To my precious graduating daughter, and all of the other graduates beginning your next phase of life, congratulations! We’re just so proud of you.

I really do apologize (sorry, not sorry) for the mildly schizophrenic mix of tears, joy, and pride we’ve exhibited while watching your “lasts” play out in warp speed in recent months.

Someday you’ll hopefully understand how even 18 years isn’t enough time to prepare a parent for the great anticipation (yet profound loss) that comes with watching one of your most valuable treasures prepare to walk out your front door towards their future.

It feels like as much as we’ve done to build you up, to train you up, to teach you all that we hold dear through the years . . . there’s still so much that’s been left unsaid. So many things the world is going to tell you along the way that are untrue, unfair, and most importantly—unbiblical.

The words I’m sharing here aren’t necessarily for today, but for some day in the future when you’re out on your own, weighing the world’s truth versus God’s truth and questioning some of the most critically deep areas of your life.

So I’ll start with this: You Are Enough.

Please don’t ever buy into the message that you’re not smart enough, attractive enough, talented enough, loved enough, or successful enough.

The author and creator of the universe created you from the dust of this earth and when He was finished, he said you were very good (Genesis 1:31). Not just “good enough,” but very good. Pleasing and acceptable in his sight because you were made in HIS own image, for HIS companionship, and to complete HIS purposes for your life.

In creating you he made not one mistake or misstep. He formulated the exact hue of your eyes while meticulously noting every hair on your head. He holds the very beat of your heart in his hands, and he has been weaving purpose and significance into your very being before you even breathed your first breath.

So, when things one day feel like they’re not going your way or even falling apart in your life, remember nothing that happens (or doesn’t happen) is a surprise to God. He is good, he is for you, and you can absolutely trust his promise to work EVERY.SINGLE.THING for your good and his glory.

As your mom I’m praying that by living in these truths, you will never allow yourself to be defined by successes you achieve or people you please. That you will know you are so much more than the titles you obtain, the houses you own, and the riches you hold. Because God’s definition of success very rarely lines up with the world’s, my hope is that you will live free from the performance this world demands and instead rest in the arms of your creator.

Chase the God things, sweet one. Chase after truth. Know today that in him you are known, you are loved, and you ARE more than enough.