Upcoming Events
Baccalaureate
May 21, 10:12 AM
The service at Hillside UMC on Sunday was terrific. Hillside is a large church in Woodstock, in the northern suburbs of Atlanta. They had in the neighborhood of 100 graduating high school seniors. The baccalaureate service used to be an important part of the graduation experience in America but has become rare in recent years. Its purpose was for the Church to recognize this important milestone in the lives of young people. It also represents the important link of faith and academic pursuits. I applaud the reinstatement of the baccalaurate tradition by Hillside leadership. It was my honor to address them and give them all copies of The Will of God.
I spoke from Luke 17, the account of Jesus healing ten lepers and only one turning back to give God praise. God graciously heals all ten simply because they asked. There was no pre-healing interview screening process to determine their suitability or worthiness. It speaks to the generosity of God who sends His rain on the just and unjust. Only one out of the ten, however, woke up to the reality of what Jesus had done for him. Only one-in-ten came to the place of worship. It was more than simply being thankful; it was about waking up to the reality of God and realizing what He has done. Statistically, only about one-in-ten of young people between the ages of six and twenty-four are serious about their faith. I called on the graduates to beat those odds. I also apologized to them on behalf of my own generation for handing them a society that is drowning in its self-centeredness and consumptive greed.
It was at the close of the service, as I invited the graduates forward for prayer, that God did His most amazing work. Their community of faith surrounded them, laying hands on them in accordance with the Scriptures, and prayed for them. I prayed for the release of their gifts and abilities. I prayed that they would be healed of any devastation from their youth, reminding them that regardless of the circumstances of their birth that God wanted them and delighted in them. I prayed that they would be endowed with genuine spiritual authority and that every purpose for which they were created would be fulfilled. I prayed for their mates, that God was even now preparing them for the time when, if God wills, they will be married. I prayed that they would keep themselves for that day and honor God in their bodies. I ended by asking God to seal the work that He did in them that day against any and all attacks by the evil one.
As they rose, few had dry eyes and the power of God still resounded in the room. It was a glorious day indeed.
Let me extend once again deep and heartfelt thanks to all of you who make moments like this possible. Every day I thank God for those of you who support Kent Reynolds Ministries. I pray that God will honor your faithfulness and generosity. Those of you who have challenges I am aware of I lift to the Lord daily in my prayers. I believe that God is doing and will continue to do great things through our efforts.
Sandy and I join in sending you our love and blessings.