REXBURG— BYU-Idaho President Alvin F. Meredith III and Sister Jennifer Meredith set the tone for BYU-Idaho's Winter semester in their devotional addresses Tuesday, following a successful Fall term. President Meredith expressed a commitment to building on the semester's triumphs, aligning with the university's mission to develop disciples of Jesus Christ who are leaders in various spheres.
"Our mission at BYU-Idaho is to develop disciples of Jesus Christ who are leaders in their homes, the church, and the community," he said.
In an interview with BYU-Idaho Radio, President Meredith further expands on this point from what he learned last semester as President.
“There aren't changes that needed to be made here, but we do need to accelerate and amplify the great things that are already happening here,” President Meredith said in the interview.
President Meredith emphasized highlighting the intersection of the institution's mission with academic pursuits in his BYU-Idaho devotional.
Both President and Sister Meredith crafted addresses to kickstart the semester, delivering messages with personal resonance.
"I hope that it’ll be beneficial for the students today. It’s a message that I have needed myself, in fact even this morning,” Sister Meredith said.
President Meredith, acting as a "prophetic echo," urged the community to heed living prophets' counsel. Addressing the challenges of academia, he metaphorically spoke of encountering "fog and sharks of life," emphasizing the importance of keeping long-term goals in mind for courage and informed decision-making.
“There's going to be times that we do tough things,” President Meredith said. “We're going to encounter fog and the sharks of life. But if we keep the end in mind, it can do a couple things for us. One, it can give us hope and kind of courage to press forward when times are tough. And two, it can give us perspective to make good choices. We all make better choices when we think further down the road.”
Sister Meredith centered her address around the word "can.
"Through the atonement of Christ, I can become a new person. I can do things I've never done before," she said.
She unpacked "C.A.N." as an acronym: Christ, foundational; Atonement, enabling repentance and forgiveness; and New, signifying transformative change.
In essence, the Merediths’ addresses provide a guiding beacon for the BYU-Idaho community, blending faith and education for an informed, purpose-driven academic journey.