It is a joy to be with you today! Seven years ago today, our beloved prophet President Russell M. Nelson, was set apart as the 17th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. [1]
As we begin a new year and new semester with fresh opportunities to set goals, I invite all of us to consider counsel President Nelson shared in his recent general conference address titled, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again.” It is packed full of thought-provoking questions, inspired invitations, wise counsel, and promised blessings.
President Nelson began three consecutive sentences with the phrase “I call upon you.” [2] When the prophet of God says, “I call upon you,” it is wise to listen and act.
Watch for the seven invitations contained in just these three sentences: “I call upon you to rededicate your lives to Jesus Christ. I call upon you to help gather scattered Israel and to prepare the world for the Second Coming of the Lord. I call upon you to talk of Christ, testify of Christ, have faith in Christ, and rejoice in Christ!” [3] Note the exclamation point!
He continues: “Come unto Christ and ‘offer your whole [soul]’ to Him.” And here is the promise: “This is the secret to a life of joy!” [4]
I wish we had time to consider each of these invitations and many others throughout his talk. Today, there is only time to focus on one, so I chose the following: “I call upon you to rededicate your lives to Jesus Christ.” [5]
Please prayerfully and intentionally consider what you might do to accept this prophetic invitation. Setting one goal that helps you rededicate yourself to Jesus Christ may be the most important goal you set for yourself this year. What will the Spirit prompt you to do?
President Nelson shared something that I think is especially relevant for our BYU-Idaho students: “I have learned that the most crucial question we each must answer is this: To whom or to what will I give my life?
“My decision to follow Jesus Christ is the most important decision I have ever made. During medical school, I gained a testimony of the divinity of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Since then our Savior has been the rock upon which I have built my life. That choice has made all the difference! That decision has made so many other decisions easier. That decision has given me purpose and direction. It has also helped me weather the storms of life.” [6]
In an earlier talk, President Nelson said the following: “When your greatest desire is to let God prevail, to be part of Israel, so many decisions become easier. So many issues become nonissues! You know how best to groom yourself. You know what to watch and read, where to spend your time, and with whom to associate. You know what you want to accomplish. You know the kind of person you really want to become.” [7]
As we strive to rededicate our lives to Jesus Christ, may we consider a question and an experience from two other prophets.
First, the apostle Paul asked the saints in Corinth, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God?” [8] Many years ago, as I sang the hymn, “More Holiness Give Me,” the Spirit impressed upon me the truth of one phrase, “more fit for the kingdom, more used would I be.” [9] In a gentle but powerful way, I was reminded to make myself more fit … physically, intellectually, spiritually, and even socially. I am still a work in progress! As we strive to make our personal temples more holy, the Lord can use us in more ways to achieve His holy purposes.
Second, President Gordon B. Hinckley shared an experience following a Mesa Arizona Temple renovation several decades ago. President Hinckley hosted hundreds of clergy of other religions and offered to answer questions following a tour of the temple.
One Protestant minister noted the absence of the cross throughout the temple and on our buildings elsewhere. He asked, “Why is this when you say you believe in Jesus Christ?” [10]
President Hinckley respectfully responded: “I do not wish to give offense to any of my Christian colleagues who use the cross on the steeples of their cathedrals and at the altars of their chapels, who wear it on their vestments, and imprint it on their books and other literature. But for us, the cross is the symbol of the dying Christ, while our message is a declaration of the Living Christ.”
The minister then asked, “If you do not use the cross, what is the symbol of your religion?”
President Hinckley replied, “The lives of our people must become the most meaningful expression of our faith and, in fact, therefore, the symbol of our worship.” [11]
Brothers and sisters, if we are the temples of God, what do people see when they see us? How can we dedicate or rededicate ourselves to Jesus Christ so that our lives become the most meaningful expression of our faith?
President Nelson has shared some suggestions: “As we speak of our temples old and new, may each of us signify by our actions that we are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. May we renovate our lives through our faith and trust in Him. May we access the power of His Atonement through our repentance each day. And may we dedicate and rededicate our lives to serving God and His children—on both sides of the veil.” [12]
Years of planning, preparation, and hard work are required prior to a temple dedication. As we strive to rededicate our lives or our personal temples, it may also take years of planning, preparation, and hard work; but it is worth it!
President Nelson has reminded us: “The best is yet to come, my dear brothers and sisters, because the Savior is coming again! The best is yet to come because the Lord is hastening His work. The best is yet to come as we fully turn our hearts and our lives to Jesus Christ.” [13]
As we strive to rededicate our lives to Jesus Christ, let’s prayerfully and intentionally consider what we might do to follow this prophetic counsel. This year, this month, this semester is the perfect time to start! We can have confidence that the Holy Ghost will guide us and that our Heavenly Father and His Son will strengthen us. Let us come unto Christ and offer our whole souls to Him. That is “the secret to a life of joy!” In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] Ryan and Joel Randall, “Episode 205: Celebrating President Nelson’s century of service ahead of his birthday,” Church News Podcast, Sept 6. 2024, https://www.thechurchnews.com/podcast/2024/09/06/episode-205-celebrating-president-russell-m-nelson-century-service-100-birthday/.
[2] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again,” Liahona, Nov. 2024, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2024/10/57nelson.
[3] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again.”
[4] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again.”
[5] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again.”
[6] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again,” emphasis added.
[7] Russell M. Nelson, “Let God Prevail,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2020/10/46nelson.
[8] 1 Corinthians 3:16.
[9] “More Holiness Give Me,” Hymns, 131.
[10] Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Symbol of our Faith,” Ensign, April 2005, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2005/04/the-symbol-of-our-faith.
[11] Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Symbol of our Faith.”
[12] Russell M. Nelson, “Closing Remarks,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/04/57nelson.
[13] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again.”