Witness of God

            This semester, I am taking a History of Psychology course, where I have learned a lot about the “philosophies of men.” Many of them try to make sense of the world around them and find comfort by “reasoning” God out of existence—if the world has always existed, and humans are random configurations of atoms, there is no need for a divine creator. While most of the ideas of early philosophers are completely absurd, this conflicting idea is still around today. Is there a Divine Creator? Does God really exist? Are we just made up of atoms without a soul, changing through time due to evolution and natural selection? In a world of so much confusion, it can be difficult to find these answers or stand strong in your faith. However, my Book of Mormon professor pointed out a verse that describes the important role of a faithful member of Christ’s church in helping others to find the truth.

In class, my professor read to us Mosiah 18:9, which describes the covenant we make when we are baptized into the church: “Yeah, and [ye] are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yeah, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God...” My professor then pointed out the phrase “stand as a witness” and said something I had never thought of before. If we are to be a witness, our duty is to testify—to bear our testimony. This places God “on trial” with us as His witness in a world that is accusing Him of many things—of not caring, or of letting bad things happen to them, and the most ironic one of all—of not existing.

In response to those philosophers mentioned above, and to anyone reading this that is in the “jury” of this trial, I testify that I know God lives. I know He loves all of His children, and He is there to comfort them when terrible things happen in their lives. I know He died for us on the cross. I know that he understands us perfectly. I am a witness of His infinite love and strength. I have grown so much closer to God here at BYU as I have trusted in Him, and I know I could not make it this far without His strength and guidance. I have one final question: where do you stand in this trial with God?