Conference Talk of the Week

Overview

Elder James G. O. Fantone opens with a small mistake: while enrolling his daughter in school, he signed his own name, then fixed it by writing "Amanda" in front of it. That quick fix led him to ask what it means to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ (Mosiah 3:17; 3 Nephi 27:5). He teaches that the Savior is not asking us to attach His name to ours like a label. He is asking us to make and keep a covenant, and Moroni 6:3 describes that covenant as "a determination to serve him to the end." Elder Fantone gives two examples of this service: his parents, who gave up their children's bedrooms to a struggling student and to a family in need, and homesick missionaries who changed as they kept serving. He shows that serving others is the way we come to know the Savior and are changed by Him.

Three Key Takeaways

• 1Taking upon us Christ's name is more than claiming membership. Elder Fantone contrasts his paperwork fix of adding a name with the Savior's warning about those who "draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me" (Joseph Smith, History 1:19). The covenant asks us to become more like Him.
• 2Moroni 6:3 teaches that people were baptized only after they "took upon them the name of Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end." Because service to others is service to God (Mosiah 2:17), the way we carry His name each day is by serving the people around us.
• 3Elder Fantone's parents gave their children's rooms to a student who could not afford housing near his school and to children who needed a safe place to stay. Their example matches President Marion G. Romney's teaching that service is not something we endure to earn heaven; it is "the very fiber of which an exalted life in the celestial kingdom is made."

Reflection Questions

• When you took the sacrament last Sunday, did your promise to take upon you Christ's name feel more like adding a label or like committing to become someone? What would make it feel like the second?
• Elder Fantone's parents gave up their own space without hesitating. What is the "room" in your life, such as time, a place, or attention, that you could open to someone who needs it?
• Think of a calling or responsibility that feels long and heavy right now, like the early months for those missionaries. What might change in you if you keep serving in it with the Savior in mind?