Elder Kevin R. Duncan’s message to Brigham Young University students on Tuesday, Feb. 4, was simple — “Jesus Christ is the answer.”
Speaking to thousands gathered in the Marriott Center on the Provo, Utah, campus and to thousands more tuning in online for the weekly campus devotional, Elder Duncan, a General Authority Seventy, shared his personal witness that the Savior’s power and love can overcome any challenge in this world.
“As you prepare for miracles that will surely come, and at the same time face challenges that will test you to the very core, the power of Jesus Christ will sustain you as you steadfastly put your trust in Him,” he said.
To illustrate, Elder Duncan shared lessons from experiences “both heartbreaking and exhilarating” from when he was a similar age to many of his listeners. “My hope is to inspire you to trust in Christ more fully and see His hand in your journey,” he said.
A tender mercy from a loving Father
Soon after his mission, Elder Duncan married “a wonderful young woman” named Wendy. “Life felt full of promise,” he recalled.
However, when their baby daughter was about 7 months old, Wendy Duncan was killed in a car crash. “The grief was unlike anything I had ever experienced,” Elder Duncan related.
Some wondered how he could find strength in God rather than curse Him for the injustice. “That answer lies in the Lord’s tender mercies,” Elder Duncan said, “those quiet, undeniable moments when His hand had prepared me for what was ahead.”
Days before the tragedy, Elder Duncan had embarked on a whirlwind two-day trip to help a close friend move to California. This friend was anxious about the health of his pregnant wife and their unborn child.
Through the miles of open road, Elder Duncan and his friend began to discuss what they would do if their wives were to pass away — how faith in Jesus Christ and understanding God’s plan could provide strength.
He thought he was offering solace and perspective to a friend, but days later as he stood in the hospital and looked at the lifeless body of his own wife, he realized that God — in His infinite kindness and understanding — had been preparing him. “That conversation with my friend was not a coincidence — it was a tender mercy from a loving Father,” Elder Duncan said.
The Spirit whispered to him that death — as heart-wrenching as it was — is part of a greater plan, a plan guided by a loving Heavenly Father who knew his pain and would not leave him alone in it.
Christ’s strength is enough
In the midst of his heartache, Elder Duncan enrolled at BYU, began part-time teaching at the MTC and took on the care of baby Aubrey as a single father.
During finals week, 1-year-old Aubrey contracted pneumonia. Seeing her so small and fragile in her hospital bed laboring for every breath, “broke me in ways I didn’t know were possible,” Elder Duncan recalled.
In that moment, all of his efforts to juggle school work, part-time job and fatherhood felt like not enough. “I couldn’t shake the guilt — this overwhelming feeling that her illness was my fault.”
He prayed like he had never prayed before, Elder Duncan said. “Through it all, I began to realize something profound. Even though I felt inadequate, I wasn’t alone.”
Aubrey eventually recovered and was able to return home. “Those few weeks taught me a lesson I’ll never forget. Christ’s grace isn’t about us being perfect. It’s about trusting in and relying on Him when you’re at your lowest and letting His strength carry you through. I wasn’t the perfect dad, but I didn’t need to be — Christ’s strength was enough for both of us. Miraculously, He had healed Aubrey, and simultaneously, He had rescued me,” Elder Duncan said.
The answer is always the same — Jesus Christ
Because of his faith in Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness, Elder Duncan said he found the courage to move forward.
He met Nancy Smart during a biology class and eventually gathered enough courage to ask if she wanted to join a study group.
“I think it’s safe to say things worked out quite well,” Elder Duncan said, acknowledging his wife, Sister Nancy Duncan having accompanied him to Tuesday’s devotional.
Elder Duncan assured, “My friends, your challenges might not look like mine did, but the answer is always the same — the answer is Jesus Christ. Every challenge you will face is an opportunity to draw closer to the Savior and see Him perform miracles in your life.”
