Mormon Bloggers

This is a powerful video about Chris Williams who lost his wife, an unborn child, an 11-year-old son and a 9-year-old daughter in a car accident. They were killed by a drunk driver. Chris talks about the power of prayer, of brotherly love, of letting go of anger and forgiving. He beautifully expresses how God has listened to his prayers, and how choosing not to direct anger and grief at the person who caused the pain has made all the difference…how letting the Savior take that pain has allowed the Savior’s healing power and love to flow to him as well as to the young driver and his family. One of the family’s church leaders says, “There is Jesus’ way to resolve problems, to address situations, to handle sorrow, and then there is some other way.” This leader felt that Chris made the decision long ago to turn to the Savior in hard times, so that when this heartwrenching experience came, he was able to make that choice, even in the moment of the accident,... Read the rest of this entry »

Essential Questions All of us are effected by cancer, whether by personal experience with it, or by a friend or loved one who’s been through it. The more I speak to or hear from victims of cancer, the more I’m convinced that cancer is not a matter of death, but a matter of life. Those who suffer with it find more meaning in life, more gratitude for life, and more love of life. One of my duties at my job is to record speeches held, and in this one, a man with a severe case of cancer was invited to speak. The man is a friend of mine, and I was deeply touched by his words. I pray for him and his family, and I thank him for this beautiful life perspective he offered on this occasion.  Read More →

The warning signs outside the theater were ominous: “Adult content not suitable for children.”  Looking around as we entered, I had to remember that the college-age students there were not children.  That’s hard to do when you have offspring older than most present, including the actors performing the show.  Carol and I were there by assignment to see the musical “Rent,” the Tony and Pulitzer award winning rock-opera drama about life in New York’s Lower East Side in the late 1980’s.  It takes place in the neighborhood known as Alphabet City, an area primarily inhabited by bohemian young people wanting to break into theater, TV or music.  Sadly, the area also had high levels of illegal drug activity, violent crime and HIV/AIDS. Undoubtedly the themes of homosexuality, AIDS, drug addiction and homelessness prompted the warnings about the adult content.  The characters include a gay male couple in which both partners have AIDS, an on-again/off-again lesbian couple, and... Read the rest of this entry »

I haven’t written very many talks over the years — I’ll bet you could count them on one hand.  Early this morning in search of something else, I stumbled over this one.  I was asked to speak at the funeral of a dear friend, John Marsing, several years ago.  My sentiments on that occasion were renewed and rekindled as I read what follows: John Marsing Funeral, May 25, 2002 Visible from here to the west stands a half-framed home the master carpenter John was building for his family. The home he was building here on earth will be left for others to finish, but make no mistake – his eternal home, his mansion on high if you will, is already nearing completion. He’s just gone ahead to make sure the final inspection gets done on schedule in preparation for those who will someday join him. (See 1 Corinthians 3). Funerals are still my favorite meetings in the Church. Such a declaration made in some quarters of this fallen world today among those without hope... Read the rest of this entry »

Some time ago I had the privilege of hearing a very inspired address with regards to death. Not just physical death, but of the more real and lasting spiritual death. The speaker spoke of those who are falling away from the church. He told us how only about half of the institute aged (18-30) young adults are active. He also mentioned how it was usually obvious very early on if a youth would not remain strong in the church. He said that if a youth in any given ward somehow got lost in the mountains, and was in peril, that his whole ward would be searching for him until he was safe. He then said that it was confusing to him that the same ward would consciously sit idly by while another youth would slowly drift away from the gospel. When all has been said and done, it is our spiritual well-being that will matter. We will all die, whether by tragedy or sickness or old age. The price has been paid for all of us through the resurrection of Christ. But, if we live through this life without... Read the rest of this entry »

Some time ago I had the privilege of hearing a very inspired address with regards to death. Not just physical death, but of the more real and lasting spiritual death. The speaker spoke of those who are falling away from the church. He told us how only about half of the institute aged (18-30) young adults are active. He also mentioned how it was usually obvious very early on if a youth would not remain strong in the church. He said that if a youth in any given ward somehow got lost in the mountains, and was in peril, that his whole ward would be searching for him until he was safe. He then said that it was confusing to him that the same ward would consciously sit idly by while another youth would slowly drift away from the gospel. When all has been said and done, it is our spiritual well-being that will matter. We will all die, whether by tragedy or sickness or old age. The price has been paid for all of us through the resurrection of Christ. But, if we live through this life without... Read the rest of this entry »

Recently we had a very good discussion on whether or not the LDS church believes in Universal Salvation.  One of the key doctrines of the LDS faith is that everyone will have a chance to at least hear about Jesus and accept Him as their Savior whether that be in this life or the next.  This concept is unfamiliar to many Christians, and one of my fellow Christian friends asked where scriptures supporting this can be found in the Bible.  In response to his question, I will provide Biblical scriptures that support this doctrine and also will provide additional LDS doctrines given from moder-day prophets. Biblical Scriptures Supportind Jesus Preaching to the Dead There are quite a number of scriptures found in the Bible that discuss Jesus visiting the “dead” spirits and also spirits in prison. Some of the scriptures that discuss Jesus preaching to the “dead” spirits can be viewed in two ways.  The first way I can see people interpreting these scriptures is that the... Read the rest of this entry »

~by René 2 Nephi 2:25: ” Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.” What is joy? Can you be sad and have joy? Yes! Three years ago my daughter lost her husband in a car wreck. She was five months pregnant with their second daughter. Her oldest, Elise, was 20 months old. Her husband, Mike, had just graduated from the Police Academy in Washington State, USA. He was a severe diabetic and the fact that he had graduated from this grueling training was a miracle and a sign of the dedication that he had always exuded. When my daughter called me, asking me to come to their town, that Mike was dead, she wasn’t sobbing, she wasn’t hysterical, she was in charge. She had two babies she had to take care of and she had a crisis on her hands. She was sad, she cried, but she had a funeral to plan, an apartment to pack up, and a baby growing inside her that demanded that she take care of herself. We had to go shopping; she didn’t have funeral clothes.... Read the rest of this entry »

Passing Thoughts 28 Sep 2010 I think I’ll call my audio blog entries Passing Thoughts, just because the word AudioBlog sounds blah. This time a share some passing thoughts on fulfilling dreams and bucket lists.  Read More →

I had a friend named Sally. Just knowing Sally was around made me feel safe. She was a hugger, a smiler and she liked to call everyone “Dearie.” I have known Sally since I was three years old. Sally and her husband were permanent fixtures our ward’s Primary where they delighted in the enthusiasm of youth. After Primary, Sally would seek out the parents of the children and tell them about the smart answers they gave during sharing time or about the funny way their child sang a particular primary song. From Sally’s perspective, every child was a genius or a comedian. Every child was worth getting to know and like. Several weeks ago, Sally was teaching Primary as she has for decades. After church she spoke to several people in the hall about her excitement that her oldest grandchild had received his mission call. Minutes after arriving home from church she suffered a massive heart attack and passed away. I was devastated. Shocked. Upset. Sad. “What do you mean... Read the rest of this entry »

A Mormon bishop was shot and killed in an LDS Church building last Sunday. Bishop Clay Sannar was a father of six. This kind of occurrence is rare in a Mormon church building, but it has raised some concerns about the issue of safety at church — and, of course, causes reflection about how fragile and precious life is and why bad things sometimes happen to good people. Elder Quentin L. Cook, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, shared some simple and powerful thoughts in response to this tragedy. After expressing sincere condolences and an expression of support and love for those mourning Bishop Sannar’s death, he notes that: [P]rinciples grounded in moral agency sometimes result in heartbreaking consequences in this life…but all that is unfair about life can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the primary security in this life. Our hearts go out to Bishop Sannar’s family, friends, and others who... Read the rest of this entry »

Once every four years (sometimes more often when we talk about Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail, see D&C 121, 122, 123), the story of Job is bashed about in Gospel Doctrine class.  For us it happened again today. I’m not sure why it is, perhaps it’s just a Mormon thing, but whenever Job’s name comes up the great debate begins again — was Job a real guy?  Did God and Satan really have a conversation about him?  Or was the book of Job a metaphor?  I’m not certain it matters to anyone, but I believe we’ll see Job again in the spirit world someday.  There, I just settled it. The book is a real problem for a lot of people on many different levels.  Books have been written, symposia have been held, articles have been authored, and each attempts to resolve this “great and holy mystery” without success.  The debate was enjoined and renewed again today. There are a host of “problems” associated... Read the rest of this entry »