"Don't shrink!" In the midst of life's trials and challenges, this is Elder Wickman's message to students at BYU-Idaho.
Elder Lance B. Wickman is a former General Authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who served as a General Authority Seventy from April 1994 to October 2010. He was also the General Counsel for the Church from 1996 to 2023. He practiced law as a trial lawyer in Los Angeles and San Diego and was a U.S. Army Ranger from 1964 to 1969, when he received the Purple Heart and Bronze Star medals.
In his devotional address titled "Don't Shrink! Facing Life's Uncertainties," Elder Wickman taught students about the importance of "not shrinking" when they are faced with difficulties and opposition.
He cited Sister Kristen M. Yee's most recent general conference address,where she talked about a painting she made of the Savior where she accidentally applied a clear varnish to her painting too soon, causing it to break down. He stated that her phrase, "I decided to move forward and trust that the Lord would help me" should be "engraved as if in granite on the fleshy tables of every honest, seeking heart."
Elder Wickman also included three personal experiences in which he saw the principle of "not shrinking" in his life as he trusted in the Lord and in His promises. In one such instance, Elder Wickman discussed his decision to serve a mission despite having to leave a beautiful girl he met in college.
"It wasn't easy," Elder Wickman said, but he served anyway. During his first week as a missionary, the wife of the mission home president shared a message with him and the other missionaries that the Lord would not abandon them "in the most important decision," because of their faithfulness to the Lord's commandments.
In an interview with BYU-Idaho Radio, Elder Wickman talked about the most important message he wanted students to take away from his devotional.
"If I could just put in one sentence, a piece of advice to young people with lives of promise, it would be this: Move forward. Don't shrink. Trust in God," he said in the interview.