The Grad’s Guide to Choosing Well
NavPress/Th1nk
NavPress, 2010, 167 pp., $14.99, NavPress.com
My Utmost for His Highest for the Graduate
Oswald Chambers (updated by Jim Reimann)
Barbour Publishing, 2010, 416 pp., $4.97, BarbourBooks.com
The Grad’s Guide, a small, hard-cover gem, is a perfect gift to equip the high school graduate you love. It reads like a caring, humorous friend who helps negotiate the daunting new world of freedom and decision-making that comes with leaving home.
Using culturally relevant storytelling, the narrator teaches the graduate how to make decisions now that thoughts such as, “Where’s my next meal coming from, and how will I pay for it?” may be a part of daily worries.
For 83 years, the original My Utmost for His Highest established itself as a staple to Christian readers of all generations. This newer version aims to maintain the literary meat of its predecessor while connecting with younger generations by being “updated in today’s language.” With large theological words such as sanctification still present in many entries, it seems like only half of that goal was met.
That’s not to say this isn’t still a substantial gift for a student wanting to grow with God. The content remains as solid as ever, with useful subject and Scripture indexes. If you’re looking to complement God’s gentle nudges in the lives of the students you serve, this can help them truly step out into the future with Him.
