Our church congregation had our annual Primary Program the last Sunday in October. Topher was asked to finish a sentence prompt for his speaking part. Sophie was given a topic and asked to write a four-minute talk. Both kids delivered their parts beautifully. Sophie and her friend Gemma carried the singing for the musical numbers and Sophie sang a solo during one song. During last year's program Topher hummed all the songs, this year he actually sang words! It was all a success.
Topher's line: My favorite story of Jesus is when He saved Peter from drowning.
Sophie's talk:
I love bearing my testimony because I feel the spirit so strongly and love to tell people why I believe in Christ. When I was a lot younger I didn’t have a testimony. I made a testimony by reading the scriptures with my family and by going to church and learning from other people’s testimonies. I learned from primary songs that I still love to sing. A lot of people are still growing their testimonies even when they're adults. In the April General Conference Sister Bonnie H. Cordon said “We live in a fallen world, with distractions coaxing our eyes and hearts downward instead of heavenward. Much like the Nephites in 3 Nephi 11, we need Jesus Christ.” What she’s saying is that there are lots of things that distract us from the truth, making it harder to grow our testimonies.
The Nephites lived in a time much like ours, full of distraction and wickedness. In third Nephi chapter 11 verses 14-16 we read what happened when Jesus came to them “Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am … the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world. And … the multitude went forth … one by one … and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know … and had witnessed for themselves.”
The Nephites saw the Savior in person, they felt the wounds in his hands and side. They knew, their testimonies were certain. But how can we know for ourselves when we don’t see Jesus in person? In the Book of Mormon Moroni taught us important steps to gain our own testimony. He’s speaking about getting a testimony of the Book of Mormon, but the steps are the same no matter what the subject. In Moroni chapter 10, verses 4-5 he said:
4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.
Moroni is telling us to study and then pray about our testimonies of the Savior. He wants us to ask not just because we can but because we really want to know the truth. Moroni also tells us to have faith in Jesus Christ.
Sometimes growing a testimony can be hard but here are some things I have done that helped strengthen my testimony. I go to church every Sunday and I take the sacrament. When I was eight I was baptized as a member of The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints and I reserved the gift of the holy ghost. I read the scriptures and pray each night, all these things have helped me grow and nurture my testimony.
I bear my testimony that Jesus is the living Christ and that he loves us all more than we could ever imagine. I know that He performed great miracles like healing the blind man, raising the little girl from the dead, walking on water and healing the leper. He atoned for our sins in Gethsemane. I also know that he died on the cross for us and that after three days he was resurrected. And after he was resurrected he preached to the Nephites. I have faith that he will come again. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
