Lydia Owens, a high school valedictorian, stood up at graduation and told her classmates something they needed to hear about where real worth comes from.
Lydia Owens graduated at the top of her class at Woodmont High School in South Carolina. She worked hard and earned that valedictorian spot.
But when she got up to give her speech, she didn’t talk about academic success. She talked about something way more important.
“The accomplishments of your lifetime do hold value, but remember, they don’t define you,” Lydia told her classmates. “You are much more than your achievements. What if you don’t succeed? What happens then?”
She knew what she was talking about. At sixteen, Lydia lost her mom. Before that, she’d spent years trying to be perfect. She thought her grades defined her. She thought success meant getting everything right.
Then tragedy hit. And suddenly, none of those perfect grades mattered.
“When my life was upended by this tragedy, it was neither my grades nor my accomplishments that helped me navigate through that loss,” Lydia said. “When everything else in my life felt uncertain, the only one I could depend on to stay the same was Jesus.”
Losing her mom changed everything. Lydia realized she’d been building her life on the wrong foundation. “I realized the many years that I spent placing my worth in my academics meant absolutely nothing in light of eternity,” she explained.
“My worth — and your worth — is found in Jesus because He is the only one who will ever satisfy us.”
She looked out at her fellow graduates and shared this truth: “Even if you accomplish all of your dreams or none of them at all, you are still valuable. And you are still good enough because you are made in the image of God.”
The speech went viral. Millions of people heard Lydia’s message. But she didn’t want the attention on her. She pointed straight back to God, saying He spoke through her that day.
We all need to hear what Lydia learned. Our worth doesn’t come from what we do. It comes from whose we are. Jesus loves us whether we succeed or fail. That’s the foundation that holds steady when everything else crumbles.
WATCH: Valedictorian’s Inspirational Graduation Message Goes Viral
