askandanswer

Grandparents and grandchildren get along really well because they share a common enemy.

I grew up without video games at home, but when I was about 10-12, someone from the family bought a gaming console (Nintendo NES, maybe) for Grandma and Grandpa's house. They put it in the upstairs back bedroom and I remember playing it with my cousins while the adults talked downstairs. I also remember helping Grandma with jigsaw puzzles on the formal dining room table, which was right next to the living room where Grandpa watched the Packers. As I got older and realized the stoic man was worth spending time with, I'd watch the silly sportsing games with him.
@JohnsonJones I think you have every right to claim a TV as Grandpa's. Put the Olympics on and they'll either watch with you or leave the room. Your house, your rules. The Olympics are a special occasion; video games are not.

Welcome to my world, only I'm the parent.  We made the choice to limit TV and gaming.  It has made me a better parent, in my opinion, because I have to actually parent.  It's not always easy to stop what I'm doing and help/play with/teach my children, but I always learn it's far more rewarding.
Last week it was getting dark, 20 degrees out, I was battling a sinus infection, and I'd had a super long day at work.  I was thinking of eating early and going to bed.  I was sitting on the couch doing some work I had brought home when my son asked me to go outside and toss the football. I said no, it was getting too dark, and he said OK with disappointment all over his face.  I got up, turned on the floodlights, and we went out to throw the football around for over an hour.  
We had a blast.  I was thankful for the time alone with him and learned more about him.  I'm lucky to be his dad.

I tried not judging my bishop, until I stopped by once and caught him digging a pit for his neighbor.
The Scriptures are quite clear on that, and there's no exception for the neighbors' septic needs.

Hi @Blossom76
Congratulations on having made a huge step towards what I think of as your second major breakthrough, the first being the gaining of a testimony of the Book of Mormon. I congratulate you on the great efforts you are making to find the truth and your strong and persistent desire in the face of difficulties, misunderstanding and frustration. Well done and please keep it up! I hope I’m not sounding condescending, I mean this sincerely, and with respect.
I think its great that you are continuing to study a lot and seeking to expand your testimony, but I don’t think you should be seeking for a testimony of the truthfulness of the History of the Church. (And by “testimony” I mean a spiritual confirmation of a truth. I think you already have a testimony of the Book of Mormon). I don’t think God has promised to give anyone a testimony of the History of the Church although I’m quite confident that He can confirm the truth, or otherwise, of the incidents and truths recorded in the History of the Church. (I think that @Jane_Doe can confirm this). A study of the history of the church (lower case) is primarily an intellectual exercise, and although hopefully a greater understanding of church history can help to improve our knowledge and faith, developing a good knowledge of church history in lieu of a testimony is similar to the difference between knowing about Christ and knowing Christ. One kind of knowledge is intellectual, developed through lots of study, and the other kind is personal/spiritual, something that is felt rather than proven. The value of the two different types of knowledge can perhaps be demonstrated by taking the analogy a little further. One can study about Christ for years and years, and based on all of this study, come to a conclusion that Christ had white hair and then live a happy life based on this carefully constructed belief. However, a more learned person comes along and proves conclusively that Christ had brown hair. What then happens to the structure of knowledge and belief that has been built around conclusion that Christ has white hair? The likely result will be confusion, doubt and uncertainty. But for the person who knows Christ, it matters not a bit what colour his hair is. The person who knows Christ can listen to conflicting evidence all day from dozens of scholars who have dedicated their lives to a study of Christ’s hair colour and all their conflicting arguments won’t have an impact on his testimony because he knows Christ
In one of your recent posts, (and I kind of sensed your confusion/frustration when you wrote it) you asked something like how much does this (“this” referring to inconsistencies in the History of the Church) really matter. I took that to mean you asking something like whether or not you had to agree with or believe all this other stuff in order to accept the rest of the church and its teachings and doctrines. Here is my attempt to set out the stuff that really does matter and that you really do need to accept and have faith in in order to become a member of the church. (I’ve gone a bit further than I intended by adding in brackets my guess as to where I think you are up to on each of these point. Perhaps that’s a bit cheeky or judgmental of me, apologies if it offends)
The reality and divinity of God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost ( I think you have this)
The Plan of Salvation (Currently under development)
The truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and the other Standard Works ( I think you have this in relation to the Book of Mormon, but perhaps not the Book of Abraham)
The restoration of the gospel (Currently under development
That Joseph Smith was a prophet called of God to restore the gospel and that Russell M Nelson is God’s living prophet on the earth today.  (Significant progress being made)
The restoration of the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthood and that these Priesthoods constitute the authority of God given to man (Being examined)
A willingness to live the various covenants and commitments that go along with all this, particularly tithing, fast offering, Word of Wisdom and Law of Chastity. (Almost certainly yes once the above is confirmed)
This list may well be viewed by others as incomplete or poorly worded. I’m reasonably confident that others can add to or improve this list.
Even if you don’t yet have this faith or understanding on all of these points, it looks like you have a strong willingness to obtain it and at this point, that’s a crucially important thing to have.
 

So your church leaders say listen to your heart and the spirit. Could it be that the part of you that is screaming at you to call her is your heart, and the part of you that is saying wait, give her time to heal, is your head, based on what you have gleaned from a study of dating websites? And which part did your church leaders say you should listen to?
As well as all the self-healing you are engaged in, I think that the most important thing to be doing right now, and I'm sure you are working on this, is rebuilding your financial savings. A healthy bank account will help to deal with a lot of practicalities that can sometimes become an obstacle to the development of a romantic relationship.

@Blossom76 I don't think people should have too much of a problem if a counsellor to the Prophet says in 1831 that polygamy is bad, and then the Prophet announces in 1843 that polygamy is good. We should continue to sustain him and act as if he is speaking for God. If he is not speaking for God, then its God's problem and He will deal with it. If he is speaking for God, we better get with the program.

if you were in Utah, the church down the road is more likely than not to be another LDS chapel

if you were in Utah, the church down the road is more likely than not to be another LDS chapel

In regard to the sincere desire you have to know if the Church is true, and to receive a witness that it is true by the power of the Holy Ghost, I would like to share about how I received my witness, with hope that it may perhaps be of some additional benefit to you.
Throughout my life I have always believed the Church to be true, and have had many spiritual experiences that have confirmed this.  However, nearly half-way through my mission I realized that I was asking people to read the Book of Mormon and pray to ask if it was true, and I was promising them they would receive and answer, although I had actually never received such an answer while specifically in the act of praying to know that the Book of Mormon was true.
Many times I had felt the spirit while reading.  I had powerful experiences at various youth conferences, and other Church and religious activities.  However strong all these may have been, I remained bewildered that I still hadn't received an answer specifically while praying.  Was I doing it wrong?  I mean, I was on my knees sincerely and at times literally saying, "Heavenly Father, is the Book of Mormon true?" . . . Nothing.  I kept going to teach people the gospel, still believing in my heart it is true, but not receiving what I think I need; that specific answer, during that specific prayer.
One Saturday evening, I was out on the couch reading scriptures and winding down.  The following day was Fast Sunday, so before going to bed I started my fast with a prayer.  There was nothing noteworthy about the prayer itself. I can't even remember what I said, or what I was fasting for, but I remember that I felt the Spirit that evening, and could recognize it while kneeling there at the conclusion of my prayer.
As I knelt over the couch, resting on my elbows and about to get up, I felt a very distinct impression.  The impression was to pray.  "Pray?"  I thought, "Why?  I just finished praying."  Then the impression came again, and with more.  It said, "Pray, and ask if the Book of Mormon is true!"  I was immediately struck with a knowledge of what the Lord wanted me to do in that moment, and why.  I already had the Spirit with me, and I knew it, and could clearly recognize it.  If I were to do something that would make the Spirit leave, I could recognize that as well.  So, If I were to speak to Heavenly Father in prayer and ask Him if the Book of Mormon is true, and to share with Him that I believed it to be true, and if the Spirit were to remain with me, and not leave, then I would have my answer that I sought from prayer, because the Spirit would be there testifying and allowing me to proceed forward with the witness in my heart that it is true!  So, that's what I did!
I was already kneeling, so I just started praying again.  I told Heavenly Father that I had read the Book of Mormon and believed it to be true.  I asked Him to continue to bless me with the peace of the Spirit to remain with me as a witness that it is true.  And I testify to you that the Holy Spirit remained with me at that time and I knew and know that the Book of Mormon is true.  In the Lord's wisdom, I did not stop there.  I continued praying and asked in like manner if Thomas S. Monson was a true prophet.  The Spirit remained.  I asked if Joseph Smith was a true prophet, and if the things he claimed to do and to be true were actually true.  The Spirit remained.  I asked if the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the Lord's only true and living Church on the earth.  The Spirit remained.  I asked if the Bible is true as far as it is translated correctly.  I asked if the message of the Restored Gospel was true as I was taught and was teaching it.  I just kept asking things that I needed and wanted at that time to know to be true, and each and every time I continued to feel the comforting influence of the Spirit, the peace that comes only from the Lord, remain with me and confirm to me that it is all true.
This is how I know and will testify that the Church is true.
That experience has since changed my life, understanding, and ability to teach the gospel and how to recognize and receive answers from the Spirit.   In my personal studies following this spiritual witness, I was able to pinpoint a few key factors relating to how I was able to be prepared to receive it.
In the first passage, Moroni encourages us to read, to ponder, and to remember the mercies of the Lord.  From John we learn that the Spirit is the one who can enable us to remember the things of the Lord.  Hence, as we sincerely read and ponder, the Spirit aids us in the task of remembering.  The Spirit is also the teacher.  He helps us remember, but also gives us new knowledge from God.  When we experience His comfort we can choose to receive Him into our hearts, and then at that moment we are ready to ask in faith.  When we ask God in faith seeking the kind of answers we must attain through faith, He does not respond with statistics, artifacts, historical data, or any other form of physical or worldly evidence, because he does not give as the world gives.  Instead, he leaves us with peace.
That night, when I sought to confirm the truth of the restored gospel, I had prepared myself to receive an answer in a way I had not previously known.  When we invite the Spirit to be with us before we pray, we will be more capable to receive and recognize answers while we are praying.

Thanks for that scripture, it jumped off the computer screen at me (literal tears)! And it instantly changed my perspective, so honestly thank you.
I'm going to live as if I already know its all true, the Book of Abraham, todays prophet, the LDS church, the Word of Wisdom, all of it.  If I do that with a sincere heart and pray every day about it then hopefully the holy spirit will answer me again (and hopefully within a year and 6 months witness to my husband too!).
But I think I'm always going to be a church history buff, hopefully it will help me to help investigators with hard questions. 
Thanks @person0 God must have given you that scripture for me to read, it was perfect

You don't sound snarky, and thank you you're right, and I am praying like a mad woman to know the LDS church holds the authority of God and Jesus on earth, hopefully the spirit comes through for me again

Forgive me in advance if someone has already brought this up, however, when I read this, the following is how I interpret it:  "God gave me a personalized answer that the Book of Mormon is true, but I want/need proof."  It's going to be extremely difficult to not sound snarky here, so once again, please forgive me in advance if that's how this comes across, but:
From what you wrote, it sounds to me like you have received a witness from God.  Now what?
If you know the book of Mormon is true by the power of the Holy Ghost, that is already more than about 99.8% of the population of the entire world.  How cool is that!  If you don't know by His power, then get crackin' on them prayers!
Ultimately, we all want proof, none of us have any, and somehow we are still here convinced we don't have to have it.  Likewise, most of the Christian world, with at least the commonality that we put our faith in Christ.

I like your mind @Grunt and the way you think.

There goes the neighborhood - even before it started!

In several thesauruses, blunt is a synonym for dull. 

Thank you, that's actually an informative answer!  I can understand why Jospeh would have done that if that's how it happened.  I don't agree with it, to me, if God said 'do this' then there is nothing to be ashamed of and Oliver Cowdery can just 'grow a pair deal with it'  BUT I can understand why Joseph would have denied it.
And I'm not saying every problematic statement is an attempt at deception, I'm just looking at the history and asking questions when I see something that makes no sense to me.
 

The “Article on Marriage” you cite from the 1844 Doctrine and Covenants was rammed through a conference of the Church for approval by Oliver Cowdery in 1831, at a time when Joseph Smith was away on a preaching trip (to Michigan, if memory serves).  Cowdery had recently become aware of Smith’s first plural marriage to Fanny Alger, was incensed by it, and was trying to box Joseph Smith out of doing anything similar in the future.  
Smith, on his return, chose not to swim against the current; and didn’t teach plural marriage again until 1842.  Even in 1844, there were barely two dozen men in Nauvoo (out of a population of nearly 10,000) engaged in the practice.  
You’re absolutely right that no statement an entity makes about itself should be necessarily be taken at face value; though going further and suggesting that every problematic statement is by default a nefarious attempt at deception would be inaccurate as well.

People choose to be insulted.  I can't help that.  Personally, I was glad someone told me the path to Exaltation.  
I wasn't aware you were deciding which branch from Joseph Smith was true.  Sorry.  I thought you were talking about ALL Christian sects, the vast majority of whom don't follow the Book of Mormon.  I can't help you with the other JS branches.  Once I received a testimony of LDS, there was no reason for me to study them.  I have too much to learn with the True Church.  They interest me, so perhaps I'll look at their history some day.

So... who is inside the compound?

and it will do the rest of us bad if he does!

hmmm, s y n onym and a n t onym. Does that count as one typo or three?

In several thesauruses, blunt is a synonym for dull. 

@zil. How lovely! Think how much fun our local Relief Society would be! I would have to skip the RS target shooting practice!