Mormon Bloggers

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 »

I love the beach.  I love watching the water come swiftly up to my feet, cover them up, then just as quickly, reside back from the shore.  The wave takes everything away and makes the sand smooth again. It’s beautiful. When I read the New Testament and come upon the scene where Christ washes His disciples feet, I often wonder what was going through their  minds.  It was such a simple act of service…meaning so much more than I feel I understand.  For someone as perfect as the Savior to come and touch my feet, my life and make it clean and pure again….so that I can start out on my lifes’ road once more with a fresh start, a renewed hope that I can make it back to my Father in Heaven.  Well it humbles me. It strengthens me to be better….for Him….for myself….for those I love. I feel more like the woman  in Luke 7 who washed the Saviors feet with her tears, begging for forgiveness, begging for a chance to make things right in her life. ... Read the rest of this entry »

Food . . . we can’t live without it, but many times I think we wish that it wouldn’t taste so good or look quite so appetizing.  I know that for me I have always enjoyed eating a good meal.  And as I was reviewing Elder Jairo Mazzagardi’s talk from this past General Conference, I kept thinking about food and how it can totally apply to the idea that Elder Mazzagardi discusses.  His talk is entitled “Avoiding the Trap of Sin,” and he says, “We must be alert because small choices can bring great consequences, just as going to bed early and waking up early have great consequences.  Doctrine teaches us, “Arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated.” Those who go to bed early wake up rested, with the body and mind invigorated and blessed by the Lord because of obedience.”  He clearly illustrates how little things can make a huge difference in our lives each day, and to me, this ties perfectly into our eating habits and food... Read the rest of this entry »

~by Michelle Last Sunday night, I settled down on my couch with my laptop to listen to President Boyd K. Packer’s General Conference talk. I had been under the weather and was unable to listen to the address live, and unfortunately, the only exposure I’d had to his message was through the frenzy in the media and elsewhere. But still, through headlines and even some direct quotes, I thought I had a general sense of what he had covered. But what I heard and felt was very different than what some people were saying and feeling. While this wasn’t surprising on one level, it was deeply disappointing to me to see how his message and intent had been so distorted and maligned. Add to that continued anger and accusations and protests which have continued in full force this week, and I feel that the core message he gave has been all but completely missed. Of course, I would encourage people to read President Packer’s talk for themselves (and to read it more than once) rather... Read the rest of this entry »

Let me say first off that I have not participated in any political campaign for or against same-sex marriage in any legislation. Likely that is because it hasn’t really come up as an issue where I vote. I define “hobosexuality” as wandering from partner to partner. Something that is almost the norm to a very large group of the population. I also would like to plead for sane reasoning from all sides (remember the Lord inviting Job to “reason with” him?). By shouting past each other we can not come to any constructive results, but only create bad blood.  Read More →

I love to garden, not only because I adore flowers, but because the act of gardening teaches me so many things about life. Growing plants is much like raising children but there is more; gardening helps me to slow down and put things into perspective. Recently we had a bit of a crisis in the garden. The spigot I turn on and off to allow water to flow through the hose I use to give my plants life-giving water, broke. It had not been working for quite some time. In fact, it had been leaking quite a lot for years. My husband and I went to the hardware store and purchased a new spigot some years ago. However, when we got it home, we realized that we would need to actually cut a hole in the wall of the house and cut the pipe, the one the spigot was attached to, in order to make the switch from the old, leaky spigot to the new one. Believing that the repair was too hard for our limited skills and not having the money to pay a plumber, we chose to ignore the problem. Soon, the leaking became... Read the rest of this entry »