The following is an excerpt adapted from Dr. Asa Walker’s commencement address to the Indian Rocks Christian School Class of 2026. Dr. Walker challenged graduates to embody the type of leadership that would make an impact in an unpredictable future. 

Master Three Arts for Uncertain Times

In complex moments of historic cultural change, leadership must become dynamic and nimble. You will need to master three arts. Not skills; arts. A skill can be mastered precisely; an art always relies on wise interpretation and implementation, sometimes in imprecise ways and amidst great uncertainty. It requires first a virtuous practitioner: virtue in thought, in being, and in action–exactly the type of virtue that Indian Rocks Christian School has aspired to cultivate in your mind, heart, and hands. In your life ahead, master these three arts:

Master the art of being human.

I once heard an old fable from India. A brother and sister each had a jar: the girl a jar of marbles, and the boy a jar of candy. One day, they made a deal. The sister would give her brother the jar of marbles, and in return, the brother would give his sister the jar of candy. Each went to their room to get their jars, but the boy secretly snuck a few pieces of candy from his jar and hid them under his pillow. That night, the girl slept soundly, stomach full of chocolate and jelly beans. But the boy lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, riddled with agony as he thought to himself: “Did she keep any of the marbles?”

In our era of online personas, Artificial Intelligence, and machine learning, I see the possibility of a future where we forget what it means to be human. Like the boy wondering if his sister did the same with the marbles as he did with the candy, from the very first time we used AI, we began to suspect that everyone capable of anything profound, new, or beautiful had short-circuited their own human creativity with something artificial. We haven’t just become less impressed with one another, but I wonder if we will soon prefer the artificial to the real.

And yet it is humanity that stands alone as imprinted with the image of God. We are not separated from the rest of creation only by our intelligence and creative potential, but perhaps more definitively by our ability to love, to forgive, and to worship. You, Class of ‘26, stand unique among all creation, an embodied being, a coherent whole of body and spirit, not an incoherent mess of parts. And no artificial intelligence can ever change that or challenge that distinctiveness. But we live in times that certainly have tried to diminish it. So master the art of being human.

Learn the value of each relationship while you still have it. Most people learn this value only after the relationship is gone. Friends will come and go. A precious few will be lifelong friends. To those who stick, treasure their loyalty, and give them yours in return. Don’t confuse the friends who will stick with you and the ones who will not.

When you have a full calendar to prioritize, let this be your mantra: People are more important.

You don’t need as much sleep as you think; God knew this and gave us coffee.

You will have more dreams than time. Choose wisely. Waste neither.

Forgive quickly, even when it is costly, for this is what Christ did for us.

Remember that you, too, will one day need another’s forgiveness.

The cost of love is the possibility of pain. This cost is worth it.

Trust me on the coffee.

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Master the art of influencing others.

“Influencer” is a cheap and tired word. It has been reduced to those who can attract an audience with content and play on our shortcomings for attention. Following trends simply hijacks our small-mindedness; fashion or slang just appeals to our need for conformity. This so-called influence is far too trite. True influence means someone’s life is better because you are in it. You are quite capable of that kind of influence, if only you will spot the opportunities that you are sent every day. You’re not looking for a platform; you’re always looking for a person.

The world still marches forward on the backs of the anonymous and selfless individuals who would dare to put the needs of others above themselves. So master the art of influencing others.

Lead yourself first. You cannot lead others until you lead yourself. Leadership is about giving, and you cannot give what you do not have.

You need a mentor, and you need to be a mentor. Someone ahead of you to call you forward, someone behind you that you call forward, and someone beside you who will battle with you shoulder to shoulder along the way. This was the example of the early church, and it is still your best chance for a life of impact.

Be patient. Don’t judge. Love through all. The power of life and death is in the tongue. So speak life. If you’re ever faced with the choice of being right and being kind, be kind. You can always go back and be right later.

True friends always call each other away from mediocrity and toward their highest selves.

Compromise is for negotiations. Convictions are not up for negotiation.

The one who does the right thing first is the most powerful in the room.

Ego is an anesthesia for insecurity. And yes, others can tell.

Master the art of finding home.

In the coming weeks, you will hit a major life milestone. It’s not just college life beckoning you, but the freedom of moving out. Graduates, you’re going to be surprised how quickly you miss home and long to come back. You don’t need me to prove to you that life is full of unexpected turns and setbacks. It’s nothing you should worry about–worrying won’t change it, and in the end, it’s never the things you worry about that come to pass. It’s the unexpected phone call on a random Tuesday; the unmet expectation; the unforeseen loss; the thing that you always counted on going right, suddenly going wrong. And when that happens, know how to get back home. Know how to find your anchor again, and how to ground yourself in the midst of the storm. So master the art of finding home.

Call your parents often, while you still can.

Pray about everything–all the time. Fill your heart with God’s Word. Never, ever give up. Stay in faith and call the things that are not as if they were.

Stay content. Happiness is not getting what you want but wanting what you get. Understand that life, by definition, is unfair. The sooner you realize this, the quicker you’ll get over it. You have no time to waste on jealousy: your own or others’.

Go back to the places where your life changed. Try to remember the younger you who existed then. Talk to that younger you. Tell them what you have learned along the way.

On my keyring, I have a key that has been with me since I left home to attend the University of Florida. It is the door to my mom and dad’s house. Anytime the lock on that door has changed, my dad has given me a new key.

Do you know what this key means? It means: you can always come home. Day or night. Announced or unannounced. For better or worse. You can always come home.

I hope you know that you can always come back to your school and your church. Parents, please give your son or daughter a key and make sure they know they can always come home.

Finally, graduates, don’t miss this: The Cross of Christ is a key that unlocks the door to a relationship with your Heavenly Father, today and for eternity. And no matter where life takes you, how long it’s been, how good or bad it’s gotten, or how successful or broken you’ve become, the message of that Cross remains: you can always come home.

Asa Walker serves as the School Pastor at Indian Rocks Christian School in Largo, Florida, where he helps guide the spiritual formation of more than 600 Upper School students. He holds degrees from the University of Florida, Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary, and Baylor University.