What Is Within You?

Before getting ready to graduate from college and after a few months of
looking and admiring a beautiful sports car in a dealer’s showroom while
knowing that dad could well afford it, the soon to be graduate told dad this 
is what I want for graduation. As graduation day approached the graduate 
to be with anticipation awaited signs that dad had purchased the sports car. 

Finally, on the morning of graduation dad called his child into his study 
saying how proud he was and how much he loved his child and how they 
had turned out. Then the dad handed his child a wrapped gift. Curious but 
somewhat disappointed the to be graduate un-wrapped the present. Inside 
the box was a beautiful leather-bound Bible, with the graduate’s name 
embossed on the front of the Bible in gold letters. 

Angrily, the graduate to be raised their voice at their father and said, “WITH 
ALL THE MONEY YOU’VE GOT YOU GO AND GET ME A BIBLE? I TOLD 
YOU WHAT I WANTED!” Then the to be graduate stormed out of the house, 
leaving the Bible.

Today in the Tremont City United Methodist Church is graduate Sunday. A
day to recognize those who are graduating and preparing for the next big
step in their life. A day mom’s and dad’s have anxiously awaited as well as
teachers who even though they are told they are not supposed to openly 
pray, have been praying that the students would graduate and leave the 
building!

In my study I have framed a reminder that it is not who I am or what my
degrees are, who I think I am as a Christian, a man, a husband, a daddy, a 
member of the human race is irrelevant. The reminder…? Most of what I 
really needed to know about how to live, and what to do and how to be, I 
learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school 
mountain, but there in the sandbox of nursery school. These are the things 
I learned: Share everything. Play fair. Don’t hit people, put things back 
where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don’t take things that 
aren’t yours. Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands 
before you eat. Flush. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you. Live 
a balanced life. Learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing 
and dance and play and work every day, some. Take a nap every 
afternoon. When you go out into the world, watch for traffic, hold hands and 
stick together. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the plastic 
cup. The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows 
how or why, but we all are like that. And remember the book about Dick 
and Jane and the first word you learned, the biggest word of al l- LOOK. 
Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden rule and 
basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and sane living. 

Sadly many forget the wisdom of God’s word, Ecclesiastes 6:1-6

There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it lies 
heavy upon men; a man to whom God gives wealth, 
possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that 
he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, 
but a stranger enjoys them; this is vanity; it is a sore affliction.
If a man begets (Begets: to acquire) a hundred children, and 
lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but 
he does not enjoy life’s good things, and also has no burial, I 
say that an untimely birth is better than he. For it comes into 
vanity and goes into darkness, and in darkness it’s name is 
covered; moreover it has not seen the sun or known anything; 
yet it finds rest rather than he. Even though he should live a 
thousand years twice told, yet enjoy no good-do not all go to 
one place?

What this scripture is saying is true in all our lives, for it does not matter 
how long we live if we are not able to enjoy what God has given us. For in 
our lives we need to enjoy the wealth God has given us, being with the 
ones we love, to see a sunrise, a sunset, to feel the gentle breeze upon 
our face and a love ones smile. 

Our lives are meaningless if we focus on materialism and that of this world. 
It’s a funny thing about death, there’s only enough room in the casket for 
the one that has died and the love they take within them. For in the end 
everyone, rich and poor, dies and how sad it is that many have, are, and 
shall graduate putting all their energy into the world and not into a personal 
relationship with Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and with those 
around them. Preparing for life and not for eternity.

Ecclesiastes 6: 7-9

All the toil of people is for their mouth, yet their appetite is 
not satisfied. For what advantage has the wise one over the 
fool? And what does the poor one have who knows how to 
conduct themselves before the living? Better is the sight of 
the eyes than the wandering of desire; this is also vanity 
and striving after the wind.

I have learned a lesson about life that I give today to our graduates:
Cassandra Bethel: Piqua High School, 
Kelly Dillahunt: Miami East
Travis Hope, Jordan McClure, Jessica McCurry, Tyler Wells,
Gina and Scott Tatro : Northwestern High School,
Christie Nevius and Heather Parsons: Graham High School, 
Stacey Lynn Pikey: North High School, 


The lesson? Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were 
going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and 
understanding you can muster, and do with no thought of any reward. Your 
life will never be the same again.

You see, the graduate to be graduated and left town without speaking to
their father. After all, with all dad’s money he only bought me a leather-
bound Bible and put my name on the front of it in gold lettering! Many years 
passed and the graduate was successful with a beautiful home, spouse, 
family, cars, bank account, and title. With time they realized their father was 
getting older and maybe they should check on him. After all they had not 
seen dad since that day in his study when they stormed out of his study in 
anger over not getting that sports car they wanted.

Before they could make arrangements to go and see dad they received a 
telegram, dad had died and willed all his possessions to them. 

The child quickly returned and felt a sudden sadness upon entering their 
childhood home. 

They began to go through their father’s papers and there on their father’s 
desk in his study sat the very same leather bound Bible with their name on 
the front of it in gold letters. All these years and their father had never given 
up on them or got rid of their Bible. 

With tears in their eyes they opened the Bible and began to slowly turn the 
pages while reading what their father had marked and noticing their father 
had carefully highlighted and underlined Luke11: 13,

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to 
your children, how much more will the heavenly Father 
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?

As the graduate was reading this scripture a key fell to the floor with a tag 
attached to it. On the tag was the car dealer’s name where the graduate 
had seen the sports car they so badly wanted and written on the tag were 
the words, “PAID IN FULL…BY YOUR FATHER, WITH LOVE”. 

As we are in the world, my prayer is that we do not get so caught up in the
world that we all forget. We all forget that Jesus paid the price in full for 
our sins, on the cross at Calvary. 

My prayer is that we all do not get so caught up that we miss God’s
blessings in life because we did not receive the way we wanted to receive.

Ecclesiastes 5:15:

As one came from their mother’s womb one shall go again, 
naked as they came, and shall take away nothing for their 
toil, which they may carry away in their hand.

On this Pentecost Sunday we need to remember that we are born into this 
world with nothing in our hands and we die from this world, taking nothing 
in our hands but the love of God and our loved ones. What is within you as
you take your last breath, is what you take. Graduates...I ask this of you: 
What do you want to take with you? May what you want to take with you 
be the focus of your life.

Let us pray,

Father God bless these graduates who are in worship today and all 
graduates in this world, as we know life in the sin of the flesh. 
May their lives be committed to serving you Father and 
as they step out into the world may they step out 
holding onto your hand Father and the 
hands of those who are healthy 
and who love them. 
Amen



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