A Prayer for the Graduates

To celebrate our high school graduates, here's a prayer to send them forth.

by Sarah Quiroga on May 24, 2023

It is always a slightly bittersweet day when we celebrate our high school graduates here at St. Dunstan’s. On the one hand, they have reached a true milestone in their lives. We have seen them grow from little Sunday Schoolers through awkward teenagers to poised young people.

But on the other hand, we are preparing to say goodbye to them. Most are moving to a new town to start college. We’ve had some graduates leave for a career in the military, and some start a career right out of high school. In any case, most no longer regularly cross our threshold unless they come back for special holidays with their families.

So we send with them our prayers, fervent and earnest and heartfelt. We at St. Dunstan’s want nothing but the best for our kids as they go into the world. We hope that we’ve equipped them with the knowledge that God loves them in all the trials and tribulations, joys and successes that life may bring. We hope that our lessons and love carry them down the path on their faith journey.

In searching for a prayer of blessing to share with Kara, Emily, and Triston on Sunday, I found a wonderful resource on the Episcopal Church website. By combining a couple of them (The Blessing of Grace by The Rev. William Sloane Coffin and A Franciscan Blessing), I found the right message to send these three graduates forth as truth-seekers, justice-doers, and lovers of God. It fits these three graduates so well. I can’t wait to see what God’s plan holds for them.

May God give you the grace never to sell yourself short;

Grace to risk something big for something good; and

Grace to remember the world is now too dangerous for anything but the truth and too small for anything but love.

May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships so that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may wish for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done.

Amen.

From: https://lessonplans.episcopalchurch.org/celebrating-graduation/prayers-and-blessings/

About the Author

Sarah Quiroga

I am the Director of Children, Youth and Family Ministries. I oversee our Children's and Youth programs and lead our Youth programs.

I want to lead our children and youth towards the same faithful Jesus-following that we expect from their parents and grandparents. They are a vital part of our parish family: helping lead our worship, discovering and developing their faith, and making connections through fellowship and service.

I encourage adults to join in, too, as prayer partners, teachers, and mentors. Check out our web page to see all the programs we offer for Youth. If you have any questions about youth or family events, please contact me.

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