FROM THE EDITOR
Excellence is something we are all striving for. The pursuit of excellence is something that we especially emulate here at BYU. We truly “enter to learn” and “go forth to serve.” Now more than ever, we see an increased pursuit of excellence. Job opportunities are few and far between, and it can feel like we can’t catch a break. But maybe we are holding ourselves to too high of a standard. As the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
But what does this really mean? Today, Rome is one of the cultural centers of the world. But at one point, a long time ago, Rome was just a collection of local tribes. And then, what? Well, now it’s a cultural hotspot for both Religion and History. What made this drastic change? Time and a lot of individual efforts by some influential people.
Time is one thing we can’t control, but effort is something we can. In a world full of uncontrollable situations, the ability to control our efforts is invaluable. There is only so much effort we can exert each day, so the places where we exert that effort must be intentional and aligned with our priorities.
By focusing on what truly matters—whether personal goals, relationships, or work projects—we maximize our impact and find more fulfillment. It’s about choosing quality over quantity and ensuring our energy goes toward the things that bring value and purpose to our lives.
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin gave a phenomenal talk in 2008 predicated on this message. He shared a time when he felt overwhelmed with his athletic and educational commitments and confided in his mother for reassurance.
She reassured him saying, “Come what may, and love it.” What are the trying things in our life right now? Midterms, final projects, maybe even dating. Can we really “love” a midterm? I don’t think so. But can we love ourselves? Well, yes, but why should we?
We can do more than we know.
Excellence is something that I know we can all obtain. But how? We need to be engaged, but what exactly does that mean? What does that look like? I am not talking about the type of “engagement” our religion professors love to mention, but the kind that requires genuine effort. Neville Chamberlain, Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, once said, “It is a mistake to look too far ahead. Only one link in the chain of destiny can be handled at a time.”
We can only be in one place at a time. For each of us, it is easy to think about the future when maybe we need to be more focused on the present. As Chamberlain pointed out, we can only focus on one link at a time. We can get lost when we are looking ahead.
“Blindness came from looking beyond the mark” (Jacob 4:14).
We need to engage in the now to look towards what’s to come. We are gaining experiences now that will help us prepare for tomorrow. As we are engaged in the now, we will see the stars align, and the excellence that we seek after will fall into place.
Sincerely,
Editor-and-Chief