Class of 2023 Graduation

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the grand finale of high school years.

Tonight's special event, high school graduation. First up, we have

Amelia Taco Titan Black. As much as I would love to do this intro,

I'm calling in some air support. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, let me introduce to you

Amelia Black, aka the Taco Titan. With a fierce appetite for victory, this relentless fighter knows no bounds when it comes to her culinary preferences.

As she was stranded on a desert island, you could bet your last dollar that Amelia would be feasting on tacos till the end of time, and perhaps a little honey marfar sauce on the side.

But don't be fooled by her love for tacos alone, for Amelia possesses a trait that has brought both triumph and turmoil to her journey.

This girl is as stubborn as a mule. Whether it's arguing with teachers, mom and dad, defending her opinions, or just being true to herself,

Amelia's unwavering determination has landed her in both trouble and triumph. She's a force to be reckoned with, on and off the graduation stage.

Now let's talk about Amelia's bravery, or rather her limits. She's a fearless warrior, but when it comes to creepy crawlies, she draws the line.

You could offer her her fortune, fame, and everything in between, but no amount of riches could ever convince her to chow down on a spider.

However, if you ever stumble upon a pool filled with Jell -O, you can count on Amelia to take the plunge into its jiggly, wobbly goodness with Gouge Dough.

With her love for tacos, her unyielding stubbornness, and a fearlessness that excludes arachnids but embraces

Jell -O, she's ready to conquer the world beyond high school. Give her a round of applause everybody, for this young graduate is about to make her mark one taco at a time.

We have Ellie Harrytoes Cave. Ellie is not your average graduate, folks.

She's got a knack for spotting unpleasant -sounding words like seepage and moist.

Hey, she doesn't make the rules, she just tells them like it is. Now here's a fun fact about Ellie, she completely dislikes

Harrytoes, and guess what, that's why it makes for such a perfect nickname.

We all have our quirky preferences, and Ellie's aversion to those fuzzy toes takes the cake.

But let's not forget her cheesy side, she's got Justin Bieber's pop hit, Baby, locked and loaded in her memory.

Prepare yourselves for an unforgettable performance later tonight during refreshments. Now here's the real kicker,

Ellie has a love -hate relationship with mushy cooked vegetables. Carrots and zucchini in particular get under her skin.

She wishes she could love them, but alas, mushiness is a deal breaker. Perhaps it's because they're too moist, or there's too much seepage when trying to eat them with a fork, but who knows.

And if Ellie was invisible for a day, well, let's just say, her mischievous side would come out to play.

Haunting her family would be at the top of her invisible to -do list. Watch out, loved ones,

Ellie's invisible antics are sure to keep you on your hairy toes. So let's give a thunderous round of applause to ol'

Hairy Toes, the graduate with a keen ear for unpleasant words, a cheesy anthem in her repertoire, and a hatred for mushy vegetables and a mischievous spirit.

Ellie, Hairy, Hairy Toes, K. Next up, we have the extraordinary graduation, and it is extraordinary.

Of Hannah Drive -Thru Duco. Now picture this, folks.

If Hannah were invisible for a day, she would wreak havoc on the unsuspecting world. She'd play pranks at drive -thrus, leaving the generally overpaid workers confused, perhaps dazed, and scratching their heads.

Kind of like what happens when Joe Biden is asked, well, just about anything. And that's not all.

She'd set off metal detectors and alarm systems just for the sheer thrill of it.

Invisible mischief at its finest. Now let's talk about a hypothetical scenario that would send shivers down anyone's spine.

Picture this, an animal the size of an elephant, but not just any animal. According to Hannah, the scariest creature to reach that colossal size would be your family's evil house cat.

Yes, you heard that right. A feline with the strength and magnitude of an elephant. Time to reconsider that litter box.

In the words of infomercial icon Ron Popeil, but wait, there's more.

If Hannah had a warning label, it would read, caution will spontaneously combust if asked to make a quick decision.

Oh, the pressure of choices. But that's not all. Hannah's distractibility has gotten her into some trouble along the way.

She's a master of getting sidetracked. With her mind wandering in a million different directions, you never know where she might end up.

Huh, kind of like what happens to Joe Biden. Congratulations, Hannah, and may your future be filled with laughter, epic pranks, and maybe a few moments of focused decision making.

Give it up for Hannah DRIVETHRU DUCA! Now last and certainly not least, let's give it up for the one, the only, and by the only,

I mean the only guy graduating tonight, Nathan's famous McOwen! This graduate has a taste for unique experience and a mind full of curiosity.

Nathan, the elevator enthusiast, knows exactly what song he would choose, if ever stuck in one, none other than The Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel.

Imagine him, folks, riding up and down in that elevator, serenading the walls with his rendition of this timeless classic.

Perhaps it would be preferred if he did this instead in the cone of silence. I'll let you be the judge.

We'll have two performances now during refreshments. But hold on tight, my friends, because Nathan has a recommendation that's bound to raise some eyebrows.

He believes that everyone should try eating a hot dog sideways at least once.

Yeah, you heard that right. Forget the traditional way of devouring a hot dog. Nathan's got a whole new perspective.

Who knew a simple change in eating orientation could bring so much excitement? We should believe him, though.

After all, they've named the hot dog company after him. Nathan's famous. Now let's dive into Nathan's imaginative mind.

If he could be any person alive or dead for a day, he would choose Methuselah. Why, you ask?

Well, to experience firsthand what it truly feels like to be a senior. And let's not forget

Nathan's fascinating take on time travel. If he had a time machine, he'd venture back to the pre -flood world, driven by a thirst for answers.

How tall were people? Did they have hairy toes? How far had humanity spread from Eden?

And what did they do for hobbies? I'm guessing they never experienced eating a hot dog sideways, the pure joy of Taco Tuesday, or even had any drive -thrus or drive -ins, regardless of what you may have seen on the

Flintstones. But congratulations, Nathan, and may your future be filled with exciting experiences, unorthodox food adventures, and maybe even a trip back in time.

Give it up for Nathan's famous McElwain. This concludes the introduction of our graduates, and it's brought to you in part by the amazing chat

GPT, who knows more about these graduates than have probably ever cared to know, and a special appearance by Sergeant Noah Black of the 170th

Airborne Unit. Let's give him a hand. All right, today marks quite a transition for you guys, the marking of the end of a lot of work and the beginning of a lot more work.

I remember how it was when I graduated from high school. I thought that the worst of my life was behind me and that everything ahead of me was rainbows and roses and puppies and unicorns and lollipops.

And those were good times, weren't they, everybody? You remember that? You're 18, the world's ahead of you, and you think the most difficult thing

I've ever had to endure, 12 years of that insufferable experience is now behind me, and all that is ahead of me is good and fun and enjoyment.

Yeah. Now, listen, by this point in your life, the world has told you tens of thousands of lies.

You are inundated by lies constantly and always in media, in academia, in culture, in pop culture, in music, in arts, in entertainment, in literature, in the news media, from the

White House, from Congress. Everybody is always lying all of the time. In fact, my operating assumption is that assume you're being lied to, and you're probably going to be okay.

They have lied to us about the meaning of life. They've lied to us about what is real.

They've lied to us about the nature of reality, the nature of truth, the nature of humanity, the nature of human sexuality.

They've lied to us about everything, and you have heard tens of thousands of lies by the time you get to this point, and that's not going to stop.

Now, right now is about the time that you would expect, many of you would expect, that I would start on my typical rant where I remind you that one of the lies that you've been told is how great you are and how your generation is the best generation that's ever graced the face of the planet, and that you are going to be responsible for leading us into the great

American utopia that is to come. You're going to heal the planet. The sea levels will stop rising, and all the problems are going to be solved, and everything is going to be fantastic because of you guys and your generation.

I'm not going to mention any of that. I'm not going to go off on how that is not true.

You're not all that in a bag of chips. You're not the greatest generation that's ever lived. Most of you will probably live and die and be forgotten.

I'm not going to mention any of that. Instead, tonight, I would like to do something far more positive and uplifting from Scripture.

So, I want to share with you a passage from the book of Ecclesiastes. Amelia, that was for your sake.

It's not the book of Ecclesiastes. From 1 Timothy chapter 4. This is Paul's advice to young Timothy. Now, he was young in the sense that he was older than you, but he was not as old as me.

So, he's younger than me, but I would consider him young. You would consider him old. 1 Timothy chapter 4, verses 6 through 10.

In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith, and of the sound doctrine which you have been following.

But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.

For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living

God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Now, in that passage,

Paul is writing to a young pastor of a church. He had left Timothy and Ephesus to deal with some false teachers who had crept into the church, and some men who had made shipwreck of the faith, and were leading other people astray.

And Paul knew that Timothy was in for some difficult times. He was in for some very challenging days ahead of him.

And he is giving Timothy some advice to strengthen him, give him a right perspective. He's giving him instructions on how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God.

He says that in 1 Timothy chapter 3. And in chapter 4, he's giving a list of advice to a young minister.

And we could probably draw out 10 or 12 items of advice from 1 Timothy chapter 4, and even maybe just from those words that I just read to you.

But I want to focus on three things, three things that you must do, or three attributes you must have, three disciplines you must cultivate, if you are to be a good servant of Christ Jesus.

And that's what Paul says, in pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus. And then he gives them a list of things that he has to be mindful of.

So here are the three things. Number one, to be nourished on the words of the faith and the sound doctrine.

Paul says that, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and the sound doctrine.

Second, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness. He says bodily discipline is of little profit, but godliness is profitable, much more profitable because it holds benefit, not just for this life, but also for the life to come.

And third, fix your hope on the living God. Those are the three things, be nourished on the words of the faith and of sound doctrine, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness, and fix your hope on the living

God. I'll give you all three of those. Paul says that Timothy, if he is to be a good servant of Christ Jesus, must be constantly nourished on the words of the faith and the sound doctrine.

Now these two things go together, they're not the same thing, because somebody can take in words of the faith, can take in scripture, somebody can teach scripture, and yet their doctrine can be completely wonky.

So there are two essentials here. Not only that you be nourished on the words of the faith, that is scripture itself, what is given to us in this faith, once for all delivered to the saints.

You be nourished on these words, but also on sound doctrine. So you as a young adult, from this point forward, if you have not yet, you must have a disciplined regimen of reading and taking in scripture, meditating upon scripture, studying scripture, learning scripture, and conforming your life to the truth of God's word.

You must be constantly nourished on this book. Do not allow yourself to become malnourished in the truth.

It will be a lifetime discipline of you taking in truth, taking in the word of God, and appropriating that into your life.

And never give that up, never lay it aside, never make excuses. Make that a focus and a priority.

And not just that, but sound doctrine, Paul says to Timothy, sound doctrine, which you have been following. But Timothy had already been following sound doctrine, and this rings especially true in Ephesus.

Remember that was a church that was full of people, or full of teachers, who had led the people astray, and gotten them off on all kinds of rabbit trails into false doctrine, and made shipwreck of the faith,

Paul says in chapter one. So he says a good minister is one who not only takes in the words of the truth, but also is nourished on sound doctrine.

Meaning that your diet must consist, not just of the word of God, but your diet must consist of good, sound teaching on the word of God.

Keep that in mind, and do not allow your soul to be led astray by podcasts, and false teachers, and charlatans, and hucksters, and any old quizzling who steps into a pulpit, and thinks that he can teach

God's word. You must be nourished on not just the words of the faith, but sound doctrine as well. Which means that you should not ever move to a city for a job without knowing that there is a church there.

You move to a city for a church, then you find a job. And not just a church, but a church that will accurately and faithfully teach, and preach, and honor

God's word at all times. If you will not do that, you will be malnourished in the truth, and you do not want to be malnourished in the truth.

You move into an area, you think I'll just get the job, and then I'll go looking for a church, and you're going to find out that solid churches where that is done are very rare.

Now it would be my preference that none of you would ever leave this church, but in the event that you do, in the event that you do, your number one priority moving anywhere else is to find a place where there is sound doctrine, and the words of the faith are constantly preached, and taught accurately.

Second, Paul says to Timothy, you must discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness. And he says in verse six, constantly nourish on the words of the faith, and the sound doctrines you have been following, but have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women.

And that's not a slight against old women, unless you are an old woman who constantly gives ear to, and circulates worldly fables, in which case that she who has ears to hear, let her hear.

But he says, on the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness, for bodily discipline is of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things.

Paul doesn't say bodily discipline is of no profit. There is profit in bodily discipline, in exercise, et cetera.

There's profit in that, but that profit holds true for this world, not necessarily for the world to come, because if you're in Christ, you're going to get a glorified body, and it's going to have nothing to do with how you treated your body in this world.

So there is some measure of benefit to physical discipline. You understand this as a good servant of Christ Jesus, you have to be disciplined, but spiritual discipline,

Paul says, that's where it's at, because spiritual discipline holds the promise, not just for this life, there's fruit in this life to spiritual discipline, but also for the life to come, meaning that bodily discipline, it doesn't translate into the world that's to come.

There's no rewards there, but spiritual disciplines that you adopt in this life, habits that you form, spiritual habits, spiritual disciplines, the constantly being nourished on the faith, the denying yourself, the serving of others, the giving of your time, talents, and treasure to the

Lord's work, the exercise of your spiritual gift and service to the body of Christ, those kinds of spiritual disciplines, the spiritual discipline of mortifying sin and putting to death the deeds of your body and turning and becoming slaves of righteousness, those kinds of spiritual disciplines produce fruit, not just in this life, abundant fruit in this life, but also for the life that is to come, that's where you reap the rewards.

So constantly nourished on the words of the faith and the sound doctrine, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.

And third, fix your hope on the living God. Paul says four, it's verse 10, for it is for this we labor and strive because we have fixed our hope on the living

God who is the savior of all men, especially believers. Now he's talking there about fixing our hope in a salvific sense, which is why he says,

God is the savior of all men, especially believers. And when he says God is the savior of all men, especially believers, he's not suggesting that salvation is ultimately going to come to all men, but simply that God as the one who is savior is presented to all men.

He's the savior offered to all men. And those men who will not embrace his salvation, but instead respond to him in intenitance and rebellion will themselves suffer damnation.

But it is especially that is in a spiritual sense that God is the savior of believers. So there's a sense in which

God delivers all men from the eternal judgment of their sin that they are due right now for their rebellion against him.

He suspends that execution of justice. He is delivering them temporarily from that. But for the believers, he is the deliverer, the savior of believers in a special sense, namely that because of the work of Christ in bearing the wrath for our sin on the cross,

God is able to forgive fully and freely all who place their trust in Christ and Christ alone, upon whom

God has poured out all of his wrath for their sin. So that on the day of judgment, when we stand in the presence of God, we stand forgiven and completely clothed in his righteousness, not because of any work that we have done, but because of the work of another, the

Lord Jesus Christ, who came into this world to pay the price for sin, died on a cross doing so, suffering fully the wrath of God for all who will believe.

Then he was buried and he rose again the third day. And listen, he is coming again, scripture says, to judge the living and the dead.

And so our responsibility, your responsibility is to make your own calling and election sure by seeing to it that you have repented of your sin and placed your faith in Jesus Christ, because there is only one sacrifice for sin and only one name given among men under heaven by which we must be saved.

And that's Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone. So Paul says, it is for this reason that we are nourished on the faith and sound doctrine.

We discipline ourself for the purpose of godliness because we have fixed our hope for salvation on one person and one work and one thing only, and that is the

Lord Jesus Christ. And he commands you this day if you have not yet to repent and to turn to Christ for God loved the world this much that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have life everlasting.

He is the savior of all men in a temporal sense, but especially of believers. So those are the three things.

Are you constantly nourished on the words of the faith and the sound doctrine which you've been following? Are you disciplining yourself for the purpose of godliness?

And have you fixed your hope on the living God who is the savior especially of believers? It is my prayer that that will describe you for and that you will not squander the life that God has put ahead of you.

Let's pray. Our father, we thank you for your gracious righteousness, your gracious goodness, and the love that you have shown us in Jesus Christ.

It is my prayer that any who are here who have never trusted Christ for salvation may see in him the only hope and savior for their sin lest they suffer your wrath for all of eternity.

It is my prayer that these four graduates know you, that they trust you, that they love you, and that they serve you with their whole lives and fulfill their highest calling, which is to live for your glory and for your sake, that they may receive the reward on the last day.

So I pray that you would strengthen them to this end and for this purpose and that you would be honored and glorified through them and through their lives in all of their decisions as they seek to be nourished on the truth and sound doctrine, disciplining themselves for the purpose of godliness and fixing their hope on you, the only true and living

God and our savior. We thank you for these things in Christ's name. Amen. A couple of days ago, your aunt and uncle came to deliver a fifth wheel for us and I was fretting a little bit about the fact that I was told we had to fill 10 minutes of time.

I was thankful that there was six minutes of video that we will do. So I have to fill four more minutes with talking.

Wayne, hi Wayne, give credit for this. Uncle Wayne there, he told me about Mr.

Rogers. Mr. Rogers would sometimes take a minute and he would encourage people, take a minute and think about all the people that have loved you and have been instrumental in your life.

Well, I have my timer set for four minutes. So for four minutes, I would like for all of you to think about those who have been influential in your life and those who have loved you.

So I'm going to start it right. Let's make sure I find not the seven minute timer. Four minutes.

All right, here we go. Ready? That's only 15 seconds.

That's a long time. I don't think I'm going to do that. So since last year's graduation ceremony,

I have been stressed out about what in the world am I going to say to you? Well, there's one verse that just comes into my mind every single time

I think of it and it's 3 John 4. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

I can say I have no greater joy than you walking in truth. I had no ideas.

So I just thought, well, in my daily reading, I'll see if I find something. And so I was in Proverbs 25 on the 25th and I read it, great stuff, but nothing stood out.

Then I was in 1 Corinthians 11. Now that talks about men and women in church and head covering, shaving your head, and then goes into the

Lord's table. And I just didn't think that was fitting unless you're going to shave your head. No?

Okay, good. Then we don't need to talk about that. So at one last place in my

Old Testament reading, I was in the last two chapters of Ezekiel. Now those deal with the future millennium kingdom and you're not

Jewish, so I don't think the borders of Israel probably apply. Thankfully, right after Ezekiel is

Daniel. And there's no better illustration I can think of, of a child walking in truth than the book of Daniel, where you have four men, four young men that were brought into Babylon and they were called to be trained.

And so they were brought the king's delicacies before them and they were trained in the ways of Babylon. First, Daniel says in Daniel 1, 7 through 8, to them the chief of the eunuchs gave names.

He gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar, to Hananiah Shadrach, to Meshach, and to Azariah Abednego.

But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies.

As the story progresses, you see that they didn't compromise with the king's delicacies.

You see that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were willing to be thrown into a fiery furnace because they would not compromise the truth.

You see that 60 years later, and I love that it's over 60 years later,

Daniel still would not compromise the truth when being threatened to be thrown into a lion's den. And that's my desire for you.

Is that you would be one who would always walk in truth, and that we would be always in joy because of what you do.

And so I want to conclude with Proverbs 23, 23, for the class of 23.

Buy the truth and do not sell it. We love you, we're proud of you. Continue to walk in truth and seek his face.

♪ I see it so clear, there was never a moment ♪ ♪

That you were not here, back

I see it ♪ ♪ It's always been you, Jesus ♪ ♪

All through the years, every tear that I've cried ♪ ♪ You have been faithful all this time ♪ ♪

You've been the one holding my life ♪ ♪ God, you have my side, even at this time ♪ ♪

After all this time, you show me the heart of a father ♪ ♪

Again and again, now from this mountain ♪ ♪

I hold my hands high to the God of my victory ♪ ♪ The hope of my life,

I stand in the wonder of all that you've done ♪ ♪

It's every tear that I've cried, through the years, every tear that I've cried ♪ ♪

You have been faithful all this time, and you've been the one holding my heart ♪

I misread the directions. I thought we could take up to 10 minutes, not had to take up to 10 minutes, so I'm going to let you out early this evening, but I just wanted to take a minute to talk about Ellie.

It's been a great year, been a very busy year between work and school, and then on top of that you decided you're going to try out for a swim team and basketball, and then you still did youth group, and what's a

Friday night thing? Adventure club. So I haven't seen her much this year.

It's good to see you again, but we are just so proud of you.

When you try something, you put your whole heart into it. We're proud of you.

Through the magic of our educational system, she's been homeschooled throughout, but the last two years she's been enrolled in dual credit, so not only is she getting the high school diploma, but within a semester -ish of an associate's degree in communications, so we're very proud of you.

Don't know what God's future is for you, but I'm excited to see, because throughout all the things that you do with sports or school or adventure club, what's most important to you is the

Lord and sharing Him. The rest of the time

I will relinquish to the gentleman and lady from Sandpoint for the next child, but thank you all.

The church has been so supportive, and we appreciate each one of you, and all you mean to us.

The opportunities you give for the youth, not only to be taught, but to teach, that's vitally important.

So thank you. Congratulations. I said

I was not going to cry tonight, and I'm not going to. I mean, I've done that earlier today. Although Noah, whoever coordinated that, no,

I did not know about that. Quite the surprise, so thank you for that. That was very special. First of all,

Rich and I are very thankful to be up here standing with Amelia tonight. We do want to say thank you to all of our friends and family and church family.

All of you have played a role in our life and Amelia's life. We've really appreciated the youth ministry and the girls

Bible studies here at KCC. They've just been very invaluable, and they've spurred on a lot of good conversations at home, and we are thankful for that influence for Amelia.

Also, I want to mention my mother -in -law, Amy. She lives in Tennessee now, and I know she's watching this, but I want to recognize her.

Early on, when we started to homeschool, they were with us, and she was very instrumental in helping me.

She actually did a lot of the homeschooling for me with the kids and just assisted me tremendously, and I'm just forever grateful for her influence in our life and our homeschool.

Amelia, your dad and I are extremely proud to be standing here with you today, and we are pleased to present to you your high school diploma.

You have had a unique journey that has not been without its challenges, whether it was through mastering all those words on those spelling tests through the years, adjusting to the changes, and living in a new state, working through a new curriculum, or just the challenges in your everyday life.

Through the various challenges along the way, we have watched you persevere and work through them, sometimes with some feistiness and stubbornness, well mentioned earlier tonight.

However, we are most proud that you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, and that you can call him your

Savior. It has been a joy to our hearts to watch you grow in your faith and, through some of the most difficult circumstances, choose to trust in God's sovereignty over your life.

I have loved walking into your room and seeing you on your bed with your Bible open, studying

God's Word. This is going to be the most important education you will ever receive.

The next chapter of life may cause some anxiousness to you as you begin finding your way.

However, as you continue to study God's Word and grow closer to him, you can rest in his plan for you.

As we now conclude the last years of your formal education, we can truly say it's been a pleasure and a joy to watch you grow into the young woman you are becoming, and we are grateful that we've had the opportunity to homeschool you.

Always remember that God is good, he is faithful, and he will hold you fast to the very end.

We have just a few scriptures we just wanted to share with you. Colossians 3, 1, and 2.

Therefore, if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.

Set your mind on the things above and not on the things that are on the earth. And Colossians 2, 6, and 7.

Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed and overflowing with gratitude.

We love you very much. We're very proud of you. Congratulations. It's like honey, baby, from the deep.

You can't stop us on the road to freedom. You can't keep us because our eyes can see.

You can't keep us because our eyes can't see.

Oh, honey, just like honey, baby, from the deep.

You can't stop us on the road to freedom.

You can't stop us because our eyes can see. You can't stop us because our eyes can't see.

She's all right. She's all right. She's all right. She's all right.

She's all right. You can take all the tea and chatty.

Put it in a big brown bag for me. Well, we've learned from watching superhero movies that everybody loves an origin story.

And I've got a little bit of a story about Nathan that tells you a little bit about us, our family, and where we came from when we just appeared here in Sandpoint.

Somewhere around 2017, I came home from work, and Nathan, who has always loved maps and atlases, was sitting at the kitchen table, the big atlas in front of him, and he said,

Dad, I want to move there. Where?

He said, Sandpoint, Idaho. I'd like to move there. And I had no idea where, kind of far north.

And he said, well, Dad, it's got a lake, and it's got a ski mountain, and it's really far north, and we should check it out.

So one thing that I've learned about Nathan and my wife is that if Nathan makes a suggestion, it's not a small thing.

Nathan has thought it through, and Nathan has a good reason for telling you about it.

So we came here around 2017, it's actually a pretty nice place.

And it took us a few years, but come 2020, we moved here.

And we appeared in your church, and you welcomed us, and you welcomed our sons, and you became family to us.

So I just want to share a short scripture,

Proverbs 14, 26. It says, in the fear of the

Lord, one has strong confidence in his children, and his children will have a refuge.

So Nathan, keep your confidence. That suggestion you made became our life,

I'm gonna get there. And his children will have refuge. We were just talking about this today.

Nathan, as you are preparing to leave home, you're not leaving. You will always have a home here and in our family, as far as I can get.

So the beginning song in our slideshow starts with all the cliches about how fast kids grow up are true.

I woke up this morning, eye to eye with you. Well, we know that that wasn't this morning for us.

But as you have grown physically, and also as a person, it has been my very deep privilege to be your mother and teacher,

Nathan. And I think that events like this are wonderful because it gives us a chance to do what

Psalm 78 says, which is to recount the deeds of the Lord. In our homeschool, the

Lord has been compassionate and gracious and faithful. Both of us came as sinners day after day, and the

Lord met us. He instructed us. In our weariness, he gave us strength, and in our ignorance, he gave us wisdom.

At every turn, the Lord was faithful to us because our God is faithful. Psalm 78 says that we will not hide from our children the wonders that he has done.

And a pastor early in your homeschool education said that a God -centered education teaches us to kneel, not only to learn to read.

And that has been the focus of our homeschool. We have seen every subject of study as an opportunity to be instructed by the

Lord. As Isaiah 28 says, that the

Lord instructs in even practical things, how to scatter dill, how to sow cumin, and how to put wheat into rows.

And so the farmer is rightly instructed, for his God instructs him. For his

God is wonderful in counsel and excellent in wisdom. So in every subject of study, we came under the instruction of the

Lord. And as your mom and teacher, I recounted to you what God has done in the lives of people as recorded in the

Bible, and in our own lives, and also in math, and in science, and in literature.

And I did this so that you may know that the Lord is God, and to tell your children, and so that your children will tell their children.

And with the end that you will set your hope in God, not forget the works of God, and to obey his commands.

And that has been my prayer for you, and my charge to you again tonight, to set your hope in God, to not forget the works of God, and to obey his commands.

As you move into the next season of life, Nathan, go in confidence, kneeling before the

Lord, knowing that as Philippians 2 says, that you're to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

For it is God who is at work in you, to will and to work to his good pleasure. But you're not doing this on your own.

As Ephesians 2 .10 says, you are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, that you should walk in them.

And so your life does not belong to you. Seek wonderful things in his word, and remember to set your hope in God.

Don't forget the works of God, and obey his commands. These are the old roads that the second song on our slideshow talks about.

And so it is with great thankfulness to the Lord, Nathan, that we present this diploma to you tonight.

All the cliches about how fast kids grow are true.

I woke up this morning, eye to eye with you.

Love songs and that, it just couldn't explain the whole of all your becoming, body and soul.

Your heart goes out, I can hear your song.

Your signal is getting stronger, your signal is getting stronger.

There's no cliche when I hear your song.

Your signal is getting stronger, your signal is getting stronger.

Any cliches about living this life are true

The path is warm, but for us it's new

There's no way to know it without discovery We're marking our missteps with mercy

Your heart goes out, I can hear your song

Your signal is getting stronger, your signal is getting strong There's no cliche when

I hear your song Your signal is getting stronger, your signal is getting strong It's all been said, but don't be afraid

To throw back your head and sing anyway

Your heart goes out, I can hear your song

Your signal is getting stronger, your signal is getting strong There's no cliche when

I hear your song Your signal is getting stronger, your signal is getting strong All the cliches about how much

I love you are true As big as the sky and up to the moon

A million, a zillion, infinity plus one

I can see the road that lies ahead

I can see the love and the sorrow Bright fields of joy

Nights awake in a stormy bed

I wanna go with you, but I can't So keep to the old roads

Keep to the old roads And you'll find your way

First kiss, your first crush The first time you know you

The first time there's no one there to hold you The first time you pack it all up And drive alone across America Please remember the words that I told you

Keep to the old roads Keep to the old roads

And you'll find your way You'll find your way

I think it's appropriate that we end this celebration with prayer. Heavenly Father, we just come before you with grateful hearts.

We're just so blessed to experience the changes of life and from having our children grow and turn into adults and eventually have families of their own.

We're just so grateful for the blessings of life that you give us. Lord, I'm thankful for these godly parents that have raised such wonderful children that they're turning into adults now,

Lord, but just for parents that train their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Lord, thank you so much for this time.

And I just pray, Lord, that we would keep these graduates in our prayers and our thoughts, that you would guard them,

Lord, from the evil one, that you would keep them sober and vigilant in this next stage of their lives and that they would trust in you, that they'd trust in your word.

I just pray, Lord, that you would just bless them with wisdom and sound judgment. And most importantly,

Lord, that they'd bring glory to you with the lives that they choose to live and that they'd keep their hearts fixed and centered on your word.

So we thank you, Lord, for them. We just thank you for this joyous time of celebration. And in Jesus' precious name we pray.

Amen. I present to you the graduating class of 2023.