The Answer is Jesus

Elder Ryan K. Olsen recently shared this story in general conference: “Not too long ago, I was working on our farm with my nephew Nash. He is six and has a pure heart. He is my favorite nephew named Nash, and I believe I am his favorite uncle speaking in conference today. As he helped me come up with a solution for our project, I said, ‘Nash, that is a great idea. How did you get so smart?’ He looked at me with an expression in his eyes that said, ‘Uncle Ryan, how do you not know the answer to this question?’ He simply shrugged his shoulders, smiled, and confidently said, ‘Jesus.’” Elder Olsen commented, “Nash reminded me that day of this simple and yet profound teaching. The answer to the simplest questions and to the most complex problems is always the same. The answer is Jesus Christ. Every solution is found in Him.” No matter what challenge we are trying to overcome or what problem we are trying to solve, we should seek first to know how Jesus can be the answer. It may be that we need to plead in prayer for His strength to help us. Perhaps we need to study more carefully His words to find inspiration. Or we may find answers in pondering His life and asking ourselves the question: “What would He do?” to find a solution. When we seek to find the way through our struggles, we must first remember this invitation from Him: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). He is always The Way and ultimately the only way: “And moreover, I say unto you, that there shall be no other name given nor any other way nor means whereby salvation can come unto the children of men, only in and through the name of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent” (Mosiah 3:17).

                In his talk Elder Olsen quoted these words from President Howard W. Hunter: “We must know Christ better than we know him; we must remember him more often than we remember him; we must serve him more valiantly than we serve him.” I think that statement contains three keys to gaining answers from Jesus: we need to strive to know Him, to remember Him, and to serve Him. We come to know Him as we carefully study His life and His teachings in the scriptures and take time to be with Him in that way. We covenant to remember Him as we partake of the Sacrament and then fulfill that each week as we think on His life and use His example to make our own choices. And we serve Him as we ask ourselves what He would have us do that day to bless His children. In a recent podcast Dr. Ryan Sharp shared this advice he received from his mission president as he departed his mission: “Elder Sharp, always make yourself available to serve the Lord.” He related, “it wasn't until later that I realized how impactful that phrase has been in my life. Always make yourself available to serve the Lord. Since that day, that phrase has been the primary filter through which I've made almost every decision in my life.” As we seek to make ourselves available to serve the Savior, striving to know Him, to do what He would have us do, and to help those He would have us help, we will be filled with His love and find solutions to all our own struggles. Elder Olsen summarized his thoughts with these words: “Throughout your life, no matter how difficult or confusing the challenges may be, you can always remember that the answer is simple: it is always Jesus.” Perhaps Moroni said it best in his famous invitation: “And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever” (Ether 12:41).