Mormon Bloggers

~by Michelle As part of our Family Home Evening, I asked my children (all tween/teen ages) what one thing they would want to share about the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is what they said. The fact that there are three separate Beings in the Godhead. He loves us with more love than any other human or any other being can give. Even though He loves us all individually, it doesn’t exclude anyone. It’s not a competition. When we have trials it doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love us. He’s helping our faith. He doesn’t just give us trials, He’s walking with us and helping us through. God does speak through angels. Some people may think that we are strange to say Joseph Smith had angels come, but it’s true. It’s just one of the ways that God talks to us. If something is really important to Him, I think He’ll send an angel. This truth also ties to the New Testament and the Old Testament. For example, Peter, James and John came back,... Read the rest of this entry »

When a person is baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often mistakenly called the Mormon Church), it is his or her privilege to then receive an ordinance called “confirmation,” which is the conferring of the “gift of the Holy Ghost” by the laying on of hands of someone who holds the high priesthood of Jesus Christ.  The gift of the Holy Ghost is the constant companionship of the Holy Spirit, as long as the person maintains a pure and clean vessel for the Spirit to reside in.  We are told in the Bible that our bodies are temples, and this is what these verses of scripture refer to.  Temples are houses purified so that God can dwell there.  It is the Holy Ghost, a personage of spirit, who can dwell in our hearts, if our bodies are pure. Some people have a very profound experience when the Holy Ghost is conferred upon them, while others gradually increase in spirituality.  Receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost is sometimes called... Read the rest of this entry »

As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we believe in plurality of gods. This means we believe there is more than one god in the heavens, although we do not embrace polytheism, which is defined as the worship or propitiation of multiple gods. To ensure we direct our prayers only towards our designated Heavenly Father, we pray after the manner specified in Matthew 6:9. Naturally, this triggers curiosity and speculation on how the universe is organized. Does “plurality of gods” mean each god has his own universe, or does each god merely have his own galaxy within the existing universe? A book I recently read provides a logical and persuasive speculative answer to this question. The book is entitled “The Kolob Theorem”, and the author, BYU Professor Dr. Lynn M. Hilton, suggests that our Heavenly Father’s kingdom is limited to the Milky Way galaxy rather than encompassing the entire universe. On page 19 of the 98-page book, Dr. Hilton makes... Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever felt perfectly calm in the midst of one of life’s tumultuous storms? Or received a sudden idea of how to fix some situation, when before there seemed to be no solution?  Or maybe you have been prompted not to do something, and later you find out that you may have been in grave danger had you ignored that thought? Perhaps you have had a dream, or a thought, about someone, and you later find that the person was in need of loving friendship that day? As someone who has answered in the affirmative each of these questions, I testify that the source of such great blessings is the Holy Spirit. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes mistakenly called the “Mormon Church”), I have been taught the importance of recognizing the Holy Spirit (also known as receiving “personal revelation”) in my life, since I was a little girl—as this is a foundational belief of Mormons. Because of this, my soul constantly tries to... Read the rest of this entry »

Former Relief Society General President Julie B. Beck said that learning to comprehend and follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost is one of the most important things we will do in our lifetimes.  I converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often mistakenly called the Mormon Church) when I was sixteen.  I’ve now celebrated my fiftieth year in the Church of Jesus Christ, and I know what she means that communing with Holy Ghost is a learning process. The gift of the Holy Ghost is something unique to members of the Church of Jesus Christ.  It is the permanent residing of the Holy Spirit within a person who remains a worthy vessel.  The Holy Ghost may manifest himself to anyone at any given time, especially to lead him or her to a solid faith that Jesus is the Savior and Redeemer of the world, but the permanent gift comes only after baptism by immersion by one having true authority from God, and the bestowal of the gift (called “confirmation”)... Read the rest of this entry »

Peter – one of my heroes! Pun intended. “…thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church…” (Matthew 16:18) Peter is one of my all-time favorite gospel writers.  His verses speak a lot of solid substance in only a few words. Verse 2 from 1 Peter, chapter one took up a whole post. Let’s see if we can get through a few more today. First, we’ll list the verses and second discuss why they matter: 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his [Father's] abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 Who are kept by the power of God [the Father] through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…” – Like the apostle Paul, Peter’s... Read the rest of this entry »

For The Self-Appointed Guardians of Christianity Just got back from a week in Utah.  Loved visiting there!  Loved coming home (Oregon). My husband and I were talking this morning and both of us, on our own, have come to the same conclusion that most Christians we know or meet and converse with don’t actually read the Bible…as in really read and study it cover to cover or even chapter to chapter. I’ve actually gotten to know a couple of pastors who I could easily guess the same thing about. Which surprised me, because it’s not something I would automatically assume or expect. Here’s an example.  A common argument against Joseph Smith is there are no prophets and visions and heavenly messengers after Jesus Christ because Christ said “it is finished” after he hung on the cross.  If this were the case, then all of Paul’s writings (which make up roughly half the books in the New Testament) need to be thrown out because... Read the rest of this entry »

This post took me weeks to write.  An official LDS doctrinal belief which generates a fair amount of objection and attention from some mainstream, traditional Christians is our view of the eternal nature of Christ.  We believe the way he appeared to Mary and others after his resurrection is indeed His true state.  As a resurrected, exalted being with body, parts and passions.  To be perfectly clear, we believe Christ is in charge of this world under the direction of the Father.  Christ created this world.  He is the Jehovah of the Old Testament and He was later born among us to be able to make the ultimate sacrifice and become our Savior. I knew the answers to this topic were in the Bible, but pulling them all together in one place and connecting the dots was not so easy. As I read the New Testament, it greatly puzzles me how the belief about Christ being an exalted man could be so offensive to some?  To the point of militant spite and ridicule, even.... Read the rest of this entry »

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, recently addressed students at the Harvard Law School. [Find transcript of Elder Holland's Harvard Law School address.] He urged students of the law to take religion seriously, and then, in response to the invitation extended him, shared some of his thoughts about what we’ll refer to here as the “Mormon moment” — for example, about seeing two Mormons running for president, and seeing New York City taxi toppers advertising the Book of Mormon musical. He quipped that the Church’s rejoinder to the musical has been: ”Now you’ve seen the show; read the book!” But his main point in this address is that the contemporary “Mormon moment” attention doesn’t mean much without understanding the fundamentals of Mormon beliefs. And the majority of his remarks focus on those fundamentals. Mormons believe in God, in... Read the rest of this entry »

God the Father Shows Himself Today God does show Himself; He has in times past and He has in what is known as this dispensation or spiritual time, preceding His coming. He will again show Himself at the Second Coming. There are many beliefs concerning the nature of God the Father. So many, in fact, that it can be difficult for those engaged in cross-religious discussions to be sure they are speaking about the same Being. We all have an idea or image as to “who” and “what” God is within our mind’s-eye, and we often forget that others may not see God the same way we do. These differences are present because beliefs about God have been diluted and modified over time, after the death of the Savior and His apostles. God as a glorified perfected Being was a given. Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, was taught and exemplified in His life and mission. So why doesn’t Heavenly Father just show Himself to all immediately? Well, we can... Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: Apologetic Article, Youtube Video Tagged: Apologetics, Book o, Book of Mormon, Christ, Christianity, Church of Jesus Christ of … Continue reading »  Read More →

“Not My Will be Done, But Thine, be Done”         New Testament Lesson #25 Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-46   … Continue reading »  Read More →