dahlia

Every now and then my mother runs into missionaries in a restaurant. She always goes over and says her daughter is a Mormon. They seem happy about it. 

Every now and then my mother runs into missionaries in a restaurant. She always goes over and says her daughter is a Mormon. They seem happy about it. 

I was called in.  So it wasn't like a "personal decision" or something.
But, I have been impressed with the number of various dinners.  About all the 'free' dinners, I have said "this is the best church ever".
So I could have joined just for the free dinners.
And yes, being old, single and retired, I could have joined just to have something to do.  But it wasn't really like that.
For one thing, I had no idea from the outside what it was like on the inside of the church.
dc

"That is a great theory and all but why couldn't you have made your post shorter and easier for me to read, I mean geezzzzzzzzzzzzz, I only have the attention span of 15 seconds per post." - Needle The Cry Baby 

@Eowyn
Mention it to the Bishop. Then in a couple of weeks she will be called as the speaker in Sacrament on "Kindness towards others". She will repent and come and apologize to you for her actions. Also... ask to have her called as YW secretary so she can sit in on Presidency meetings and learn how YW really runs.
Oh...just kidding... go @mirkwood on her!!

Thanks everyone for such thoughtful answers. So, here is my story -
The missionaries had talked about tithing and we had discussed it in Gospel Principles. At the time, I was a new professor, straight out of grad school, no real income for years (bills paid, but nothing extra), big loan payments, a car payment (never had a car before) and the university required that you put in a lot of money into the retirement plan and a host of other mandatory 'benefits' so that I was paying a ton of money each month on items that were not optional, other than the car payment, I guess. My son lost his job in Seattle and came out to live with me. It took months for him to find work, so I was supporting the two of us. I felt like I was making good money, but seeing very little of it. How the heck was I going to pay tithing?
Then, the student loan payment options changed and I had hundreds of dollars 'extra' each month. The university changed its insurance premiums and I no longer had to pay almost $400 for a single person. It changed some other benefits so now I actually get money back for participating (still haven't figured out how that works). 
So, one day the missionaries are in my home talking about tithing, again, and I realized all these adjustments to my income had occurred. I not only could I pay tithing, but I could do so and still have more money than I had before. Things had been a bit of a financial struggle up to that point, and now they weren't. It was like being hit in the face. I was so emotional, I had to get up and leave the room. I burst into tears. The poor elders were asking if I was ok? I knew I had no more excuses for not paying tithing. How could I not pay it, for surely none of these changes had been by my hand, but by the Lord's.  It was a powerful moment for me - and a scary one for the elders. : )
And yes, even Dahlia gets taken by the Spirit every now and then, though it kinda freaks her out.

Thanks again everyone for the responses. I was able to use some of them, and my own story,  in my lesson and we got a lot of conversation. 

Thanks again everyone for the responses. I was able to use some of them, and my own story,  in my lesson and we got a lot of conversation. 

Thanks again everyone for the responses. I was able to use some of them, and my own story,  in my lesson and we got a lot of conversation. 

Oh for crying out loud. It's meant to be light hearted.
When I was investigating, I found all the 'difficult' Mormon history on the internet. Some was actually posted by the Church, some by those with an ax to grind, and some info as a part of authoritative history sites. Do I expect the elders to have told me every little thing, no - but it might have been a good thing for some of them to have read that history before they got out in the world and met people who would have no problem telling them about it. 

I believe this to be true. I struggled with tithing before baptism, but no longer do so. I have come to believe that it is right, and as someone said, it's what we agreed to when we signed on (personally, I'm OK with that as the only reason one tithes).  We had someone give a fast testimony and admit to some bad times right now. In an effort to solve some problems, the person stopped tithing. I surprised myself when I realized that my first thought was 'bad idea.'  I would never have thought that as an investigator. And as I suspected, many things went south for this person once they stopped tithing. The rational side of me says 'stuff happens whether or not one tithes.' The LDS side of me says maybe some of the bad choices would not have cascaded if the first choice had been to pay tithing. 

Which why we do our best to tell people!

Thanks everyone for such thoughtful answers. So, here is my story -
The missionaries had talked about tithing and we had discussed it in Gospel Principles. At the time, I was a new professor, straight out of grad school, no real income for years (bills paid, but nothing extra), big loan payments, a car payment (never had a car before) and the university required that you put in a lot of money into the retirement plan and a host of other mandatory 'benefits' so that I was paying a ton of money each month on items that were not optional, other than the car payment, I guess. My son lost his job in Seattle and came out to live with me. It took months for him to find work, so I was supporting the two of us. I felt like I was making good money, but seeing very little of it. How the heck was I going to pay tithing?
Then, the student loan payment options changed and I had hundreds of dollars 'extra' each month. The university changed its insurance premiums and I no longer had to pay almost $400 for a single person. It changed some other benefits so now I actually get money back for participating (still haven't figured out how that works). 
So, one day the missionaries are in my home talking about tithing, again, and I realized all these adjustments to my income had occurred. I not only could I pay tithing, but I could do so and still have more money than I had before. Things had been a bit of a financial struggle up to that point, and now they weren't. It was like being hit in the face. I was so emotional, I had to get up and leave the room. I burst into tears. The poor elders were asking if I was ok? I knew I had no more excuses for not paying tithing. How could I not pay it, for surely none of these changes had been by my hand, but by the Lord's.  It was a powerful moment for me - and a scary one for the elders. : )
And yes, even Dahlia gets taken by the Spirit every now and then, though it kinda freaks her out.

I believe this to be true. I struggled with tithing before baptism, but no longer do so. I have come to believe that it is right, and as someone said, it's what we agreed to when we signed on (personally, I'm OK with that as the only reason one tithes).  We had someone give a fast testimony and admit to some bad times right now. In an effort to solve some problems, the person stopped tithing. I surprised myself when I realized that my first thought was 'bad idea.'  I would never have thought that as an investigator. And as I suspected, many things went south for this person once they stopped tithing. The rational side of me says 'stuff happens whether or not one tithes.' The LDS side of me says maybe some of the bad choices would not have cascaded if the first choice had been to pay tithing. 

I don't think Second Life took off the way people thought it would. I have a friend who won an academic award for her work on Second Life (social / information exchange aspect, not computing).  I used to see different events in my field that took place in Second LIfe; I don't see them anymore and don't know anyone who still has an account. 

I can't comply.
It is God's first.
It is not an easy, unexamined answer.
Yes, it is the "primary answer", one a child might give. That doesn't make it easy or unexamined. Primary answers are, to appeal to the definition of "primary", fundamental, foundational.
In effect, there is no other answer.
We can look to Mary Fielding Smith and her insistence on paying tithing because she knew that if she did, she could require the Lord to fulfill his obligation to bless her. That's good, and I can't fault her for her faith and her integrity. But the only true reason for paying tithing is to be obedient, humble, to be a redeemed son/daughter of God.
Lehi

Thanks everyone for such thoughtful answers. So, here is my story -
The missionaries had talked about tithing and we had discussed it in Gospel Principles. At the time, I was a new professor, straight out of grad school, no real income for years (bills paid, but nothing extra), big loan payments, a car payment (never had a car before) and the university required that you put in a lot of money into the retirement plan and a host of other mandatory 'benefits' so that I was paying a ton of money each month on items that were not optional, other than the car payment, I guess. My son lost his job in Seattle and came out to live with me. It took months for him to find work, so I was supporting the two of us. I felt like I was making good money, but seeing very little of it. How the heck was I going to pay tithing?
Then, the student loan payment options changed and I had hundreds of dollars 'extra' each month. The university changed its insurance premiums and I no longer had to pay almost $400 for a single person. It changed some other benefits so now I actually get money back for participating (still haven't figured out how that works). 
So, one day the missionaries are in my home talking about tithing, again, and I realized all these adjustments to my income had occurred. I not only could I pay tithing, but I could do so and still have more money than I had before. Things had been a bit of a financial struggle up to that point, and now they weren't. It was like being hit in the face. I was so emotional, I had to get up and leave the room. I burst into tears. The poor elders were asking if I was ok? I knew I had no more excuses for not paying tithing. How could I not pay it, for surely none of these changes had been by my hand, but by the Lord's.  It was a powerful moment for me - and a scary one for the elders. : )
And yes, even Dahlia gets taken by the Spirit every now and then, though it kinda freaks her out.

I believe this to be true. I struggled with tithing before baptism, but no longer do so. I have come to believe that it is right, and as someone said, it's what we agreed to when we signed on (personally, I'm OK with that as the only reason one tithes).  We had someone give a fast testimony and admit to some bad times right now. In an effort to solve some problems, the person stopped tithing. I surprised myself when I realized that my first thought was 'bad idea.'  I would never have thought that as an investigator. And as I suspected, many things went south for this person once they stopped tithing. The rational side of me says 'stuff happens whether or not one tithes.' The LDS side of me says maybe some of the bad choices would not have cascaded if the first choice had been to pay tithing. 

Thanks everyone for such thoughtful answers. So, here is my story -
The missionaries had talked about tithing and we had discussed it in Gospel Principles. At the time, I was a new professor, straight out of grad school, no real income for years (bills paid, but nothing extra), big loan payments, a car payment (never had a car before) and the university required that you put in a lot of money into the retirement plan and a host of other mandatory 'benefits' so that I was paying a ton of money each month on items that were not optional, other than the car payment, I guess. My son lost his job in Seattle and came out to live with me. It took months for him to find work, so I was supporting the two of us. I felt like I was making good money, but seeing very little of it. How the heck was I going to pay tithing?
Then, the student loan payment options changed and I had hundreds of dollars 'extra' each month. The university changed its insurance premiums and I no longer had to pay almost $400 for a single person. It changed some other benefits so now I actually get money back for participating (still haven't figured out how that works). 
So, one day the missionaries are in my home talking about tithing, again, and I realized all these adjustments to my income had occurred. I not only could I pay tithing, but I could do so and still have more money than I had before. Things had been a bit of a financial struggle up to that point, and now they weren't. It was like being hit in the face. I was so emotional, I had to get up and leave the room. I burst into tears. The poor elders were asking if I was ok? I knew I had no more excuses for not paying tithing. How could I not pay it, for surely none of these changes had been by my hand, but by the Lord's.  It was a powerful moment for me - and a scary one for the elders. : )
And yes, even Dahlia gets taken by the Spirit every now and then, though it kinda freaks her out.

Thanks everyone for such thoughtful answers. So, here is my story -
The missionaries had talked about tithing and we had discussed it in Gospel Principles. At the time, I was a new professor, straight out of grad school, no real income for years (bills paid, but nothing extra), big loan payments, a car payment (never had a car before) and the university required that you put in a lot of money into the retirement plan and a host of other mandatory 'benefits' so that I was paying a ton of money each month on items that were not optional, other than the car payment, I guess. My son lost his job in Seattle and came out to live with me. It took months for him to find work, so I was supporting the two of us. I felt like I was making good money, but seeing very little of it. How the heck was I going to pay tithing?
Then, the student loan payment options changed and I had hundreds of dollars 'extra' each month. The university changed its insurance premiums and I no longer had to pay almost $400 for a single person. It changed some other benefits so now I actually get money back for participating (still haven't figured out how that works). 
So, one day the missionaries are in my home talking about tithing, again, and I realized all these adjustments to my income had occurred. I not only could I pay tithing, but I could do so and still have more money than I had before. Things had been a bit of a financial struggle up to that point, and now they weren't. It was like being hit in the face. I was so emotional, I had to get up and leave the room. I burst into tears. The poor elders were asking if I was ok? I knew I had no more excuses for not paying tithing. How could I not pay it, for surely none of these changes had been by my hand, but by the Lord's.  It was a powerful moment for me - and a scary one for the elders. : )
And yes, even Dahlia gets taken by the Spirit every now and then, though it kinda freaks her out.

Just for the record. When I wrote my book (no longer in print), The Earth is the Lord's and the Fullness Thereof,* one chapter dealt with budgeting. I researched  more than a dozen authors and financial gurus, from Suze Orman and Robert Kiyosaki to Mark Victor Hansen and Robert G. Allen, to Michael Masterson. (Please note that none of these authors is LDS.) Each one counseled people, if they want to accumulate wealth, to give at least 10% to charity. Orman put it something like this: If your hands are so tightly closed, grasping the wealth you have, they are not open to receive the wealth that is raining down all around you.
* Subtitled A Financial Workbook for Latter-day Saints.
But then, Malachi said it first, and best.
Lehi

I write this only to give you things to think about (at your own pace), and out of love (a desire for you to enjoy all the blessings you can); you need to work out your own progress with the Lord (He knows what you should do far better than I, or even you).
1) Doing baptisms for the dead is fun and a service to those beyond - part of that same generosity I was talking about before.
2) If you never go to the temple, you will never be sealed to your kids (since sealing happens in the temple).  On the other hand, if you do everything you can, with faith that the Lord will do the rest, the Lord will indeed do the rest (whatever that may be).  It is my experience that there is immense power in taking the first step, or speaking the first word.  I believe receiving your own endowments (eventually, when you're ready) will bring power and blessings into your life, and get you closer to being sealed to your family.  From my experience, when we do all we can first, the Lord does the rest.  This is just something to ponder and pray about - trust the Lord's answer, whatever it may be, and you can't go wrong.