As many of you are going to college, here a couple of things I want you to remember:
1. Be nice to your parents. When you leave, you are taking a piece of their heart. You may be going away 100 miles or 10 miles, but neither is easy for any parent. You will always be their child. They tried to train you and prepare you for the real world and for all the things you will encounter when you are on your own.
All the tough lessons and all the hard times are part of preparing you for this moment. When you are on your own and you start making decisions. It hurts! It hurts for them to see you leave. It hurts for them to see you go. It hurts for them not to be there to take care of you. It hurts that they can’t be close enough to protect you. So, be nice to them, this is really tough, one day you may understand it. You don’t have to understand someone in order to be nice.
2. Be who God wants you to be. You will be asked to join many groups. You will feel so important that you are going to choose with whom you will hang out. You are going to be an adult picking your own place to eat and places to go, but remember whose child you are. You are God’s child! What you do, where you go, what you say, how you say it is a reflection on God. Since we call ourselves a Christian, and that question is going to come up, people will find out eventually where you live and where you went to church. In all decisions, consider who God wants you to be. He calls you a light to the world, He calls you the salt of the earth, He calls you the apple of His eye. When you are facing a tough decision, be who God wants you to be!