lds_investigator

I have no problem with meeting the missionaries at my home. I just wanted to know about the time situation because I work at night, so it would be easier for me to meet them during the day. The reason I asked about what went on at the meetinghouse at night was because I was curious about the church activities. I didn't know what I might be missing out on by working at night. That's why I was wondering about that. I have no problem waiting on partaking of the bread and water during sacrament. I actually would prefer that to be honest. I think I will probably want to meet with the missionaries before I attend my first service. That way I don't want into the service feeling so out of place.

I have been visiting the church's websites. I've been reading the material there as well as watching all the videos. It's been a big blessing in my journey.

Thanks for the continued wonderful response. I am so glad I joined this board. You guys have been a huge blessing to me. I did have a couple of other questions. Should a non-Mormon partake of the bread and water during the sacrament meeting or not? Which should I do first? Meet with the missionaries or attend a Sunday service? What time of day can the missionaries meet with you? I work at nights. Is that going to be a problem for me at all? What sort of things are at the local meetinghouse during the week at night? I might be able to get away from work a few hours and then go back. I work for a cleaning service at night. I have a certain amount of hours I work. It's flexible as to when I work in the night. I can do my work later if I had to that night. How did any of you who are converts discuss with your family and friends your decision to join to the LDS Church? How did they react to it?

Thanks for the continued response. It's been great. It has definitely been a big help. I do appreciate the book recommendations. They've been very amazing. I've been checking them out on Amazon and will soon be ordering some of them. I wasn't sure if there was a set time that you can to go through lessons with the missionaries before you could get baptized. You guys answered that question. Thanks. I was really wondering about the drinks. It seemed like there was a lot of gray area there. You had some people who wouldn't drink soft drinks at all, while others would. So on. It was cool to hear your views on the entertainment issue. I was wondering how individuals handled that. The facial hair was something that had me a little concerned. I really didn't like the idea of having to shave. I keep myself groomed. I don't look like some wild man or anything. I guess that's it for now. I'm sure I'll have some more questions later on. Thanks again. I appreciate it. If anybody thinks of anything else they wanna add, including book recommendations, feel free to post them. Oh yeah. For the person that asked, I bought my copy of Mormonism for Dummies on Amazon. I guess Amazon UK might have it too. Take care. Have a good week.

Thanks so much for the response. I appreciate it. I'll definitely check out those books that were recommended. I really enjoyed Mormonism for Dummies. It gave me a really good overview of the LDS Church. I also found out about some of the beliefs that I didn't know about beforehand. I've been a social drinker. I would have no problem giving that up. I also have smoked cigars. I would give that up to. I don't drink much coffee. I do drink my share of ice tea. I do drink soft drinks. I was wondering who drank what. Even in that book I read it said some Mormons were stricter on what they drank than others. As far as music, I generally listen to a lot of stuff from like the 50's to 60's. It's usually everything from the Rat Pack to Motown. The movies I watch are generally from that era as well. I will admit that I've watched my share of 1970's movies starring guys like Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson. I was wondering about the facial hair thing. I've seen mostly clean cut guys when I've seen Mormon men. I know I've come across a few as well with facial hair. I keep mine trimmed up. If I had to shave it off, I would but I much prefer having it. Thanks so much. I appreciate your feedback. I look forward to anyone else who wants to offer any response. Oh yeah. How long does it usually take from the first time someone attends the local meetinghouse and starts meeting with the missionaries and when they are baptized? Also what is usually the calling that new converts are given by the bishop? I would have no problem talking with family and friends about my faith, but I wouldn't be thrilled about having to go around and knocking on doors. Also for those who have converted, how did you deal with the reaction of your family and friends? Were they supportive or antagonistic about it? I can already figure out which ones of mine will be fine with it and which will have a hissy fit. Thanks again. Take care. Have a great week.

Thanks everybody. I just did a post in the General Discussion board. I hoped that was the right place to put my questions. I hope you'll check it out. I look forward to your feedback very much. Thanks again. Take care.

Hello. I had posted an introduction the other day. For those that didn't read it, my name is Keith. I'm 38 and live in NC. I was a Free Will Baptist. I did a lot of exploring various churches throughout the years. I always felt empty. I always felt as if there were questions I had that weren't being answered. Deep down I knew there was something else out there. I just wasn't sure what it was. Then I actually got a copy of the Book of Mormon. I've been reading it. I also just finished a book called Mormonism for Dummies. That's a little of who I am. I wrote a decent size intro for anyone who hasn't read it. That will give you a better idea of who I am and what's been going on. I didn't really know much about what Mormons believed. I was taught growing up that Mormons were a cult. I really had no clue what the LDS Church was all about. I always liked the commercials that aired. They seemed to promote really good values and principles. The Mormons I've heard about always seemed like people to admire. It's been only recently that I've actually started reading about doctrine, etc. I'm now seeing things about spirit children, the Heavenly Mother, and so forth for the very first time. I know I need more prayer and study. I'm sure this has been asked before, but what books would you recommend to someone who is interested in Mormonism? Are there any personal favorites that you have? My other questions aren't really about theological issues. They have to do with other things that have come into my mind. I hope none of these sound silly. They probably do, but I was wondering about them. Can Mormon men have facial hair? I think almost all the Mormon men I've seen at the website, etc. have not had any at all. I was wondering. Personally I kept my hair very short, but I do have a goatee. What are your personal take on the beverages that you can't drink? What do you drink? So do any of you drink decaf coffee? Do you drink any sort of tea? What about soft drinks? I grew up being taught that there was certain kinds of music and movies that you shouldn't entertain yourself with. I know in the book I just read the authors talk about this some. What about you guys? What kind of music do you listen to? Is there any music you won't listen to at all? What about movies? Do you only watch G or PG rated movies? Would you ever watch a movie that had violence, nudity, bad language, etc. in it? Are members of the LDS Church all expected to go around and knock on doors trying to find new converts? I'll be honest. I can't see myself doing that all. I didn't like doing it when I was growing up and we did it in my Free Will Baptist denomination. I'll stop there with the questions. I'm sure I've got more. I appreciate your feedback very much. Thanks. I am really enjoying being on this board. I hope all of you have been having a great weekend. Keith

Thanks so much for the warm welcomes. I appreciate them so much. It is great to be here. I did have some questions I wanted to ask. I wasn't sure where the best place to post them was. Should I post them in this thread or somewhere else on the forum? Thanks. Take care. Enjoy your weekend.

Hello. My name is Keith. I'm 38 and live in North Carolina. I just joined this forum so I thought I would introduce myself. I was raised in a devout Christian family. We went to the local Free Will Baptist church. I always felt like something was missing though. I couldn't quite put my finger on it though. When I became an adult and could make up my mind about where I attended church, I started to look around. I visited a variety of Protestant denominations, as well as the Catholic Church. While the people might be friendly and I might get something out of the service, I still felt a longing. I wondered though if maybe there was any truth out there at all. I questioned whether I was trying to fill some other void in my life. Maybe I was trying to use religion as a crutch or something of that nature. I had my share of problems in my teen and young adults years. There were times that I started to even doubt the existence of God. I pretty much just gave up on church. Even if there was a special service, such as Christmas or Easter, at my family church then I might attend. That was generally it. I wasn't going anywhere on a regular basis anymore. I think I became pretty much an agnostic. I didn't feel any better. Not having any sort of religion in my life didn't give me the answers I was seeking. I still felt just as miserable as I ever did. I sought out love, happiness, etc. in all the wrong places. I associated with people that I never should have. I did many things I was ashamed of doing. This last year and a half has been one of the most horrible period of times in my life. I've never been thin, but I continued to pack on weight. I eat when I'm stressed out. I've been really stressed out this past year. I'm short. I'm only 5'4'' so weighing around 190 lbs shows up. While I'm so thankful to have a job in this economic crisis, I hate where I work. I don't have enough hours and the pay is low. It's hard to always make ends meet. I have responsibilities that I am trying to take care of. I want to do more with my life. I feel so hopeless. I feel like I'm at a crossroads in my life. I want to change. I want my life to get better. I would love to one day have a better job. I want like to do something that I could make a good living and that I'm passionate about what I'm doing. It's not that I want to make a lot of money, necessarily for myself, but to take care of my loved ones. It would be nice though to have a car to drive that I didn't always have to worry about it breaking down. I do want to get a new pair of glasses since mine are old and scratched up. It's not that I care to live a life like Donald Trump or anything. I would also like to lose some weight and get healthy. I'd love to have a group of friends that don't get me into trouble. If there is someone out there for me, I'd love to get married and have a family. There's so much more I want out of life. Maybe this is too much to hope for, but that's what is on my mind. I had never looked into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I grew up in a denomination that taught that Mormons were a cult. We heard all sorts of nasty things about what Mormons did and believed. It would never have even crossed my mind to check out the LDS Church since I was taught it was a false religion of the devil. I've never really known any Mormons personally. I've always heard good things about Mormons though. It was actually two famous people that got me interested in Mormonism. That was Mitt Romney and Glenn Beck. Hearing their stories made me wonder about Mormonism. I didn't really pursue that at all at the same though. A few months ago our local library had their annual book sale. There was a copy of the Book of Mormon up there for sale. I bought it. I didn't start reading it then though. As my life has continued to spin out of control, I prayed to God for help. I've been praying for a long time, but it doesn't seem like I've got any sort of answer at all. It's felt like I'm all alone. I did decide to get out that copy of the Book of Mormon and start reading it. I'm in the middle of 2 Nephi right now. I also bought Mormonism for Dummies. I thought it might give me a good overview of the faith. That's where I'm at now. I'm not saying that I want to become a Mormon. I haven't gotten up the courage to attend the local ward or talk with any missionaries yet. I'm not at the point of being ready for either of those. I hope everybody understands and doesn't think that sounds stupid. I did want to join this group and talk with others. I also thought maybe I could learn more here before I decided whether or not to take the next step. I had planned on asking some questions in this introduction, but I've already written so much. I really apologize for that. I hadn't meant to write so much. I'm sorry about it. Take care. I look forward to talking with you guys. Have a great weekend. God bless you and yours. Sincerely, Keith