Our Father in Heaven,
As we approach the time of year in which we celebrate graduations at many levels, we pray for our graduates.
For the high school graduate, we pray that they would build on the foundation of knowledge they have, and the relationships they have made, over the last four years. They may be heading into the workforce, a technical school or to college. We pray that you would provide them wisdom for their next steps. High school is just four short years of our lives, but important events take place and life-long relationships are made in high school that help form who we are, and are remembered for the rest of our lives, including class reunions.
For the college graduate, we pray for your guidance for their next steps in life. Those steps may include the beginning of their careers, maybe marriage and starting a family, or perhaps additional education. For those looking for a job and not having any success, we pray that you would comfort them with the presence of the Holy Spirit and a peace that surpasses understanding. Please give them patience and perseverance in this season of waiting. We pray that they would trust you to provide them a position in which they will serve you well with the skills and abilities you have blessed them with.
For those who will be getting married soon, we pray that you would be at the center of those marriages. For those continuing on in their education, we pray that they would be accepted into the universities of their choice, and that you would provide them with the needed finances and support system.
For the seminary graduate, we pray that you would provide them a call into ministry, where they can apply what they have worked so hard to learn. That call may be to the church, a Christian ministry or into the general marketplace.
Father, thank you for helping our graduates persevere in their studies, for giving them strength and energy to continue on when they couldn’t on their own. Thank you for helping them study for exams and write papers. Now, please give them wonderful celebrations with family and friends as they look forward to new beginnings. We ask that you would continue to care for them and guide their lives as they live Coram Deo, in the presence of, and before the face of God.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen
The Heart of a Leader: Insights on the Art of Influence by Ken Blanchard. David C. Cook. 197 pages. 2010. 
Do you have any regrets in life? These regrets might be very significant, such as who you married, or didn’t marry; how you raised your children; how you have handled significant relationships in your life; or perhaps vocational decisions you have made.
I attended a learning event where we were talking about how difficult the calling of a pastor is. Let’s face it, you don’t pursue that particular calling for the money. In most cases, a leader will earn much more in a general marketplace position than they will in the church. The hours are long. Pastors don’t have set “9 to 5” hours, they are always “on call”. In most cases, a pastor does not get the respect that a workplace leader would receive. And while a pastor will occasionally be told how a particular sermon blessed someone, it is often a difficult and lonely calling.