With school graduations coming right around the corner, the month of May can be looked at as a time of endings . . . and beginnings. Students are excited to finish old phases and start news ones in their lives.

The graduating classes at Martin Luther College and Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary couldn't agree more. WELS President Mark Schroeder reflects on what graduation day and Assignment Day mean to them—and to us—in his message this month. Also a pastor from last year's seminary graduating class shares how he felt when he didn't receive a call immediately and how God still had a plan for him and his future ministry.

Graduation isn't the only time for new beginnings. Through the forgiveness of sins given to us through his Son, God the Father offers us a fresh start every day as we repent of our sins and strive, with the Spirit's help, to resist temptation. In our cover article this month, Scott Barefoot shares how God's forgiveness and the promises in God's Word renew him in his daily struggle with the temptations of homosexuality.