A Liturgy for Graduation

Photo by Emily Ranquist from Pexels

This liturgy is written specifically for graduates of the Moody Bible Institute, because that is my experience, but it could apply across the board.

Oh Lord God,

Maker of my life,

You have called me to this precipice once again.

When I was born,

You brought me out of the warm, safe world of the womb,

And into the bright, cold world outside,

    where all was startling and new.

And in the trauma of being born, I wailed.

Those who welcomed me rejoiced,

Because my life had begun.

Here, again, I come to such a transition.

I exist, for the moment, in the safe familiarity of homework and class schedules 

    and resources easy to reach for.

I exist in community, at times minutes away from close-knit friends.

I exist in this space that has become my home.

And yet it was never meant to be my home.

This—

This dorm room,

This desk,

This computer screen,

This Zoom login—

This liminal space I live in now,

Has always been a place from which I was meant to be pushed:

A place from which the rest of my life can begin.

Oh God who brought me safely from the womb,

Would you perform again the miracle of making my life

A place of color,

Of light,

Of friendship,

Of joy.

Would you flood my senses anew with the wonder of living this life 

    into which you have called me,

    even with its difficulty and heartache.

Lord, even when I wail with the newness of the world into which you call me next,

Would you remind me that it is you who are,

    ever and always,

Rejoicing over me.

Amen