Converts seem to have stronger testimonies. How can I gain a testimony as strong as theirs?

Photo illustration by Welden C. Andersen

People who grew up in the Church may feel like their testimony is weaker than that of converts because they lack the impressive experiences converts talk about. But converts’ experiences may be impressive simply because they’re so different from what they’ve felt before. Lifelong members’ spiritual experiences are not inferior; they may simply be more gradual.

Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has taught: “Most frequently, revelation comes in small increments over time and is granted according to our desire, worthiness, and preparation” (“The Spirit of Revelation,” Ensign, May 2011, 88).

He has also taught that testimony, or knowing the gospel is true, is just the beginning. We should focus on our conversion to the Lord and His gospel, which is “an ongoing process” of change that “requires both persistence and patience” as well as “constant devotion to the revealed truth we have received. … We should know the gospel is true and be true to the gospel” (“Converted unto the Lord,” Ensign, Nov. 2012, 107, 109).

A gradually developed testimony is just as valid as one gained through an intense conversion experience.