naturelover

I love "Another Day In Paradise", too. You're right, it does make you think about all the things the Lord has given us that we take for granted. Have you ever seen this version of it? YouTube - David Archuleta - Another Day In Paradise American Idol 7 This is probably my favorite version of the song. David is really talented.

I've recently made the decision to become vegetarian, mostly because of the issue with animal cruelty. However, I was wondering if this contradicted the doctrine of the church in any way. I know in the BoM it says meat is to be used "sparingly", but is it wrong to not use it at all? Just wondering, because I wasn't sure; maybe it's a dumb question. But some people say vegetarians who are against killing animals for meat are "New Age", or are going against church doctrine because meat was used in the Bible and Book of Mormon. Thanks.

I'm sorry for putting a really similar questions on the advice forum, but I thought putting it in the Youth and Seminary forum might be helpful so I could get other people's opinions. And thanks again for the responses. EDIT: I'm trying to find how you delete a post.. I didn't realize this was so similar to my other post. Sorry again about that, and I hope I don't come across as selfish for posting this more than once.

Hi. I'm Carissa, and I'm 15. I've wanted to become LDS for a long time, for a few different reasons. But my parents are not ok with it at all. They're Baptist, and they're completely against me converting. I haven't told them I want to yet because I'm afraid of what they'll say, but I think they can kind of sense that I want to anyway, because they always insult Mormons, and I sometimes defend them, which makes them angry. I would really like to be able to have some Mormon friends my age, because they would probably be like-minded, and then, my parents might actually let me go to church with them. But there are hardly any Mormons where I live. I live in southern Michigan, and there are hardly any wards here. The closest one is a few towns away, and it's the only one in the entire area. Plus, I'm homeschooled, so it's not like I'd meet anyone at school even if there were LDS kids there. I haven't asked my parents if I could go to a Mormon church, because I haven't even told them I want to convert yet. But I know they wouldn't let me. So I have no friends who share my values. The one friend I do have, her family is all Baptist, too, and they probably wouldn't let her hang out with me anymore if they found out I wanted to be LDS. Does anyone have advice for meeting nice, Mormon kids my age to hang out with, since I'm probably not allowed to go to mutual or anything? Thanks.

That's exactly what's happening. They're always so quick to ridicule Mormons, who are Christians, and they don't realize that they're the ones who aren't being very Christ-like by constantly insulting other people. I guess I think it's really ironic that my family is so critical of other people who have a strong belief in Christ, when they themselves claim to be "true" Christians. I'm not trying to put them down, because that would be just as bad as what they're doing. I still love them, of course, but I don't see why they have to be so judgemental. And sorry if this sounded kind of like a rant; I guess I just had to vent a little.

I did, but only for a few months. My dad lost his job there and we had to come back to Michigan, where we're originally from.

Well, what made me really start to learn about the church is actually David Archuleta. I first saw him on American Idol, and he seemed so sweet and humble, and just generally like a moral kid with standards when most other kids aren't like that. Then I found out he was LDS, and I started doing some research on the church. It really seemed to make sense. But that's another reason I'm kind of hesitant to tell my family I want to convert, because I'm afraid they'll think it's only because David Archuleta is LDS, when really, that's not it at all. He's just the one who first started to make me research the LDS church because he was a member. I hope my family knows me better than to think that, but you never know. They know I'm a big David fan, but I hope they realize I'm not superficial enough to actually join the church just because he's Mormon. What would be the point of that, anyway? Anyway, I hope that's a good explanation of how I came to want to be LDS.

Thanks for the helpful responses.. good advice.

I don't drink coffee or tea, except herbal tea. However, I do sometimes drink caffeinated pop, mostly when caffeine-free isn't available. But I'm certainly not addicted to caffeine, and most days I don't even have it. Would that still be considered wrong? It's probably a dumb question, but I'm still a little unsure about the WoW and whether or not it includes caffeine or just coffee and tea. Thanks.

Hi. I'm Carissa, and I'm 15. I posted something here on the advice boards once before, but overall, I'm pretty new to LDS.net. I wanted to ask something else here, because I'd really like your opinions on it. My family is Baptist, but I want to become LDS. There are quite a few reasons that I want to convert, and I've wanted to for a while now. But my parents are completely against me converting. They think they're the only ones who are right, and they always bash the Mormon church saying it's false. I haven't told them I want to become LDS because I'm afraid of what they would say, but I think they can sense it, because they get so defensive any time the subject of Mormonism comes up. They run down the religion and try to think of a million reasons it's a "cult". My mom is the worst for this. And every time I try to defend it, she says something about how if I ever became Mormon she would practically disown me. So basically, I just have to sit there when they're running down the LDS religion because if I defend it I get in trouble. Any time I'm with my family, especially my aunts, uncles, and grandparents, I have to put on a big front and not mention anything about being LDS at all. I also haven't asked my parents if I could go to an LDS church, because again, I'm afraid of what they'd say. Plus, where I live, there are almost no meetinghouses. I live in southern Michigan, south of Ann Arbor and Detroit. There are practically no LDS people where I live. The town that I live in doesn't even have one LDS church; the closest one is a few towns away, and that's the only one in the entire area. I'm homeschooled, and I only have one good friend, and she lives over an hour away. Plus, her family is also strict Baptist, and if they found out I wanted to be LDS, they probably wouldn't let her hang out with me anymore. I've never mentioned to her, either, that I want to convert, just for that reason. I really want to meet some friends who are LDS, because they would probably be like-minded and be a good influence, and then my parents might actually let me go to church with them. But I don't know how I would ever do that, because there are almost no Mormon kids my age where I live, and my parents won't let me go to an LDS church. I'm so tired of pretending that I want to be Baptist just like the rest of my family, even though I really don't, just because they're so judgemental and I'm afraid of what they'll say. I know my other question was very similar to this, so sorry about that if you remember reading it and it's starting to sound like a broken record. But I feel like I'm at the end of my rope with this situation. I just keep praying about it, because it seems like that's about all I can do. So what do you think I should do? And thanks for reading this, since it's kind of long.

It is scary to tell them, and idk how I'm going to, either. Yeah, exactly. David is what kind of got me interested in the church, but he's not the reason I want to convert. Well at least you're sort of David's age! haha It's good that your mom isn't completely against you converting, at least from how it sounds. I know, I can't wait until I can drive and get a car, because maybe then I'll be able to go to an LDS church, too. But idk if that would even happen, my parents would probably still force me to go with them. So am I. You're fortunate to have a friend that lives in Utah! Do you get to go there to visit much?

Well at least your parents don't seem to be totally unsupportive. I hope it goes well for you when you do decide to tell them you want to convert! I don't want to tell my parents that I want to, because I think they'll assume that it's because of David, when it's obviously not. The other day my mom said "You'll forget about this whole Mormon thing when David gets married." I didn't know whether to laugh or be sad because she thinks I'm that shallow that I would convert just because of him! So I guess my parents have some idea that I want to become LDS. But I've never asked if I could go to church or anything. So do I! I listen to it all the time on my iPod. I know, you just get this good feeling when you're in Utah. When I was there I went to Temple Square in SLC, and it was amazing, even though my parents only let us spend like 2 minutes there. They say they thought Utah was "depressing" because of the Mormon influence. For me, Utah's like the perfect state, because I love the outdoors, so with the mountains and everything combined with most of the people there being LDS, it's really nice. Yes, he sure is! haha :)

You've never watched American Idol? I guess that's just suprising to me because I watch pretty much every season. It's just a televised singing competition.

Thanks, that's exactly how I feel. I guess the best thing to do is keep praying that their eyes will be opened and that they'll be accepting.

lol. I always have to stop myself or I go on and on and people around me get annoyed. Yeah, exactly. But I'm kinda afraid that my family members will think that's the reason I want to convert, simply because he's LDS. But really, that's not the case at all. Do you find that happening to you, too? Same here. It's hard to choose a favorite. I think my favorite hymn he sang is "Be Still My Soul". So beautiful. Oh, that's cool. Murray is very nice. I love Utah! Btw, thanks for the gorgeous picture! :)

lol Sorry about that! I guess it was just a glitch or something. I don't really live in Afghanistan.

Thanks so much for all the thoughtful responses. I've made up my mind now to just try to respect my parents, and if they won't let me be baptised or join the church, I guess I'll just have to wait until I'm 18. But also, I really want to go to BYU, even though it's so far away from where I live. Besides the fact that it's just a good college all-around, it's a huge bonus that I would be taught LDS doctrine and I would have Mormon professors. That's something I could never have at a college around here. But I'm sure my parents won't help me pay for tuition to go there because it's against their beliefs, and I probably won't be able to pay for it all by myself unless I get tons of scholarships. I have bad allergies that bother me in humid climates like Michigan. My eyes itch and burn all the time, and allergy medications don't really help. It's hard for me to even do normal things like go to school and have hobbies because I have to squint my eyes almost constantly. So now I'm afraid that since my allergies are so bad there, it'll prevent me from getting good grades in high school, and then I'll never be able to go to college out of state, let alone BYU, because I'll have no academic scholarships. I'm just pretty stressed out in general, and I can't talk to anyone about it because no one understands why I want to become Mormon. They just assume that I'll fall in line behind them and never question their religion. -Carissa

Yes, I'm a HUGE David fan! He's such an amazing guy. He's so sweet, humble, adorable, and I could go on and on. :] And actually, the same thing happened to me. Once I saw that he was LDS, it picqued my interest and I found out more about the religion. Now here I am, also wanting to convert! Of course I don't want to be Mormon just because he is, but you know. I just thought it was kinda neat that the same thing sort of happened to me. Btw, what's everyone's favorite David songs? I like all of them, really, but my favorites are probably Zero Gravity, Somebody Out There, You Can, and some others. And of course I just love when he sings LDS hymns. It's so amazing. EDIT: When I was in the SLC area, I actually drove by his high school and even his house. I'm kind of ashamed to say that; I guess it just shows the level of my obsession! haha

Hi! I'm Carissa, and I'm 15. I'm having some problems that have to do with my parents, and I thought I would ask here and get some opinions. Well, I have been wanting to become LDS for a while, for quite a few reasons. But my parents are Baptist, and they won't let me. For some reason they are really hostile towards Mormons. They always bash them and say how the LDS religion is a "cult" and how Mormons are lost. I do not agree with this AT ALL, but I also don't want to create a big uproar by arguing with my parents. My mom is especially bad for doing this. Out of the blue she'll just start insulting Mormonism, like she's daring me to defend it. I've never told my parents that I want to convert, but I think they can kind of see that I want to, because sometimes I do get a little defensive when they constantly bash Mormonism. I think part of the reason they do that is because they sense that I want to convert, and they're afraid of that. They always force me to go to "mega-churches" with them, which seem to have absolutely no standards at all. They play rock music, and people wear whatever they want. Besides, of course, their doctrine being false, it really bothers me how people dress. They have no respect for church. Once I actually saw a woman in short-shorts passing out communion. Whenever we go there, I'm one of the only people dressed modestly and not wearing short-shorts and tank tops. I've never asked them if I could go to an LDS church, because I'm afraid of what they'd say, but I really want to start going. I'm hoping maybe when I start driving and get a car I'll be able to start going to LDS church, that way we can just drive separately and they can still go to their huge church. But somehow I think they'll still try to force me to come with them. We live in Arizona right now, but we're moving to Michigan. I've already looked it up, and there are hardly any LDS meeting houses in the part of Michigan where we're moving. I was hoping I could maybe meet some Mormon kids at my new high school there, but I doubt there will be any because there's not even a meeting house in the whole town. The nearest one is about 20 minutes away. This is really stressing me out, because I feel like I'll never be able to become Mormon, even though that's what I believe in, and I disagree with my parent's religion. I'm afraid I'll be stuck going to my parents' church until I turn 18. And now, I probably won't even be able to meet LDS kids my age, because we have to move to a part of Michigan that is sadly lacking in Mormons and most of the people there are either Catholic or Baptist. What do you think I should do?