I would submit to you that what Jesus wanted to do was give them some time to talk about their experiences; that is to take care of their heads. He wanted to give their bodies some time to rest after their rigorous schedule; that is to take care of their health. He wanted them to reestablish their relationships with one another after having been apart for a while; that is to take care of their home. Finally, he wanted them to sit still and spend some time in his presence and be spiritually strengthened; that is to take care of their holiness. Let us consider each one of these in order, and let me remind you that each one of these is important. If you are too busy to give attention to any one of these four principles then you are too busy and you had better slow down.

Let me give you another way to think about these four areas that I have just mentioned. When it comes to taking care of your head, think about the issue of life long learning. When we speak about taking care of your health; think about lifestyle changes. On the subject of taking care of your home, think about time spent with your life partners. And when we talk about taking care of the matter of holiness; think about the biblical promise of the abundant life.

First of all, take time for your head. Education is about taking care of your head. It is about gaining knowledge and developing skills that will allow you to provide for yourself, and also to make a contribution to the wider society. That is why Jesus spent so much time teaching his disciples, and that is why he had sent them out on a mission on their own. He wanted them to learn and to grow by experience.

I salute those of you who have graduated from some academic program, because without that training there is very little in this society that you will be equipped or allowed to do. If you do not finish high school, it is most unlikely that you will be able to find a job that will allow you to support yourself and any family you may form along the way.

The truth is that even a college degree may not be enough to live at the level you may desire. If you have finished high school, go on and finish college. If you have finished college, go on and get a master’s degree. If you have finished a master’s degree, keep on pushing and get a doctoral degree. Take time to take care of your head.

I grieve over the thousands of young people who have decided to drop out of school and not take care of their heads. They became distracted along the way by drugs, or sex, or gangs or some other risky behavior. They paid more attention to the latest fashions than they did to their home work. They spent most of their time getting their nails done, and having tattoos applied, and talking on their cell phones and hanging out with their friends. Now they have no useful skills in a society that demands a skilled work force. They have no useful information in a society that is driven by information. Many of them have never learned to speak the English language properly. The best job they can hope for in the legal economy is flipping hamburgers, or washing cars or working somewhere in the service industry. Many of them will turn to the illegal economy of drugs and other street level activities, and as a result they run the risk of being confined in a prison cell or buried in a cemetery before they reach the age of 25. I congratulate those of you who have graduated, and I encourage you to keep on learning.