Biographical information from the Church website

Church Service

Elder Clement M. Matswagothata was sustained as a General Authority Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the April 2025 general conference. At the time of his call, he had been serving as a temple ordinance worker in the Johannesburg South Africa Temple and as an area self-reliance specialist.

Elder Matswagothata has served in a number of Church callings, including full-time missionary in the South Africa Capetown Mission, high councilor, bishop, stake president, and Area Seventy.

Professional Life

Elder Matswagothata received a bachelor of philosophy degree. He has worked in the automotive industry since 2004 with various car brands. He has held several leadership positions including sales manager, general manager, and country manager for Barloworld Motor.

Personal Life

Clement Mosiame Matswagothata was born in Middlepits, Botswana, on January 8, 1980. He married Novelty Busisiwe Buthelezi in 2004. They are the parents of three children.

Talk summary

Elder Matswagothata taught that Jesus Christ knows each of us personally and perfectly. Drawing on the meaning of his Botswana surname (“getting out of a difficult situation”), he testified that the Saviour helps us through life’s hardest challenges. Through covenants, we take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ and gain access to His enabling power. The central invitation of the talk is to remember Christ, walk with Him, and allow our covenant relationship with Him to shape our identity.

Key quotes

‘Even as Jesus Christ invites us to always remember Him and take upon ourselves His name, He also remembers us and knows each of us by name.’ (Paragraph 4)

‘He knows your joys, and He rejoices with you. He knows your sorrows, and He can succor and lift you. Because of His Atonement, He knows your burdens, pain, and silent tears.’ (Paragraph 12)

‘To the Savior, we are never lost in the crowd. He knows how to reach us—through a hymn, a smile, a kind word, and sometimes through people we least expect.’ (Paragraph 21)

‘You see, not only does the Savior know you, but He also wants you to come to know Him and His Father.’ (Paragraph 23)

‘The question should never be “Will the Savior walk with me?” He will. The real question is “Will I walk with Him?”’ (Paragraph 25)

‘Whether your name represents the first generation in the Church or a multigenerational heritage of faith, the most eternity-shaping name we can receive is the sacred name of Jesus Christ.’ (Paragraph 30)

Questions to discuss or ponder

How does partaking of the sacrament each week bless us? (Paragraph 3)

When have you felt that Jesus knew you personally? (Paragraphs 4 and 21)

How does knowing that Christ knows your name affect the way you face trials? (Paragraphs 12 and 13)

How do you feel when you know that someone is praying for you? (Paragraphs 19-21)

How can we get close to God in the midst of the refiner’s fire? (Paragraph 22)

What does it mean to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ? (Paragraphs 29 and 30)

Invitations and application

‘As we choose to walk with Jesus Christ, everything begins to change. He is no longer a casual acquaintance but a trusted heavenly friend. May I invite you to choose to remember Him and follow Him—not casually or occasionally but deliberately and always.’ (Paragraph 26)

The heart of Elder Matswagothata’s message is that Jesus Christ knows us individually, invites us into a covenant relationship with Him, and can guide us through every difficulty as we choose to walk with Him.

Additional thoughts

Elder Neal A Maxwell wrote:

‘He knows us by actual personal experience, because not only did He suffer pains, afflictions, and temptations of every kind during His second estate, but He took upon Himself our sins as well as our pains, sicknesses and infirmities…Thus He knew, not in abstraction but in actuality, ‘according to the flesh,’ the whole of human suffering. He bore our infirmities before we bore them. He knows perfectly well how to succour us. We can tell Him nothing of pain, temptation, or affliction; He learned ‘according to the flesh’ and His triumph was complete!” (We Will Prove Them Now Herewith, p46)

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You can watch Elder Matswagothata’s talk here.