“Discover, Grow, Become,” Young Women General Board Member Says in LDSBC Address

Contributed By Alexa Reimschussel, Church News staff writer

Article Highlights When you obtain knowledge in its many forms, share what you know with others.

To share the gospel effectively, live by the commandments.

“The most effective way to share the gospel is to live it—when we live like a disciple of Christ should live.” —Sister Liz Darger of the Young Women general board

Each person should strive to discover truth, grow in learning and understanding, and become a witness of the Savior.

This is the message Sister Liz Darger, BYU associate athletic director and member of the Young Women general board, shared in her devotional address to LDS Business College students and faculty in the Assembly Hall at Temple Square on Tuesday, June 18.

Sister Darger recently traveled to China with BYU performing groups to celebrate 40 years of friendship between BYU and China. While in China, she was able to see the archeological discovery of the Terracotta Warriors. Farmers came across the 2,000-year-old soldier statues by accident, Sister Darger said, and because they shared their discovery it led to “growth in historical knowledge.”

As another example of discovery, Sister Darger recounted the story found in John 4—the Samaritan woman at the well. In the story, Jesus came to a Samaritan woman getting water from a well. The woman asked the Savior many questions. What began as an unexpected discovery of a preacher developed into an “intentional search for truth, light, and knowledge that she embraced.”

The Samaritan woman was able to gain answers and discover truth for herself because of her “ability to feel, hear, and understand the Spirit,” Sister Darger said. The woman at the well could have kept her discovery of the Savior secret, but she didn’t. She told anyone she could about the Savior. “By asking sincere questions of Him, she grew in light and knowledge; and she chose to become a witness of Him.”

Some discoveries are made unexpectedly and some are made through intentional search, she said. It is not important which method is used to discover truth and light, but it is important that the discovery was made and that it is shared with others.

Sister Darger serves on the leadership team of the NCAA Common Ground Initiative—a coming together of athletic administrators and LGBTQ advocates to create inclusive athletic departments and college campuses for people of all religions, sexual orientations, and gender identities.

Not long before the annual NCAA Inclusion Forum in Atlanta, Georgia, President Russell M. Nelson clarified the name of the Church and asked all to call the Church by its proper name and refrain from terms such as Mormon and LDS.

Sister Darger had always been known as the “Mormon,” and she was nervous to speak up about the change for how she would be addressed at the forum. She prayed for heavenly help. Her colleague and friend Karen, who is not religious, miraculously reached out to Sister Darger and asked her what she would like to be called at the forum.

Sister Darger took three student athletes to the Georgia forum and shared an experience they had with their Uber driver.

Heidi, one of the student athletes accompanying Sister Darger and who recently returned from serving a mission to Puerto Rico, struck up a conversation with their driver, who was from Puerto Rico. Heidi and the driver were able to connect about Puerto Rico and eventually discuss Heidi’s mission. Sister Darger was able to chime in about BYU.

Sister Darger quoted Sister Jean B. Bingham, Relief Society General President, from a BYU Women’s Conference address in which Sister Bingham said she didn’t feel like she had any particular talents or abilities.

“I was just average,“ Sister Bingham said. ”And yet, even in my ‘ordinariness,’ Heavenly Father saw value and has helped me begin to develop the gifts and graces He knows will help me become all that He has designed me to be.”

After just starting her doctoral degree and with her plate being “already full to the brim,” Sister Darger was called to serve on the Young Women general board. And, naturally, she was feeling overwhelmed. But, she said, when she put her trust in the Lord, He blessed her with an “increased capacity” and magnified her “very meager but best efforts.”

When each person happens upon or strives to discover truth and grows through knowledge and by the Spirit, each person can become a conduit for the Savior's light, she said.

“The most effective way to share the gospel is to live it, when we live like a disciple of Christ should live. When we aren't just good, but happy to be good, others will be drawn to us. They will be drawn to the true and everlasting light of the Savior.”

Sister Liz Darger greets guests as they arrive at the Assembly Hall at Temple Square to listen to her devotional. Photo by Spencer Williams, Church News.

Sister Darger invited those in attendance to discover truth, grow in learning and understanding, and become witnesses of the Savior. Photo by Spencer Williams, Church News.

Young Women General President Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, center, with her counselors, Sister Michelle D. Craig, left, and Sister Becky Craven, right, attend the Tuesday, June 18, 2019, LDSBC devotional in the Assembly Hall at Temple Square. Photo by Spencer Williams, Church News.

Students, faculty, and guests listen to Sister Liz Darger in the Assembly Hall at Temple Square for an LDSBC devotional on June 18, 2019. Photo by Spencer Williams, Church News.