spamlds

Consider the pattern in the Book of Mormon. The Nephites (read: the Church) frequently had "dissenters" (read: exMormons) who fell away from the Church. When their leaving the Church didn't do enough damage, they would then go over to the Lamanites (read: sectarian Christians) and stirred them up unto anger against the Nephites. It's the same pattern today.

There's a difference between "proof" and "truth." I assume the guys at FARMS are scholars looking for truth. Evidence can confirm and support divine revelation. The minute is supplants it, the power of faith disappears. In Alma 32 we read: 17 Yea, there are many who do say: If thou wilt show unto us a sign from heaven, then we shall know of a surety; then we shall believe. 18 Now I ask, is this faith? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for if a man knoweth a thing he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it.There is power in faith that saves, whereas evidence has no saving power. The Lord seeks to save his children by testing their faith, not by having them have all the answers. Although there are some instances of archaeological discoveries, ancient Native American traditions, like "the Pahana" among the Hopi Indians, and various anthropological items of interest, faith is what delivers the sure testimony of the Holy Spirit. If you don't know by the Holy Ghost, you don't really know at all.

Brigham Young was a prophet of God every bit as much as Joseph Smith was a prophet and every bit as much as Thomas S. Monson is a prophet. He did a mighty work in saving the Lord's Church from annihilation at the hands of the Gentiles. The power of the Lord rested upon him. He was a powerful witness of Jesus Christ and perhaps was the most devoted supporter of Joseph. History written by the unconverted always omits the power that was upon the man. You should consider getting the manual that we studied about the life of President Young. It was the first in the series of the Teachings of the Presidents of the Church manuals. Here's a link to the online version of it. LDS.org - Melchizedek Priesthood Table of Contents - Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young It would be a good idea to balance what you've learned from secular and anti-Mormon sources. The bad guys will always vilify the great and noble ones. Brother Brigham was one of the good guys.

I wrote this article for the Examiner. The "other gospel" Peter warned about was present in his day and it has nothing to do with Mormonism. It has to do with the encroaching false doctrines of Gnosticism and Neoplatonism. Check the article here for the full explanation with many scripture references: Gnostics and Neoplatonists: the 'other gospel' - National LDS Church | Examiner.com

Good quote, RyanH! The Lord is kind, patient, and merciful. If a person is sincere and willing to follow him, the Lord will lead him or her to the truth according to his own timeline.

Dear Slamjet, I hope your situation will improve. Hang in there. Life has a way of working out. A scripture came to mind that reminded me of your condition. You sound like you've been humbled. Here's a scripture about being humbled: "And now, because ye are compelled to be humble blessed are ye; for a man sometimes, if he is compelled to be humble, seeketh repentance; and now surely, whosoever repenteth shall find mercy; and he that findeth mercy and endureth to the end the same shall be saved." (Alma 32:13) Paul also told the Hebrews, to endure chastening from the Lord: "...My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?" (Hebrews 12:5-6) Hang in there. When the Lord corrects us, he often sends trouble our way. It's never fun. But like Paul said, what father doesn't correct his sons? When you receive chastening, you're being treated as family. You should take that as encouraging. The Lord loves you. Hang tough. Keep doing the right things and come back.

The answer is to be found in the standard works. We read in Moses chapter 1 in the Pearl of Great Price about the appearance of the Lord to that prophet. When the Lord left him, Moses collapsed and was left without strength for some time. It says: 9 And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth. 10 And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed. 11 But now mine own eyes have beheld God; but not my natural, but my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not have beheld; for I should have withered and died in his presence; but his glory was upon me; and I beheld his face, for I was transfigured before him. (Moses 1:9-11) Joseph Smith reported a similar experience. He was left without strength for a brief period after the First Vision. He apparently became more conditioned to receiving visions and revelations over time. After receiving a vision from which we get Section 76, Sidney Rigdon, who saw the vision with Joseph, was left weakened. Joseph commented something to the effect that Sidney was not as used to it as he was. Notably, in Moses, we read that Satan appeared as an angel of light to deceive Moses, declaring himself to the the Only Begotten. Moses discerned that this was a deception because: "For behold, I could not look upon God, except his glory should come upon me, and I were transfigured before him. But I can look upon thee in the natural man. Is it not so, surely?" (See Moses 1:14) It takes no special quickening to see an angel of light. To see the Lord, one must be quickened in the spirit to be able to endure his glory. Otherwise the prophet would perish in the process.

I make it a point to have a kneeling prayer in the morning when I get up and before I retire at night. We bless our meals at home, which is a short little prayer of thanksgiving. We don't pray at restaurants or in public places, except for church meetings. During the day, I often turn my thoughts to the Lord and seek his Spirit to help me deal with challenges, stress, a difficult problem, or perhaps a church assignment. Prayers don't have to be long to be effective. Pray what you feel. If you don't feel like praying, tell the Lord, "Lord, I don't feel much like praying, but I want to show you I'm engaged and that I care about doing the right thing. If you have anything for me, I'm listening." Then listen. When you pray, and immediately afterwards, take note of the thoughts that come into your mind. The Spirit will speak to you and give you guidance. This usually comes in little "flashes" of inspired thoughts. If you get off your knees and immediately and don the iPod headphones or start texting your friends, you might miss those quiet impressions. It's easy to dismiss them. Spending a few minutes with the scriptures along with your prayers extends the "window of opportunity" for inspiration to come. Stick with it. You'll see blessings come. You don't need to make a laundry list of things to be grateful for. Just speak to him like you would a friend and tell him what you feel. Then, as any good friend should do, listen to the replies that come back.

Another place you can add to the list is Martin's Cove in Wyoming. That's where some 200 people from the Martin handcart company perished. We just had a couple in our ward return from a mission there. They say that President Hinckley told earlier missionaries there that it's a holy place, sanctified by the sacrifice and the loss of life suffered there. Many people who go there report very sacred experiences. Brigham Young once said that the dead are not far from us. They see our actions and are sometimes grieved at us for the choices we make. It may be that they remain close to the places that were special to them in their lives. I have certainly felt peculiar feelings when I have walked around Nauvoo when I have visited there.

Missionaries make an invitation to believe. When someone says, "No thanks, I have my own beliefs," we politely move on, seeking those who are elect. We don't attack other faiths. We respect the rights of others. We respect their sacred symbols and hope they will do the same for us. In areas where we are numerous, we don't use zoning boards and political leverage to block them from building meetinghouses, temples, synagogues, mosques, etc. Missionaries should diligently seek out those who are seeking truth. You can't make someone who is not seeking truth have a desire for it. Don't waste time arguing over tenets and traditions. Our job isn't to convert everyone--it's to make sure the message gets presented to everyone so that the elect will recognize it. Jesus said "my sheep hear my voice." That's the way it works.

There has been some great advice offered so far. Of course every situation is different, so you just have to follow your heart. A few years ago, I was teaching a French class and one of the students, who knew I was Mormon asked me out of the blue what Mormons believe. It was a little awkward, because the classroom isn't the place for proselyting. I tried to defer the question and get back to the lesson material, but the students saw the opportunity to get the teacher side-tracked and not have to do their work. :) I figured I had just a few seconds to toss out an answer that would leave the door open to further investigation later. I searched my heart very quickly for what to say and I felt prompted to tell them that we believe the same things that first century Christians did and that we reject the changes that took place later in the 3rd and 4th centuries. That wasn't a "testimony" per se, but it's what the Spirit prompted me to say. That satisfied the class and we went back to our lesson. Ideally a testimony that you'd give in a testimony meeting would bear witness of the principles that would save a person if he heard them, believed them, and acted upon them. Those points include the reality of God, the divine Sonship of Jesus Christ, the principle of modern revelation to prophets beginning with Joseph Smith, and the veracity of the Book of Mormon. In "real life" outside the Church, you may find yourself in a situation where you only have a minute or two to plant the seed of faith. In that case, just open up your mouth and say what comes into your heart. If you have the courage to do that, the Spirit will use you as an instrument of truth.

One key to understanding revelatory dreams. If you feel that the Lord has given you a revelation via dream, then you may ask the Lord for the interpretation of the dream. If no answer comes, then it was just a dream. The Lord will give you the keys to understand it if that's what he intends for you. Most of the time, in my experience, the Spirit will prompt you directly and personally while you're awake instead of dilly-dallying with all the subconscious images that are associated with dreams. Pay attention to promptings that come while you're reading your scriptures, while you're sitting in sacrament meeting, while you're out doing your home teaching. When you're doing your duty, the Spirit will speak to you at times and you'll come to recognize it. The Lord has given me some very personal insights through dreams, but I consider them personal communications that it would not be appropriate to share with others. There's a lesson to be learned from Mary. She had angelic visitations and many manifestations of the Lord's tender mercies on the most personal level imaginable. Nevertheless, she didn't "blab" about what she received. She kept those things in her heart and shared only the little bit of her experience to the Lord's anointed witnesses who wrote the gospels. When you are counted worthy to receive revelation from God, it would be inappropriate to broadcast it to the world on the Internet. God reveals secrets to them who can keep secrets.

We had friends in the premortal life. We have friends here. Is there a possibility that we are friends with people here that we cared for there? TDoes the Lord work through those friendships? hat's surely a possibility.

Can y'all send some of that snow out here to Virginia?

If you live in a stake of Zion and you are living in such a manner to qualify for a temple recommend, you are standing in a holy place. The stakes of Zion are the refuge. D&C 115: 6 6 And that the gathering together upon the land of Zion, and upon her stakes, may be for a defense, and for a refuge from the storm, and from wrath when it shall be poured out without mixture upon the whole earth. D&C 124: 36 36 For it is ordained that in Zion, and in her stakes, and in Jerusalem, those places which I have appointed for refuge, shall be the places for your baptisms for your dead. Luke 17:35-37 35 Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 36 Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 37 And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together. The "body" is the Church of Jesus Christ in the latter-days. Those who heed the voice of the prophets and gather to the Church will receive some degree of protection when the judgments are poured out upon the wicked. Those who reject the voice of the Lord's servants are on their own.

We agree that grace is what saves us. We agree that grace is a free gift from God that none of us merit. We agree that we are 100 percent reliant upon Jesus Christ for grace. The difference is our concepts about how we obtain grace. We believe that grace comes through faith, repentance, and obedience to gospel ordinances.

Hi, Welcome to the forum, like everyone else said. Please go see your bishop. Don't let personal feelings get in the way. He was placed there by the Lord and he's the guy you need right now. The Lord knew that when he called the bishop to the position. Trust the Lord and his foreknowledge of things. I used to home teach a wonderful fellow, a police officer. He got into some trouble with a member of the opposite sex and crossed some boundaries he shouldn't have. He ended up getting disfellowshipped. He carried a grudge against the stake president who disfellowshipped him for many years. The guy didn't come to Church, but he believed the gospel, studied the scriptures, etc. I was his Elders' Quorum President at the time and I could have really used his strength in the quorum. But the guy held onto his grudge and said he wouldn't reapply for membership until the stake president was released. One day, a couple of years later (remember, he was a cop) he responded to a domestic dispute call and he was shot and killed when he arrived on the scene. He never made it back into the Church. The stake president served for another five years or so after that. Look what that grudge did. Let go of your resentment and go to the bishop. You never know which day will be your last. Call the bishop tonight.

There is a gap of understanding on what prayer is with many Catholics. They have wonderful faith in Christ and they seek to be obedient to the commandments as they understand them. They, like us, have great respect for the principle of authority. I served a mission in France, where 90 percent of the people were Catholic and 90 percent of them never went to services again after their first communion. Catholics have been taught to pray rote prayers. They say the Our Father or Hail Mary or any number of prayers that are always constructed for them. They have not been taught to approach Heavenly Father directly in prayer. When you ask them to pray about the Book of Mormon, they get confused, because they don't have a prayer written for them to say. When we taught them in their homes, we would diplomatically try to teach them that special needs require prayers from the heart. Your friend, very literally, may not know how to pray and listen for an answer. His experience has been to pray a novena to St. Jude or some other saint and then wait for a "sign" to occur. The best thing you could do is to invite him into your home or to a church meeting, where he can hear prayers offered from the heart and be taught how the Spirit communicates and guides us. Let him know that good things happen because of his faith in God. We build on faith. We don't demolish it and then rebuild. For many people, it takes years for them to shed the sectarian notions they have learned. They become faithful members of the Church, but the "old leaven" gets purged out over time. I once heard a district president's wife in France say in a district conference that she still prayed to Mary from time to time because she had such esteem for the Lord's mother and it comforted her. She had been a valiant member of the Church for many years, yet she still held onto some of the old beliefs, half out of habit, half out of superstition. The Lord knows conversion takes time. It is sufficient for him to accept us when we come to him with a broken heart and contrite spirit, taking upon us his name, and being baptized. If we'll hang around after that, he'll let the Spirit take care of teaching us the rest.

Check with your bishop, there may be an Addiction Recovery Class in your stake. Many stakes have them now. They deal with addiction in general, whether that be alcohol, pornography, gaming, or other obsessive behaviors. Our stake has one and the former bishop who runs it says that it works wonders for the people who attend it. It's a basic 12-step program. The key to overcoming addictions is admitting you have a problem and not trying to do conquer it by yourself.

If I might share my family's experience, some sisters might find some consolation. The most important thing any LDS person can do is follow the Spirit. It will guide you in your choices. If you listen to the world, relatives, or anything else, you may make decisions that will damage your happiness or make your life's mission more difficult to achieve. I joined the Church at age 19. I was the first member in my family. I decided to serve the Lord first and I sacrificed to serve a mission. I came home broke and had no money for college. Conventional wisdom would have said, go get a job, get a car, save for college, and get a career. Then, after having all that completed, think about marrying somebody and raising a family. The Lord had a different plan. I met my sweetheart just three months after I came home. She was an investigator at the time. We began dating shortly after her baptism and a few months later, we were engaged. When we got married, we were both working minimum-wage jobs. With just two of us, we got by OK, but money was always tight. Then she got laid off from her job. There wasn't going to be any college in my future unless we changed direction. After fasting and prayer, I decided to join the Air Force. I received training, developed skills, and earned a nice living. I was able to provide for my wife and we started our family. It wasn't what I would have planned, but the Lord has his own ways of directing things. In time, I was able to complete my education. I've worked for many years in a decent-paying field. My wife stayed home and raised five kids. The older boys served missions. A daughter married in the temple. Another daughter just left to go out to find her way in the world, leaving us one 11 year-old at home. We downsized our lives, moved to a smaller home, and I was called to be branch president. My wife worked for a brief time in a nursing home and a medical center and that interested her in medicine. Now, having raised her kids and having more spare time, she's going to school full time in a nursing program. At the same time, I decided to go back to school for another degree. We sit down together with our sixth-grader and we all do homework together. You can have, and do, and be whatever you want. The question is what the Lord wants for any of us. We can accomplish the things he has sent us here to do. There are sometimes sacrifices involved. Sometimes he opens up doors we don't expect. Sometimes those opportunities come long after we thought they were past. We made personal sacrifices to put temple marriage, raising a family, sending kids on missions, etc. first in our lives. Now, having done those things, the Lord is blessing us in new ways. As for my wife and I, being the first members in our family, we've been able to accomplish more than we ever thought we could. We have been truly blessed.

For the couple at church with the pseudo-reincarnation-Karma-cycle notions, you could have responded with Hebrews 9:27. "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment..." We don't die and come back around again. There's only one mortal life per customer.

When I got called to be the president of our branch, the stake president counseled me to not focus too much on the "manual." He stressed following the Spirit, saying: "The Spirit already knows what's in handbook." I've followed that counsel and, as I've taken time to familiarize myself with the handbook, I'm pleased to report that so far, the Spirit hasn't let me down. I'm always pleasantly surprised to discover that, when I find the "right answer" in the handbook, usually after having to make a quick decision on something, it's the thing that the Spirit led me to do.

In my mission in France, many years ago, the sister missionaries complained that they didn't get the benefit of the training that came from working with zone leaders that the elders benefited from. So our mission president decided that he would OK for a zone leader to go work with a pair of sister missionaries for a day every now and then. It was a bad idea. With the history of polygamy, it just sent the wrong message for a Mormon elder and two sisters to show up at the door. People invariably thought the sisters were our wives. The president's innovation quickly died after we complained. He later addressed the sister's requests for more training by calling a pair of more experienced sisters to be trainers for the less experienced ones.

Read Daniel 7:13-14 carefully, paying attention to subordinate clauses: 13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. 14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. At a great gathering in Adam-ondi-Ahman, an accounting of the keys of the priesthood is given to Adam, the Ancient of Days. He is Michael the Prince (Daniel 12:1). God gave him dominion over the earth in the Garden of Eden. When the one "like the son of man" (Christ) comes to this gathering, the kingdom that has been built upon the earth is presented to him. Then Glory honor and dominion are given to him (Christ). That kingdom will never fall.

A humorous article I wrote about "exact" translations. I think you folks will enjoy this one. 'Biting the wax tadpole' and other translation errors (part one) - National LDS Church | Examiner.com