NeedleinA

Double ooooops for me. Yes, fist "pumping" from his dog pound audience. I was lying in bed last night when I realized this, duh! The kids around me when they do fist bump, say "pound it". I'm getting old

Yes, on a tight budget while baby sitting 2 kids from the ward = perfect!

Ooooh, fist pump!! I guess in Middle Earth it is like, "Whilst thou givest me a "knukles" me lady?"

Okay Sunday21... what is the party line? You are not getting off that easy Is this backhanded knuckles showing like the Queen of England wave OR balled up fist knuckles and wave? This is probably the closest that I would tell my own kids, especially if I had a blonde haired daughter! Thank you everyone for all the funny comments... now you can see why my wife and I are like..."uuuhhh? what do we really say?" In all seriousness, I think Vort & Eowyn are the closest to our initial thoughts. Something to the effect of, the date is over at that point, so don't drag it out. Let them know you had a good time (assuming you did), shake their hand, "good night" and walk away.

My wife and I will be speaking to the YW & YM this week about dating. Our part of the presentation deals with, "What do you do at the door after you date?". I'm always hesitate in sharing our personal story since we met when we were 16yrs old and ended up lip locking on our first date at the door. We tend to be the "exception to the rule, not the rule" as far as high school sweet hearts sticking together go, so I don't want to give false hope or encourage youth to do deep exclusive dating either. So, what would you share? If you were presenting this to your own youth, what would you suggest? If you are currently dating what do you do? We have ideas, but we would love to hear your thoughts!! Thanks in advance!

As I have read and thought about your comments, I can't help but think about the cartoon imagery of a person with an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other. You know how it goes, both sides whispering different opposing things to the individual. While in cartoons this imagery may appear funny, in real life however, it is not very fun at all because it causes "Doubt". Sometimes serious doubt, doubt that paralyzes you, doubt that makes you question everything around you down to your own self identity. Which side is right? Which side is better? Which side is telling me the truth? Which side leads me to happiness? If everything I've ever been taught is wrong, then really who am I? Doubt is real. It sounds like you are at a crossroads, is your doubt going to destroy you, OR are you going to allow the Lord to help you turn that doubt around and make you stronger than ever. Ether 12:27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. You are the not first person to have a faith crisis. You are not the first person to hear, see or read something that appears "troubling" about the church, church history or current policies. You are not alone. In fact there are some of "us" on this very forum who have experienced a faith crisis before. At some point you need to make a choice, a real choice... which voices are you going to listen to? Those on your left shoulder or right? You are fence sitting right now, so choose a side. By your own words: Results of the CHURCH SIDE: 1. "I found security in the church growing up and was pretty happy." 2. "I still feel the spirit and feel that it's true," 3. "I want to stay in the church and on a spiritual level I feel like it is the right thing to do," Results of the ANTI-SIDE: 1. "made me feel broken" 2. "life seems really dark and meaningless" 3. "I just can't trust it" So, what joy, happiness, peace to your soul has all the "anti-mormon stuff" brought you? You sound smart enough to understand why we are advised not to read anti-mormon stuff. If internalized, it breaks us down, takes us to dark places without meaning/hope and creates trust issues... exactly what has happened to you. Joshua 24:15 "...choose you this day whom ye will serve...". The Spirit trying to pull you back OR the Anti-Mormon stuff? Conclusion: 1. Decide to follow the promptings of the spirit that you expressed above in "Results of the CHURCH SIDE" 2. STOP being involved with anti-Mormon stuff (misery loves company) 3. Have faith that the Lord can help you turn this experience into a strength! 4. If you have questions/doubts... ask strong faithful members for faithful answers instead, ask how they deal with complex issues and still remain as strong as ever. 5. As mentioned above by LP & Tesuji: do your sincere prayers & scripture study to bring the spirit to you on a daily basis. 6. We are here to help too!

Looks like you have variety of questions/concerns... because of a lack of time right now. I'll comment on #3 and I'm sure others will step in for all of them. #3. How to avoid them?: a. Find wholesome sites that you enjoy and stick with them. Ask friends/family/here for good sites that are clean. I stick to about 20 sites that I enjoy. They are book marked and I am thus able to avoid "surprises". b. Get a filter on your internet, something that helps clean it up for you in advance. All of our computers have: K9 Web Protection. It is FREE, and you gauge how strong or weak you want it to protect you. There are others, but this is what we use. c. Another user Jojo Bags gave some advice one time that really stuck with me, some thing like "if you have problem with viewing things, stop feeding the evil then". You don't have to quit the internet, but perhaps reduce your time on it "surfing", stop feeding yourself as much. Take an internet diet instead. Random surfing leads to who knows what? The internet is a tool. How you use this tool is up to you. How often you use this tool is up to you. If it is causing you pain, perhaps switch to a different tool instead: books, newspaper, tv program, etc. Along these lines, I don't watch the news, nothing but death, sickness, disasters, worry. I listen to NPR on the way to work, and that is about all I need. Life without the news has been wonderful. d. If you are willing to "surf" the internet, then expect to occasionally see the sharks in the water "pornographic images, horror, cruelty, etc.". These sharks linger there waiting for surfers to come by, they are stories/images/hooks to pull you into other sites. Companies spend millions to leave these hooks floating in the water. I don't surf much personally.

If by divine revelation, you mean actual "doctrine" of the church vs. B. Young's opinion, here you go. This is the difference: (lds.org) "When revelation is doctrine for the whole Church, it comes to only the First Presidency AND Quorum of the Twelve Apostles... The prophet and President of the Church can receive revelation individually that becomes doctrine when it is sustained by the united voice of the First Presidency AND Quorum of the Twelve Apostles"

Time for me to go back to Primary teaching again, had no idea there was even a song!

I honestly, truly was sad at his passing, he was the prophet that I personally needed when he was here. One moment you are crying at his story, the next you get to laugh at his humor. My favorite Mormon Message of all time, 4 minutes that always tugs at my heart strings: Lessons I Learned as a Boy

Very true! Anyone catch what the Gen. Primary Presidency are wearing... "Primary Colors"? (think color wheel)... clever!

I was just having a little fun with this whole thread (joke), I hope you in particular saw the "Forever Sunday 21" Do they have Forever 21 stores in Canada? There is Omegaseamaster, yjacket and An Investigator too! If you find a picture you like, and can't scale it, paste the link here and I'll scale it down for you

They thought it was cute apparently.

Came across this...

Invite a non-member(s) to watch them in the non-patron temple waiting room, b-o-o-m! Baby sitter and missionary work all in one!

We must miss them at least to a small degree, we have a graveyard at one of our temples. Winter Quarters. For me there is a powerful message in seeing graves at the temple when I go. Looking at past generations/ pioneers makes me more resolve in not wanting to be the "weak link" in my family history. That is just me though.

Thanks for the personal insight FP. Correct, the FAIR articles & lectures, by themselves, do no constitute doctrine. I too like FAIR, a lot, and greatly appreciate their efforts to organize and defend the Church. I also appreciate this site greatly for the same reason, Gracias all! "Yes...it annoys me." - noted

For those of you that still sport the standard ambiguous "short haired white woman/man ghost on dark grey circle image"... there is HOPE!! Don't give up! You too can add an avatar image to your profile! Join the club! Still like the white hermaphrodite look? Don't worry we got you covered! Available for a limited time, buy now!!!! Donkeys? Yep, we got'm But what about dragons you say?? Of course, those too! Getting baptized soon? A.I. special, half off! Don't wait, download now

Hello AGMom! First, welcome to lds.net, glad you are here with us! Second, your concerns sound very familiar to another recent thread. I don't want to ignore your concerns, but lets see if this thread helps shed some light on things for you. "Kara" is another Sister who posted basically your same concerns: Here is the link: How to serve my husband, or, my house is a mess Let us know what you think.

I'm not sure where this idea originated from, but if I had to guess why it is further perpetuated, I would guess perhaps the Bible Dictionary?? Fall of Adam: "...With the eating of the "forbidden fruit," Adam and Eve became mortal, sin entered, blood formed in their bodies,..."

Oh boy. I opened a can of hooplah on this thread didn't I The speaker, Trent Stephens, seems like a smart/dedicated/faithful enough brother to have thought some of this through before sharing his thoughts at FAIR and writing a book on it. I think "I" may be the weak link in this equation by not conveying him well enough OR perhaps, as many have suggested, it is simply a theory full of gospel doctrine holes. Off of his "Mormon Scholars Testify" profiles, (just found this): Trent Dee Stephens, Ph.D., is Professor of Anatomy and Embryology in the Department of Biological Sciences at Idaho State University and Clinical Professor in the Department of Oral Biology at the Creighton University School of Dentistry. He received a B.S. in microbiology and a B.S. in zoology from Brigham Young University in 1973, an M.S. in zoology from BYU in 1974, and a Ph.D. in anatomy from the University of Pennsylvania in 1977. Trust me, I'm the first to say, credentials don't over rule doctrine/prophets/scripture... so I only share the above bio to offer up that he isn't a spring chicken in the world of Biology.

Thanks everyone for all your thoughts! I sure hope that I gave the poor speaker a fair swing at what he was saying. I only listened through it once and then made this thread. I hope he didn't say "black" and I heard "white" and vice versa. I've never attended a FAIR conference before. Not sure how speakers are selected, screened or debated after their presentation?? If nothing else, it allows my brain to run wild for a moment and then regroup and focus back again on the basics.

Have not been in years with my wife, not in our state. Just visited Southern California. Went to the movies and got out looking for a place to eat. Driving down random unknown streets, we found a Cafe Rio. We got all excited, turned around into the complex and realized it was only "Under Construction". Bummer...

Thanks for your thoughts as always Vort, I appreciate it. Your quote above probably is the best advice for me when dealing with the entire explained theory in general.

Forgetting the ex boyfriend for a moment, how are you these days? Sounds like you are taking on a lot of blame and worrying yourself to the point of depression. Are you familiar with the instructions you get on airlines when you board? When it comes time for an emergency, loss of oxygen, place the oxygen mask on yourself first. Make sure you are safe and secure first. Once you are in a safe (spiritually healthy) place/setup, then worry about putting the oxygen mask on others. Have you put on your own oxygen mask, OR are you too worried about "him"? Why do you suppose they tell us to put on our own mask first? As far as "ruining" his mission. It takes two to tango. He is as much to blame, so don't try to carry that full burden by yourself unnecessarily. Also, part of putting on your own oxygen mask and stabilizing yourself, is coming to the realization that you may simply never "find each other again". This maybe extremely difficult to accept given your history, but allow yourself to accept this possibility. Nothing is set in stone either way, but the sooner you can accept the "possibility" the better. We all wish you the best, hang in there and keep doing what is right.