BYU-Pathway Worldwide Devotional

“Great Expectations and Great Promises”

Heather Ugege

Director of EnglishConnect

November 28, 2025

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Dear students, I am honored to speak to you today.

As I speak, I pray that you will feel the reality of three important truths:

You are a beloved child of God.
Your Father in Heaven has great expectations and great promises for you.
When you center your life on Jesus Christ, you will have the power to fulfill God’s expectations and receive His promises.

Brothers and sisters, I can picture you in big cities and small villages all around the globe. And I can feel God’s love for you. He is your loving Father in Heaven. ^{i

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See 1 John 3:1; see also Psalm 82:6} You are His beloved child. ^{ii

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See Acts 17:29; see also Romans 8:16} He loves you with all the power of His perfect heart. ^{iii

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See Matthew 5:48; see also John 3:16} In this life, others may fail you, but He will not. ^{iv

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See Isaiah 41:10}

You are an eternal being. ^{v

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See Mosiah 16:8–9; see also Abraham 3:22} You lived with God before this life. ^{vi

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See Doctrine and Covenants 93:29; see also Jeremiah 1:4–5; Abraham 3:22–26} As His child, you have divine potential. ^{vii

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See Matthew 5:48; see also Moses 1:39; “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Gospel Library} You have been given specific spiritual gifts, ^{viii

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See Doctrine and Covenants 46:11–12} and God expects you to develop and increase your gifts to bless others. ^{ix

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See Matthew 25:14–29} As you do, you grow to become like Him. ^{x

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See 1 John 3:2}

The purpose of this life is to strive to become like God and prepare to meet Him again. ^{xi

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See Alma 12:24; see also Alma 34:32} You have the power to choose who you will become. ^{xii

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See 2 Nephi 2:14, 16, 26; see also Moses 7:32} Your Heavenly Father is committed to helping you achieve your divine potential. ^{xiii

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See Moses 1:39} Jesus Christ taught that it is the “Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” ^{xiv

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Luke 12:32} Your Heavenly Father loves you, and I testify He wants to give you all the joy you can possibly receive. ^{xv

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See 2 Nephi 2:25; see also 3 Nephi 28:10; Revelation 3:21}

God has great expectations of you. Jesus Christ taught, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the light of this people. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.” ^{xvi

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3 Nephi 12:14–16} “Therefore, hold up your light that it may shine unto the world. Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up—that which ye have seen me do.” ^{xvii

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3 Nephi 18:24}

As His child, God expects you to increase your capacity to bless others wherever you are. He wants you to be a leader in your home, the Church, and your community. He wants you to shine His light to the world. ^{xviii

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See Matthew 5:14; see also 3 Nephi 18:24}

How can you increase your capacity to shine His light to the world?

First, seek learning. The Lord has invited us to “seek learning by study and also by faith.” ^{xix

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Doctrine and Covenants 88:118} Our prophets have counseled us to get all the education we can. ^{xx

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See Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Gordon B. Hinckley (2016), 219; See also Russell M. Nelson, “Education – A Religious Responsibility” (BYU-Idaho devotional, Jan. 26, 2010), byui.edu/speeches} You are heeding their counsel! As you continue to seek learning by study and by faith, God’s grace will attend you and deepen your understanding of light and truth. ^{xxi

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See Doctrine and Covenants 109:7; see also Doctrine and Covenants 50:22–25; 88:77–80}

Second, make good things happen. ^{xxii

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See Mosiah 5:15; see also 1 Peter 2:12; Joy D. Jones, “An Especially Noble Calling,” Ensign, Apr. 2020, 17} The Lord stated, “Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them….” ^{xxiii

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Doctrine and Covenants 58:27–28} You don’t have to wait for your circumstances to change; you can act now to “bring to pass much righteousness” ^{xxiv

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Doctrine and Covenants 58:27} wherever you are. Start in your family. Pray for the gift of discernment to see the needs around you, and seek inspiration to create solutions. Jesus said, “Therefore let your light so shine before this people, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” ^{xxv

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3 Nephi 12:14–16} Your good works will help others receive God’s light. ^{xxvi

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See Alma 26:22}

Third, increase your ability to communicate. The Lord has invited you to “study and learn, and become acquainted with all good books, and with languages, tongues, and people.” ^{xxvii

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Doctrine and Covenants 90:15} Heavenly Father wants your voice to be heard. Language is a skill that can expand your sphere of influence.

Start by improving the language you speak at home. Then, expand your influence by learning other languages. Improve your ability to communicate in English. “[Learning English] will bless you … throughout your life. Learning English will also bless your family.” ^{xxviii

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Preach My Gospel (2004), 7} English is a global language, and it will open many doors of opportunity for you.

You can pray and receive God’s help to learn languages. ^{xxix

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See Doctrine and Covenants 46: 7–10, 24–25} You can learn to communicate clearly, truthfully, and in a way that inspires and empowers others.

As you increase your ability to communicate in multiple languages, you will be able to share the light of faith with more of God’s children.

In the scriptures, we learn about the experience of a man named Enoch. When the Lord called Enoch to be a prophet, Enoch responded, “Why is it that I have found favor in thy sight, and am but a lad, and all the people hate me; for I am slow of speech; wherefore am I thy servant?” ^{xxx

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Moses 6:31} Enoch wasn’t sure that he had the ability to be all that God wanted Him to be.

But the Lord said to Enoch, “Go forth and do as I have commanded thee…. Open thy mouth, and it shall be filled, and I will give thee utterance…. Behold my Spirit is upon you … and thou shalt abide in me, and I in you; therefore, walk with me.” ^{xxxi

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Moses 6:32, 34}

As Enoch exercised his faith and chose to do what the Lord asked him to do, the Lord increased his capacity and “so great was the faith of Enoch that he led the people of God, … and he spake the word of the Lord, and the earth trembled, and the mountains fled, … so great was the power of the language which God had given him.” ^{xxxii

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Moses 7:13}

The Lord can increase your capacity to shine His light to the world.

As you come to know and understand who you are, and what God expects of you, there will be opposition. Satan, the destroyer, will use every method he can to try to tear you down. But God is infinitely more powerful than Satan, and you are God’s child.

When the Lord called Moses to free the children of Israel, Moses expressed his fears, saying, “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? ^{xxxiii

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Exodus 3:11} In another experience, the Lord taught Moses his divine nature, saying, “Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty…. And, behold, thou art my son…. And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son….” ^{xxxiv

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Moses 1:3–4, 6; emphasis added} Immediately after this experience with the Lord, Satan came to Moses. Satan used lies to try to make Moses doubt his divine nature. But Moses had embraced the truth of who he really was, and “calling upon God, he received strength, and he commanded, saying: Depart from me, Satan….” ^{xxxv

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Moses 1:20}

Just like Enoch and Moses, God has great expectations and great promises for you.

If you aren’t sure what expectations and promises God has for you, pray and ask Him.

The Spirit can teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance. ^{xxxvi

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See John 14:26}

You can know the truth of who you were, who you are, and who you can become. ^{xxxvii

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See Jacob 4:13}

God’s expectations may see impossible. I testify that with God all things are possible. ^{xxxviii

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See Matthew 19:26; see also Luke 1:37}

The enabling power of Jesus Christ can increase your capacity. ^{xxxix

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See Doctrine and Covenants 93:12–14; see also 2 Corinthians 12:9–10} Through faith in Jesus Christ, you can receive spiritual gifts to achieve your potential and do what God expects you to do. ^{xl

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See Doctrine and Covenants 46}

In the Bible, Matthew recounts the experience of the disciples on the Sea of Galilee as Jesus invited Peter to do what seemed impossible. ^{xli

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“Wherefore Didst Thou Doubt?” (video), churchofjesuschrist.org}

[Video clip]

Truly, Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and He has all power in heaven and in earth.

Like the disciples on the Sea of Galilee, you may feel that you are in the midst of a storm where everything feels dark and scary and you aren’t sure what to do. Like Enoch and Moses, you may feel that God’s expectations are beyond your abilities. You may feel that you are not anyone special or important.

But you are! You are a child of God, and He has great expectations of you. And Jesus Christ has all power to help you achieve your potential.

Just as He invited Peter to come and walk on the water, Jesus Christ is inviting you to come and do the impossible. Come, and work miracles with Him. Believe your divine identity as a child of Almighty God. Embrace the truth that God has great expectations of you, and He has promised to help you do all that He expects you to do.

I testify that

You are a beloved child of God.
Your Father in Heaven has great expectations and great promises for you.
I know that with faith in Jesus Christ, you can work miracles in His name. ^{xlii

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See Mosiah 8:18; see also Matthew 7:22} You can shine the light of God in your home, the Church, your community, and to the world.

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.