Dan McCormick [at right], a successful author and public speaker from Southern California, gave the devotional address at BYU-Hawaii November 25. This father of three BYUH students compared the idea of the power of a single atom to the power of a single idea, and he encouraged students to keep track of their ideas and the things that influence them.
Crystal Beazer, McCormick’s oldest daughter, graduated from BYUH this past June. His son-in-law, Brandon Beazer, will graduate this December and another daughter, Paige, is a first-semester freshman.
Brother McCormick started his address by sharing the story of the detonation of the first atom bomb; no one knew what was going to happen or how big the explosion would be and, in the end, it was massive. It was all the result of one small atom.
Likewise, he taught, the Book of Mormon prophet Alma taught about the power that comes from a tiny particle of faith. “Even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until you believe in a manner that can give place for a portion of my words.”
Brother McCormick also quoted President Henry B. Eyring from a General Conference address last October in which he spoke about the importance of keeping a journal. President Eyring was given the impression to write his experiences down, and when he did, he said, “I understood the message I had heard in my mind. I was supposed to record for my children to read, someday in the future, how I had seen the hand of God in blessing our family.”
Using this as his foundation, McCormick went on to teach students the importance of reading books and then recording their thoughts and ideas. McCormick explained that, while he didn’t graduate from college, he read many books and gained an education on his own. Much of his time was spent studying Sterling W. Sill, a former General Authority for the LDS Church. Of massive amounts of time studying, McCormick said, “I’ve read everything he wrote, all 30 books, which were the experiences that were most profitable to him after reading 987 of the greatest books about the greatest lives ever. I’ve been to the University of Utah and looked through many of the 34 boxes of letters and notes that were complimentary to Sterling W. Sill and his work and church callings. And I’ve gone through many of the 7500 pages he left in his idea banks, including 25 three-ring bound books with 300 pages apiece, about what he would consider his great ideas.”
McCormick said that it was his experience with the writings of Sill and many other notable individuals that inspired him to begin writing in his own journal and to always have three things with him: book, paper and pen. One quote he said he lives by is from Francis Bacon: “Reading makes a full man, but writing makes an exact man.”
McCormick further advised students that they should always have two books with them: one to read, and one to write in.
He made a promise to the students that if they will become “a student of the great wisdom of literature and a writer of [their] thoughts,” they will gain three things:
A growth in self-esteem. “Having a healthy self-esteem will be a tremendous reward in your relationships and the career you select and the Church callings you serve in”;
Increased self-worth. “Self-worth is how you value and honor those things that you believe in. Your self-worth will leave its biggest deposits when you honor the principles and covenants that you value most.
A more rewarding career. “As you invite books, paper and pen to be with you on a regular basis, you will align your lives with some of the greatest leaders that have ever lived. That will have an accumulated affect on all those you come in contact with and will ultimately have an impact on your net worth in your career and how the world rewards you.”
Brother McCormick then shared some of his own thoughts and a lengthy journal entry on the topic of humility.
“Humility hones my ability to serve and contribute my knowledge to the world. It helps me to realize the worth of others' insights and to keep my mind open to the possibilities of sharing our work. It helps me visualize the value of others' future contributions to me. It allows me to accept their help.
“Because of my own humility, I am willing to accept the worth of the knowledge of others. I am willing to express my gratitude and thankfulness to them. I am willing to add their strengths and knowledge to my own, so that we may all be strengthened. I am willing to learn. I am therefore open to many sources of wisdom that are part of my life.
“The incredible, countless sands of the sea provide some of the most breathtaking views and scenes of beauty that the eyes can see. Yet the sands provide no crops. Why? Because the sands do not contain the rich organic soil that comes from humus. For humus is a dark, dirt topsoil that feeds the seeds of the most nutrient-rich crops. It is humus that sows the seeds of prosperity. Like the humus, my own humility is a source of rich growth that allows me to blend my abilities, talents and strengths with others to enhance all of our knowledge and skills.”
Brother McCormick concluded, “26 years of practicing now, growing, and maturing in the faith as a Church member, the tiny atoms that make up an idea are still being planted in my heart and written in my journal–hoping, as President Eyring, that my children will use it to their advantage. History does repeat and success does leave clues. I bear you my testimony that your life can be richer as you study the books, as you write it in your journal using that incredible intervention called the pen, you will be mirroring the great prophets, great leaders and great orators.”
-Photo by Ian Nitta