- Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at BYU Women's Conference on Friday.
- He shared lessons he learned from ministering to the victims of the Michigan meetinghouse attack with his wife, Susan.
- Sister Bednar also spoke, highlighting the importance and blessings of following prophetic counsel.
SALT LAKE CITY — Two days following the tragedy that struck a Latter-day Saint congregation last fall in Grand Blanc, Michigan, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles traveled with his wife to minister to those impacted.
"It's horrific," Elder Bednar said in September of the shooting and fire that killed four members of the Grand Blanc Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Sept. 28, 2025.
"There's a tremendous immediate reaction of just gut-wrenching sorrow," Elder Bednar said then of his first reaction to news of the attack.
Speaking at BYU Women's Conference this Friday, Elder Bednar reflected on his "most sacred" experience ministering alongside his wife, Sister Susan Bednar, to the shaken Latter-day Saints in Michigan.
"Approximately eight months ago, a horrifying attack took place during a sacrament meeting in the Grand Blanc Ward in Michigan," Elder Bednar said at the BYU Marriott Center.
"The following Tuesday morning, Susan and I were in Michigan to learn from and minister to church members and others involved in this tragic event.
"What we saw, what we felt, the friends we made, and the faith in Jesus Christ we witnessed, were life changing for us."
Elder Bednar listed some of the lessons learned from the Michigan Latter-day Saints about rising up after devastating experiences. Those lessons include:
- "An eternal perspective grounded in the Father's plan of happiness matters."
- "Acknowledging we absolutely can never rise up without the power and blessings of the Savior's atonement matters."
- "Covenants received and worthily and faithfully honored matter."
- "Spiritual priorities grounded in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ matter."
- "Consistency in learning, doing and loving small and simple spiritual things matters — all the time and everywhere."
Elder Bednar also quoted several testimonies from Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan, connecting them to scripture. Some of the testimonies he shared are listed here:
- Ben Hougaboom: "The most important lesson is this: the light that comes from Christ is real and even in the darkest of moments, his light never leaves us. It has been my experience that it actually increases — we simply need to have eyes to see it."
- Eliza Schaub: "Being a disciple of Christ transcended any darkness we had endured. My testimony was strengthened by the knowledge that I had personally walked with our Savior that tragic day, and he had not left us to weep alone."
- Stephanie Howard: "My family has been blessed to not feel anger or hatred toward the man responsible for this event. It is a blessing we have been given, through the healing power of the Savior's atonement, that I am grateful for every single day."
- Chase Leavitt: Priesthood "blessings took the sting of that day and replaced it with a quieter sense of confidence and calm — a gentle reassurance that our Father in Heaven knows us, loves us and has a plan for us."
- Magann Wilkinson: "I testify that as we feel like we are about to walk into the storms of life, there are those around us, both unseen and seen, to hold us up, comfort us, and welcome us home. Heavenly Father has placed them in our path to help us know we are not alone. He has sent them to remind us of his love."
Some of the scriptures Elder Bednar cited as he shared each testimony are also listed here:
- John 8:12
- Psalm 27:1
- Moses 6:34
- Isaiah 60:1
- D&C 84:19-20
- D&C 84:88
"Arising and shining forth is a miracle that occurs repeatedly in the lives of disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ," Elder Bednar said, sharing his own testimony.
"Some arise-and-shine-forth miracles are big and fast." Some are small and slow, he said.
However, "all arise-and-shine-forth miracles cause ripples with far-reaching consequences in our lives and in the lives of others.
"Surely, the Lord is able to do his own work, both around the world, in his earthly kingdom and in each of us."
Sister Bednar, who spoke before Elder Bednar, testified of the importance and blessings of following prophetic counsel.
"Sisters, we live in a time of increasing turmoil and commotion. The road ahead will not be easy," she said. "I have lived long enough to see the correctness of the prophetic teachings" of past prophets.
Sister Bednar spoke specifically of past prophets' teachings on the family and ministering. She testified: "I have a testimony that God lives. He is our Father. He loves us. He's concerned about us (and) he cares about us."
More about the deadly attack in Grand Blanc, Michigan, last fall
Tragedy struck a Latter-day Saint congregation in Grand Blanc, Michigan, on Sunday, Sept. 28, when a man drove his vehicle into the meetinghouse during services, then exited, began shooting and set fire to the building — killing four people and wounding eight others.
Latter-day Saints in Michigan and around the world were left mourning and devastated by the attack, which Reuben Coleman, acting special agent in charge of the FBI Detroit field office, called an "act of targeted violence."
In addition to the four deceased victims, the shooter — identified as 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford from Burton, Michigan — was also killed in the parking lot after exchanging gunfire with officers who responded to the scene.
A month later, Jennifer Runyan, special agent in charge of the FBI Detroit field office, confirmed the "targeted act of violence" was motivated by the "assailant's anti-religious beliefs" against Latter-day Saints.
Though left shaken by the Sept. 28 attack, multiple eyewitnesses have testified of theirs and others' lifesaving acts, as well as the hope they have found leaning on Jesus Christ and each other.
Elder and Sister Bednar traveled to minister to those impacted on Sept. 30. Of the experience, Elder Bednar said in September:
"The pictures, the videos that you see on television, can't give you any kind of accurate portrayal of what took place.
"To see the devastation of the stake center, then more importantly to talk to the people involved, to hear their reactions as they heard the very large noise as the truck came crashing through the (wall), the pop-pop-pop of the gunfire, then to to see the firmness and the steadiness of these Latter-day Saints in the midst of that horrific experience — I don't know if I've done any good coming here to be with them, but (in) my coming here, they have blessed me richly."
"I just am impressed by the faithfulness of these people," Elder Bednar said.
