Wordnerd

Since your profile shows that you are 18, you are an adult and can meet with the missionaries or even get baptized without your parents permission. That said, if you want to live in their house you will need to respect their rules and feelings. I feel a lot of times parents are opposed because they are not familiar with the church and they feel it will somehow "steal" their children from them. If you give the impression that you are sneaking around, it will only confirm your parents fears. I would recommend that you tell them you plan to learn more about the church, but offer that you will not invite the missionaries to their home if they are opposed to it. What you can do is: 1. Download an electronic copy of the Book of Mormon onto your phone or tablet, or read it online at lds.org 2. Ask the missionaries to meet with you at a church building instead of your home 3. Watch General Conference, which is on next weekend, it is available online, on lds.org or in some areas (like Alberta) on TV, it would also be broadcast to local church buildings 4. Watch other church produced media, available on the mormon channel on YouTube. 5. Attend the church services for your local ward, you can find your ward by inputting your address on lds maps (lds.org/maps) If you are open and honest with your parents they may accept your choice to learn about the church, especially if they see that it is a positive influence in your life. Your level of respect and honesty will go a long way towards their acceptance of your choices. At your age is when you need to begin making adult decisions if you are proving that you are making mature ones it will help them to accept that you are growing up.

I really don't think arbitrary age limits are an appropriate way of making a decision this important. Are you mature enough to make a commitment, are you willing to sacrifice for the sake of the marriage, do you share strong values, those are the things that matter. I met my Husband when I was 19 and he was 22, we knew after a week that we would get married, which we did when I was 21. 14 years later we are still going strong, thanks to the influence on the Gospel in our lives. My Husband has a cousin who married his wife when they were 17 and 16. I was surprised that both sets of parents gave permission, but they did and since the couple had shared strong religious beliefs (not members of the LDS church, but another one) and are committed to each other they are also still going strong. They did wait many years to start a family, until both had graduated university. I have a friend who was determined to marry in her mid twenties, she got married at 18, and 15 years later they are a strong and committed couple. If you choose to marry very young, you will likely have financial struggles that older couples might not. It is harder to get an education if you start a family early and you will miss out on the "fun" that all your friends seem to be having. If you are both equally committed to each other and value your family above all the "fun" the world can offer it is worth it. Don't take the words of anonymous Internet people for it though, talk to your parents, and your Bishop and Heavenly Father. If you have had worthiness issues, be very careful to keep yourself pure now, you want the Spirit with you when you are making important decisions. Young marriages can and do work, but no one lives "happily ever after" it takes courage and commitment and sacrifice to make a successful marriage, if you are both truly prepared for that then it doesn't matter how old you are.

[quote=Wingnut; For the Minecrafters: Why, why did I not hear about these in time to order them for two intense minercrafters in our home! Also how does everyone feel about purple peeps? They are the source of much controversy in our home between the peeps purist and the loves everything purple child.

Do you know anyone in your ward? If you can reach out and let someone know your desire to come back and your anxiety problem it will help you to find support in the ward. People may be afraid to reach out to you because they don't want to seem pushy and they assume you are inactive because you want to be. If you don't feel comfortable with that, you could talk to the Bishop or even the elder's quorum president for support in returning, they would be happy to give it. Never feel that your prescence is an imposition on other members, believe me your ward would be happy to see you and your children again, regardless whether you feel you come across weird. I can assure you everyone is weird in their own way. Don't worry about the relapsing on drinking and smoking, you can still go to church, we have members in my ward with those struggles, we are just happy to see them when they do come. If you truly feel you can't reach out, invite the missionaries over, they are just as happy to meet with you now as they were before you were baptized. Believe me when you do return to church people will just feel joy for you because we truly get excited to have our brothers and Sisters in Christ return.

Gree, I am understanding your concern as a fear that our imperfect understanding of the hearts of those who transgress will drive them further away. All I can say is that our imperfect knowledge is part of the test. The Bishop has been called to help people to return to Christ through the repentance process, he has not been given a perfect knowledge, because he, like all of us must rely on faith and the Holy Ghost as his guide. Regardless of the reasons we sin, it is a part of our test, however unfair it may seem. I am a convert as well and I struggle with my past life leaving me with "triggers" that tempt me to break the Word of Wisdom that a life long member may not have. That doesn't give me a pass to be held to a different standard just because its harder for me. I still must keep my covenants. People can be excommunicated and still return, if they choose to keep faith and truly repent, I believe it happens more often than we are aware. Excommunication is not a punishment. In another thread someone said (I apologize for not remembering the thread or the poster) that it is better to have the covenants removed, than to face the serious consequences of continuing to break them. If someone loses faith, and does not return it is their choice and their responsibility. The responses in this thread have had some really great points, I recommend you search the forums for discussions of Excommunication, I would respectfully suggest that you are misunderstanding it's purpose and that misunderstanding is preventing you from fully understanding what the other posters are trying to convey.

It may vary in other provinces since they all have varying levels of coverage, but in Alberta at least healthcare will not cover examinations or filling in medical forms needed for visa's, license's or employers. It would be about $150 to $250 depending on the doctor.

N. Korea says it has scrapped armistice that ended Korean War - The Washington Post So there is plenty of different viewpoints out there, but it seems that American news outlets are leaning towards posturing, and non American ones are taking the threats more seriously. (based on my completely unscientific skimming through various online articles and opinion pieces) An interesting point I wasn't aware of was that the US has command of South Korea's military during wars, and isn't due to hand it back until 2015. So if North Korea attacks South Korea, the US is involved automatically. Even if North Korea doesn't have the capability to launch a preemptive nuclear strike on the US, like they are threatening, things could still get really complicated really quick. I don't see what North Korea has to gain by following through on these threats, to my mind the US response would be to destroy them, mind you China's presence probably complicates things. Anyone else have any thoughts?

I don't think you did anything wrong. The brother giving the talk could have ignored you shaking your head. Or he could have asked you about it privately afterwords if it bugged him. It's not like you jumped up and started debating with him or calling him to repentance As a Laurel advisor I would say that those of us who teach the youth have to be more prepared so that we are sure we are teaching correct doctrine (since there is not likely to be someone who will jump in and correct errors, unlike the adult classes) and so that we encourage the youth to be involved by inviting them to participate appropriately. I do think a comment like that in sacrament could make the youth feel like they don't matter, when in fact they do matter very much! Teaching the youth is a sacred trust, that's why they reserve the more "out there" teachers for Elder's Quorum:D So I hear anyway.

I also enjoyed the movie and overall thought it had a good message, my beef was with the costuming of Mila Kunis. Those corset tops were way too low for a Disney movie, especially since I took 5 13 year old boys with me. It looked like she was going to pop out of her top a few times. The boys liked the movie, except they thought the kissing was totally unnecessary and would have liked more battle scenes (boys... Sigh)

Most Canadians consider ourselves capitalists, and Canada is not nearly in the class of Greece and France as far as left wing mentality goes. Also our economy is actually strong, unlike France and Greece, we just like our healthcare. /end of threadjack

This happened to me too. Also right at three days after both kids. With number one I was still in the hospital, because paediatrician and obstetrician weren't communicating and neither would sign release forms until the other did. So I wound up bawling because I wanted to go home so badly, luckily a nurse walked in and after I explained the problem she went and sorted them out, and I got out that day! With number two I was at home, but my husband had to go to his best friends wedding (baby was early) so he rented me "the Notebook" and went out. Well when he called to check on me I was sobbing incoherently. He came home early. So my advice is, don't watch sappy movies, and have support around you around day 3! Also nurses can fix most doctor issues!

I have to say this story has really made me upset. The bio parents really are "playing God" with their children, and the surrogate. It's all about what they want, they seem to feel they can purchase human life, and if it isn't what they wanted they can throw it away. Is it ok to conceive life in a test tube from another persons eggs, have the child carried by a third party, and then try to force an abortion on that person because the baby has special needs? I don't have much sympathy for anyone in this story except the child, and the adoptive parents, who alone seem to recognize that every person has intrinsic value.

I have had gel nails done a couple times over the years, or at least I thought I did Apparently I had acrylic done because it was the powder. I don't like it anyway because I feel it damages my natural nails and requires too much money to upkeep. I have gone and got the gel nail polish a couple times recently. Is that gel or something else? It is looks like regular nail polish but cured under UV and lasts a long time. I like it because it doesn't chip as quickly and also helps stop my nails from breaking as often. I think as far as the morality of our beauty treatments, it's a matter of moderation and priority. If you are overspending and neglecting your responsibilities to make yourself pretty then there is obviously a problem. But if you can afford to treat yourself and don't go overboard I think it is in the same class as any recreational activity, like golf, which is very big among the men in my ward, even though its pricey and time consuming. Moderation is key.

It would have been easy to slip away during the first year after I was baptized. It's hard to adjust your life and live the WoW. It's hard to lose friends and have family stop speaking to you. I'm shy and it was hard to walk in to a place that I wasn't comfortable with, knowing that I might get called upon to pray in public, and that people I don't know well would want to talk to me, and I would be anxious the whole time about saying the wrong thing, or offending people with what I don't know. It would have been much easier to walk away. I stayed because I had a witness from the Holy Ghost that the Church is true.

Maybe something they can do together, gift certificate for a dinner theatre, or if they have a shared hobby like mountain biking or something like that a gift certificate to help them buy stuff for it. I like gift certificates for people who have everything, it shows that you have still put some thought into what they would enjoy, but helps avoid the receiving 3 spice racks when you don't even like to cook issue.

Here is a link to a news article about the 58 new missions announced today. LDS Church announces creation of 58 new missions | Deseret News It's very exciting, I'm so impressed with how the young adults of the church have stepped forward when called.

We're Heathens too! I have had trouble with feeling like my Sabbath observance is not "good enough" for some other members in our ward. I feel like I have to gloss over if we do something together, rather than stay in our good clothes all day and have naps. That just doesn't work for us and I don't like feeling judged for choosing differently. My husband often works 6 days a week, on his only day off, after church, and after he has fulfilled the responsibilities of his calling, before the evening firesides etc. we like to take the kids to the park, or tobogganing, or for a hike, or even go fishing and roast hot dogs on a campfire. We don't do anything that requires others to work, we focus on spending time together, and we try to get outdoors and appreciate nature which is something that doesn't happen enough for us nowadays. I personally find it more refreshing, and reverent than bored kids squabbling and me breaking up fights all afternoon. It's often our only long block of family time in a week, especially in the summer when my husband is busiest. I think that strengthening our family is the most important work we can be doing on a Sunday at this time in our lives, so I gave up on following other people's rules, and try to ensure that we are honouring the spirit of keeping the Sabbath in a way that also works for us.

We took an awesome marriage and family class last year, the couple that taught would alternate lessons, she always had handouts, tablecloth, photos, and art. He didn't so much:D Although he did do an awesome object lesson on sealing that involved two plumbing connectors, solder and a torch!

We had two fabulous talks on the plan of salvation, the first focused around adversity, and the second around finding joy.

I would recommend finding an archery range or club that offers bow rentals while your kids are in the trying it out stage, and if they stick with it move straight to a good quality bow that will last. I'm not familiar with the one you mention, so can't offer an opinion on it, but my son shoots with a Diamond Infinity bow, which is adjustable from 5 to 70 pounds. It is a little smaller than full size bows, so is best for youths and women, but because it is adjustable it will last him till his adult years, and could be passed down to his sister, if only she shot the same hand as him...sigh.

I have a stepchild who was a senior in high school last year and hung out with the partier crowd, he didn't graduate and managed to find himself in legal trouble, his girlfriend was an extremely bad influence. My advice is stay far, far away. You have so much on your plate, with finals and preparing for a mission you don't need the complications. Bini's description is very accurate, that life will suck you in and complicate yours if you get close to it. You don't need to be a drinker to suffer from it. It is completely fair to let her know that while you like her, you are not able to pursue a relationship because of your goals, and that you don't want to be involved in her lifestyle. She probably won't like it but it is clear and honest.

[quote name= Canadians pay more in taxes but we also get better social services. Top income earners did have to pay 50% provincial/federal tax but that got hacked down to 45%. Still expensive. It is common for us to look at our top tax rates and say "wow", however because we have marginal tax rates no one actually has a tax rate of 45% on all their income, only the income over a certain threshold. Every province has a different top rate, so in New Brunswick the top rate is close to 50% still and in Alberta it is just under 40%. But as far as figuring out what the effective tax rate is - my math isn't good enough for that because it requires figuring x percent of income up to x amount, and then y percent of income up to y amount and so on... I don't think that we actually pay significantly higher taxes than the US. It is possible that our effective tax rates are somewhat higher, but our costs are higher. Not only the social services, but infrastructure etc because we have a greater landmass with a much more spread out population. Interesting little factoid from the Wikipedia comparison of Canadian and American health spending here- and I'll let the academics hash out its validity. The US government spends more on health care per capita than the Canadian government - but we have universal coverage. "In 2004, government funding of health care in Canada was equivalent to $US1,893 per person. In the US, government spending per person was $2,728." So is the US system simply not cost effective? I'm just an opinionated Canadian but if I was an American, I'd be asking why we are spending more to get less, and yes I'd be upset to see taxes going up and my paycheque going down. I don't think its a simple cut spending increase taxes scenario that will fix things, I think you need to look at the efficiency of the programs you are spending money on.

What a wonderful anniversary gift! :) Our family was sealed just after our 12th wedding anniversary. It was a beautiful experience. We did endowments and sealings the same day due to the distance we had to travel, but keep in mind the kids will be waiting in the temple youth centre several hours (with wonderful sisters to care for them!) if you do it that way, ours were 6 and 11, they handled it fine but younger children may not, so if you can, doing the endowments one day (if you have a family member or friend nearby to provide childcare) and the sealing the next may work better with young children. I think the main intent of the temple prep classes is to allow you to prepare yourself. I don't recall any specific discussion of the endowment and I don't think there is supposed to be. I was nervous before I went the first time, but have grown to love going to the temple. Prepare yourself spiritually and go in open to feeling the Spirit, don't try to analyze the experience. You and your husband can both (if it is both of your first times)take someone as an escort to help you along the way. We had an older couple in the ward who have been very good friends to us, with us (since we have no LDS family members) and were very grateful to have their advice and encouragement. We were very touched by the strong turnout of our ward family. We thought there would be practically no one at the sealing, and instead the room was full.

Yes, synchronicity as a divinely guided phenomenom was what I was thinking of. Certainly coincidences do happen and can mean nothing, I find myself thinking a lot lately on whether they can also be divine guidance because I had always assumed they were. I guess I am leaning away from that in this instance, but I haven't come across any scripture or talk that informs me either way.

I am a newish member so still learning a lot about the Church. In the past (pre-conversion) I tended to consider synchronicity as a valid form of direction for my greater good (which is a popular new-agey concept), however have recently begun to question that based on recent experience. About 4 months ago I considered taking an "outside" job (I work in my husband's business) in order to assist us financially. I prayed about it but recieved no definitive answer, my husband prayed on it and indicated to me that he believed the matter to be entirely a matter of choice for me. I immediately landed a "dream" job in the same field I have worked in off and on over the years. I took this as a "sign" that I had made the right decision. Our home life immediately started to destruct, especially with regards to the kids' behaviour and happiness, I won't go into detail but it was sufficient for me to doubt the decision to return to work, I didn't mesh well with my manager at work and after further prayer decided to quit the job. I know I recieved a definitive answer to my prayers whether I should leave the job. So, what do people think about synchronicity, does it exist, and it taught me a valuable lesson, or was I mistaken in the source of my "sign", or is it just all coincidence?