priesthoodpower

The idea of Spirit-Led Teaching is not a new idea. There is a new emphasis being put on this principle, but it has always been taught that we must teach by the Spirit or not teach at all. The spirit matters most, has been taught since the beginning.
 
I teach Gospel Principles. I love teaching the gospel. I feel comfortable talking about it and teaching it. This next part will come across as boasting but it is not intended to be that, but rather it is just factual. The reason why I feel comfortable talking and teaching about the gospel is because I have spent a lot of time learning the gospel. I have spent a lot of time reading the scriptures, in particular in reading the Book of Mormon. I have spent a lot of time reading Church manuals, materials, etc. I have also spent a lot of time learning about other religions, history, and culture. Because I have filled my head with these things, when I am without sin and the Spirit is with me, the Spirit will draw upon whatever it needs to from my brain so that I can teach and speak that words that the Spirit wants. Sometimes I'm aware of this, other times I am simply saying what I am saying.
 
I take the time to read over the lesson. I make sure that I take the time to listen to how I am feeling that day. Sometimes what I am feeling is not what is in the lesson manual. I ask people in my class at the beginning of each class if they have anything that has been on their mind. I let my class know that I am not just going to talk but that I expect engagement. I tell them that I don't have all of the answers and that I don't know everything there is to know and so I will be asking for input and ideas. I am not afraid of silence. I don't let myself feel awkward. I try to be genuine and real with people. All of these things help me to keep my perspective right so that I don't get distracted from the spirit and start relying on my own strength.
 
-Finrock

I have already started this past year putting my life long spiritual experiences into text documents and storing them in my gmail. I just need to figure out how to get it sent to my wife and kids if I unexpectedly die. Maybe Ill print them out and seal it in a folder in my file cabinet.
 
My written testimony based on real life experiences of the true gospel is the most treasured item I wish for my family to receive because when Im dead and on the other side this will be my only way of helping them to hold on to the iron rod.

I have already started this past year putting my life long spiritual experiences into text documents and storing them in my gmail. I just need to figure out how to get it sent to my wife and kids if I unexpectedly die. Maybe Ill print them out and seal it in a folder in my file cabinet.
 
My written testimony based on real life experiences of the true gospel is the most treasured item I wish for my family to receive because when Im dead and on the other side this will be my only way of helping them to hold on to the iron rod.

Perhpas that was the Spirit nudging you ..? :) Not that it's your sole responsibility to guide the discussion or usurp it... especially when you're just visiting the Ward... still, you have a testimony... would that not invite the Spirit? Also, sometimes when we take a more active part in the discussion that can change how we personally perceive it ..
That being said, I don't know if it's all that unusual for a lesson to occasionally be derailed or lose focus sometimes... Not all teachers are equally adept at keeping discussions on topic.. especially in some wards where the level of experience may not be as deep as in some more "seasoned" wards.. And some High Priests may also have a tendency to ramble now and then (myself included...) :)

The relief society brought homemade cookies in to our priesthood opening exercises, they were huge cookies. I took one and thought about my 3 daughters then took two more. After church I gave each one of them a cookie. It was special for me because their mother does not come with us to church so I feel like the mom and the dad on sundays.

The relief society brought homemade cookies in to our priesthood opening exercises, they were huge cookies. I took one and thought about my 3 daughters then took two more. After church I gave each one of them a cookie. It was special for me because their mother does not come with us to church so I feel like the mom and the dad on sundays.

After I got off my mission I worked for a year, then an opportunity came up for me to teach english in Japan on a 6 month contract. When I got there I quickly found the local ward, went to church and met the members and leaders. The second week at church they introduced me to my home teachers. The third week was the last time that I went to church as I slowly met non-member friends and found other things to do on sundays.
 
The first, second, third, and fourth month I got no contact from my HT's. At this point I was inactive and not happy about certain choices I had made. I had a picture of Jesus Christ hanging on the wall and I would look at it everyday thinking about how much I loved him but was so sorry for my actions. It felt as though my apartment was dark and gloomy and I noticed that I had cause the spirit to withdraw itself, I remember one time even crying and feeling sad for myself.
 
During the fifth month I was laying in my living room watching tv, the phone rang and I answered it, it was my hometeacher calling to schedule a visit, his voice carried the Holy Ghost and I felt it through the phone. He and his partner came over the next week and when they walked in they brought the spirit back into my apartment as it was also emanating within them.
 
This experience was a clear testament to me that home teaching and visiting teaching is of the Lord, when we are on the Lord's errand he is also with us to bless the lives of our fellow saints.
Its sad that us members get too caught up in thinking that it is an "assignment", an "assigned friend" or whatever. It really is a blessing and I didnt realize it until I experienced it first hand.

what you dont understand is that living in good standings as an LDS member require sacrifices and strict obedience. So much so that many avenues to obtaining lucrative careers and material wealth is out of our reach. For example my household income is half of what it could potentially be because my wife decided to stay at home and raise our kids for the past 12 years.
But the lord has promised us that if we obey him he will prosper us in HIS WAY with material wealth AND eternal blessings.
01. The two bedroom apartment (with no yard) that I live in is waaay too small for my family of 5 but I have no debt, a comfortable savings, my kids love spending time with me, this two bedroom apt is in a safe neighborhood and is what I consider my "riches of the earth" I am truly a blessed man.
I am not offended by the way you view the LDS church and its teachings because you dont understand it and to your defense there are many LDS faithful that dont understand fully some/most of our teachings and that is why we continually strive to learn and understand the gospel. Its a lifetime journey.
 

A drug dealer is obedient to following the protocol of selling the drugs.
A Lawyer had to be obedient through out his schooling to obtain a law degree.
A business man had to be obedient to laws and regulations to run his business.
Even winning slots at vegas require enough obedience to put the coin in the correct slot.
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To non-LDS folks material abundance has no relation to being obedient to God. I think we can all agree on that.
LDS members like myself believe that God is the source of all material and eternal blessings in our lives. The fact that I was able to afford a soda and sushi for lunch this afternoon humbled me enough to thank God for that abundance and I would like to believe that the Lord appreciates my efforts of obedience to pray and recognize him in following his commandments daily.
God wants us to recognize him in all things, thats all, I choose to, you choose not to.
 
Your perspective and understanding is different. We simply need to agree to disagree.
My soda and sushi lunch is an abundance of wealth and I attribute this abundance to my gospel obedience. Its false to you but true to me.

what you dont understand is that living in good standings as an LDS member require sacrifices and strict obedience. So much so that many avenues to obtaining lucrative careers and material wealth is out of our reach. For example my household income is half of what it could potentially be because my wife decided to stay at home and raise our kids for the past 12 years.
But the lord has promised us that if we obey him he will prosper us in HIS WAY with material wealth AND eternal blessings.
01. The two bedroom apartment (with no yard) that I live in is waaay too small for my family of 5 but I have no debt, a comfortable savings, my kids love spending time with me, this two bedroom apt is in a safe neighborhood and is what I consider my "riches of the earth" I am truly a blessed man.
I am not offended by the way you view the LDS church and its teachings because you dont understand it and to your defense there are many LDS faithful that dont understand fully some/most of our teachings and that is why we continually strive to learn and understand the gospel. Its a lifetime journey.
 

A drug dealer is obedient to following the protocol of selling the drugs.
A Lawyer had to be obedient through out his schooling to obtain a law degree.
A business man had to be obedient to laws and regulations to run his business.
Even winning slots at vegas require enough obedience to put the coin in the correct slot.
--------------
To non-LDS folks material abundance has no relation to being obedient to God. I think we can all agree on that.
LDS members like myself believe that God is the source of all material and eternal blessings in our lives. The fact that I was able to afford a soda and sushi for lunch this afternoon humbled me enough to thank God for that abundance and I would like to believe that the Lord appreciates my efforts of obedience to pray and recognize him in following his commandments daily.
God wants us to recognize him in all things, thats all, I choose to, you choose not to.
 
Your perspective and understanding is different. We simply need to agree to disagree.
My soda and sushi lunch is an abundance of wealth and I attribute this abundance to my gospel obedience. Its false to you but true to me.

First off, mere attendance of the mass every Sunday "or the Saturday vigil", along with attending during the holy day's of obligation is only the absolute bare minimum requirement to be in good standing with the Catholic church, assuming you are also taking part in the sacraments and remaining compliant within there as well.  It's more then just showing up, doing your thing and leaving, be it this happens far too often these days, and I call those types cafeteria Catholics.  Being Catholic is a way of life, it's a belief system that transcends this world and it's a daily practice.  I strongly recommend talking to your local RCIA instructor, they should enlighten you as to what you are really leaving, and most that leave the church don't really know what they are tossing away for they have not remotely explored what it truly means to be Catholic at all.
 
Don't worry about having a Catholic funeral, your non attendance will disallow this to come about even if your family insists upon it, the churches policies are pretty firm in this department, and as I heard a priest mention one time, "They don't participate or practice the Catholic faith while living, why would they desire this after they die?".  My grandmother passed on a few years ago, she claimed the Catholic faith but refused any attendance or involvement even though I earnestly tried to get her to come to mass, she made up one excuse after another not to attend, but at least she received her last rites from a priest before she passed on.
 
There are many that choose to stop attending, stop being involved, stop living the way of life a proper Catholic does, only to come back to the church years later.  It's rarely at the prompting from someone in it, but prompted by the Holy Spirit, and nothing unusual with playing prodigal son in that aspect, it's almost a right of passage these days.  When you were baptized, it was for the purpose of removing original sin, it was also baptism into the Catholic church, and it's only a one time thing.  We accept many protestant baptism's for those that convert to the Catholic church as being equally valid, so no need to re-baptize as well.
 
There is a fullness in the church I never realized until several years ago, something I found in no other church even remotely, and this is something yet to be discovered by you and by many Catholics.  Sure, I was raised in the church, but that was a former life I like to think, it took the second time around to truly know what it means to be Catholic, and this was through extensive study, scrutiny and testing.  I take nothing on the surface, I have to know it, inside and out, and I ask questions, lots of them, the answers I receive have to have some form of scriptural roots, and this is what I find in all things, be it the dogma to the belief structure, to the traditions, to even the format of the mass to be.  But, it's something you have to desire to do on your own and nothing I can share is going to win you over on this one.  Take note, "this" Catholic is reaching out to you, so you can no longer say nobody in the church is doing this, yet I do admire the LDS towards their outreach, something I wish we had more of here. 

dont mean to pick on you because you are filipino but my cousin served his mission in the Philippines and he had a filipino sr. companion (who converted to LDS from catholic) that woke him up one morning and said "get ready", my cousin said "for what?", ..."just get ready"
 
they walked across the street to a catholic chapel and the sr companion got married to his girlfriend. lol

Your daughter will out shine you on fathers day, sorry, cant beat that. Those type of things melt me.
 
The best you can do to come close to your daughter is to put as much heart into it. My wife always cooks a full course dinner. Regardless of what she makes or how it tastes (its always yumm) the thought of her putting full mind, body and heart into it really makes me feel special.
 
other thoughtful things you can do...
 
- clean the yard then buy food and let him grill
- clean the house then cook a meal followed with desert
- wash his truck then take him/family to a restaurant
- do a canvas painting of a family portrait, this hangs on the wall forever to remind him how much you cherish the family. My wife did some paintings a few years ago and although it looks like an elementary kid painted it, it has sentimental value and I look at it everyday.
 
If he is a workaholic like me then he's not that materialistic and appreciates the thoughtful gifts.
 
Here is an example of just how special the thoughtful gifts are.
Last week we did family home evening and my daughter asked everyone to get your favorite item to do a show and tell. Of all the things my wife owns...(fashion bags, jewelrys, shoes, clothes etc..) she picked an ugly old slightly deformed sea shell that I had picked for her 30 feet deep in the ocean while scuba diving 10 years ago, she said its her favorite thing in her bedroom.
 
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If he has a group of friends that he hangs with every so often or favorite hobbies then monetary gifts are good because he gets to put it to use and/or show it off. My buddy that I go scuba diving with opened up a brand new gopro camera one day when we were going diving. He said his wife got it for him on his birthday, he was super excited to use it. 

After I got off my mission I worked for a year, then an opportunity came up for me to teach english in Japan on a 6 month contract. When I got there I quickly found the local ward, went to church and met the members and leaders. The second week at church they introduced me to my home teachers. The third week was the last time that I went to church as I slowly met non-member friends and found other things to do on sundays.
 
The first, second, third, and fourth month I got no contact from my HT's. At this point I was inactive and not happy about certain choices I had made. I had a picture of Jesus Christ hanging on the wall and I would look at it everyday thinking about how much I loved him but was so sorry for my actions. It felt as though my apartment was dark and gloomy and I noticed that I had cause the spirit to withdraw itself, I remember one time even crying and feeling sad for myself.
 
During the fifth month I was laying in my living room watching tv, the phone rang and I answered it, it was my hometeacher calling to schedule a visit, his voice carried the Holy Ghost and I felt it through the phone. He and his partner came over the next week and when they walked in they brought the spirit back into my apartment as it was also emanating within them.
 
This experience was a clear testament to me that home teaching and visiting teaching is of the Lord, when we are on the Lord's errand he is also with us to bless the lives of our fellow saints.
Its sad that us members get too caught up in thinking that it is an "assignment", an "assigned friend" or whatever. It really is a blessing and I didnt realize it until I experienced it first hand.

After I got off my mission I worked for a year, then an opportunity came up for me to teach english in Japan on a 6 month contract. When I got there I quickly found the local ward, went to church and met the members and leaders. The second week at church they introduced me to my home teachers. The third week was the last time that I went to church as I slowly met non-member friends and found other things to do on sundays.
 
The first, second, third, and fourth month I got no contact from my HT's. At this point I was inactive and not happy about certain choices I had made. I had a picture of Jesus Christ hanging on the wall and I would look at it everyday thinking about how much I loved him but was so sorry for my actions. It felt as though my apartment was dark and gloomy and I noticed that I had cause the spirit to withdraw itself, I remember one time even crying and feeling sad for myself.
 
During the fifth month I was laying in my living room watching tv, the phone rang and I answered it, it was my hometeacher calling to schedule a visit, his voice carried the Holy Ghost and I felt it through the phone. He and his partner came over the next week and when they walked in they brought the spirit back into my apartment as it was also emanating within them.
 
This experience was a clear testament to me that home teaching and visiting teaching is of the Lord, when we are on the Lord's errand he is also with us to bless the lives of our fellow saints.
Its sad that us members get too caught up in thinking that it is an "assignment", an "assigned friend" or whatever. It really is a blessing and I didnt realize it until I experienced it first hand.

It all comes down to the method/tone/style of how the commandment of serving a mission (or any commandment) is being delivered to us members.
 
The prophets and apostles deliver the message at general conference where millions of members are listening, if any guilt is felt it is done through the spirit directly to your heart while sitting in your living room listening to the prophet. no public shaming or personal attacks involved.
 
The local bishop, EQ/RS president or sunday school teacher relays those same messages in a more intimate setting in front of a smaller audience and the chances for offense increases. That is why we need to be more sensitive and mindful as leaders, teachers and participating members about how, what, and when we say things.
 
 
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On sundays Im able to attend church but leave to work right after. Been doing this for 5 years.
In a recent interview with bishop we were on the subject of my work schedule and he said "I think it would be good for you to be off on sundays"
 
Such a simple way of proclaiming one of the ten commandments to (Keep the sabbath day holy). His words to this day still echo in my head as the spirit confirms that what he said was inspired.
 
Thats a big difference from saying  "It is one of the ten commandments to keep the sabbath day holy and since you are not following the Lords commandment you are following Satan!". Had he said it this way Im pretty sure disappointment would occupy my mind and there would be no room for the spirit. 
 
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don't be so quick to judge that it blinds you!
 
Maybe try reading the OP's post more thoroughly as he never stated that he relapsed. So yes he is still a member in good standing.
 
 
* sorry, don't mean to be so defensive but after years of seeing this type of behavior in our LDS culture and its recent affect on my immediate family members I decide to be more outspoken.  

I know OP = original poster, but I was lazy and hoping that everyone in this thread would understand it as Original Post, which would of course lead to the linked website where the said quote resided.
 
the exact quote does state..""..if you’re not choosing the Lord by going on a mission, then you’re choosing to be on Satan’s side. It’s that simple.”", so yes I did misquote. In my defense I did use that quote properly on page 7, this time i was lazy and didnt want to go back to the website.

If everything is so black and white and leads us to believe that the Kid has failed his priesthood duty to PREPARE for his mission.
 
Then we must dig deeper and look at his nursery leaders, primary leaders, youth leaders, parents, bishopric as all failures for not helping the Kid be prepared. His hometeachers for not visiting every month for the 18 years of his life, his parents for not feeding the missionarys once a month for 18 yrs allowing for the shinning example of having elders/sisters in the home.
 
As much as we call this newer generation of kids more idle and lazy, are a bunch of parents that accept less responsibility and more absence in their kids lives. You didnt have to buy that xbox which resulted in your kid being a gamer.
 
Dont put all the blame on the kid and call him a failure, or as a "follower of Satan" as stated in the OP.
 
As much as our kids go to school and face peer pressure to do bad things, they do come to church and are supposed to receive the peer encouragement of preparing and serving a mission, if that influence was not strong enough to convince him to make the decision of serving a mission then the entire ward failed him.

The idea that this is something that changed makes no sense to me.  The quote you provided earlier didn't strike me as new information, but rather an explanation of what already was expected.  The call to go on missions occurs at least as far back as the New Testament.  President Monson isn't THAT old... 
 
 
I think you're right about the question posed by the OP, but I don't think anyone's saying it isn't a priesthood duty, but rather that it isn't as universal as some are saying.  I don't think the Spirit inspires "only a few," but I also don't think EVERYONE is meant to go, either.  In those cases, I'm not prepared to cast judgments on people who know what the Spirit is prompting them to do better than I.

Im sorry if I havent made myself clear in previous posts but my claims are that the style of teaching and delivering the message needs to evolve/ adapt, not the message itself, and I was quite cautious of not saying anything about doctrine.
This is all in referenece to the op's post about a Stake President councilman that could have been more mindful in a particular setting when proclaiming the commandment of missionary work  "..if you’re not choosing the Lord by going on a mission, then you’re choosing to be on Satan’s side. It’s that simple.” - was this done in some way to scare the kid into changing his mind? well I think it was not said in righteousness because Christ would have approached it differently - https://www.lds.org/youth/learn/guidebook/teaching?lang=eng
 
I also shared a personal story of my 10yr old girls primary teacher who said "Every church except for the LDS church is the devils church."
 
Both of the above said statements Im not disagreeing with, but I am disagreeing with the delivery - which I also go on to proclaim (in my own opinion) is a generational mentality of those (older) leaders. Which is also why I said that I look forward to a new generation of future leaders to come up in the ranks.
 
 
I wholeheartedly agree with you on this, the commandment that all worthy young priesthood holders to serve should always be taught and emphasized BUT should a young man not want to go why do we have to put him out on a plank and say he is on "satans side?"
 
 
 I M H O

MG, in my experience I was just going through the motions at 19 because basically I had no other options in life. Went to Junior College at 18 and got kicked out because school wasnt really for me.
 
Returned home and put my papers in for a mission, not because I thought it was my duty or "calling" but moreso that it was a tradition in my small mormon community.
 
In hind sight, the examples of the older boys and my upbringing within that community was preparing me for a mission I just didnt realize it at the time. I didnt have any major vices (sex/drugs/alcohol etc..) which made those 2 years much more easier.
 
I would strongly advocate that any other young LDS male that is worthy but unsure about a mission should go.
 
The first week I arrived in the Mission Training Center the spirit was so strong and pure, you will never experience another atmosphere like that on earth, not even in a chapel or temple. The purity of the spirit in the MTC actually caused me to start to vomit out a hidden sin that I did not confess to my bishop at home. I went and saw the Stake President in the MTC and confessed the sin that was bothering me, he said "Son, the Lord needs you out in the field and not at home, I take full responsibility of that sin, forget it and go serve!"
 
A few experiences that I had on my mission "while going through the motions" is what cemented my testimony in the gospel.

This describes my mission back in 1998 to a " T ". I left believing and returned KNOWING.
 My older brother and 4 older cousins all went on their missions on their own free will with no pressure from parents,
 
- my older brother went inactive 4 years after returning, him and his then LDS wife are no longer mormons.
 
- 1 cousin went inactive 5 years after returning and is now living a swinger and alcoholic lifestyle with his non-member wife
 
- 1 cousin went inactive 2 years after his temple marriage and is struggling in his marriage (3 kids) while also being addicted to pills and alcohol, they got divorced once but got back together.
 
- 1 cousin is seperated from his wife and 4 kids, living in a different state but still supporting and visiting his family, he is less active but still loves the church
 
- 1 cousin married in the temple and had 4 kids, and after 11 years they got divorced. they are both inactive and in new relationships with non-members.
 
- My wife served a mission and then served 10 years of our married life in primary until eventually leaving the church two years ago.
 
 
....despite all of their physicall shortcomings all the above relatives of mine have expressed one common theme to why they slowly went inactive, THE PRESSURES AND GUILT OF NOT BEING GOOD ENOUGH. One of my cousins has no intention of returning but every one else has the potential to return should the church be more accepting of all people and not just the perfect ones. You may not agree with that statement but like I said in a previous post, its not what the leaders say that describes the church, its what the members say. case and point..."and Im a mormon" campaigns, the church spends millions to run these campaigns and maintain its internet presence along with their many websites...lds.org etc.... The brand of a company is not controlled by the board members, its controlled by the consumers.
 
"Meet the mormons" featured normal mormon families in the world and not our PR team from church headquarters trying to sell our religion. If the message that we are trying to send out in social media and the mainstream is about accepting all people of all races and backgrounds then I will bet that our teaching within the church will soon reflect that.
 
I cant wait till this older generation of leaders that are stuck in the mode of condemning people for not being good enough are up and out and the younger generation of leaders that can relate to and have sympathy come in with a style of gathering rather then scattering. It will happen, the internet is opening the eyes of us members and our leaders - our leaders will continue to pray to learn how we can adapt our style of converting, teaching, and retaining our people.
 
The church will explode in membership I can feel it, we already have the truth, its now just a matter of how we teach it.

This describes my mission back in 1998 to a " T ". I left believing and returned KNOWING.
 My older brother and 4 older cousins all went on their missions on their own free will with no pressure from parents,
 
- my older brother went inactive 4 years after returning, him and his then LDS wife are no longer mormons.
 
- 1 cousin went inactive 5 years after returning and is now living a swinger and alcoholic lifestyle with his non-member wife
 
- 1 cousin went inactive 2 years after his temple marriage and is struggling in his marriage (3 kids) while also being addicted to pills and alcohol, they got divorced once but got back together.
 
- 1 cousin is seperated from his wife and 4 kids, living in a different state but still supporting and visiting his family, he is less active but still loves the church
 
- 1 cousin married in the temple and had 4 kids, and after 11 years they got divorced. they are both inactive and in new relationships with non-members.
 
- My wife served a mission and then served 10 years of our married life in primary until eventually leaving the church two years ago.
 
 
....despite all of their physicall shortcomings all the above relatives of mine have expressed one common theme to why they slowly went inactive, THE PRESSURES AND GUILT OF NOT BEING GOOD ENOUGH. One of my cousins has no intention of returning but every one else has the potential to return should the church be more accepting of all people and not just the perfect ones. You may not agree with that statement but like I said in a previous post, its not what the leaders say that describes the church, its what the members say. case and point..."and Im a mormon" campaigns, the church spends millions to run these campaigns and maintain its internet presence along with their many websites...lds.org etc.... The brand of a company is not controlled by the board members, its controlled by the consumers.
 
"Meet the mormons" featured normal mormon families in the world and not our PR team from church headquarters trying to sell our religion. If the message that we are trying to send out in social media and the mainstream is about accepting all people of all races and backgrounds then I will bet that our teaching within the church will soon reflect that.
 
I cant wait till this older generation of leaders that are stuck in the mode of condemning people for not being good enough are up and out and the younger generation of leaders that can relate to and have sympathy come in with a style of gathering rather then scattering. It will happen, the internet is opening the eyes of us members and our leaders - our leaders will continue to pray to learn how we can adapt our style of converting, teaching, and retaining our people.
 
The church will explode in membership I can feel it, we already have the truth, its now just a matter of how we teach it.

Does the stake president breath air and drink water? ..then he is human and has potential to offend and disappoint....and it happens in our wards/stakes more often then we want to acknowledge. So yes I can believe that it happened.
 
Earlier this year my 10 yr old daughter was sitting in her primary class. Her male teacher (Husband/wife combination who are in their 60's and husband served in the bishopric many years ago) told them "Every church except for the LDS church is the devils church". 
 
I dont disagree with that statement but there is a time and place to have that discussion and in a 10yr old primary class is not the time nor place.
 
I know this brethern and he is genuinely a good person that loves the ward and does a lot of service, but what he thought was a teaching moment ended up scaring my daughters perception of how us mormons view the rest of the world, she came away very upset that our LDS church would think of her best friends at school and on her soccer team whom go to other churches as evil people.  I had to tell my daughter what President Hinkley said about other churches....that they are all good people and all have truth to them but only our church has the keys to administer eternal ordinances and the priesthood. Can anyone say damage control?
 
In Business Sales and Marketing the brand of your company is not controlled by what you say in your advertising messages, it is controlled by the customers who tell it. The customer controls your brand. How do you make them feel? ..How do our church leaders make us feel? If they are acting in righteousness then the spirit would be present and the person receiving the message would know that there are good intentions behind that message regardless of how awkward it might have sounded.
 
I can remember back in the 90's how the national media would always refer to us as "mormons", and the brethern in SLC tried very hard to explain that we would like to be known as "The Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints", there was even efforts put out in our Ensign magazines instructing us members to take every opportunity available to explain to our non-member friends that we are LDS not mormons. As hard as we tried to control our own brand, the snowball effect was out of control and so eventually in the early 2000's our church embraced the term and now we officially accept the title of "mormon".
 
All these storys of how members are being offended and eventually going in-active by what our leaders are saying and how they say it will eventually be the subject of our church leaders meetings (if it already has not), and things will change for the better.

I liked that missionary story from that feminist blog. More stories like that need to be told. This is the informational age and I believe that the internet is a tool to further the work of the Lord in this dispensation.
 
The leaders in our stakes are old school and were raised in the 70's, 80's, 90's. Most of you all in here have that same old school approach to how the Gospel is delivered. The word never changes but the way we deliver it needs to change, and it is changing.
 
For example I remember being on a mission in 1998 and my mission president telling us that "..the lessons were inspired from God to our apostles and we need to read them word-for-word to our investigators..no side tracking or going off subject". In 2002 they changed that and now go along with whatever the investigators questions are.
 
The way we teach our youth in sunday school has also changed, there is no longer a set lesson but rather a range of lessons to choose from that help the teacher to do less teaching and more of "leading a discussion". From what I was told as the Sunday school president in my ward...coming from my stake presidency was that "...we are loosing many of our youth to other churches that cater more toward the younger generation by doing all sorts of fun activities...we need to cater more toward their needs and engage with them in our classes."
 
From what I am hearing this same teaching method is going to be implemented into the adult gospel doctrine class too. Is this because we are losing adult members as well? ..we need to cater more to their individual needs and concerns rather then painting one wide brush stroke across the board?
 
I love the way our church is continually progressing to meet the needs of its membership, not according to the ways of the world but according to the ways of our Lord, I believe that our apostles and leaders are called to receive continual revelation to guide the church and that means things change as we pray and ask for advice about problems we face on a daily basis.
 
As far as the young man in that blog that was told he was following satan by not serving a mission, the word and letter of the law will not change but (by devine inspiration) the way our stake and ward leaders deliver these types of messages will change and evolve.