Keepers of the Light

Dear graduates, honored faculty, and esteemed guests, my wife and I feel profoundly honored and deeply grateful to stand with you on this sacred and celebratory day. Today, as graduates, you have come to the end—the end of the beginning. You have completed an important chapter in your preparation, not only for a profession but for a life of purpose and consecrated service. We rejoice in your accomplishment and in the bright future that lies ahead.

I hope you will see this day of graduation for what it truly is: a sacred gateway to a future not yet revealed but foreseen by a Father in Heaven who knows you perfectly. As you celebrate today, may I encourage you, in a private moment, to again express gratitude to those whose faith, sacrifices, encouragement, and quiet support have helped you along the way.

Reflecting the Savior’s Light

Your celebration today is enriched by a sacred milestone in the history of Brigham Young University. This year marks 150 years of devoted learning, spiritual growth, and the pursuit of truth revealed by God and discovered through diligent study. Today’s commencement celebrates not only your achievements but also the faith, sacrifice, and prophetic vision that established this university and continues to guide its divine mission of helping individuals pursue divine progress and eternal life. Your graduation is now part of that legacy.

More than 50 years ago, President Spencer W. Kimball stood on this campus and spoke prophetically of BYU’s second century. He described BYU “as becoming an ‘educational Everest,’” meaning that this university must “become a unique university in all of the world” while remaining distinct not only in academic excellence but in spiritual strength and faith in Jesus Christ.¹ President Kimball further declared:

There are many ways in which BYU can tower above other universities . . . because of the unique light BYU can send forth into the educational world. Your light must have a special glow.²

In reflecting on the remarkable journey of this university, President Dallin H. Oaks, our dear prophet, recently spoke about what makes this institution truly distinctive.³ He said that its highest priority has always been to further the ideals and teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This reflection reminds us that the prophetic vision expressed here decades ago was never only about academic distinction. It was about preparing disciples whose learning would bless the world and whose lives would reflect the Savior’s light.

This call to bring a distinctive light into the world, as taught by President Kimball, brings to mind the example of Ida Lewis, a humble American lighthouse keeper known for her bravery in rescuing those in peril at sea. Off the coast of Rhode Island, she faithfully tended a light that guided ships through dangerous waters. But she did more than keep the light. Beginning at age 15, she ventured into churning and frigid waters to rescue those who could not save themselves. Over time she became known not only for keeping the light but for becoming part of it—bringing safety, hope, and life to others.

In many ways her life reflects the very mission President Kimball described. The world you now enter is filled with uncertainty, shifting values, and spiritual storms. As was that faithful lighthouse keeper, you are not only called to preserve the light, but you are called to beam it forth, to act upon it, and to bless and sometimes rescue others because of it.

Keeping the Light Alive

Graduates, the prophetic charge given by President Kimball—later echoed by our dear President C. Shane Reese in the invitation “becoming BYU”⁴—is not limited to administrators, faculty, or institutional plans. In a very real sense, it now rests upon you. As you step forward into your divinely appointed future, you do not simply benefit from that vision—you are now called to become stewards of it, just as was the courageous lighthouse keeper. The second century of BYU will be written in your discipleship, your integrity, your pursuit of truth, your covenant faithfulness, and your courage to stand as a witness of Christ wherever the Lord may send you.

Becoming BYU is inseparably connected to becoming who God intends you to become. You are the living extension of this “Christ-centered, prophetically directed university.”⁵ If BYU is to remain unique in the world, anchored in covenant belonging, moral courage, faithful discipleship, and academic excellence, it will be because you choose to live that uniqueness wherever the Lord places you.

There must have been times when noble lighthouse keepers were ill, freezing, battered by raging storms, and feeling isolated and exhausted. Perhaps all they could do was shiver in the cold, fighting sleep and fear. In those moments they focused on what mattered most: keeping the light alive and not abandoning their post. They may not have fulfilled every duty perfectly, but they endured—and because they did, ships were guided safely.

When the storms of life come, we should do the same: focus on what matters most. Let us not abandon our love for the gospel or allow the Light of Christ within us to go out. The prophetic vision of the second century will unfold not only on this campus but also wherever you stand as men and women who blend things secular and sacred with integrity and devotion.

Remaining Anchored in Jesus Christ

As you begin this new chapter of your lives, you carry with you more than a diploma—you carry “a double heritage”⁶: an education that includes both worldly knowledge and revealed truth. With that double heritage comes a sacred charge to continue to increase in worldly knowledge and to cherish and share those revealed truths sent from heaven.

The world you now enter may not always understand that integration, and at times you may be required to stand alone. But if you remain anchored in Jesus Christ and loyal to your covenants, you will become what prophets have foreseen—disciple-leaders whose competence commands respect and whose character reflects the light of the Savior.

At the heart of becoming BYU stands one sacred invitation: to come closer to Jesus Christ. Recently our dear prophet Dallin H. Oaks taught from this very pulpit that the ultimate purpose of this university—and of every true education—is to help us come closer to the Lord Jesus Christ. President Oaks reminded us that intellectual growth, professional preparation, and institutional distinction are not ends in themselves but means to a higher purpose: to deepen our discipleship and to strengthen our covenant relationship with God. In a world of competing voices and shifting values, President Oaks reaffirmed a timeless truth: Our greatest progress, our truest success, and our lasting joy will always be found in drawing nearer to the Lord.⁷

The Savior Himself invites us: “Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me.”⁸ For me, that invitation became real during my university years. I have shared on this campus before how, in the midst of a demanding schedule of study and work, I found peace and strength by setting aside time to draw nearer to the Lord—often sitting in my car to study and ponder the scriptures between classes and during meals, or even sometimes sitting in a quiet place on the last bench of a small Catholic church near campus that was open to visitors during the day.⁹

Coming closer to Jesus Christ is not a single event. For those who are striving to become keepers of the light, it is the steady work of a lifetime that is accomplished in quiet, consistent, and often unseen acts. And for disciples of Jesus Christ, these practices include earnest prayer, sincere scripture study, faithful Sabbath worship, and covenant keeping. As this season of learning ends and you leave this campus, the structure around you will change, but the invitation remains the same—there is no end to learning. The habits of discipleship that you have cultivated here must now become the anchors of your future. Drawing nearer to Christ will not remove all uncertainty from your path, but it will give you clarity of purpose, resilience in adversity, and peace that surpasses understanding.¹⁰

To come closer to Jesus Christ also means to become more like Him. It means allowing His grace to refine our character, His teachings to shape our decisions, and His love to guide our relationships. In your professions, you will be known for your competence. But heaven will measure something higher: the depth of your conversion and the constancy of your devotion.

As you consciously choose to place the Savior at the center of your ambition, your service, your scholarship, and your marriage, you will discover that coming closer to Christ does not narrow your life—it enlarges it. It sanctifies your success and gives eternal meaning to every righteous effort. As you choose to come ever closer to Jesus Christ—anchored in covenant confidence, inspired by your divine identity, strengthened by revealed truth, and courageous in discipleship—you will not only fulfill your personal potential, but you will also help fulfill prophetic promise.

Bringing Direction, Safety, and Hope to All Within Your Influence

Dear graduates, as you leave this campus, there will be moments when the seas around you—and around those you serve—will feel uncertain and even stormy. In those times, remember the lighthouse keeper. You have not only received light here, but you have been entrusted with it. Like that faithful lighthouse keeper, Ida Lewis, you may be prompted to move beyond what is comfortable, to reach out, to lift, and even to rescue those who cannot find their way alone.

As you do, you will come to know that what you carry is not your own—it is the Light of Jesus Christ. And as you act in faith to share it, you will become part of that light, bringing direction, safety, and hope to all within your influence. The light you carry from this campus is meant to shine in places only you can reach. It is not merely institutional progress or academic distinction—it is the Light of Jesus Christ. It grows within a believing heart, increases as knowledge is joined with covenant faithfulness, and blesses others as it is shared.¹¹

My dear friends—graduates and fellow disciples of Jesus Christ—welcome to the end, the end of the beginning. Though your education here is concluding, your lifelong learning and discipleship are just beginning. May this new season be filled with His light, and may you carry and share it wherever you go. I say these things in the name of our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, amen.

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