“What’s Next?”
Editor’s Note: Clermont Christian School’s founder and headmaster, John Weis, was invited to give the commencement address at Dominion Academy of Dayton’s 25th graduation ceremony on June 4, 2023. The following is his address to the graduates.
I want to speak to you, the Class of 2023, about "what's next."
This is a profound moment in your life. I don't just mean this particular day, but also these days immediately following. Today is a day both to mark achievement and a day to move forward into the world.
Each of you, the Class of 2023, has overcome great adversity to be here. Some of you have left your homeland, to journey to a land you had not seen. Each of you has been stretched and has grown, and has risen to the occasion. You have studied late into the night, sometimes wrestling with the concept until the breaking of day. You have memorized and organized; written and rewritten, thought and then considered again. Each of you has completed the requirements for this diploma, and in doing so, you have given much. And I trust, received much more in return in the process. And so I must remind you:
"to whom much is given much is required" (Luke 12:48)
You see, your accomplishment, which – to be sure – is yours, is not yours alone. Each one of you is here today because of God's grace, measured out in innumerable, sometimes imperceptible ways. God is a God of means, that is, He works through people and things. None of you would be here apart from the sacrifice of flesh and blood parents, and in some cases host parents. Each of you has benefited from the support of friends and family, and the training of your teachers. His sovereign plan has put you in this moment in history, in this culture, with all your unique talents and abilities. All of this has been given to you for a purpose: to equip you with the maturity, skill, and wisdom in order to live in His world well. That's why we call this occasion a "commencement" – a beginning – and not a finish line.
And that's why I'm so eager to talk to you today about "what's next."
"What's Next?"
Two of the most powerful words my father ever taught me to say are "What's next?" Whether doing our daily chores or working with him on a remodeling project, when we were finished with our task, my siblings and I were supposed to ask him "What's next?" As a young man, I bristled against this, thinking I should be allowed to just go play. But now I realize how amazing these two words are in their design.
What I could not at the time, but now have come to love, is the principle behind those words. You see, he would delegate a task and then, if I handled that well, I would graduate to an even better and harder task. Little did I know at the time, my father was training me for life. I was learning that "the reward for doing a good job is an even better job."
Over time, as I moved forward in life, I stopped simply asking him "what's next", but I didn't stop asking the question entirely. I began to realize that to answer the question, you have to know what the end goal is. In order to know what's next, you have to know where you're trying to go, and what you're trying to do. And that's why it is such a profound question, and why I wish to speak about it to you today.
Facing the Question
You are now at the point where you must face that question for yourself. Now, some of you already have plans for "what's next." Maybe a summer job or an internship. Or perhaps a well-deserved vacation and then off to university in the fall. Those all sound excellent. But I mean to address much more than your immediate answer. I want to examine the question itself.
It's one of those "which, not whether" kind of problems. The problem is not whether you will answer the question, but which answer you will give to the question. This question is unavoidable. Trying to ignore the question is to answer it wrongly. And how you answer this question determines everything about your life.
The First Pillar of Motivation
To answer the question of "what's next", you must erect two twin pillars in your life. The first of these pillars is your primary motivation. The highest good. Your north star. This first pillar deals with motivation, because the question "what's next" assumes some goal or end in mind.
Each of us is driven by some central motivation that is at the bottom of all other desires and ambitions and hopes for the future. Apart from God, a man is motivated by a desire to please and glorify himself. But for the Christian, that central motivation is to bring glory to your Father. This is why our Lord placed at the very beginning of the Lord's Prayer:
"Our Father, who are in Heaven, ... may your name be hallowed."
What we learn from the Lord's Prayer is that even more important than our forgiveness or daily bread is that God's name be treated as holy. That He be acknowledged as the One true God. The Westminster Shorter Catechism highlights this as well, by asking in its very first question:
Q: "What is the chief end of man?"
A: “Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever"
The Westminster Assembly understood that this fundamental question shaped everything that comes after it. The end – what Aristotle called "the final cause" – explains why you exist. The reason you exist is to glorify God and enjoy Him. And so it is that only when you understand your central motivation, can you answer the question of "what's next."
The Second Pillar of Ability
Now if the first pillar is your primary motivation, then the second pillar is your abilities, that is, your potential. The second pillar concerns abilities, because the question "what's next" also assumes that you can actually accomplish it. Once you have answered "what should you do" comes the question of "what can you do?"
Each of you, as shown by your presence here today, has demonstrated remarkable abilities in learning, achievement, and skill. Each of you has amazing potential. But there is a real danger in "resting on your laurels." One of my best friends and mentors in business taught me, that:
"Unchecked, your greatest strength can become your greatest weakness."
The great strength of achievement and ability could become for you a great weakness of complacency and apathy... if you settle for what you have already acquired. Which returns me to my theme of what you have received and the duty required of you.
By attending faithfully to the instruction of your teachers, you have been equipped with skills. These are the particular skills necessary to continue to acquire the rich Christian heritage that is at the heart of a healthy society. You have been exposed to the rich works of literature and art and logic and philosophy which grow out of the Christian faith. These are the products of faithful Christian thinkers, and theologians, artists, and doctors of the church over the centuries.
All of this has been given as a gift, not only to you as an individual, but also through you – both to the world around you today, and also to the next generation of tomorrow.
And that far aim extending from today into the next generation is why I must press you to answer the question of "what's next."
Not just "what's next" for me, but what comes after me?
Our Cultural Moment
Our unique cultural moment calls not just for men and women of passion and compassion, but those with skill, and more importantly wisdom. We do not make a man a doctor simply because of his great concern for the patient, but because of his knowledge and ability to bring a real cure. So it is if you would desire to answer the moral and ethical crises of our day. You must be willing and able.
In a day of cultural erosion and decay, you will not be able to join the battle on zeal alone. The need for the hour is for those who are equipped to answer the problems of a society untethered. And the problems of our world are only able to be answered with the truth of Christ alive in His church across the centuries. This is why you must not rest on your current understanding of the Christian faith and tradition. You must press on to more fully receive the rich heritage to which you are an heir so that you have something to give to the next generation.
Communion
One of the most amazing glimpses of the necessity of receiving before giving is seen in the words of the Apostle Paul regarding Communion. In these, the "Words of Institution", Paul writes in his epistle to the Corinthians about the Lord's Supper:
For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you [...] – 1 Corinthians 11:23a
In these first few words, I see a microcosm of the whole of Christianity. Of course, it's true that Christ gives Himself to His disciples in the actual act of the Supper. But unless Paul had passed on that tradition to the Corinthians, they would have never heard of it. And Paul himself could not give the Corinthians the tradition unless he had first received "from the Lord." There would be no sacrament if it were not instituted by Christ. But there could be no practice of that sacrament without transmission of the tradition. And so it is with the Christian life.
You simply can not give what you do not have. And you will not have anything to give in the moment of need unless you receive it beforehand. And that is why you must continue to learn and grow. "What's next" doesn't just mean "what I'm supposed to do next" but also "what is coming after me", "who is coming behind me", and "what is beyond me."
Each of you is called by God to give something with your life. Some of you may start businesses, or enter law. You might become a doctor or begin a medical practice. Some of you may be needed in civic service and government. Some of you may be called to start schools, churches, a charity, or some other ministry. And, Lord willing, most of you will build a home. But no matter what you are called to do, you will be faced with the question:
What do I have to give to the next generation?
In asking the question this way, we move beyond the desire for individual achievement, so important to the American mind, to the only lasting motivation: Love. Love for God. And love for those around me and after me. If you have not only the Christian faith, but Christian wisdom, then you will have not just the willingness to give, but also something actually worth giving.
You'll be willing to give it all, not just in a particular moment, but over all the years of your life.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I again commend you for the determination and achievement being recognized today. You will find, I am sure, that the education you have received will pay rich dividends throughout your life if you cultivate it. Build upon the foundation you have received here and it will propel you forward into life.
My advice to you, Class of 2023, as you move forward from today – as you contemplate the significance of your life, as you begin to execute the plans you've already made and find yourself facing the next chapter – is:
to begin to ask yourself more deeply the question "what's next?" What has God called me to do? What am I uniquely able to accomplish? What can I contribute to the common good of my neighbor?
and, to give serious thought to those things which you have already received – of both Christ and Christian culture,
and, to recognize the duty and privilege you have to give them to the next generation.
