Tips of Testimony Bearing

the gospel.
• Be embarrassed if you get emotional.
• Be critical of others’ testimonies—we’re all learning. Plus, you won’t be able to feel the Spirit if you focus on the negative.

Some Ideas
If you want to bear your testimony but you’re not quite sure what to say, here are some suggestions.

I know that—
• God lives and loves me.
• Jesus Christ is my Savior and that he died for me (see 1 Jn. 4:14–15).
• Through Christ’s atonement, I can live with him again if I follow God’s commandments.
• Joseph Smith was called by God to be a prophet in our day.
• Christ’s church was restored to the earth through Joseph Smith.
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is “the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth” (D&C 1:30).
• Our church is led by a prophet of God who receives revelation for our church today.
• The Book of Mormon is the word of God.
As you put these suggestions to use, your testimony will be strengthened. The Lord even promises, “Whosoever shall believe in my name, doubting nothing, unto him will I confirm all my words, even unto the ends of the earth” (Morm. 9:25).

For Example
In the early days of the Church, an elder found himself with the responsibility of giving a sermon to a large group of people gathered to hear a “Mormon” preacher. The situation wouldn’t have been that bad, but as Brigham Young explained, “[The elder] had never been able to say he knew that Joseph Smith was a Prophet.” The elder wanted to just say a prayer and conclude the meeting. But the building was so full, people were hanging through the open windows from outside to listen. There was no graceful way out for the elder except to speak.
He braved his way to the podium, and “as soon as he got ‘Joseph’ out, ‘is a Prophet’ was the next; and from that, his tongue was loosened, and he continued talking until near sundown,” Brigham Young reported. “The Lord pours out his Spirit upon a man when he testifies that which the Lord gives him to testify of” (Joseph Fielding McConkie, Seeking the Spirit, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978, pp. 4–5).