‘Resolutely Resolve Today’ to Be a Trusted Disciple of Christ, Says Elder Nash

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By Rachel Sterzer Gibson, Church News

A mission president in Liberia once told Elder Marcus B. Nash of the Presidency of the Seventy of a faithful young missionary named Tommy Langai.

After completing his full-time mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Elder Langai was given money from his mission president to return home to Liberia.

When Elder Langai arrived in Liberia, he reported to the local mission president for his release interview and handed him $90, with receipts for the $10 he had spent on his journey.

In his impoverished country and village, $90 would likely have fed this young missionary’s family for a month.

After sharing this story with Elder Nash, the Liberia mission president exclaimed, “I would trust him with anything.”

In relating this story during an Ensign College devotional on Tuesday, March 11, Elder Nash noted: “It is so good to be loved. And it is far better to be trusted.”

“Consider this: Our Heavenly Father loves all His children with a perfect love — and that is sweet to know — but He does not trust us all the same. And those He trusts — those who live righteously — are favored by Him,” he said.

During his remarks to Ensign College students, faculty and staff gathered in the Conference Center Theater in Salt Lake City, Elder Nash focused on the school’s mission statement: To help students become capable — and trusted — disciples of Jesus Christ.

“What a mission statement for this college. What a mission for life,” he said.

He invited listeners to “resolutely resolve today that you will forever seek to be a capable, trusted disciple of Jesus Christ.”

Those who live with integrity and show that they are trustworthy “will be guided in wisdom’s paths and will be prospered, preserved and enlivened with joy. I promise that the Lord and others will trust you,” Elder Nash said.

Great Trust Brings Greater Power

As individuals understand who the Savior is and who they are in the Father’s plan, they will yearn to serve Christ and to have His trust, Elder Nash said.

Jesus Christ was perfectly obedient, and Heavenly Father trusted Him to complete His mission and fulfill His role in the Father’s plan.

After outlining Christ’s perfect character, Elder Nash said, “I love the Lord. I know Him. I am profoundly grateful for Him — words cannot express how deeply I feel about Him. I owe Him. I want Him to be able to depend upon me, to trust me. With all He has done for me, it is the least I can do for Him.”

Nephi, the son of Helaman and a Book of Mormon prophet, was described by the Lord as someone who had not “sought thine own life, but hast sought my will and to keep my commandments.”

Because of this, the Lord declared, “I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will” (Helaman 10:4-5).

Elder Nash noted, “Great power came from earning great trust.”

The more God trusts an individual, the more rich, or whole, their relationship is with Him. “We come to know Him. And more of His power is manifest in our lives,” Elder Nash said.

Gaining the Lord’s Trust

Those who understand truth, agency and integrity will know how to be trusted by God and others, he continued.

Citing the teachings of President Russell M. Nelson, Elder Nash noted that truth is steady, unchanging and dependable. “Truth is not subject to personal interpretation; it is absolute, and God is the source of truth,” said Elder Nash.

Agency — the power or ability to choose and to act — is a gift essential to individuals’ growth and progress. Growth comes as individuals choose to become like God, or by making righteous choices.

“Those who shrink from making the choice to live according to truth when they are faced with opposition are missing out on an opportunity to grow,” said Elder Nash. “So, let’s use our agency to grow, by choosing to focus on Christ and live according to the truth, laws and commandments of His gospel.”

Integrity is to exercise agency to live the truth of the Lord’s gospel, Elder Nash explained.

“When we have integrity, the principles that guide our decisions and actions do not shift with the social mores of the world” but are grounded on the rock of the Redeemer and His gospel.

“To the same degree that we trust the Lord, He will trust us …,” Elder Nash said. “Notably, the way we show our trust in Him — living with integrity — is exactly what increases His trust in us.”

Elder Nash told listeners to “be true to who you are and the great trust He has placed in you. Be true to Him and place your full confidence and trust in Him. Live with integrity so that He can trust you and place His confidence in you. And when you fall short, regain His trust by living the doctrine of Christ, by exercising faith in Christ unto repentance with real purpose of heart.”

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