The senior year of college should be the best, right?  Seniors “own” the campus – they know all the best places to hang out, professors know them by name, they’re often living off campus and enjoying the additional freedoms of being an upperclassman.  I love seeing the easy familiarity with college that seniors have acquired.  They “get” college life now, and are energized by the glowing light they see at the end of their higher education tunnel.

That relaxed demeanor quickly changes, however, when the inevitable question is asked of them by every well-meaning adult in their life: “So, what happens after graduation?”  The light at the end of the tunnel suddenly becomes a train, and it’s headed straight for them.

One of the greatest gifts we can give our senior students is to help them develop the art of discernment.   We can’t do this with every senior individually, of course.  But we do what we can in our small groups, our ministry teams, our classes by going into each gathering equipped with some really great questions.  Good questions are the tool of every spiritual director, and they can be utilized by anyone who wants to help someone else discern the voice of God in their life.

So, instead of asking the “what happens after graduation” question, have a few more thoughtful questions in your back pocket: “Which class are you most excited about this semester?” “Which professor do you really connect with?” “Do you feel led into any new ministries or friendships this semester?” “How does this semester seem different or the same from last?”  And don’t forget the follow-up, “why?”

In other words, ask them questions that help them focus on the present, and helps them pay attention to what God is doing now.  The fear of the future is a great deterrent to the wisdom that God grants in the present.  And they will need to accumulate that wisdom in order to make the big decisions that arise as the graduation train creeps closer.

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Tracy Balzer is Director of  Christian Formation at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas.  She is a writer and spiritual director, and leads pilgrimages to the Isle of Iona, Scotland.  She can be contacted at tbalzer[at]jbu[dot]edu.