Mormon Bloggers

My scriptures fell open to this verse this morning. It’s from the Old Testament, but it is priceless. I am certain the Lord whispers this to the Earth every single new day. The invitation is ever present and ever real. 31 ¶Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die…? 32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye. Ezekiel 18:31-32 Everyone of us needs to be renewed in our energies and dedication at least once in a while. Repentance was never meant to be daunting or like giving a pound of flesh. Sin brings its own consequences. Repentance on the the other hand is liberating. I’ve heard it taught “pent” comes from the root word “to turn” and repent literally means “to turn again”. This is the best explanation I’ve ever heard for repentance: to turn and face God... Read the rest of this entry »

My first Sunday home from my mission was ward conference, and my dad was a high councilor at the time. He happened to speak that Sunday in sacrament meeting about the importance of personal inventory. His perspective was interesting. He had recently come home from a long term (about the time of my mission) assignment in Nigeria for his work. While they lived there, my parents had sacrament meeting with just the two of them, plus one other fellow about every other week. That time was a chance for my folks to think about their relationship with the church, absent church buildings and friends and missionaries and all the trappings of our normal church experience. It gave them a chance to do their own personal inventory. Participants in 12-step programs are encouraged to do a fearless moral inventory. It’s a critical part to their recovery from addiction or co-dependence. In the 12-step process, the inventory follows the humbling steps of admitting one’s powerlessness, and admitting... Read the rest of this entry »

As a young man preparing to go on my mission to England, our stake patriarch laid his hands upon my head and gave me a patriarchal blessing. Among other things he reminded me that at a very young age I had a strong testimony of the reality of my Savior. He said it would strengthen others throughout my life, if I would remain true and faithful to what I knew was true even as a young man. He reminded me that I lived in a world of doubters, that many would stand before me and declare to me there was no God. “Mankind everywhere is questioning and asking, ‘Is there a God?’ You are blessed dear brother at this early age with a testimony of Jesus Christ. This testimony will light your entire life if you constantly make use of all your abilities.” During those first few moments of his blessing I wondered how a man I barely knew and who barely knew me, could make such bold statements. Now, looking back on my life I have learned it was God, not him, who knew me better.... Read the rest of this entry »

LDS/Mormon-Awareness posted the following on their Facebook Page: Romans 6:1-4…Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all … Continue reading →  Read More →

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints maintains that individuals who commit murder, in particular the shedding of innocent blood, may become ineligible for exaltation, although they may still aspire to salvation. This means that, in general, a murderer cannot come forth in the first resurrection, when Jesus Christ returns, but must wait in the temporal hell for the second resurrection, and will only be eligible for telestial glory, the lowest of the three degrees of glory. This restriction is even more applicable for a murderer who was a member of the LDS Church; paragraph 6.7.3 of the Church Handbook of Instructions Vol. 1 states that murder is defined as the deliberate and unjustified taking of a human life, requiring excommunication. However, the LDS Church does not impose a blanket ban on murderers ever becoming a member of the Church. Instead, paragraph 6.12.30 of the Church Handbook of Instructions Vol. 1 merely states that a murderer cannot be baptized without the express... Read the rest of this entry »

My oldest daughter (and fourth child) graduated from BYU today. She’s the second of our kids to graduate college, and the first to graduate from BYU. It was hard not to think of our own graduation (my wife and I received our bachelor’s degrees together in 1983) and make comparisons. Her graduation was much larger than ours (hers in April, ours in August). Her commencement speaker was Richard G. Scott (delightful!); ours was Hugh Nibley (also delightful, but in quite different ways). Our daughter is quite nervous leaving the safety of BYU, though she will also tell you she is ready. She has no job, yet, but has a few leads, including a big interview next week that we hope will go well. And she has a backup plan or two in case that doesn’t pan out. If all else fails, she can spend a while at our house and sort out options for the future. As I look with her toward her future, I also look toward my own. I’m coming ever closer to the time when I said I’d go back and certify... Read the rest of this entry »

The following I share, upon request, as a Sacrament talk offered in my current capacity as Second Counselor in the Stake Young Women’s Presidency. “You Can Make It.” When I was a teenager, the thought occurred to me, “What if my parents meant well in raising me as a member of the LDS Church, but what if they were wrong, and the whole thing is some kind of fairy tale? How will I know if it’s true, and if it is, how am I doing?” Dallin H. Oaks spoke about the difference between testimony and conversion, “Testimony is to know and to feel; conversion is to know and to become.” As w/ most members of the church, my conversion process began in the manner described by Alma: 26-27. The answer to my question, “Is this the true Church?”, has distilled as it did for Peter: Matt. 16:17 “For flesh and blood hath not brevealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” As I have “proved” the Lord, my confidence in its truthfulness... Read the rest of this entry »

We want to make it easier to find content about the topic of pornography addiction. Below find a list of the personal stories that have been shared at Mormon Women: Who We Are on this topic. Find links to stories on other websites as well. (If you have a story to share or a link to send, please let us know.) We’ll continue to add content as we find/receive it. Healing from Pornography Addiction: Hope for Addicts, Spouses – includes inspirational art that has helped a couple face the journey of healing from pornography addiction) Forward with Faith: Healing when a spouse has a porn addiction – Steven and Rhyll Croshaw share their story about healing from the effects of pornography addiction (video) Forward with Faith: “When Pornography Hits Home” by Bethany Two Mormon Women’s Stories about Overcoming Pornography Addiction – women also struggle against pornography addiction; read two women who share their stories Rachelle Call: “God raised me and my family... Read the rest of this entry »

Apostles of Jesus Christ testify of the Saviors power to heal, change, and purify us through His Atonement. To learn more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please visit www.lds.org.  Read More →

In recovery circles, where 12-step programs are practiced, there’s an understanding that one cannot do it alone. If one takes the AA approach to recovery, one first faces the reality that no one can, by himself, control the disease of addiction. And one walks through steps that lead one to understand dependence on God for rescue from that same disease. It’s not that there isn’t a great deal of work to be done by the person seeking recovery (whether an addict, an alcoholic or a co-dependent loved one of an addict). Surrendering oneself to God is no simple task. In Step 7 of the church’s Addiction Recovery Program (which is based on the 12 steps of AA, but is also infused with more direct links to doctrine and to commentary from apostles and prophets), we read these words: “Genuine remorse filled our hearts, not only because we had suffered or made others suffer but because we regretted that even in recovery we still could not remove our own shortcomings….... Read the rest of this entry »

I stumbled over a quote from President Boyd K. Packer the other day that set off a series of thoughts about absolutism and Mormons. C.S. Lewis There was also another statement Packer’s brought to mind.  I will quote first from C.S. Lewis:  “We have not yet had the slightest notion of the tremendous thing He means to make of us.”  (Mere Christianity, 205).  Because He can only do His thing in us on His terms, we will invariably encounter just how absolute the sanctification process really is. Anyone with even a cursory testimony of the truthfulness of The Book of Mormon and the other standard works as divinely inspired scripture must come to an inescapable conclusion without much effort that the book is filled with absolutisms.  (The emphasis in italics below is mine). Here’s an example:  “Zion cannot be built up unless it is by the principles of the law of the celestial kingdom; otherwise I cannot... 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 »