I don’t know if everyone is born with some degree of faith or not. But I think it is safe to say that some are born having the gift of faith, and others can develop it.
When I refer to faith, I mean faith in God. The following list expresses a few things we know about faith as Latter Day Saints:
1. Because faith is wanting, the fruits are
2. The fruits of faith are the gifts of the Spirit
3. Faith comes by hearing the word of God Continue reading
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For those who have made covenants to follow Christ there is a simple plan that needs to be obeyed in order to realize the promised blessings. The following scripture clearly describes the plan and promise:
Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day. 3 Nephi 27:20
In forty words the Savior succinctly explains the gospel plan. Receiving the Holy Ghost is the focal point of the gospel plan. In other words, the purpose of repentance and baptism is to receive the Holy Ghost. Without the Holy Ghost, repentance and baptism have no power to sanctify. And without becoming sanctified we cannot stand spotless before the Lord.
As Latter-day Saints we have many responsibilities. Following is a brief list of some of the things expected of us. There is no particular order to this list: Continue reading
I’ve read that for most of human history, mankind whatever their circumstances, maintained some sort of belief that they were created by a “god”. This was true for those living in the jungles or on main street. The vast majority of mankind believed that they were created. Of course, that didn’t mean all attended church or strived to keep the commandments, but the notion that God didn’t exist wasn’t widespread.
The era we live in today is unique because unbelief is wide spread and acceptable. Atheism is a growth industry, particularly among some in the ivy league crowd who declare like Korihor, that God is “a being who never has been seen or known, who never was nor ever will be”. He further taught that belief is ” the effect of a frenzied mind”. Korihor would have fit right in on many college campuses throughout today’s world.
Mormonism is an American faith. It has been around less than 200 years. For most of that time it has been a Utah church. In 1947 there were about 1 million church members. Today there are roughly 16 million members. It is now a world wide church. It is estimated that about 50% are considered active. In other words, as the Book of Mormon points out, church members “were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small”.
In the internet era new problems have emerged for Mormons. These problems are fueling doubt among some faithful church members, particularly the young. They’re learning things about the history of the church that are new and troubling. Continue reading
For many the birth of mature faith comes when the faith of their youth is challenged.
With this thought in mine I would like to write to those who are feeling the flame of their faith flickering.
I think nearly everyone experiences doubt about their faith. That is to be expected. However, with the advent of the internet there is an avalanche of material that tears down faith.
Latter Day Saints in particular are targets for those who feel it is their duty to expose Mormonism for what it is, “a big lie”.
Those who are most effective at attacking the candle of faith are church members who are dwindling in faith and those who have abandoned their faith altogether. Some of them are even making a comfortable living attacking Mormonism. Continue reading
Those who call themselves Mormon are a family. And as many of us know by experience, members of a family can for a time be all over the place regarding their feelings towards their Mormonism.
Following is a short-list of attitudes, or the states of mind, among Mormons I am currently acquainted with:
Thankful for their Mormonism
Questioning their Mormonism Continue reading
Today’s church members live in a time the prophets of the Lord have foretold. A day of apostasy, anemic testimonies, and broken covenants. The internet is filled with faith destroying words and images. In order for the faithful to survive they will need to be committed to following the Lord’s “to do list” if they are to acquire a genuine testimony, a testimony that comes from the Holy Ghost as promised in the Book of Mormon. Living on borrowed light, in other words, a testimony that isn’t really our own. Something like renting a house as compared to owning one.
The following account illustrates what I mean.
“A little over six months into my [calling as a Bishop], I visited one evening with one of the brethren in my ward who suffered from what turned out, unfortunately, to be a fairly common problem. He was a good man, very active and serving in a leadership position. A returned missionary, he had been married in the temple to an outstanding woman. They had some great kids, and to every appearance they had it ‘all together’ spiritually speaking. Yet he was obviously troubled as he sat down across from me, and it didn’t take long to discover why.
‘I don’t think I believe in the Church anymore’, he said abruptly, ‘and I guess maybe I ought to be released.'” I Need Thee Every Hour, Blaine M. Yorgason, p. 83-85. Continue reading
I’m looking forward to reading and studying from the Book of Mormon in 2016. I feel excited like a little boy who is about to open up a gift. Why do I feel this way about reading the Book of Mormon? I don’t know exactly. In the last few years I’ve read it twice. Last year I read it cover to cover using a replica of the first printing. No chapters and verse as in our current edition. At first I was a little uncomfortable with unfamiliar lay out, but in no time I adapted to it. I didn’t even notice the absence of all the changes the church has made with words and punctuation.
A few years ago our stake challenged us to read it in 30 days. I read and listen to tapes and completed it in 6 weeks. At first I murmured, but when I completed the challenge I experienced a panoramic sense of the Book of Mormon I never had before. It was like viewing the city you live in from a satellite view. It allows for a different, refreshing prospective. I realized how patient and longsuffering the Lord was with the peoples of the Book of Mormon—especially the Nephites. It wasn’t until they utterly rejected Christ that he withdrew His presence from them. Sometimes I feel like our generation is in the advanced last days, but the Book of Mormon draws me away from that thought. It gives me hope for America. I think there are many great blessings in store for the gentile nations.
I’m going to try to explain why I’m excited to read the Book of Mormon again this year. It’s out character for me to be this way. I have a low tolerance for repetition.
The main reason I am excited to study the Book of Mormon this year is to learn and relearn how men, men like any of us, makes the transition from a natural man, to a follower of Christ, and then to a son or daughter of Christ. This spiritual growth and rebirth the Book of Mormon illustrates over and over is available to anyone who seeks for it. Continue reading
Dwindling in Unbelief From Year to Year, the title of this post is a sad title, but unfortunately, it is what is happening before our eyes in the era we live in. It happened to the Nephites. Look up the word dwindle with all its word forms. It appears 24 times in the Book of Mormon.
The theistic foundation of America is undergoing a dramatic change. At the end of WWII, societies values were compatible with LDS values. Today that is not the case. There is a vast difference and the difference is increasing each year.
Case in point, If what appears on TV today was somehow suddenly shown to viewers in the 1980’s what do you think would happen? No doubt, there would be a huge uproar! But sadly, our culture has slowly, with little opposition, permitted the values of former days to fade away.
What about church members (Mormons), have they been immune to the changes taking place in America? No, I don’t think anyone would use the word immune. I think most observers would agree, the best we can say is that we have lagged behind the changes in our culture. Continue reading
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I hope you’ll read, Repentance Made Easier-Part 1 (Justification),before reading part 2.
Repentance is a Window into our Souls
Once we have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ we need to repent. Otherwise, our faith will be in vain. Faith without repentance is of no use. What good are garden seeds without soil, eyes without light, or ears without sound? So it is with faith and repentance. They are both needed in order to activate the desired blessings that are available to us through the atonement.
Repentance is the soil that faith grows in. It is also the soil all other blessings are derived from. Until we repent nothing happens. Repentance is the key that opens the door to our divine possibilities, that of becoming a join-heir with Jesus Christ. Continue reading
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Repentance is a basic principle of the gospel, and being basic one would think the majority of church members would be well versed and comfortable with it. However, I don’t think that is the case, I think many members are uptight about the principle of repentance.
If a church member feels unworthy much of the time, then they probably qualify for the title of an uptight Mormon. The gospel is designed to bring joy and happiness into our lives. If we find joy and happiness a rarity and feel perpetually unacceptable (in any degree) to the Lord because of our sins of omission and commission, then it may be due to a lack of understanding about the basic principle of repentance.
Following is a two-part discussion on repentance. It is my goal to make repentance more attractive and easier to understand. It is written for the average church members, the 90% plus who haven’t sinned to the extent their church membership is in question. But even for that small percentage whose membership is in jeopardy, who have or might lose their membership, the principles discussed are still vital and applicable.
What are my qualification for writing about repentance? That is an easy question to answer, I’ve had lots of experience. And along the way I’ve learned some things I’d like to pass on to others. Continue reading