Mormon Bloggers

To continue on with my posts about the talks from this past, most recent General Conference, I have chosen another talk to continue to apply to myself, and I hope that you will all be able to get something out of it as well!  The talk that I have chosen today to reflect on is by Elder Patrick Kearon from the Priesthood Session of General Conference.  I got to hear this talk in person since I had the chance to go and sing in a choir from the MTC for this session, and it was also an amazing experience to be there and sing as well as listen to the talks of men called by God in person.  If you would like to read more about this experience, just take a look at High School Musical 4: Prophets and Apostles! Elder Kearon’s main message was about how we will make mistakes throughout our lives, but we can always be cleansed and become pure through the sacrifice of our Savior Jesus Christ.  He started off by telling a story about one time when he was young, and he didn’t... Read the rest of this entry »

Spell-chequers beware:  Mark Twain ahead.   Mark Twain, widely known as American literature’s greatest humorist.  His humor was effective, not merely because of its author’s wit, but also because of the depth of his thought.  Most have heard of Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, wherein Twain presents the escapades of the young Missourian boy Huck Finn in his Mississippi bank vernacular.  What interested me, when I read the book, and, in reality, what makes it the great piece of literature that it is, were the universal and thought-provoking issues delved into by an “unsivilized” Huck.  How many of us have experienced something like this? “It made me shiver.  And i about made up my mind to pray, and see if I couldn’t try to quit being the kind of boy I was and be better.  So I kneeled down.  But the words wouldn’t come, why wouldn’t they?  It warn’t no use to try and hide... Read the rest of this entry »

Today I have the opportunity to share with you the story of a wonderful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and how she came to find the Church.  Her name is Carole-Ann Witham, and she has been an example to me of faith in Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ.  I was first able to start talking with Carole over the phone at the beginning of this year in about February, and since that time, I have been able to work with her and help her come to know more about the gospel until she was baptized. Carole’s story really helps to illustrate the importance of having the Spirit in our lives and following the prompting and feelings that we receive from Him.  I am reminded of a talk given by Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles.  He said: Impressions of the Spirit can come in response to urgent prayer or unsolicited when needed. Sometimes the Lord reveals truth to you when you are not actively seeking it, such as when you... Read the rest of this entry »

Sometimes I just don’t understand how I can be so blessed in my life.  Over the past week, I have come to realize how much I really do have.  A couple of weeks ago now, I was going through a difficult time.  There were several things that didn’t seem to be going the way that I particularly wanted them to, so I was getting discouraged as sometimes happens to us all even missionaries.  I started to get into a slight stupor where it was difficult to continue working each day.  After a day or so like this, I decided that something needed to change so I went to talk to a good friend and confidant that I have been blessed to gain here on my mission.  He counseled a bit with me, and we started talking about things that needed to happen for me to get back to my regular, positive self concerning missionary work.  We discussed several things that I could change around me that might help since we thought that being in one place for so long might be part of the... Read the rest of this entry »

Sorry about not keeping up with my blogging.  We had several months of packing and preparing to move along with helping my parents move, getting us moved (twice in fact) and now trying to settle.  The kids are in school and/or doing on-line classes and I am trying to rectify some problems with the home in which we now live.  So, it’s been a busy time and I’ve been pondering about how to manage my blogs along with raising a family.  They (the family) have taken top priority but now may be the time that I can get started again. I suppose (no…I know) that life is filled with changes.  Some items are out of our control so we do the best that we can when changes come.  That’s a lesson that I have hopefully learned over the past few months.  Read More →

Sorry about not keeping up with my blogging.  We had several months of packing and preparing to move along with helping my parents move, getting us moved (twice in fact) and now trying to settle.  The kids are in school and/or doing on-line classes and I am trying to rectify some problems with the home in which we now live.  So, it’s been a busy time and I’ve been pondering about how to manage my blogs along with raising a family.  They (the family) have taken top priority but now may be the time that I can get started again. I suppose (no…I know) that life is filled with changes.  Some items are out of our control so we do the best that we can when changes come.  That’s a lesson that I have hopefully learned over the past few months.  Read More →

“How’s work?” This question started nearly every conversation with my family or friends in the past three weeks. Those who ask already know the answer because they know me.  They know my need for order and balance.  They know that I make family time and personal time a priority. They know I value quiet. “An [...] All Content Copyright (C) 2007-2009 TJ Hirst. No content may be reproduced without the copyright owner’s express written consent.Labor Day Blessings  Read More →

As Mormons, we often quote that verse from 2 Nephi 25: “…it is by grace we are saved, after all we can do” (v. 23). I understand why we quote it, and what we mean by it. We do not believe that we are saved by grace alone, but also by works, as signs of our faith. So taught James that faith without works is dead (James 2:17). But in our zeal to do works, let us not lose sight of the gift of grace. Yes, we need ordinances (see D&C 84:19-22). Yes, we need to keep the commandments as we covenant to do (see D&C 20:77). But let us also remember that “salvation is free” (2 Nephi 2:4) and that it comes “through the atoning blood of Christ” (Mosiah 3:18). In our desire to highlight our own responsibility for our own choices in this life, let us not forget that the opportunity to choose, the ability to repent, and the hope to return home to our Father in Heaven is all through the grace, the sacrifice and the enduring love of our Lord and Savior... Read the rest of this entry »

~by Heather L. Our son recently lost three teeth in three days! Those new gaps can be challenging, although so can trying to eat when they’re loose. If you get a tooth knocked out accidentally or have one pulled before a new one is ready to fill its place, the dentist often puts in what is called a spacer. It holds the teeth on either side of the hole in place until that new tooth comes in. And for other problems, there are braces and retainers to help move, correct, and hold teeth in place. These measures may involve pulling teeth and uncomfortable wire/diet adjustments. All of these efforts take work and patience, and all of these situations require an adjustment period as you get used to the way your “new” mouth works and feels. But each correction is made with the goal of a more beautiful you in the future. Looking at my son’s gap-filled grin got me thinking about how we deal with other “holes” in our lives. The process of learning about and trying to live... Read the rest of this entry »

When I came home from my mission years ago, my first Sunday was ward conference, and my dad, who was on the high council, was one of the speakers. Dad had served on the high council for years and, frankly, as a youth I found his talks rather boring. But having experienced the same transformation that Mark Twain did, I was pleasantly surprised to see how much my dad had learned while I was away on my mission. It was the late 1970′s, and my folks had lived in Lagos, Nigeria during my mission in Germany; Dad’s employment took him there, and they were able to witness the opening of West Africa to missionary work after the 1978 revelation on the priesthood. My folks had joined the church in the late 1960′s – I was nearly nine and was the youngest of four kids. My dad saw the church, among other things, as a means of protecting us kids against the changing mores in American society at the time. He and mom served faithfully in a series of callings since joining the church,... Read the rest of this entry »

Imagine you’ve walked in a desert for several days. Your supplies are depleted. You’ve been without water for nearly 24 hours. You walk in the direction you believe is right, but you are lost, disoriented and dehydrated. You fall in the sand and close your eyes for a rest. When you open them, you see [...] All Content Copyright (C) 2007-2009 TJ Hirst. No content may be reproduced without the copyright owner’s express written consent.In Need of Water  Read More →

Twelve step programs like AA use the phrase “One Day at a Time” to remind their participants that change comes in small bits, and that when confronting addiction (or co-dependence, in the case of family support groups like Families Anonymous or Al Anon), a long time horizon is not a good thing. Contrast that to our gospel perspective. So much of what we do in the church has a very long time horizon. “Eternity is a long time,” my old stake president used to say. And yet, I think we have something to learn from One Day at a Time. Repentance is the second principle of the gospel, right behind faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (without which repentance would be futile). I have asserted more than once on this blog that one of the great and awesome blessings of the atonement is the opportunity we have to change for the better. Not just to overcome grievous sin (some many never commit grievous sin, thank goodness), but just to improve from day to day. For an addict... Read the rest of this entry »