graduation

Rachel and Me




Rachel and her brothers




Rachel and her Daddy











































Rachel and her friends










tonight, rachel walked across the stage and received a diploma that states that she has completed 8th grade. i was very proud of her because she was very proud of herself. she had finished a portion of her life that took time and dedication for her to accomplish. this has been Rachel's week. she turned 14 and graduated 8th grade all in the same week. tonight was very sentimental for me. i remember her being so little and now she seems to have grown up to be such a sweet and intelligent young lady. it was such a joy for me to watch her enjoy her evening so much. laughing with her friends and experiencing sentimental feelings herself, she seemed to be having the time of her life. i loved watching it all. it makes me so happy to see her happy.

graduation is about accepting an award for completing something that took sacrifice to accomplish. this time of year, graduations are going on all over the world. as i watched rachel accept the certificate of her accomplishment, i was reminded of my own times of accomplishment in graduations myself. and, i smiled as i remembered how it felt to receive the awarded certificate. there are so many things that we can receive graduation awards for here in our country, kindergarden, middle school, junior high school, high school, trade schools, training centers, community colleges, Bible colleges, and four year colleges. masters degrees and doctorate degrees in upper levels of education also have graduation ceremonies. but the most important graduation ceremony we will ever attend is our graduation from earth to Heaven. the only difference is that we will be receiving our award for doing nothing but accepting the sacrifice of Jesus and then we will lay that award at His feet in honor of His great work on our behalf. what a great graduation day that will be!