Sep 5, 2024

Our Light by Dan Wilson

Samuel the Lamanite boldly prophesied of Jesus Christ, despite being rejected and almost killed. Describing the signs of the birth and death of Jesus Christ was a primary focus of his message to the wicked Nephites. Samuel said, “There shall be many signs and wonders in heaven” (Helaman 14:6).

Just as the people in the Book of Mormon anticipated the presence of the Savior through certain signs, we have many signs today that can point us to Jesus Christ and help us along the path to becoming like Him. 

God speaks to us through the Spirit, or gives us signs, in many different ways. Ideas to do good, feelings of peace, and words coming to our minds may be ways the Spirit speaks to us. Wilford Woodruff, in a discourse to the Saints in 1857, said, “There are a multiplicity of evidences that God is with this people, and that the Lord has been with his Elders, wherever they have been, from the beginning of this work.” 

The Savior has given me many signs throughout my life that let me know He is aware of me and loves me. One day on my mission, I was overwhelmed with my responsibilities. Taking care of our friends we were teaching, training my new missionary, and dealing with many other stresses of missionary life felt like too much for me to bear. I missed home and wanted to give up. 

But as I prayed, I felt a sense of peace. Nothing about my situation changed, but as I turned to Jesus Christ and remembered what His power could do for me and the people I worried about, I was able to keep going, one day at a time. I knew the peace I felt was a sign from a loving Heavenly Father who knew my potential and was ready to support me through any and all trials. 

Often, it’s hard to recognize the signs that God sends us, but as we do, our faith will grow. In one of my favorite devotionals, “Flashes of Light,” Steven J. Lund promised, “If we will be faithful observers of the workings of the Spirit in our lives, we can come to even better respect the miracles that illuminate the tapestries of our testimonies and find courage to move forward in enlightened faith.” 

May we recognize that God is with us as we develop the eyes to see the signs He sends us in our life. 


Kamryn Maughan is studying Family Life at Brigham Young University. She joined the Wilford Woodruff Papers and was drawn to its mission to deepen and strengthen faith through President Woodruff’s documents and history. Kamryn has a big, loving family who she recently reunited with after serving in Oklahoma as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She loves hiking, playing card games, and watching movies with her family and friends. 

The Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation’s mission is to digitally preserve and publish Wilford Woodruff’s eyewitness account of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and make his records universally accessible in order to inspire all people, especially the rising generation, to study and to increase their faith in Jesus Christ. For more information, please explore wilfordwoodruffpapers.org.