Faith to Move Mountains

I mentioned a couple days ago how five different speakers in this most recent general conference mentioned President Nelson’s talk about finding joy. President Nelson’s more recent talk on faith, from the April 2021 general conference, was also referenced by seven speakers in this October 2021 general conference, clearly highlighting its continued importance to us. Three of them emphasized the work that faith requires. Elder Schmeil summarized President Nelson’s earlier remarks this way: “Last general conference, President Nelson said: ‘To do anything well requires effort. Becoming a true disciple of Jesus Christ is no exception.’ President Nelson is inviting us to work hard to become better disciples of Jesus Christ. He told us that to become more like the Savior, we need to strengthen our faith by asking, acting, and studying, among other things.” Elder Valenzuela similarly said this: “My dear brothers and sisters, President Russell M. Nelson has taught us recently: ‘To do anything well requires effort. Becoming a true disciple of Jesus Christ is no exception. Increasing your faith and trust in Him takes effort.’ Among the recommendations that he gave us to increase our faith in Jesus Christ is that we become engaged learners, that we immerse ourselves in the scriptures to understand better Christ’s mission and ministry.” And Sister Johnson similarly remarked, “And the promised blessing that will come from acting in faith in Jesus Christ is an increase in faith in Him as our author and finisher. President Nelson declared that we ‘receive more faith by doing something that requires more faith.’” To develop true faith in Jesus Christ takes work and great effort as we strive to trust in Him and do those things He requires.

                Other speakers also encouraged us by emphasizing the blessings of faith as taught by President Nelson. Elder Guiffra said at the close of his talk, “During these blessed years, we have known, as President Russell M. Nelson declared: ‘Everything good in life—every potential blessing of eternal significance—begins with faith. Allowing God to prevail in our lives begins with faith that He is willing to guide us. True repentance begins with faith that Jesus Christ has the power to cleanse, heal, and strengthen us.’” Faith in Jesus Christ is indeed the start of every good thing. Elder Rasband quoted President Nelson to highlight how faith can lead us to answers to our questions: “President Russell M. Nelson has emphasized: ‘Take your questions to the Lord and to other faithful sources. Study with the desire to believe rather than with the hope that you can find a flaw in the fabric of a prophet’s life or a discrepancy in the scriptures. Stop increasing your doubts by rehearsing them with … doubters. Allow the Lord to lead you on your journey of spiritual discovery.’” Brother Wilcox said in the footnotes to his talk, “President Russell M. Nelson has said, ‘The Lord does not require perfect faith for us to have access to His perfect power.’” Elder Douglas highlighted the same point from the prophet: “President Nelson has taught: ‘Faith in Jesus Christ is the foundation of all belief and the conduit of divine power.… The Lord does not require perfect faith for us to have access to His perfect power. But He does ask us to believe.’” We need not get discouraged because our faith isn’t as strong as we want it yet—it does not have to be perfect to access the power or the Lord.

Elder Douglas also emphasized the blessings of faith when he referenced the story of the father who sought the Savior’s healing for his son. We have this account in Mark 9: “Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit; And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not…. If thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.” The Savior responded with these timeless words: “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” The man responded in truth and in earnest desire as he cried out, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” With that the Savior cast out the evil spirit and the boy was healed. Elder Douglas commented, “This humble father wisely chose to trust his belief in Christ rather than his doubt. President Nelson shared, ‘Only your unbelief will keep God from blessing you with miracles to move the mountains in your life’” (Mark 9:17-29). As we learn to trust in His power and go to Him in our difficulties, putting our faith before our doubts, we can likewise access the power of the Lord. As President Nelson concluded his talk, “He is risen to bless the lives of all of God’s children, wherever they live. With faith in Him, we can move the mountains in our lives.”