Elder & Sister Haight, President & Sister Bednar, Brothers & Sisters; it is an honor for me to be here at this first August Commencement at BYU-Idaho. On behalf of the Board of Trustees and particularly from Elder Eyring, as the Commissioner of Education, I bring love and greetings to all of you.
I, like you, am looking forward to hearing from one of Idaho's native sons and an apostle of Jesus Christ, Elder David B. Haight, so I will keep my remarks brief this morning.
I would like to share a few thoughts about lessons learned from an elastic band. In order to appreciate my qualifications to address this topic, you need to know that I grew up in Northern California. We had early morning seminary there that began at 6:30 am every weekday morning. During my senior year in high school, I delivered 500 morning newspapers to apartment buildings and newsstands in our town and had to be finished early enough to get home and get ready to go to seminary. My days started very early and I saw a fair number of elastic bands that year. At the time, I didn't think much of elastic bands. In fact, when I did think about them at all it was generally with some level of disdain.
However, some lessons of life are not always learned or appreciated at the moment. But with the passage of time and some reflection, greater insights can be gained.
As you consider an elastic band by itself, it is not worth very much. An elastic band can only fulfill the purpose for which it was created when it is stretched. In the stretching process, its value increases.
In that sense, our lives are similar to elastic bands; our value increases as we are stretched. Think about some of the stretching moments and experiences you may have had so far in your own life. Most of you probably grew up in a home where you were taught and cared for by loving parents. Leaving the comfort and security of home to go off to kindergarten may have been a stretching experience for some of you. Facing unknown surroundings and unfamiliar people and activities can cause great anxiety. You may have been stretched beyond your comfort zone. Over time, however, you became accustomed to the new routine and your circumstances did not seem as challenging.
The same cycle probably occurred when you left elementary school and entered junior high. Ah, the memories of seventh grade! Then came high school. At each step, you have been stretched a little more, your perspective has been broadened and your life has been changed.
As pre-college students, you likely had to stretch some to qualify to be admitted to this university. As students here, hopefully you have had many new and challenging experiences; you have been stretched to think new thoughts and experience new things.
Now as you leave this place and go on to other opportunities, you will be leaving the comfort and security of a familiar place and be going into a world that is sometimes cold and harsh. Hopefully, you will continue to stretch and make a difference wherever you are. Because you have an eternal perspective of who you are and who others are, you can have a powerful influence in the lives of your friends and colleagues, those with whom you will associate throughout your life, if you will stretch beyond your own comfort zone and really strive to make a difference.
Some of you either have served or will serve a mission for the Church someplace in the world; others have had or will have the opportunity to add an eternal companion to your life. Others may experience broken hearts, birth of a child, loss of a loved one, loss of employment, unfulfilled dreams or expectations, or some other new or challenging phase in life. Each of these stretching moments helps you look not only inward, but also heavenward to find out who you really are. As the Lord allows these stretching opportunities, you find how dependent you are on Him for all things.
The ultimate stretching that ever took place occurred in the Garden of Gethsemane and then at Calvary. The Lord's heart, soul and body were stretched to include all of us. He understands our worries. He understands our joys. He understands our trials. He understands the stretching that is taking place in each of our lives. The prophet Alma declared, "He shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled…that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people."[1] Jacob tells us that the Lord "remembereth and stretches forth his hands…all the day long…with his arm of mercy extended towards you."[2]
Regardless of the circumstances in our lives, His love is all encompassing. He will not let us be stretched to the breaking point when we are obedient to His commandments, for "God…will not suffer you to be tempted [or stretched] above that ye are able."[3]
If we want to become like He is, we need to be stretched even if it feels unpleasant. Sometimes it may even hurt. But in the stretching process, we will grow and increase in value to Him and to our fellow beings.
May we be appropriately elastic in our daily efforts as we stretch to become anxiously engaged in doing His will and to fulfill the purpose of our creation.
Notes
[1] Alma 7:11-12
[2] Jacob 6:4-5
[3] 1 Corinthians 10:13