cjmaldrich

I'm a convert, so I haven't really had a role model since childhood. But I keep them covered. My wife, a native of Utah, says that her and her friends dads always walked around the house without a shirt over their garments and that I'm a weirdo :). On an only slightly related note, I once rang a doorbell and an old man answered the door without a shirt covering his garment top. He was extremely rude to me. Like I would have been shocked at his rudeness even if he weren't obviously an endowed member of the Church.

Cassie, it was Elder Christofferson. Very good talk. I had to miss most of the morning session to help someone move but I heard President Packer's talk. I thought it was great.

This is an interesting website to look through: The Truth About "The God Makers," Table of Contents I haven't seen the movie myself, and that website is far too huge for me to look at every page without seeing it... But I don't plan on seeing it voluntarily, so I probably will never read the whole website But I've looked through it at a couple key points of interest to me. I would guess that as huge as the website is, they've pretty well debunked every single claim the film makes...

Rep. Johnson's statement on Guam comments in an Armed Services Committee hearing | Congressman Hank Johnson, Representing the 4th District of Georgia Rep. Johnson gaffe: Guam might capsize | ajc.com Hoax? Or bad metaphor?

Here is the article that was mentioned earlier: The New Gospel Principles Manual A good rule of thumb when teaching is definitely to stick with the text. In this case the text is the manual, so I wouldn't intentionally stray too far away from it. However, another (and better) rule of thumb is to follow the spirit as you teach. The point of these lessons is not for you to stand up and read the book to your brothers. They can do that on their own. The point is for them (and you) to have a spiritual experience and to learn and gain a deeper testimony. Always prepare your lesson prayerfully, as that will help you to come up with inspired questions and foster discussion that will benefit your students. Don't be afraid of getting off track if that's where the spirit of discussion takes it. Ask follow-up questions to make a person's thoughts personal. For example, if a brother says, "Heavenly Father created all things spiritually before physically," you could ask, "what does it mean to you to have that knowledge?" The comments that a person makes during these lessons are usually broad and basic. You as the teacher can help turn that broad and basic into personal and specific by helping them dig a little deeper--without getting too personal and making it uncomfortable. This is just personal preference here, but whenever I am asked to teach a lesson or give a talk, I find it helpful to load it up with relevant scriptures. The manual usually lists some, and often quotes them right in the book so that it doesn't have to take five minutes to get someone to read one verse of scripture. But being the basic gospel lessons that these are, the scriptures are generally basic as well. If your class is full of spiritually-mature (I.E. brothers who have been in the church for a while or otherwise have strong testimonies) people, I don't see anything in the book or in the article that has been referenced prohibiting you from looking up more scriptures to back up the point you are making. In fact, I think new and old members alike could benefit from opening their scriptures more often in church. What I am saying, in short, is that there is no better teacher than the spirit and there is no better textbook than the scriptures. The manual should be your guide in creating a lesson tailored to the people whom you are called to teach. The lessons are the basic foundations of the gospel presented in a simple manner, but this does not mean that the spiritual experiences of your brethren need to be basic and simple. Just pray like crazy and follow the spirit. You'll do fine

I've lived in Utah for two years now and have yet to partake of this infamous green jello with carrots I thought it would be the only thing I ate at church functions, and I haven't even seen it yet!

When I did my endowment, the temple was two hours away. My fiance at the time, my two best friends and their lady partners came along and we had dinner afterward. That's the best I could've asked for :) But anyone reading this who may be going through the temple soon, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't use the Celestial Room as a family reunion spot like it's your personal living room!!! !!! Reverence, please.

It's a simple concept, really. Sure there's only one mention of it in the New Testament, but if you stop and think logically for two seconds it makes sense. The dead will have the gospel preached to them (John 5:25, 28; 1 Peter 3:18-21; 1 Peter 4:6) Christ taught that man must be born of water to enter into the kingdom of God. He didn't say living man or people who want to be baptized. He said man. What other way is there for a person without a body to be baptized than by someone standing in their place? Did not Christ stand in the place for our punishment for sin? So why is it so impossible for us to stand in place of our brothers and sisters to be baptized?

It's cliche by now, but there's a reason for everything. I'm sure my life story seems tame compared to what you've posted, but I've had my share of trials nonetheless. You probably got yours instead of me getting them because you're strong enough to get through them . But seriously. All of the trials that I've gone through have made me who I am and led me to where I am now: a strong member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, married in the temple, going to school, and so forth. It's hard to see blessings in your life when it feels like everything is hopeless and things are still falling apart with no end in sight. But it ends. And if you're looking for Father's hand in getting you through it, you will see him there every step of the way and your faith will increase dramatically. I, for one, am grateful for all of the trials that I've gone through. I would never ever want to do them over again, but without them I would not have a quarter of the faith that I have now. Please stay strong. You'll know what you need to do to get through your tough times, but God and Jesus Christ are standing by your side waiting to help you through. I hope that you will be able to see and recognize them there! As far as your original topic (how to feel the Holy Ghost) - I have no useful answer . I've known people who say they've never "felt" anything and have immense faith... I've also known people who have "felt" something and have zero faith. I think you'll just know, and when you figure it out you'll probably see that you've "felt" the Holy Ghost a LOT in your life and it will be easier to recognize when it happens again.

I have the best picture. Yep. I do. !!!

I wouldn't say the church overall is "excluding" in the attitude of its members. I would definitely NOT accuse most of the members of being "including" either. Probably somewhere in the middle - and from my experience that's about normal for a church. Before I joined the LDS church, I went to about 5 other Christian churches. The only one where I was made to feel the slightest bit accepted and included was when I went with a friend who was a member there. When I went to the LDS church with a friend, it was probably right in the middle of very welcoming and completely ignoring me. Some people talked to me because I was there with my friend, others introduced themselves to me and just said hi to my friend... I felt accepted there. The ward that I am a member of in Utah (sorry, Ogre) seems to be very welcoming and friendly. It's a university ward, so we're all in the same apartment complex and have a lot of activities in the courtyard and there is a huge emphasis on inviting our neighbors to church and the activities. The ward that I my wife and I went to right after we got married (it was the wrong ward, so we were only there for about two months) was one of those where we had to do all of the introducing ourselves - rather than people introducing themselves to us. When we got to the right ward (two blocks difference in boundaries, same building same town) it was like the total opposite. There are a ton of factors to consider and with so many wards and branches in the world, I don't think it's fair to lump regions together (though I'm guilty of it) like "Utah is so unfriendly" and "Colorado has the best Mormons." But I'd bet money that if you looked at every ward/branch in the world and objectively rated their level of "inclusion" and "exclusion" you'd probably find that we're average with other churches or organizations with a lot of variance from ward to ward... Just my uneducated opinion :)

I intentionally ask for a blessing that the food will taste good and produce the energy we need My wife is still stuck in the "strengthen and nourish" habit. But I suppose it's not a bad thing to pray for - I just prefer to not be a cookie-cutter Saint... Plus, I want the food in front of me to taste good. If I cooked it, I know what's in it and whether it's healthy and nourishing or not. If I have a doughnut, it's obviously not going to strengthen and nourish my body, but it can sure as heck taste good and give energy :)

I think your ward has its new bishop Worry is one thing and knowing is another. I've had complete surprise callings while wondering if I was being called to the office for some other vacant calling... But of course I've known well in advance every time that my wife and I would be witnesses at the temple... I wouldn't get too worked up about it... If it's worrying you to the point that you aren't fulfilling your current calling, you may need to look at where your heart is. If you're so confident that it's you, you could very well be setting yourself up for disappointment. Either by not being called or by creating super inflated expectations of grandeur. I've always thought that if you feel adequate and "good enough" for a calling, you probably aren't. So I just keep telling myself I'm fit to be prophet :)

What are the criteria then? What I'm seeing as official church doctrine (or at the very least, the official stance of the church published on their official website) is not what I feel you are saying will be the case... A fair God would not look simply at the fact that a person took their own life, say that's against the rules, and condemn them. If that were the case, I would also expect him to condemn the Nephites who killed thousands and thousands of Lamanites and heaped their bodies upon the earth or cast them into the sea. But we know that likely won't be the case, because the Nephite's weren't acting in wickedness when they killed all of those people. I think it would be very difficult to look at every single suicide and NOT see someone who, whether by their own fault or just having a defective brain, was at the end of their rope (no pun intended) and could see no other option for escaping their torment. Sure, there are people who do it to get out of legal or financial trouble with every intention of simply escaping responsibility; but I would guess they are probably the exception rather than the rule... I see my opinion reflected in the published stance of the LDS Church.

I don't know what causes suicidal thoughts... But other people seem to have good ideas. My wife is thoroughly convinced that you can't die from suicide and enter into the Celestial Kingdom because her Seminary teacher said so... I don't know how or why we would get on that subject, but now we just don't talk about it anymore Personally, I find it hard to imagine God as a loving, forgiving, and accepting Father while turning away from a child of His who needs love, forgiveness, and acceptance more than anyone. Did not Christ take upon him the sufferings of all people? Yet even people with that assurance and knowledge still kill themselves. What unimaginable pain they must be experiencing if they cannot even find comfort in the Lord! I imagine those folks get to the next phase of life greeted with more hugs and love and caring people and understanding and REST than any of us could begin to imagine for ourselves at the end of our mortal journeys. From LDS.org: Suicide Although it is wrong to take one's own life, a person who commits suicide may not be responsible for his or her acts. Only God can judge such a matter. Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has said: "Obviously, we do not know the full circumstances surrounding every suicide. Only the Lord knows all the details, and he it is who will judge our actions here on earth. "When he does judge us, I feel he will take all things into consideration: our genetic and chemical makeup, our mental state, our intellectual capacity, the teachings we have received, the traditions of our fathers, our health, and so forth" ("Suicide: Some Things We Know, and Some We Do Not," Ensign, Oct. 1987, 8). Of course I'm not condoning suicide with this post... I'm just saying that those who do it probably aren't damned to eternal suffering according to the gospel of cjmaldrich