LeSellers

Yes to all three. But, I believe it's primarily a lack of faith (or too much faith in the wrong things).
This is true. We all suffer from "normalcy bias"*, the idea that everything will continue as it has in the past. (Well, the recent past. Somehow people just don't look very far back. The "Great Depression" wasn't all that long ago, really.)
* Some more than others, but no one is wholly immune.
We also imagine the government will provide. It may, for a while, but it comes with hooks, large and barbed, and potentially lethal. More concerning, however, is the fact that there is no way this "largess" can possibly do what the state "promises" (but cannot deliver) without stealing from taxpayers today and from the future (our grandchildren and great grandchildren). Even then, it won't last too long. Not even the federal reserve and the government can print money fast enough to "pay" for all of it.
"Lifestyle" is a big problem. A boat is a hole in the water one pours money into. Trucks and many other toys focus people on the wrong things, particularly things of no long-term value, things they could do without entirely or put off, or for which substitutes could easily be found.
The problem is, one cannot eat "lifestyle".
I worked for a man who could tell how much debt a family had just by knowing their income. He'd be right 95% of the time (within about 5%). Most USAans have about four times more debt than income. Mortgages are a large part of it, but car loans, student debt, medical bills, and general debt for refrigerators, carpet, and "home improvements", among a thousand other non-necessities.
That's why I worked for this guy. He had a program that could eliminate debt for the average family in 6~7 years. It's not too difficult a process, but it does take mental and spiritual strength; strength that many seem unable to muster.
Student loans are now greater than consumer debt in USA (and the bankruptcy law doesn't allow writing them off).
May I add a fourth?
There are people who think the Church will bail us out. Jess ain't agonna happen, folks. This is one of those things in which we may be placing too much faith. The Church's storage wouldn't last five days, and that only for the people within a dozen or so miles from a storehouse. We have 240,000 bushels of wheat in the Denver storehouse. Cracked and cooked into gruel, not its most appetizing form, to stretch it as far as it would go, three days, tops.
Lehi

Proofs are not for "understanding", they are for "thinking".
Math is a laboratory for the process of thinking. It's a contolled environment where the steps/process can be monitored and evaluated. No, you'll never "use it" in real life, but without it, real life would quickly become slavery.
Lehi

Ya think?!

 



 
Enjoy ?!?
Lehi

1. Mop
2. 5-gallon
3. Old oaken
4. Pail
5. Galvanized
...that's about it really.  I don't want a slop bucket.  Don't have room for an excavator bucket (or an excavator).  No helicopter, so a helicopter bucket would be useless.

Proofs are not for "understanding", they are for "thinking".
Math is a laboratory for the process of thinking. It's a contolled environment where the steps/process can be monitored and evaluated. No, you'll never "use it" in real life, but without it, real life would quickly become slavery.
Lehi

I've heard this in several "quasi-Mormon" posts and discussions online, (they'll give anyone a blog these days...).
The most recent one was from an article someone forwarded on to me:
http://religionnews.com/2016/05/16/the-prophet-will-never-lead-the-lds-church-astray-and-other-mormon-heresies/
Am I missing something here, or is this just someone lamenting that because their own personal beliefs are outside the beliefs of the mainstream Church members they feel unjustly oppressed and are projecting their personal religious deficiencies on to the Church in an attempt to play the "sour grapes" line?

How does church doctrine and policy strip people of their agency?  Is the church trying to force people one way or another?  I don't believe it is.  I don't believe the Lord is.  The Lord wants us all on the same page.. but that's up to each of us.  He still will call those to lead us who He will call.  They will make decisions and be accountable to Him.  The Prophet and the apostles bear an especially heavy burden in this.  They don't answer to us... they answer to the Lord.  I believe this with all my heart.  If I became convinced this was just a church of men then I can't imagine that I'd be able to continue to be a member.  But I've experienced too much.  I know enough to know that this church is the Lord's church and that this is His work and His priesthood.  It's not found anywhere else.
If people want a church created in their own image they're welcome to start their own.  If they have a testimony that this is the true church then they need to take their doubts and questions to the Lord and reason with Him.  The Lord calls imperfect men and women to lead us.  I'm not saying that to justify any mistakes that individuals make.  I do believe that the Lord works with all of us in our imperfections... especially our leaders.

It shows they at a minimum fundamentally do not understand what Agency is...
 
In Abraham 3 we read
24 And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
25 And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
The whole point of this Earthly existence is to see if we will do all things that God command.  That is what our Agency is all about.  That is its purpose.
Therefore teaching someone what God's commands are can not strip from a person their Agency... because it is precisely what enables it.
Those who understand this but still make such an argument are the ones attempting to strip people's Agency from them and thwart the plan of God.  Because you can't exercise your agency to follow God or not... until you know what God commands.
 
 

By their fruits ye shall know them. I read that somewhere, and it seems fitting.
Lehi

And that, too, is fair to say. Indeed, it seems likely: repentance is harder than anything else except not repenting.
Lehi

I'm tall, good looking, and humble. I'm breathing on my own. How can I complain?
Lehi

Not Superman so much as Wonder Woman.
Lehi

I'm tall, good looking, and humble. I'm breathing on my own. How can I complain?
Lehi

Sometimes I think forgiveness might be harder... when what is needing to be forgiven is quiet grave... and great harm has been done

And that, too, is fair to say. Indeed, it seems likely: repentance is harder than anything else except not repenting.
Lehi

I can answer your question by telling you what I didn't find there. I didn't find any positive confirmation, reassurance, peace from the Spirit that you were on the right track. In fact it was exactly the opposite. I realize this is a gospel battle you have been trying to fight for years now, and anxiety and depression don't help it, but you are following a path that will not and can not bring peace to your soul. Worse than simply following a path away from the iron rod, you are now repeating those same teachings to others. You are now the one beckoning others off of the path with you. 
I do agree with one of your past statements:  "I admit I probably have a distorted view of the church due to focusing on negative aspects and disqualifying the positive."
You can try to "logic" yourself out of this slump all you want, but a little hand holding with the Savior, sincere prayer and humility in letting the Spirit teach you will go much farther and deeper.

There are also people in the church that don't think things through...  There are people who are active for social reasons rather then faith reasons.
The fact that they go to Church every week does not mean they have faith or accept the scriptures or prophets...  Thus your point is an absolute failure.
 
You claim a fact not evidence...  Nothing you said or otherwise posted shows any consideration of what we have told you... and criticism naturally follows when you take hypocritical positions  

And yet... you yourself claim to disbelieve that Joseph Smith is a prophet and you also disbelieve Section 132 thus you personally have show this to be true...
And you have never yet done anything more than assert that it does not have to be so... you have never shown how that might work... while the opposite  has been shown by your example and logic and reasoning laid out by myself and others

And I have also heard that part of it is to ensure we are focused on the right things (worshiping God, feeling the Spirit) and neither distracted by the architecture / decorations, nor accused of idol worship (via statues / paintings / other artwork), nor at risk of it (speaking of putting people on pedestals).
Personally, I often lower my head and close my eyes, to concentrate on what I'm hearing (seeing the speaker generally doesn't add anything to the experience for me); the rest of the time, I'm actually taking notes, so the decorations are irrelevant. :)  <-- Poor abandoned punctuation-symbol-combination. Their emoji has gone away.
 

No, but the new, functional buildings are designed for economic effectiveness. We don't need cathedrals with their "sermons in stone" to preach the Gospel: most of our people can read, and stained glass, beautiful as it can be, preaches no finer sermon than one from the Holy Ghost.
The money saved in building simple chapels and other edifices goes toward the important second and third prongs of the mission of the Church: preaching the Gospel and redeeming the dead, not to mention caring for the poor and the needy.
Lehi

Thanks. I read your blog today, the same one you have been copying and pasting from. You appear very set in your "concerns" and unchanging in your thoughts the entire time you have been here. Your blog is not one of innocent gospel exploration and confusion, instead you are very critical of the Church in many aspects and appear to be trying to spread those thoughts here too. So, honestly, what did you hope to accomplish here?

None so blind as they who will not see
 
 

1. See https://www.lds.org/manual/doctrine-and-covenants-student-manual/section-81-89/section-89-the-word-of-wisdom?lang=eng
2. What Jane said.  While there may have been instances of someone speaking something incomprehensible and while that may have been the gift of tongues (what do I know? 1 Corinthians 14:9, 13-14), I cannot see a good purpose for it if no one present can understand.  If one tries to argue that it's evidence of something, how can anyone else judge the validity of the evidence without understanding?  I think in this day and age, the gift of tongues / interpretation of tongues are gifts to learn to speak, understand, and translate between known languages, and I've read / heard about members and missionaries receiving these gifts for the purposes of teaching the Gospel or otherwise helping others.
The fact that the gift of tongues is almost always mentioned together with the interpretation of tongues is relevant, IMO: 1 Corinthians 12:10, Mormon 9:7, Moroni 10:15-16, D&C 109:36 (most interesting), D&C 46:24-25, Acts 2, etc.  (And Ezra 4:7 interestingly includes the same combination, but clearly describing only one language.)
Other scriptures, like 3 Nephi 26:14, have a different context, but like the example you gave, it's clear that what was spoken was understood by others, not just the speaker, even if the language was previously / otherwise unknown.  I think that is an important principle in determining if something is a gift of the Spirit or an imitation thereof.
FWIW.

Around these parts questions asking should I talk to my bishop about this sinful action are answered with..
"That would be a good question to ask your Bishop"
This is because of a simple fact... no one on this forum is your Bishop.. no one on this forum is holding the keys to help you with your repentance.  Our opinions do not matter... whereas your bishop's opinions and answers can bring you peace of mind (or not depending on what the answer is)

By that argument, traditional Christians, and lots of others, worship the NFL and NASCAR too.