Lesson: Lifelong Conversion

Mallori Cain gave our Relief Society lesson today and she did a great job!

One of the main points of our lesson is that conversion to the gospel and the gospel way of life is a life-long process. It begins with testimony that brings us to baptism, but continues as we build a foundation of gospel knowledge. We must continually revisit principles of the gospel and seek to gain or strengthen our testimony of them. Mallori's bricks illustrate the foundation of our conversion.

Read the Lorenzo Snow, lesson 3 here.

Our religion should be incorporated within ourselves, a part of our being that cannot be laid off.

Also referenced was a talk give by Ann M. Dibb, I Know It. I Live It. I Love It.

We are followers of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Such conversion and confidence is the result of diligent and deliberate effort. It is individual. It is the process of a lifetime.

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Fortifying Your Testimony: Never letting it come to a point that you no longer believe

There's a common theme I’ve heard lately: Good members of the church with testimonies leaving the church for many reasons.

When we hear these stories we could ask ourselves, "How can I be assured that this won’t happen to me?"

I can’t imagine it would, but I assume that some others who have left the church felt the same way at one point, and I want to know what to prepare myself against it. I feel the Spirit so strong regularly, and I know how much I need it.  I don’t ever want anything to change that goodness in my life and twist it to take it away. 

In Stake Conference at one of the evening Adult sessions a year or so ago, President Duckworth shared an example from his life.  He had some good friends who he had served with in Leadership callings in the church that he really admired and respected who just all of a sudden announced that they no longer had a testimony and weren’t attending church anymore.  His heart was broken and he had to take a deep look at his life.

It was a wonderful talk, and he gave us a couple of great ways to protect ourselves from letting things like that happen. Some of these are almost identical to the things that Bishop Causse included in the Ensign article, Keeping the faith in a world of confusion.

Four things we can do to fortify our testimonies and remain strong

1. Ground ourselves in the things that we know are true.

The Lord, nevertheless, supplies us with the knowledge necessary for our salvation and exaltation. He promises, “Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you” (D&C 88:64). We receive these answers progressively, “line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little” (2 Nephi 28:30), depending on our needs and our capacity to comprehend. ~ Bishop Gerald Causse

2. Get comfortable not knowing the answers to all things
    (or as Bishop Causse said it: Accept unanswered questions)

Now, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t study and learn and grapple with questions that we don’t understand.  We can ponder, and suffer, and study it out, but at the end of the day, we may need to realize that we don’t have the Lord’s wisdom and perspective yet, and we must accept that.

Along with this, I’d like to point out that anytime we are hearing something or learning something that we can tell the Spirit has withdrawn from us, we need to stop whatever it is right there until we can learn again with the Spirit present.  Satan uses all sorts of tools (bitterness, anti-mormon discussions, etc) to try to make us pull up our roots of faith.

Studying the word of God protects us from the influence of false doctrines. The Lord said, “For unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.”

Each of us may experience moments of personal doubt. These doubts are rarely alleviated by the search for rational explanations. For example, some scientific or archaeological discoveries may reinforce our testimonies of scripture, but spiritual knowledge cannot be proven by logic or physical evidence. ~ Bishop Gerald Causse

3. Accept imperfection.
    In other members and in our church leaders. In our church’s history AND future. In our own church culture.

All members of the Church at some time in their lives face moments that test the sincerity and strength of their testimonies. Braving these trials of our faith helps us stand firm in a world that is falling more and more into the depths of confusion. This confusion is evident in the barrage of messages that surround us. With the advent of the Internet, for example, an uninterrupted avalanche of contradictory opinions and information invades our everyday lives. These contradictions can become disconcerting and paralyzing. ~ Richard G. Scott, The Power of a Strong Testimony

4. Nourish Your Testimony. 
    Find opportunities to feel the Spirit. Study the word of God, including the words of the Prophet.
    Experiment on the Word, and stick with it during trials of faith

Honestly evaluate your personal life. How strong is your own testimony? Is it truly a sustaining power in your life, or is it more a hope that what you have learned is true? Is it more than a vague belief that worthwhile concepts and patterns of life seem to be reasonable and logical? Such mental assent will not help when you face the serious challenges that will inevitably come to you. Does your testimony guide you to correct decisions? To do so, fundamental truths must become part of the very fiber of your character. They must be an essential part of your being, more treasured than life itself. If an honest assessment of your own testimony confirms that it is not as strong as it should be, how can it be strengthened? ~ Richard G. Scott

Do we constantly ask ourselves these questions and check-in spiritually?

A strong testimony gives peace, comfort, and assurance. It generates the conviction that as the teachings of the Savior are consistently obeyed, life will be beautiful, the future secure, and there will be capacity to overcome the challenges that cross our path. A testimony grows from understanding truth, distilled from prayer and the pondering of scriptural doctrine. It is nurtured by living those truths in faith and the secure confidence that the promised results will be obtained.  ~ Richard G. Scott

The parable of the ten virgins teach about spiritual self-reliance

Thinking about storing up experiences made me turn to the Parable of the 10 virgins in Matthew 25, and I read it and started to really study it when I found a talk given to Relief Society sisters on how we can apply the parable to ourselves.

In the parable, ten maidens are waiting to join in a bridal celebration. The bridegroom hasn't come and no one knows when he will arrive. The women, as was the custom, have lamps with them to carry to contribute to this great event. At first, the lamps are all lit and glowing. But the party is late and the maidens fall asleep. All of a sudden, in the middle of the night the call comes to light the lamps. "The bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him."

And then came the point of reckoning. Five of the maidens have extra oil to light their lamps and five don't. (The Hebrews described lighting the lamp as "trimming" in other words, "preparing.") The five who are unprepared, beg for some extra oil from their sisters who are well supplied; their pleas are refused. They race to the market to buy some oil to start their lamps. In the meantime, the bridegroom arrives, the five wise, well-prepared maidens join in the celebration and the doors are closed. When the other five arrive—late—they are not admitted, "Lord, Lord, open to us," they say. "But he answered, I know you not."

This parable can seem to have some puzzling aspects. Why didn't the virgins share? Sharing is usually a good thing. Why was the party given so late? Who was in charge? Where was the charity? And how could they lock the door so heartlessly? Repentance is a powerful tool why can’t it be used here?

Here are two questions you have often heard and said:” What do you need?” and “How can I help?” How many times have you heard these? How many times have you said them? 

So now I ask: "What do you need?" My answer is: "Oil." 

Oil for our lamps is our spirituality, our testimony, our spiritual self-reliance, our centering on eternal perspectives and our personal commitment to Jesus Christ. When our lamps are full of oil and we have filled our reserves, we are full of the Holy Ghost. 

Oil brings many images to mind.  Olive oil was considered the dearest, brightest and most steady oil. 

These are the words I would use to describe so many women, like you, who have prepared and are continuing to prepare. Women who accept callings and serve with vitality and dedication. Women who are at their meetings, ready to learn, to contribute from their own personal store of knowledge and testimony. Women who say, "What do you need?" and then find it, and do it. They have oil to fill the lamp. Often they do little things, and those things matter so much. Like someone saying "I'll drive," or a sister bringing me the first daffodils in bloom. 

Our sisters are always applying the counsel in the Doctrine and Covenants: "Wherefore be faithful, praying always, having your lamps trimmed and burning, and oil with you, that you may be ready at the coming of the Bridegroom" (D&C 33:17). ~ Elaine L. Jack

Now, the second question, "How can I help?" Clearly we can provide a place for the "tired and poor" to begin to build their own oil reserves. We also can add to the supply some of the brightest beams of goodness on the earth today, and that's you, the women of the Relief Society.

The Ten Virgins represent members of the Church—and half will not be ready with enough oil when the Lord comes—that is sobering! Imagine our own Relief Society in our stake. What would we do without some of our sisters? This is a parable for us as members of the Church, sisters, and we must heed the warning.

Remember the question, "What do you need?" The answer is oil.

Can you share your oil sisters? Can you reach into your soul and share your ten years of morning prayer or family prayer? Can you share the personal peace of regular temple attendance and paying tithes? Or the spiritual truths that have been borne to you as you have visited sisters in their homes? Can you share the strengths that are formed on a mission or from supporting a missionary? You can share what you have learned, but you cannot share the spiritual power that is in your soul. Not one sister in this Church will be saved on the merits or abundance of another. These individual efforts invite the Holy Ghost to be with us to prompt us in righteousness. ~ Elaine L. Jack

The conclusion of the Parable of the Ten Virgins is significant. It says, "Watch, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." Watch, sisters is a call to be ready. Five were prepared. The other five misinterpreted their time. "This is the time...to prepare to meet God."

But we can overcome the world trying to get us to loosen our roots, and use up our oil.  We can work on storing so much oil, deepening our roots and gaining stronger and stronger testimonies so that we will not be left dry.  So that we will still be faithful when the time comes. 

And we can help share our experiences with each other.  If we do nothing else, we need to try to help each sister in our ward store up their own oil in their lamps, because this gospel has all the answers to everything that they will come up against and need.

Devon

Lesson: Aligning our will with our Heavenly Father's

Aubrey Behunin taught our lesson today, her first since being called the RS Presidency. Here are a few of the inspirational quotes she used.

Aligning our will with our Heavenly Father's

"The submission of one's will is really the only uniquely personal thing we have to place on God's altar.  The many other things we "give," brothers and sisters, are actually the things He has already given or loaned to us.  However, when you and I finally submit ourselves, by letting our individual wills be swallowed up in God's will, then we are really giving something to Him!  It is the only possession which is truly ours to give!"
- Neil A. Maxwell

"To the extent that we are not willing to be led by the Lord, we will be driven by our appetites, or we will be greatly preoccupied with the lesser things of the day.  The remedy is implicit in the marvelous lamentation of King Benjamin:  'For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?' (Mosiah 5:13)"
- Neil A. Maxwell

"When we live by covenant rather than by convenience we direct our lives toward our heavenly home"
- Donald L. Hallstrom

"Most omissions occur because we fail to get outside ourselves.  We are so busy checking on our own temperatures, we do not notice the burning fevers of others even when we can offer them some of the needed remedies, such as encouragement, kindness, and commendation.  The hands which hang down and most need to be lifted up belong to those too discouraged even to reach out anymore."
- Neil A. Maxwell

Five ways we can seek to give our hearts and minds to the Lord.  (As outlined in Elder Hallstrom's article in the June 2011 issue of the Ensign article, The Heart and a Willing Mind.)

1.  Gain and constantly nurture your own testimony.
2.  Honor priesthood ordinances and covenants.
3.  Root out duplicity.
4.  Establish a life of service.
5.  Continually study the doctrine.

Thanks Aubrey!

Sister Beck: The Role of Women in God's Plan

Sister Beck just spoke to an audience of 10,000 in Rexburg, Idaho. Read the full article here.

On our role:

“We … are engaged in the work of salvation,” she said. “I hope that was one of the clear messages that came through in all the leadership training meetings we’ve had.”

... “Relief Society is part of that,” she said. “We don’t plan anything; we don’t do anything that is outside of the Lord’s work of salvation.”

On finding balance:

“We know there are some essential things that must be taken care of if we are going to achieve eternal life,” she said. “To get the spirit and know what that is we’re going to have to read the scriptures, and pray every day, and go to the temple, and fast, and do the things the prophets have told us to do.”

She emphasized the importance of the Holy Ghost in prioritizing. “No woman ever has enough time, enough energy, and enough strength to do all the good things that are in her mind to do,” she said. “We have to have the help of the Holy Ghost to take care of what is most essential.”

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Lesson: Our Duty to God: The Mission of Parents and Leaders to the Rising Generation

Sunday Lesson, Teachings for Our Time 

Taught by Jill Fairchild

Elder Hales

It is our imperative duty to help youth understand and believe the gospel in a deeply personal way.

For all of us, doing our duty to God as parents and leaders begins with leading by example—consistently and diligently living gospel principles at home. This takes daily determination and diligence.

For youth, there is no substitute for seeing the gospel lived in our daily lives. The stripling warriors did not have to wonder what their parents believed. They said, “We do not doubt our mothers knew it” (see Alma 56:47–48).

Do our children know what we know?

Besides showing youth the way by example, we lead them by understanding their hearts and walking alongside them on the gospel path. To truly understand their hearts, we must do more than just be in the same room or attend the same family and Church activities. We must plan and take advantage of teaching moments that make a deep and lasting impression upon their minds and hearts.

Mother, Father, are you in there? Grandpa, Grandma, are you there?

Fathers, mothers, and leaders of youth, we urge you to participate in Personal Progress and Duty to God with your children and with the youth. Not only will they grow; you will grow too. And just as importantly, you will grow together in a bond of faith and friendship that will allow you to strengthen each other and stay on the gospel path forever, to indeed be an eternal family.

It is our imperative duty to help youth understand and believe the gospel in a deeply personal way. We can teach them to walk in the light, but that light cannot be borrowed. They must earn it for themselves. They must obtain their own light of testimony directly from the source of spiritual light—God Himself—through prayer and study and pondering. They must understand who they are and who Heavenly Father wants them to become. 

How do we help them?

The greatest missionary work we will ever do will be in our homes.
The greatest family history work that we will do will be within our own homes.
The greatest rescue, the greatest activation will be in our homes.
The greatest faith we have will be within our homes as we remain strong in the trials and tribulations of parenthood.
The greatest love and the greatest teachings should be in our homes.

On this Easter Sunday I would hope that we would have the opportunity of bearing our testimonies that we know that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ. I would hope that we would bear our testimonies so that our children will know where our hearts are and that we love them.

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General Relief Society Broadcast

Our RS history teaches us what we should do

We had a nice get-together with the 2nd ward Relief Society before the broadcast began. It was nice to see old friends and hopefully you were able to meet as least one new sister. That is always my goal at such gatherings. The food was good too. Thank you to all who came and contributed.

Watch it here! Broadcast in 82 languages to over 100 countries!!!

Get meeting highlights here.

Now for some thoughts from the speakers...

Sister Julie Beck:
This meeting is a gift to all his daughters who long to know God's mind and will and to understand their responsibilities as Relief Society sisters.

Be watchful, prayerful and inspired...not "silly" women.

Do the essential things everyday - prayer and scripture study.

Know and learn from the history of Relief Society. A new history will be available next year. Our history is valuable because it teaches us principles, purposes and patterns. It elevates and validates the value of women. It demonstrates how we work with the Priesthood brethren.

Sister Allred:
What helps you be steadfast and immovable?
- Knowledge of His love
- Hope of fulfilled blessings
- Knowledge of truth

4 things you can do:
1. Prayer
2. Scripture study
3. Obedience
4. Service

Sister Thompson:
Early sisters of the Relief Society traveled from house to house, moved with compassion, love, mercy, to succor, teach, minister, know and serve. Making a difference.

The beauty of visiting teaching is seeing lives change...having our hearts knit together in love.

To be a better visiting teacher...just LISTEN. Know that it is never "done".

President Monson:
Judge not.

Do no judge another's actions, inaction, words or appearance.

We don't know another's heart or circumstances.

Appearances can be so deceiving.

Charity is the opposite of judging. Charity manifests itself when we are tolerant of others and lenient toward their actions; the kind of charity that forgives; the kind of charity that is patient.

Mother Theresa said, "If you judge people you have no time to love them."

Each one of us is doing the best we can with the challenges that come our way.

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Bye-bye Church. We're busy, Teens Say

In a recent article on the Beliefnet, Mormon Teens, Protestant Teens: A Review of Kenda Creasy Dean's "Almost Christian", Jana Reiss looks at what the book has to say about Mormon teens.

Did you see this article in USA Today a few weeks ago? The upshot is that Protestant teens are skipping church in record numbers. They rarely even come for the pizza anymore....

One of the researchers in the National Study of Youth and Religion, Princeton Theological Seminary professor Kenda Creasy Dean, Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers Is Telling the American Church, says that if teenagers don't have a firm grasp of core Christian doctrines and instead worship at what she calls "the Church of Benign Whatever-ism"—or don't worship at all—it's because youth pastors and other leaders have watered down the message....

In a chapter called "Mormon Envy," Dean further indicts Protestant churches by holding up Mormonism as an example of a religious group that is doing right by its teenagers. She makes it clear that she has serious theological disagreements with Mormonism, but from a sociological perspective, Mormonism is succeeding in creating young adults who firmly understand what they believe and why their faith needs to have a claim on their behavior.

She says that Mormonism is giving teens the four things they need in order to have a growing adult faith. They need sufficient teaching in beliefs by their own parents and by a spiritual community, to acquire a personal testimony, concrete religious goals and, hope for the future.

Read the full book review.

 

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Photo credit

Lesson Recap: Testimony

Taught by Devon Linn

A testimony is a personal conviction of gospel truths, based on knowledge revealed by the Holy Ghost.

Most Church members have a testimony of some principle of the gospel, and on this foundation a more complete testimony can be built. It may be related to a one-time event or memory, or the piling up of hundreds of small impressions and experiences that provide the foundation.

A testimony motivates us to live righteously, and righteous living causes a testimony to grow. A testimony of the Savior and his gospel is essential to our exaltation.

Essentials

Elder Faust teaches us about the importance of bearing testimony:

All my life I have tried not to hide who I am and what I believe in. I cannot recall a single instance when it hurt my career or I lost valued friends by humbly acknowledging that I was a member of this Church.

There are four absolutes about which it is always appropriate for us to testify:

The first is that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior, the Mediator and Redeemer of the world.

The second is that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and reestablished the Church of Christ upon the earth with its keys and authority.

The third is that all of the Presidents of the Church since Joseph Smith have been successors in that power and authority.

The fourth is that President Gordon B. Hinckley [now President Monson] is the only prophet of God upon the earth, holding all of the keys, powers, and authorities of the Church in the earth today.

As one of the special witnesses of the Lord, I desire to declare my testimony to you. I am grateful that I have always had a testimony of the gospel.

I cannot remember when I did not believe. I have not always understood everything and do not claim to do so now, but through thousands and thousands of spiritual confirmations throughout my life, including my calling to the holy apostleship, I can declare my testimony to you that Jesus is the Christ. With every fiber and cell of my being, I know that He is our Savior and Redeemer. I testify that Joseph Smith was the greatest prophet who ever lived upon the earth and of great importance to the Savior in the work of God on the earth. I know this to be true.

A process

Elder Godoy, of the Seventy reminds us that gaining a testimony is a process:

A testimony, for some people, may come through a single and irrefutable event. But for others, it may come through a process of experiences that, perhaps not as remarkable but when combined, testify in an indisputable way that what we have learned and lived is true.

Today, after many years as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I might not be able to remember most of the experiences that have shaped my testimony.

Still, all of these experiences have left their mark and contributed to my testimony of the restored Church. Today, I have an absolute certainty of the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Sharing

The remainder of our lesson today was left for sisters to bear testimony of some particular principle of the gospel, and when and how we knew it was true.

Charity spoke of a sure knowledge of the eternal family and that God has a plan for each of us and our families and we need to trust that plan.

Christine told of a time when she diligently sought to know Joseph Smith and more about him as a man and a prophet, and it strengthened her testimony of him.

Madelyn had a time when she was down and struggling and feeling unworthy, but turned to the Savior for comfort. She realized that the choice to accept the Atonement is ours.

Jill remembered a time when friends reaching out to her helped her return to the church and helped her testimony grow and strengthen as she relearned the truths of the gospel. She cherishes those friendships.

Sister Layman (a visitor) told of a time when she was little and the Holy Ghost inspired her to be awake and in the right place to help her mother when she had an allergic reaction to medicine.

Sister Sasser shared her testimony and love for the gospel. [She will be transferred this week and we so appreciated hearing from her one more time. We wish her luck in the remainder of her mission.]

Sisters, whatever your testimony is, wherever you are in your progress toward God and having a conviction of the truth, you can know that He is there, that he cares and that he wants to give you the gift of testimony. He wants you to build your testimony and to bear your testimony.

Thanks to Devon for the lesson and for setting the stage for us to share our testimonies today.

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Photo credit

Profile on Mormon.org

Hey, I just filled out my profile for Mormon.org! It took me half an hour and here’s how it works.

Register or Sign-in
First you have to have an LDS Account. I already have one because I buy things online at the Distribution Center.

If you don’t have one, you’ll have to register. You’ll need your membership record number and your date of birth. Get your membership record number from Bro. Hope or one of the other ward clerks. Or, look at your Temple Recommend. It’s on there too; an 11-digit number on the lower half.

Once you have an account you can sign in on this page and begin your profile.

You’ll be presented with an easy-to-fill-in page where you click and begin typing.

Share something others can relate to
As you can see from my profile I had to choose a user name from a set of pre-determined choices in a dropdown menu.

I was free to add a short intro of 80 characters or less and attach a picture.

I was able to hook up to my Twitter, Facebook, Blog or Flickr accounts, but that was optional. Actually, it was the only optional field. You must fill out the whole form.

There are instructions and tips all along the way, such as, “Share things that can help others relate to who you are and what you do. ...Avoid sharing personal information such as your last name, your family members’ names, your school, your city, or any other contact information of either you or someone else.”

Tell about yourself in your own words
About Me, How I Live My Faith and Why I’m a Mormon are all free-form text fields where you can tell your story. I chose to tell a few of my hobbies and interests, how I serve in the ward, and how  being a Mormon helps me be a better person. I encourage you to be authentic and share your testimony.

Choose a topic you are comfortable with
The next two sections are Frequently Asked Questions and Personal Stories. These two sections offer a couple dozen questions in a drop-down menu to choose from. “What is the role of husband and wife in the family? What is the Mormon lifestyle like? How do Mormons live? Who wrote the Book of Mormon? What are Mormon church services like? Could you talk about your baptism? In what ways are your prayers answered? Please share your testimony of Joseph Smith”

Finish
As you fill out the profile your entries don't show up for a few minutes. It’s a little slow to update, so be patient.

Your progress shows in a box at the top of the page. All profiles are reviewed before appearing on Mormon.org. They’ll notify you as soon as your profile changes are public. You can update your profile anytime.

Fill out a profile today on new.mormon.org

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Cyberspace Missionary Work

“Why bother with all this internet stuff. It just soaks up my time and offers danger around every corner. It's evil.”

Have you heard someone say this (I have!) and maybe even thought so yourself? Then you are missing the fact that the internet can be a powerful tool for the Lord's work.

Ever since the now famous talk by Elder Ballard urging participation in internet conversations more and more good information about the church is being published by ordinary members like you and me. You can join in too. Start a blog or comment and share your testimony on other blogs. He said, 

Gradually, accurate and positive information is rising to the top of lists generated by various search engines. Those seeking information are more likely to encounter accurate information today than at any time since the Internet began, even though we still have a long way to go.

So let me pose a question. What are you prepared to do about it? If you are a member of the Church, what is your responsibility during this period of unusual attention and debate? Interest has continued at a high level and probably will for some time. If a national conversation is going on about the Church, are you going to be an active participant or a silent observer?

(Get the full transcript here.)

Here are a couple ideas of how others are doing it and how you can get involved.

All About Mormons
Strives to answer questions posed by investigators and less-active members, hoping to “dispel some of the many misconceptions about the church and its members.”

Site author/administrator Jacob Durrant explains: “When someone buys a car, they usually want to read the manual and other specs provided by the manufacturer. That’s why there will always be a role for official church websites like mormon.org. However, when buying a car, many people also talk with friends who already own the same car. That’s why it’s so important that we as members voice our opinions, ideas and feelings on the Internet. We can serve as important ‘non-authoritative sources.’” And Durrant is quick to link to the authoritative sources throughout the site.

It is offered in Portuguese, Spanish and Italian so it can reach a wider audience.

You can volunteer to help with this site.

Mission Musings
A blog by Elder and Sister Watts, serving in the Hill Cumorah Visitors Sites area. They have provided a three-part virtual tour of  “The Book of Mormon Historic Publication Site” in Palmyra.  Part 1 - Floor One | Part 2 - The Pressroom | Part 3 -The Bindery .

Share what you know and are experiencing as a member of the church and a woman in the gospel.

ldsWebGuy
Need help understanding how to use the web to build The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Here’s a blog by Larry Richman, director of Internet and project coordination for the church’s Curriculum Department.

Typical topics include wise use of the Web and other media; ideas for using new technology to build families, strengthen faith in Jesus Christ, and share the message of His restored gospel; tips on creating great Web sites and blogs; using social networks; how to keep your family safe on the Internet; how to use other kinds of media in productive ways.

Get some good tips here.

New mobile apps available
Get the LDS Library and the Mormon Channel on the Android, Blackberry, iPhone, iPod, iPad, and webOS at Tech.LDS.org.

Share this link with husbands and friends. Share a video from the Mormon Channel with a friend over lunch or during a conversation about the church.

---------------
I’ve published these links on our Other Church Websites page, as a reference for the future.

Reference:
Cyberspace Missionary Work

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He Lives!

See and hear modern-day Apostles testify that Jesus Christ is the Savior and that He lives today.

Tender Mercies

The March Theme for the blog is Feeling Lucky.

For me that translates into feeling blessed.

 

That thought is inspired by Elder Bednar’s recent conference talk, The Tender Mercies of the Lord.

One way God blesses each of us is through tender mercies, those blessings of strength, protection, assurance, guidance, loving-kindness, consolation, support or a spiritual gift that come to us and are often very personal.

They are available to ALL of us.

“The Lord's tender mercies do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence...they are powerful, sweet and simple. They do much to fortify and protect us.”


A few of you shared a recent tender mercy in your life:

Devon: After watching that video and reviewing the talk, it seems I’m seeing tender mercies everywhere! But I love how Elder Bednar actually refers to General Conference as a “tender mercy” because that’s exactly what it is in my life.  I am so excited that we get to listen to the general authorities in just a few weeks!

Sarah: I took my boys to the doctor on Thursday to be told that they both had viruses but nothing else. On Friday I was still concerned about James but was hesitant to call again (what if there was nothing wrong, didn’t want to look like a paranoid mother, etc. etc.) I felt like I should make another appointment so I did. When I took him in it turned out that he was wheezing and not getting enough oxygen. They gave him a couple of breathing treatments and a liquid steroid.  I am so grateful for the tender mercy of guidance in caring for my child that day. More on Sarah's blog.

Emily: Amidst lots of craziness around these parts of late, my son has really stepped up to the plate. He’s started surprising me with his empathy, thoughtfulness, and capacity for self-containment. He's still thoroughly a preschooler and a boy, and that’s just as it should be, but I’m getting glimpses at the person he can become, and it makes me swell up inside with pride. (good pride) He’s taken to coloring with fervor, tucking his stuffed animals in at night, and taking a keen interest in keeping his brother pacified. He’s been making me feel like my job is do-able, and that there are short-term rewards for me while I’m in the trenches. They’re just moments, but they’re wonderful! Don't miss Em's pics.

Ellen: Persistence and fortitude are tender mercies God gives me. Each morning prayer is filled with my desire for His help through my work day. And every day he strengthens me, gives me thoughts, helps my words, and clarifies my perceptions. When the pressures mount I can handle them. And at the end of the day I can always see where He stepped in. I acknowledge His hand in all things. His tender mercies enable me to press forward with cheerfulness often.

Please share one of your recent tender mercies with us, in the comments.

e

Saints Unified Voices

Download or print file to use to invite a nonmember friend.

Lesson Recap: Rejoice in the Blessings of the Temple

 

We are women
of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:
Rejoice in the blessings of the temple.

We rejoice in...

• The House of the Lord, where he comes, to speak to us 
• A place to take your cares, troubles, important decisions and receive personal guidance
• Continuation of the pattern of temples (tabernacle of Moses, temple of Nephi)
• A fulfillment of scripture and prophecy
• A place of clean-ness
• Knowing we are clean and worthy
• Receiving the ordinances necessary for exaltation
• Learning, knowledge, wisdom
• 3 pillars of eternity: creation, fall, atonement
• The Endowment: instruction on how we should live
• Making covenants to greater commitment
• Being sealed in Celestial marriage
• Future generations born in the covenant as part of an eternal family
• Providing salvation for those who have passed on
• The opportunity to serve God so uniquely
• A reason to overcome difficulty, to maintain strong and vital marriages
• A common goal, being one in purpose
• Strengthened resolve to endure to the end
• Lessening of Satan's power on the earth
• Motivation for our children to live good clean lives
• The gift of perspective on life and eternity, knowing what's important
• Protection from danger
• Enabling power
• Increased meaning when death takes a loved one
• Feeling the Spirit, the joy and happiness, the peace
• Personal sanctification, “peeling away the shell of selfishness”

How to gain more benefit from temple attendance

• Understand the doctrine related to temple ordinances, especially the significance of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
• While participating in temple ordinances, consider your relationship to Jesus Christ and His relationship to our Heavenly Father. This simple act will lead to greater understanding of the supernal nature of the temple ordinances.
• Always prayerfully express gratitude for the incomparable blessings that flow from temple ordinances. Live each day so as to give evidence to Father in Heaven and His Beloved Son of how very much those blessings mean to you.
• Schedule regular visits to the temple.
• Leave sufficient time to be unhurried within the temple walls.
• Rotate activities so that you can participate in all of the ordinances of the temple.
• Remove your watch when you enter a house of the Lord.
• Listen carefully to the presentation of each element of the ordinance with an open mind and heart.
• Be mindful of the individual for whom you are performing the vicarious ordinance. At times pray that he or she will recognize the vital importance of the ordinances and be worthy or prepare to be worthy to benefit from them.
• Recognize that much of the majesty of the sealing ordinance cannot be understood and remembered with one live experience. Substantial subsequent vicarious work permits one to understand much more of what is communicated in the live ordinances.
• Realize that a sealing ordinance is not enduring until after it is sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise. Both individuals must be worthy and want the sealing to be eternal.

Sisters, please take the time to reflect on the blessings of the temple in your lives and express your gratitude to Heavenly Father for being born in a time with such wonderful buildings and knowledge are on the earth.

Further study:
Blessings of the Temple, Robert D. Hales, Oct 2009 Ensign
Personal Preparation for Temple Blessings, Russell M Nelson, July 2001 Liahona
Temple Worship: The Source of Strength and Power in Times of Need, Richard G Scott, May 2009 Ensign
Temple topic on LDS.org


Ellen

Video Week: The Nauvoo Willow Tree—Reflections of Emma Smith

There is an old willow tree which sits directly behind the Nauvoo House where Emma Hale Smith spent her remaining years on this earth. Although Emma Smith remarried three years after Joseph's death, she carried the sorrow of that great loss in her heart until she died.

Kimberly Smith, the great great granddaughter of Joseph and Emma Smith once had an experience by the willow which caused her to feel as if Emma had spent much time in mourning by that tree.

Kimberly Smith felt inspired to write this song and she hopes that you feel from this presentation just as she did when she wrote the song; for she truly felt the heart of a great and noble lady—Emma Smith.



To listen to more music by Kimberly Smith, please visit her website at: http://www.ldsgenerations.com

Role as Teachers a Sacred and Holy Calling

No greater responsibility can rest upon any man, 

than to be a teacher of God's children.

~David O. McKay

In this Church of teachers, “we find ourselves in the roles as teachers from the moment we take our first breath of life,” said Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, addressing eight new presidents of Missionary Training Centers, and seven new visitors center directors and their wives gathered for training prior to embarking on their worldwide assignments.

He reiterated the 5 basics of teaching offered by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland in a Worldwide Leadership Broadcast a few years ago.

1. Prepare to be teachers - The Lord will put words in your mouth if you spend the time needed in preparation.

2. Teach from the scriptures - Let us be certain our study and preparation will come from the words of the prophets.


3. Teach by the Spirit - When [revelation and inspiration] comes be receptive to that still small voice when it is directing you. The Lord will give us the inspiration when needed to do His assigned work.

4. Help the learner assume responsibility for learning - We cannot in any way be offended or get angry or disappointed that we have worked so hard on our lesson, and it doesn't seem the students are with us. We just have to be patient and loving. More is happening in their hearts than we think.

5. Always end your teaching by bearing testimony to the truthfulness of the gospel - The Lord will be with you as you go forward to teach.

Read the full Church News article.

Let’s resolve to be better teachers at home, in FHE, in our visiting teaching, and in our callings.

Ellen

Lesson Recap: More Diligent and Concerned at Home

D&C 93: 40-50

...see that they are more diligent
and concerned at home...

#1 Express Love—and Show It

We can begin to become more diligent and concerned at home by telling the people we love that we love them. Such expressions do not need to be flowery or lengthy. We simply should sincerely and frequently express love....

As disciples of the Savior, we are not merely striving to know more; rather, we need to consistently do more of what we know is right and become better.

We should remember that saying “I love you” is only a beginning. We need to say it, we need to mean it, and most importantly we need consistently to show it. We need to both express and demonstrate love.

What are some ways you tell your family you love them or have seen others do? Here were your ideas.

- Holding hands, hugging
- Saying “I love you” at the end of every phone call
- Little things, like just being together
- Understanding that “showing” is different for different people, and respecting that
- Not keeping score, either

Feeling the security and constancy of love from a spouse, a parent, or a child is a rich blessing. Such love nurtures and sustains faith in God. Such love is a source of strength and casts out fear (see 1 John 4:18). Such love is the desire of every human soul.

#2 Bear Testimony—and Live It

We also can become more diligent and concerned at home by bearing testimony to those whom we love about the things we know to be true by the witness of the Holy Ghost. The bearing of testimony need not be lengthy or eloquent. And we do not need to wait until the first Sunday of the month to declare our witness of things that are true. Within the walls of our own homes, we can and should bear pure testimony of the divinity and reality of the Father and the Son, of the great plan of happiness, and of the Restoration.

As disciples of the Savior, we are not merely striving to know more; rather, we need to consistently do more of what we know is right and become better.

We should remember that bearing a heartfelt testimony is only a beginning. We need to bear testimony, we need to mean it, and most importantly we need consistently to live it. We need to both declare and live our testimonies.

What are some ways you bear your testimony to your family? Here were your ideas.
- Making it less formal in language
- Listen to the Spirit, let Him tell you how
- Let it be awkward, but do it anyway
- She with each other what you've learned that day in scripture study
- When gospel topics or truths come up say, “I know that’s true”

#3 Be Consistent

In my office is a beautiful painting of a wheat field. The painting is a vast collection of individual brushstrokes—none of which in isolation is very interesting or impressive. In fact, if you stand close to the canvas, all you can see is a mass of seemingly unrelated and unattractive streaks of yellow and gold and brown paint. However, as you gradually move away from the canvas, all of the individual brushstrokes combine together and produce a magnificent landscape of a wheat field. Many ordinary, individual brushstrokes work together to create a captivating and beautiful painting.

Each family prayer, each episode of family scripture study, and each family home evening is a brushstroke on the canvas of our souls. No one event may appear to be very impressive or memorable. But just as the yellow and gold and brown strokes of paint complement each other and produce an impressive masterpiece, so our consistency in doing seemingly small things can lead to significant spiritual results.

Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf also gives us this encouragement:

May I invite you to rise to the great potential within you.

But don’t reach beyond your capacity. Don’t set goals beyond your capacity to achieve. Don’t feel guilty or dwell on thoughts of failure. Don’t compare yourself with others.

Do the best you can, and the Lord will provide the rest. Have faith and confidence in Him, our Savior, and you will see miracles happen in your life and the lives of your loved ones.

The virtue of your own personal life will be a light to those who sit in darkness, and it will be because you are a living witness of the fulness of the restored gospel. Wherever you have been planted on this beautiful but often troubled earth of ours, you can be the one to “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees” (D&C 81:5).

Bright as the Sun, This Heavenly Ray Lights Ev’ry Land Today
Friday, April 29, 2005, BYU Women’s Conference

Read, listen or watch Elder Bednar’s conference talk.

Ellen

Mormon Scholars Testify

Check out this website...

One of the unique characteristics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is its emphasis on education and scholarship.

Studies have shown that among Latter-day Saints (Mormons), higher levels of education are strongly correlated with higher church attendance, and higher levels of devotion. (see footnote)

In LDS scripture, Mormons are encouraged to study and learn.

This website Mormon Scholars Testify gives LDS scholars the opportunity to express their views and feelings about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

There are some who may feel that people of education and learning can’t be religious.

It is hoped that these testimonies will help dispel that myth, educate, and give  insights into the thoughts and feelings of LDS scholars.

Ellen

Is It All Right to Have Questions About the Church or Its Doctrine?

On November 1, 2009, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf spoke at a CES fireside for young adults, at BYU. It  is available in its broadcast form.

What about doubts and questions in principle? How do you find out that the gospel is true? Is it all right to have questions about the Church or its doctrine?

My dear young friends, we are a question-asking people. We have always been, because we know that inquiry leads to truth. That is how the Church got its start, from a young man who had questions. In fact, I’m not sure how one can discover truth without asking questions. In the scriptures you will rarely discover a revelation that didn’t come in response to a question.

Whenever a question arose and Joseph Smith wasn’t sure of the answer he approached the Lord. And the results are the wonderful revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants. Often the knowledge Joseph received extended far beyond the original question. That is because not only can the Lord answer the questions we ask, but even more importantly, He can give us answers to questions we should have asked.

Let us listen to those answers. The missionary effort of the Church is founded upon honest investigators asking heartfelt questions. Inquiry is the birth place of testimony.
Some might feel embarrassed or unworthy because they have searching questions regarding the gospel, but they needn’t feel that way. Asking questions isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s a precursor of growth.

God commands us to seek answers to our questions and asks only that we seek with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ. When we do so, the truth of all things can be manifest to us by the power of the Holy Ghost. Fear not. Ask questions. Be curious.
But doubt not – doubt not. Always hold fast to faith and to the light you have already received. Because we see imperfectly in mortality, not everything is going to make sense right now. In fact, I should think that if everything did make sense to us, it would be evidence that it had all been made up by a mortal mind. Remember that God has said, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. For as the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Nevertheless, you know that one of the purposes of mortality is to become more like your Heavenly Father in your thoughts and in your ways. Viewed from this perspective, searching for answers to your questions can bring you closer to God, strengthening your testimony instead of shaking it. It’s true that faith is not a perfect knowledge, but as you exercise your faith, applying gospel principles every day under any circumstances, apply those principles wherever you are. And whenever it is, you will taste the sweet fruits of the gospel, and by this fruit you will know of its truth.

 What do you think? Let's discuss.

From Keepapitchinin, the Mormon History Blog.

Ellen

Lesson Recap: Praise to the Man

Joseph Smith, Lesson 47
Latter-day Prophets Bear Witness of Joseph Smith

Since the time of Brigham Young, each of the prophets who has presided over the Church has testified of the remarkable mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith.

The testimonies of ancient and modern prophets join together to proclaim that Joseph Smith was the instrument through whom God restored the fulness of the gospel for the blessing of “the whole human family, from eternity to eternity.

Foreordained to his prophetic calling
Brigham Young
Joseph Smith was foreordained in eternity to preside over this last dispensation.

Joseph Fielding Smith
No prophet since the days of Adam, save, of course, our Redeemer, has been given a greater mission.

Ezra Taft Benson
The Prophet Joseph Smith was not only ‘one of the noble and great ones,’ but he gave and continues to give attention to important matters here on the earth even today from the realms above.

You
How does your understanding of Joseph Smith's earthly mission change when you view it in the light of eternity?

First Vision Fundamental to Our Testimonies
Joseph F. Smith
The greatest event that has ever occurred in the world since the resurrection of the Son of God...was the coming of the Father and of the Son to that boy Joseph Smith, to prepare the way for the laying of the foundation of God’s kingdom.

Heber J. Grant
Either Joseph Smith did see God and did converse with Him, and God Himself did introduce Jesus Christ to the boy ...or Mormonism is a myth. And Mormonism is not a myth!

Howard W. Hunter
My testimony...hinges upon the simple story of the lad under the trees kneeling and receiving heavenly visitors...it is one of the greatest single events in all history.

David O. McKay
The appearing of the Father and the Son to Joseph Smith is the foundation of this Church...What God is, is answered.

Ezra Taft Benson
If we do not accept this truth…if we have not received a witness about this great revelation, we cannot inspire faith in those whom we lead.

George Albert Smith
When the boy prophet, in the woods of Palmyra, saw the Father and the Son...there was a connection between the heavens and the earth.

You
What has helped you gain a testimony of the First Vision?

Taught by God and Angels
John Taylor
He was ignorant of letters as the world has it, but the most profoundly learned and intelligent man that I ever met in my life.

Wilford Woodruff
The Prophet of God was administered to by the angels of heaven. They were his teachers, they were his instructors, and all that he did...was by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Lorenzo Snow
Joseph Smith, whom God chose to establish this work, was poor and uneducated...but God had called him to deliver the poor and honest-hearted of all nations from their spiritual and temporal bondage.

Harold B. Lee
Joseph, the man, could not have done this, but Joseph, actuated by the power of Almighty God, could and did perform the miraculous service of bringing forth the kingdom out of obscurity in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

David O. McKay
Joseph Smith’s greatness consists in divine inspiration.

Howard W. Hunter
We praise Joseph Smith for his capacity to commune not only with Jehovah but also with other personages of heaven. So many visited, gave keys, and tutored that ‘choice seer’...Through him, it has been estimated, more marvelous pages of scripture passed than through any other human in history.

You
As you seek spiritual knowledge, how can you follow Joseph Smith's example?

Called of God to Restore the Gospel
Spencer W. Kimball
The foreverness of this kingdom and the revelations which it brought into existence are absolute realities. Never again will the sun go down; never again will all men prove totally unworthy of communication with their Maker. Never again will God be hidden from his children on the earth. Revelation is here to remain.

Gordon B. Hinckley
There are those doubters who have strained to explain this remarkable organization as the product of the times in which he lived. That organization, I submit, was as peculiar, as unique, and as remarkable then as it is today. It was not the product of the times. It came as a revelation from God.

Joseph F. Smith
...he was called of God to introduce the Gospel to the world, to restore the holy priesthood to the children of men, to organize the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the world, and to restore all the ordinances of the Gospel, for the salvation not only of the living, but also of the dead, and he was called to this mission by God Himself.

You
Think about how your life would be different if you did not know of the restored gospel. Why are you thankful for Joseph Smith and his mission?

His work blesses all

Joseph F. Smith
The work in which Joseph Smith was engaged...is not something which relates to man only while he tabernacles in the flesh, but to the whole human family from eternity to eternity.

Joseph Fielding Smith
In the same way that I know Jesus is the Christ–and that is by revelation from the Holy Spirit—I know that Joseph Smith is and was and everlastingly shall be a prophet of God.

Gordon B. Hinckley
The glorious work, begun by him who was killed at Carthage, has grown in a miraculous and wonderful way…The testimonies which were sealed [there]... now nurture the faith of people around the world.

You
How have you and your family who has gone before and your family yet to be been blessed by the work of Joseph Smith?

A seer shall the Lord my God raise up, who shall be a choice seer unto the fruit of my loins. … And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the name of his father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing, which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto salvation. 2 Nephi 3:6, 15;

 Ellen