Podcast Summary

Podcast: BYU Speeches
Episode: A Question of Priorities | J. Clifford Wallace
Date: April 28, 2025
Speaker: J. Clifford Wallace, Senior Judge and Chief Judge Emeritus, U.S. Court of Appeals
Length: ~12 minutes (main message: 00:32–12:12)

Episode Overview

In this commencement address, Judge J. Clifford Wallace reflects on the question of life’s true priorities. Speaking to BYU graduates, he draws on his personal journey from humble beginnings, his conversion to the LDS faith, and a long, successful career in law and service. Through personal anecdotes and spiritual counsel, Wallace challenges graduates to weigh what truly matters—in particular, the importance of prioritizing family and faith above all else. His message is both a roadmap for professional and personal success and a call to eternal perspective.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Background and Humble Beginnings

• Wallace recounts his origins: son of an immigrant with limited education and a challenging family environment.
  • “My life didn’t have a promising beginning. My father was an immigrant with a third grade education and an abusive alcoholic.” (00:32)
• Academic mediocrity in high school, turned around by the friendship of four LDS high school students, leading to his baptism and a transformative life path.

2. Influence of BYU and the Power of Environment

• Expresses deep gratitude and affection for BYU:
  • “I think it is the university in the United States. In fact, in the world, you can never get the education that we serve here.” (00:39)
• Shares a story of helping the Chief Justice of Pakistan decide to send his son to BYU, emphasizing the university’s unique environment and values.
  • Humorous exchange about the cleanliness and dress code at BYU left an impression on the visiting dignitary (01:00–02:05).

3. The Defining Counsel on Priorities

• Recalls a pivotal moment early in his professional and church life, when overwhelmed by responsibility:
  • New career, growing family, and demanding church calling.
• Receives life-changing advice from Elder LeGrand Richards:
  • “Well, Brother Wallace, your first responsibility is to your family. The second is to the church. And if you have any time left over, you can earn a living.” (03:40)

4. Living by Priorities—Practical Choices

• Describes concrete steps taken to live out these priorities:
  • Avoided late nights at the office and evening socializing post-work
  • Dedicated time to family dinners and intentional conversation
  • Built a home office to reserve family time before resuming professional work at night
  • Chose not to adopt time-consuming hobbies at the expense of family (e.g., avoided golf, opted for jogging instead)
  • “If I carefully and prayerfully made the most important parts of my life consistent with their eternal worth, I accomplished much more of real value in my life’s endeavor.” (07:10)
• Emphasizes that professional achievement never came at the expense of preparedness or integrity.

5. Eternal Perspective and Graduation Counsel

• Urges graduates, who are likely to find “success,” to evaluate how they spend their time and to consciously apply these same priorities:
  • “At the end of your life, what do you want to have done? What is going to be really important?” (05:45)
• Invites them to answer that question as he did, and reiterates the path to true fulfillment:
  • “I suggest…you follow what a wonderful member of the quorum of the 12 suggested I do. My most important responsibility was to my family. My next was to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. … and I did become a successful judge.” (08:10)

6. Concluding Blessing and Perspective

• Offers a personal blessing for the graduates’ life journeys, emphasizing hope for both earthly and eternal success:
  • “At the end of your life’s work you can look back and say, ‘I got it right. I put my family first. I put the church second. I called, responded to calls because God knows that it’s consistent with what I want to do. He’s helping me along, but the family came first.’” (10:24)
• Hopes for a future reunion “in the next life,” reinforcing the eternal dimension to his counsel (11:10).
• Ends with a sincere prayer for divine guidance:
  • “…in humility to bless each one of you that you too, at the end of your life can say it was well done. … In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.” (11:55)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Priorities:
  • “Your first responsibility is to your family. The second is to the church. And if you have any time left over, you can earn a living.” — Elder LeGrand Richards, recounted by Wallace (03:40)
• On the Value of BYU:
  • “I think it is the university in the United States. In fact, in the world.” (00:39)
• On Life’s True Achievement:
  • “If I carefully and prayerfully made the most important parts of my life consistent with their eternal worth, I accomplished much more of real value in my life’s endeavor.” (07:10)
• On Looking Back:
  • “At the end of your life’s work, you can look back and say, I got it right.” (10:24)
• On Faith and Success:
  • “My experiences are all measured by how well I have kept those covenants along with becoming successful in my profession.” (09:40)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• BYU’s Distinctive Environment & Global Influence: 00:32–02:20
• Personal Background & Conversion: 00:32–03:10
• Receiving Counsel on Priorities: 03:15–05:00
• Application of Priorities in Professional Life: 06:10–08:45
• Final Thoughts & Blessing: 09:30–11:55

Tone and Style

Wallace speaks with warmth, humor, and humility, weaving spiritual reflection with practical, lived wisdom. He balances reverence for faith and family with candid glimpses into the real decisions and discipline needed to keep temporal and eternal priorities clear.

Summary Takeaway

J. Clifford Wallace’s address to BYU graduates is a stirring reminder that success is measured not by professional acclaim but by the priorities we hold and the covenants we keep. Through personal stories and sage counsel, he urges listeners to place family first, serve in faith, and allow all other ambitions to fall into their proper order—pointing the way to both temporal achievement and lasting joy.