I used to think that being a parent was like being an officer in the military. Children reporting for duty, commands to be given, orders to be followed, clean rooms ready for inspection. That was before my wife and I had children.

Now that I’m older, and occasionally wiser, I can reflect upon being a parent. This is what I know, being a parent is not like being a general in the military, it’s more like being a gardener in the field.

Have you ever held a seed in your hand and marveled at what, with the proper planting, watering, care, nutrients, weeding and protection, the seed might become? That is the mystery and privilege of parenting.

Parents don’t get to choose what sprouts and grows. Yet it is their duty and delight to foster the growth of those who’ve been entrusted to them.

The mystery of the garden, that is also the mystery of parenting, was brought home to me recently when I attended my son’s graduation from medical school—that’s him with me in the picture—I’m the proud one!

I marvel at that boy. What he’s become. I had no clue. And yet, there he is, blossoming, growing, flourishing. I was blessed to be a part of his growth, but it was not my doing. He made choices. He wrestled with options. He made friends, chose paths, chose a major (actually several majors). And here he is—my boy—the man.

The fact of the matter is, he was never mine. God entrusted him to his mother and me, but he was never ours, a thing to be possessed. He was placed in our care. We tended, nurtured, weeded, cultivated, but in the end it was him, with God’s creative gifts and graces, that brought about what he’s become.

I make this journal entry in the month of June because parents and children are sorting out what it means to graduate from high school and prepare to leave home. “Uprooted” is the first word that comes to mind. Maybe a better word is “transplanted”.

The point is Northwest Nazarene University wants to enter into covenant with you, parent and child. We stand ready to join you in the garden; for our hearts are committed to working in God’s vineyard. Jesus talked about abiding in the vine, pruning branches to bear more fruit, seeds dying in order to fulfill their destiny. We want to join with you in seeking to “grow up” into the full measure and stature of Jesus Christ.

I can’t wait for our new students to arrive! To meet parents who have labored in the field of their child’s life. To watch freshmen grow into seniors and beyond. To see the Hand of God in their lives, tending, nurturing, loving, pruning, growing. You are all in my prayers as the time to grow in a new field nears!