Relief Society · Elders Quorum · 25 minutes
Elder Eduardo F. Ortega · Of the Seventy · Saturday Afternoon Session
Recommended path
Mix and match to create one 25-minute interactive lesson. Swap any activity for an option below.
This class in one line
Every person, no matter their family background, must make a personal decision to follow Christ, and discipleship grows through small, daily choices over a lifetime.
Skip extended retelling of Church history context; move quickly from the opening into the first discussion question so the class carries the conversation.
Before Sunday
Sunday: What made your testimony yours?
This Sunday we'll discuss a talk by Elder Eduardo Ortega about how a personal testimony of Jesus Christ is built, not inherited. He shares his grandmother's pioneer story and his own experience as a missionary in Colombia discovering faith for himself. Before class, think about a moment when your belief in Christ became truly your own, not just something you were taught. Ponder: What was one small, specific thing that helped your faith become personal?
Pick one opening
Think about someone whose faith has influenced yours, a parent, grandparent, a friend who introduced you to the gospel. Take a moment. Now, here's what I want us to sit with today: their example got you here, but when did believing become something you chose for yourself? What was that turning point like?
Think about someone whose faith has influenced yours, a parent, grandparent, a friend who introduced you to the gospel. Take a moment. Now, here's what I want us to sit with today: their example got you here, but when did believing become something you chose for yourself? What was that turning point like?
Elder Ortega's grandmother Mercedes joined the Church in 1957 in Mendoza, Argentina. Her circumstances weren't perfect or ideal, his father was only six years old. She had no multigenerational legacy to lean on, no family heritage in the gospel. She simply made a personal decision to follow the Savior. Decades later, her grandson stood at a General Conference pulpit. One woman's choice. One decision. Generations changed.
Teach this first
Family heritage and gospel tradition are real blessings, but they cannot substitute for a personal decision to follow Jesus Christ. The Lord told Peter that his witness hadn't come from flesh and blood, it came from heaven, in response to Peter's own seeking. Elder Ortega taught that a personal testimony comes as we sincerely want to know for ourselves and then act on what we receive.
Elder Ortega: 'Our family heritage is a great blessing, but it is not a substitute for our diligent and intentional search for a personal testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ.'
Ask the class
If time remains
Elder Ortega taught that becoming a lifelong disciple is 'the sum of multiple small, daily, personal and spiritual events', and that the path of discipleship is like climbing a mountain by the firm, safe route, even when it's longer and harder than we'd like.
Ask the class
Counsel together
Last 3–5 minutes
This week, identify one small, daily habit, reading a few verses, a brief prayer of honest seeking, a moment of gratitude, and do it with the specific intention of making your faith more personally yours, not just maintained.
Elder Ortega quoted Nephi's promise: those who press forward, feasting on the word of Christ and enduring to the end, are promised eternal life by the Father.
Your witness: Share briefly when Christ felt like the author of something in your own life, a moment when you saw His hand shaping or refining you, even if you only recognized it looking back.