Gtcotr/ws051811
1 John 3:13 So don’t be surprised, friends, when the world hates you. This has been going on a long time. (The Message)
Graduation from High School often means that you will be leaving the proverbial “nest” and venturing further out into the world than before. And, if you haven’t heard it before let me tell you that the world of grownups is a land full of adventure and surprises - not all of them will be welcomed adventures and surprises. During this next season of your life you will laugh more, cry more, learn more, and end up discovering just how much you thought you knew that you really had no clue about.
The Apostle Paul wrote to his church friends who lived in Thessalonica and said this to them. (and I paraphrase …) 1 Thessalonians 4:13a “My friends, I don’t want you to be unaware of the truth like some of the other people who live and work among you.”
So, allow me to give you five important life lessons which I have learned in the almost 40 years since I graduated high school. Why? Because I don’t want you to be surprised as was I when I learned these lessons the hard way. My words of wisdom for the next season of life you will face are:
Don’t be surprised when:
1. What you say is repeated.
a. Even by your best of friends
2. What you do gets found out.
a. Both good and not so good stuff
b. God will set you up to succeed – the devil … to fail
3. What you compromise to keep, you end up losing.
a. If it wouldn’t make mama proud of you, think again!
4. What you believe is put to the test.
a. Don’t worry – you can pass it … it’s an open book test.
b. The questions may change, but the answers never do!
5. What you did not break becomes your responsibility to fix.
a. Just because it’s not your fault does not mean it’s not your responsibility.
