The most important thing I have learned through my time at BYU is not something that can be taught in a lecture hall or studied in a textbook, though those things can strengthen and edify my testimony. This past year has strengthened and solidified my testimony of Jesus Christ by leaps and bounds. He is my friend, my brother, and my Savior. I am who I am because of him.
Because of Him I have what I need and not what I want. I truly believe that my plan for me will never even stand up next to the plan that my Father in Heaven has for me. This truth has been manifest to me many many times over the last year. Things never turned out like I had imagined or hoped for, but they always turned out the way they needed to, and through his example, I have found the faith to accept things as they are.
Because of Him, I have learned unconditional love. I have found strength in forgiveness and power in the small glimpses I have had that have allowed me to see others the way He sees them. I know he loves me, despite the pain and suffering I have caused him. I know he loves me because he suffered for me.
Because of Him, I have found the strength to get through every trial, every weakness, every affliction, and most importantly every day. I have always known that the atonement offers a chance to right my wrongs and to cleanse me of sin and iniquity, which is beautiful and completely necessary to my eternal progression and my Earthly happiness. It has only been in the last year that I have come to really rely on my Savior to help carry my emotional burdens. I know he has felt my pain, wiped my tears, and given me strength through example and by tender mercies that cross my path every day. He gives me the strength to try, the power to get back up, and the motivation to try again.
Because of Him, I am never alone. I have felt his comfort, his guidance, and his love during the most lonely of times, when he was my only friend.
Because of Him, I can have an eternal family. I can't imagine an eternal existence without all of those whom I love. I am so grateful for the knowledge that I will have my family for eternity, both the family I already have and the one that is yet to come. I greatly look forward to the day that I will begin my own eternal family and I know it is Because of Him.
Because of Him, I know the future is bright. No matter what the world will throw my way or how dangerous and scary things become, there are better things to come. There is light at the end of the tunnel, exaltation after death, and forgiveness after repentance. Darkness will always be overcome by light and once things are dark, they can never be darker. The Light of Christ is infinite and eternal.
Because of Him, I have the courage to believe in myself. I have faith that I am capable of anything my Father in Heaven asks me to do because I have access to the enabling power of the atonement. As scary and unattainable as things sometimes seem, I know that I can accomplish anything because of my Savior.
I know that He lives. I know that He loves me. I am so grateful for his sacrifice on my behalf.
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