This week we celebrated with five of our youth who are graduating high school. This is a very exciting time as they move on to new stages in life.

Some will go on to university and careers others will head into jobs until they "figure out" what they want to do with their lives. In whatever they do I want them to remember a couple of things; these are also good for us to remember as well.

Remember the faith of your youth

Life is never all roses; there will be times when we are not feeling on top of the world! There will be times when we feel alone in this world. What is important to remember is God is the same yesterday, today and forever! So when those times come we must remember those times we felt close to Him, when maybe we saw His hand in our lives. And remember He has not changed He is still there for us to depend on at all times.

Flee temptation

Often we move away from the familiar of our parents' homes to these new places where we now have the freedom to go and do a live the way we want to. What does that mean? It means we are now the ones who must make the decisions of where to go and who to go with. Sometimes these take us to places we normally wouldn't have gone before. We must remember what it was like when we were close with the one who made this world the one who created life. There will be times where we feel so far away that there is no way back but as the prodigal son found out there is there is nothing we can do that causes God not to crave having that relationship with us again.

God has a plan

Our world is a constantly changing place. Sometimes the plans we have change. Ask those who are about to retire if this is where they planned to be most I would say would say no but they wouldn't change how they got there as long as they were paying attention to where God was leading. When I graduated from high school I was sure that I was going to be an inner city children's pastor. I have since been called to pastor a small-town church, and now assist in a Northern church working with youth.

I was willing to do anything but be a youth pastor, but God knew better. It has not been easy but I know and can see how God prepared me for where I am. As well I know He is preparing me for where I will be. The trick is to allow him to guide you, and that only comes by knowing his voice.

The theme in all of this is as you come close to God, He will come closer to you. So will you?

Pastor Trent Kemsley is the youth and assistant pastor of Thompson Pentecostal Assembly on Goldeye Crescent at Thompson Drive.