Hey Pathfinder Leaders!
Celebrate your Pathfinders’ completion of their Bible studies by hosting a graduation ceremony! It doesn’t need to be big or lengthy—just a meaningful moment to applaud and award everyone’s efforts. It’s also a good opportunity to invite the graduates, other Pathfinders, and even church members to continue studying and sign up for more courses.
We suggest having small graduations every 2 to 3 months to incentivize more Pathfinders to join your Bible studies.
Sample Graduation Program
Choose a moment during your church service or club time to recognize the Pathfinders and leaders who have completed one or more of the Bible Study Challenge courses. Click here to see the available courses.
This is a 15-minute sample program. Feel free to adapt as needed—this can be as simple or sophisticated as you want.
- Have the Pathfinders and leaders who completed their courses come up front.
- Give a short explanation of their accomplishment. You could say the following:
“We are here to recognize the efforts of these committed Pathfinders and leaders to learn more about the Bible. This group has joined thousands of Pathfinders around the world who are studying the Bible through the Pathfinder Bible Study Challenge, held by the Voice of Prophecy Discover Bible School. They have studied and completed one or more Bible courses. This represents not only dedication and hard work, but also a desire to grow closer to Jesus and invite Him into their hearts. At this moment, we would like to call to the front those Pathfinders who are graduating from the Bible Study Challenge and present them with their certificates.” - Offer a certificate to each Pathfinder or leader. Mention their name and the course(s) they completed. If one of your Pathfinders has decided to get baptized, either locally or at Camporee, this is a great moment to mention that and ask the church or club to pray for them and all the Pathfinders around the world studying the Bible.
- Invite other Pathfinders, leaders, and church members to join and study God’s Word, enroll in a course, and be part of a future graduation.
- Close with prayer.
Other ideas to keep in mind:
- Ask Pathfinders to wear their uniform for graduation day. That way they can look their best for pictures and videos to be taken during the graduation ceremony. If you send videos and pictures to [email protected], they may be used during a recognition video at the International Camporee!
- Present graduates with a small gift, such as a book. The interactive Discovery Mountain adventure Mission: Forgiveness is a fun and affordable option. Trouble on the Blue Planet and Running on Empty are also excellent. Check the youth section of your local Adventist Book Center for more options.
- Give everyone in your club a special snack to celebrate the graduates. Ideas include: cupcakes, doughnuts, trail mix bars, healthy popsicles, or other.
- Tell your Pathfinders that if you get at least “X” number of graduates, then they all can do a special activity. Ideas include: a movie day with popcorn, a game night, a special trip to the mountains/park/other, etc.