything you do and everywhere you go.

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." ~Proverbs 16:3

When you commit, you are never looking at God through your rearview mirror. God is your driver. May all glory and honor be to God.