Jason Rose: The Power of Unity

Jason Rose used scriptures, personal experiences and math and science to teach students about unity during the BYU-Idaho Devotional on May 29, 2018.

Rose is a mathematics faculty member at BYU-Idaho. He used the description of the stone cut out of a mountain without hands that "shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms" from the book of Daniel as an example of energy. Using a physical marble to represent the stone he first taught students about kinetic energy and potential energy.

"If I lift the marble above the podium, I give it potential energy because even though it isn't moving, it has the potential to move if I let it go," he said. "The higher I lift it, the more energy I give it and therefore the faster it will get going before it hits the ground."

He went a little deeper with this line of thinking to teach about cooperation and unity. He gave examples in nature that at the subatomic level there are tiny particles called quarks that are organized into protons and neutrons. Those form with electrons to make atoms, which then combine to make molecules. Molecules form cells, which form organs, which make up our bodies.

"In general, the higher our degree of cooperation, the less energy we need to accomplish the tasks required to stay alive and the more excess energy we have to improve our lives," he said.

In an interview with BYU-Idaho Radio, Rose explained why it's important to cooperate and how that applies to living the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

"I think sometimes we feel like living the Gospel causes us do things that are uncomfortable or to try to be just barely hanging on, holding a huge weight over ourselves to try to stick with it," he said. "But if you think about it in the right way living the Gospel is actually making everything easier in your life and so it's kind of a natural thing to do that will help you be more connected to other people and more connected to our Heavenly Father."

In his devotional talk, Rose explained how Jesus Christ has made it possible for us to become one with each other and with our Savior.

"What the Savior has done is called the atonement; literally at-one-ment," he said. "Through it, we can become at-one with our Heavenly Father and with everyone else who has become at-one with him. This is the gospel or the 'good news' for us. Notice how in the gospel we make covenants to love and serve one another. Those covenants bind us together so that we can experience the blessings that come from being unified."

Rose also cautioned students about the role of living the Gospel and the resulting blessings. He said prosperity often comes when we live the Gospel, but we should not expect that to happen.

"If you are striving to do what is right and yet you still encounter setbacks and trials, don’t be surprised," he said. "Trials and setbacks of varying intensity come to all of us, but if we remain calm and rely on our Heavenly Father, he can help good things come from them."

You can listen to his full devotional talk below.