An EFY counsellor shared this with our group over and over again back in 2003. It’s something I have come back to again and again,

“A testimony is fortified by spiritual impressions that confirm the validity of a teaching, of a righteous act, or of a warning of pending danger. Often such guidance is accompanied by powerful emotions that make it difficult to speak and bring tears to the eyes. But a testimony is not emotion. It is the very essence of character woven from threads born of countless correct decisions. These choices are made with trusting faith in things that are believed and, at least initially, are not seen (Emphasis added).”

Richard G. Scott
October 2001 General Conference
“The Power of a Strong Testimony”