lovrie

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  1. Thanks all for the replies. I was just seeking to better understand missionary work and... well, missionaries in general since I am pretty unfamiliar with it all.
  2. I need help in understanding missionary work. This may seem silly, but hear me out: I am planning on becoming a member of the church soon. Spirituality has always been a sensitive issue for me- I was raised non-denominational christian and growing up, I always felt bothered by my unanswered questions in the faith and turned away from God for some time. When I met my friend, a member, one of the first things I noticed about him was how nonjudgemental he is. And how much compassion he has for people. So naturally, I wanted to know about his spiritual beliefs. When I found out he was a mormon, I didn't know what to think. I'm from the south so I had never met a mormon before, and for some reason I thought they only lived in Utah But he never preached or boasted about his beliefs, he just answered my questions that I had about his life and his relationship with the Father. Pretty soon I started going to church with him, reading scriptures and praying with him, and now here I am, ready to be baptized. My problem? Missionary work. Now, while I was attending church I was very put off by the missionaries. They would follow me around after sacrament meeting and kind of corner me and make me feel uncomfortable. I tried to express in the nicest way that I was learning about the gospel on my own, with my friend and his family, and that yes I was happy coming to church, but they didn't seem to get the picture. They kept calling me and they even came to my friends house to see if I was there and they could talk to me. It felt like .... stalking almost! Also, when I told my boss that I was joining the church, he expressed extreme displeasure. When I inquired as to why, he said that the only time he had ever met anyone mormon was when two missionaries knocked on his door and pretty much let themselves in. The experience he said he had with them was very unpleasant and his only impression of the church now is a bad one, and I found that really unfortunate. Now, I love spreading the gospel. I know that it is a wonderful thing to see someone hear the gospel and accept it. I just wish that- instead of spending all of that money on sending out a 19-21 year old who may or may not be emotionally or spiritually mature enough- we could do HUGE service projects TOGETHER. That way, people in our communities would associate our church with these good works and would want to know more us, instead of being so put off by the door to door knocking. The more I told people about my decision to join the church, the more bad experiences I heard with the missionaries. I just think that so many people that I've talked to, who have never been exposed to the church, have found the missionary work to be extremely business-like. Personally, I felt like the missionaries were only talking to me because they could get another number on their baptism counter (I don't mean that in an unkind way! I just really felt like I was being used.) I didn't feel like I was being listened to at all and I felt sick to my stomach every time I saw them. When I did give them a chance I felt like all they could talk about was, "Well, since you come to church so much, when are you going to be baptized? Let's set a date!" I didn't like it at all. And I guess I'm just wondering how you all feel about missionary work and how I should be understanding it. Is everyone happy with the way missionary work is done? Or is there room for change? I'm just curious and I really hope I don't offend anyone. I think it would be interesting to hear from people who have served to see the other point of view. Thank you!
  3. That resource is very helpful! Thank you.
  4. I used search and browsed the threads for a while but I could not find anything that deals directly with what I'm trying to understand. I apologize if these questions have been asked and answered before, but I did do a pretty thorough search and I'm very new here. Also, I'm investigating the church but I was raised in the Church of Christ. I have a complete open mind and my intent is to understand LDS beliefs. With that said, I'm reading this book called Latter Days by Coke Newell. He says he is a "card-holding Mormon high priest employed by the church as an international public relations officer at world headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah." The book seems to serve as an introduction to LDS doctrine to people who know nothing about LDS beliefs and that's what I'm using it for. Here are my questions (to everyone! :)) about Chapter One: 1."... you and I were born as spirit children of God and, naturally, a Goddess, actual beings of glorified human form and substance." A. Are there any scriptures in the bible that contradict this statement? Support it? 2. "We were potential heirs, not equals. Our eternal progression required that we, like they had done successfully before us, leave our heavenly home, take a physical body, and pass through the memory-veiled testing grounds of a mortal probation." A. What does it mean to be be an "heir"? B. Why is it necessary to become an "heir"? Why not just live and exist as they had for an "untold millenia of time"? C. When did God take a physical body and pass through grounds of a mortal probation? 3. "The firstborn spirit son we knew as Jehovah was like our Father in every respect but that of having gained a physical, then glorified, body." A. Why was the firstborn more like our father than we? 4. "Jehovah and his selected hands would now begin the physical creation of the earth." A. Genesis 1:1 states that God created the heavens and the earth. Is this a contradiction? Thank you ahead of time for any help or insight!
  5. That was great advice. Right now he is simply a cherished friend and I'm completely happy with that. I really admire his desire to listen and obey his parents wishes (since they do know what's best for him.) I have been deep in thought and prayer and will continue to pray in my search for truth. Thank you for the welcome!
  6. Oh, I did the exact same thing... The latest season is awfully confusing though... I've had to watch each episode twice.
  7. I'm an 18 year old female, senior in high school. I was raised in the Church of Christ, a relatively new denomination of Christianity and I have always "gone through the motions" to please my family as far as religion is concerned. There have been several times where I have felt moved by the Holy Spirit, but I have always wondered about other churches and which one is the true church. This year I met a wonderful person who is a member of the LDS church. He became a good friend to me quickly and we realized that we had feelings for each other. I was going through a really difficult time when I met him and I wrote him a long letter telling him that he was a "light" to me in a time of darkness. He revealed to me something I cannot take my mind off of. He told me my letter really affected him and strengthened his faith. I asked how, and he told me that in California as a child he received a "blessing" (I don't know what that is/means) and it said that he was going to be a light to someone who was in a period of darkness. He moved to North Carolina a year ago and a completely different person delived a blessing that said that he was going to be a light. The term came up twice. And in my letter I told him that same thing. This can not be a coincidence. We realize that we can't date, since he has strict parents and I'm not an LDS. But I can't get this out of my head and I've been doing research about his beliefs as much as I can. I'm interested in this church, because I find the members to be anything BUT hypocrites (what I've seen in my church.) I don't have any specific questions, but I wanted to share my story with LDS members, and see what others thought. Thanks :)