Rico

I use Ubuntu Linux. I didn't start using it because I thought it was the best OS in the world. I didn't start using using it because I thought it was more stable or less prone to junkware. I started using it for a more personal reason. See, I was living in Thailand and bought a new laptop. The laptop had Windows XP installed on it. It wasn't a legitimate copy of Windows. Instead it was a pirated copy that the shop had installed on it. The vast majority of computers sold in Asia are sold from the manufacturers without Windows installed. The local shops then install cracked versions. I had to make a choice in my life. I could continue to use the cracked Windows XP, I could go out and buy a legitimate copy or I could use an alternative. I felt that if I kept using the cracked version that I would be a thief. I didn't have the $300 to buy a legitimate Windows XP(well maybe I did, but my family has needs). My only option was to use Ubuntu Linux. When you make that kind of decision, you'd be surprised how well Ubuntu Linux satisfies your needs. You realize that you don't need Windows. Everything you need to do is right there in Ubuntu. I have been using Ubuntu Linux for more than 2 years. I have no desire to use Windows and whenever I do have to use Windows, I just feel dirty.

I am sitting here in amazement of what you have just posted. It's just like a duh lightbulb has went off. No duh, somebody took the money. It wasn't lost.

often times members of the Church will have standing invitations so that local missionaries can easily meet with you in the home of a member that lives near your home. It's also a great way to get fellowship with an existing member of the church. If you can't get ahold of the missionaries, just get the phone number of the ward mission leader.

Are those stats for the entire church or just the US? I suspect the divorce is lower outside the US. For example, there is no divorce in the Philippines so very, very few temple marriages end in divorce. It also probably doesn't count those who went inactive before they got divorced since they'd have no reason to report that their temple marriage resulted in a divorce.

In Thailand they have a phrase, same, same but different. I think that sums it up nicely. I think everyone has a different way of having it confirmed, but it's also the same. You probably won't see a pillar of light descend on you, you probably won't get a visit from an angel, but you will have an experience that removes all doubt. That's not to say that you won't have doubt later on, in fact, while you are investigating you will alternate between times when you are 100% sure that the Book of Mormon is true and feelings of doubt and confusion. As long as you know where the confusion comes from, you will be ok. There is a reason why visitors to the Church are called investigators. You are encouraged to learn more and discover more. About many gods, on another thread, D&C defines what is meant by god and that means living forever. By that definition, Catholics, Pentecostals, Baptists, Methodists, Mormons and every other religion that believes in eternal life not only believe in many gods, but also that everyone can become a god.

1) Growing up in Protestant faiths, I was taught that all members are brothers and sisters, just like Christ. The LDS church is the same, but instead of just including church members, we include everyone. Every person, every man, woman and child, is a child of Heavenly Father. If we are all spirit children of Heavenly Father, just like Jesus is, then wouldn't it be assumed that Satan is as well? 2)If we are all spirit children of Heavenly Father then think for a moment what we are capable of becoming. 3) It's hard to even comprehend calculus when all you know is basic arithmetic, but as your knowledge about math increases, you can begin to comprehend calculus even more. Don't you think that as your level of understanding increases, you are able to understand more? The Restored Gospel is taught to you by the Missionaries and as you learn more in the church you understand the restored Gospel in ways that are even more glorious.

I don't know if it would be good to stockpile cigarettes, but it should be ok to stockpile tobacco since it can be used to treat wounds on cattle. I am sure many people would be willing to barter a weeks worth of food for some tobacco. I fully trust that they will use it to treat their cattle and not smoke it.

Your opinion is peppered by what your ex girlfriend's parents did. When I was 20, I had a similiar situation with an overbearing ex girlfriend's mother. I felt the same way you do, but now that I've got kids of my own, my opinion has changed somewhat. If I tell my child that I will be reading every text before I give a phone. That I will be reading every email, before I let them use the computer, and that I will read every IM, before I left them use the computer, then they understand the rules from the get go. They can choose to use the technology under my rules, or not. I know they sound draconian, but those are the same rules many companies have for their employees. Exactly, those boundaries need to be set ahead of time. Parents should arbitrarily set rules. That's where trust comes in.If you set clear boundaries and the kids cross them, then you have reason not to trust them. Nothing I have said condones sneaking. Kids need to know the boundaries up front. You are probably right. Imagine parents with a 16 year old girl who they give total freedom to do whatever she wants to do. They'll be the first to raise a ruckus if their daughter becomes pregnant. If you aren't setting clear boundaries and ensuring that they are being followed, then you aren't doing as good of a job as you could as a parent. And unfortunately, it's more difficult to start setting boundaries when a child is 16 than when she is 6.

Fiona, you have a defeatist attitude. I am sure that Prison Chaplain is aware of the Normal Christian Life by Watchman Nee(and if he isn't, I am sure he will be soon!). It's a really interesting study of Romans. It's really a study on the full ramifications of the atonement of Jesus Christ. Your sins were already paid for by the atonement. When you repent from your sins and ask forgiveness they are no more. The whole point of Christ's atonement was to blot your sins so that you could approach Heavenly Father clean and blameless. When you say something like that, you are saying that Christ's atonement isn't enough for you. Christ's atonement is enough. It's not only enough for you, but enough for everyone man, woman, and child is who has ever lived, is living now, and will ever live. You'd do well to reread the quote from D&C posted earlier. In it, the definition of god is made....in this case: If saying Father isn't reverent enough, why did Jesus teach us to say, "Our Father...." as the beginning of the Lord's prayer? I learned about this doctrine before I even met with the missionaries in person the first time. I spent a couple of years studying and learning all that I could. This doctrine makes sense to me. It's one of many answers the D&C, Book of Mormon and other scriptures have answered for me. I remember sitting once with an Evangelical friend who was doing a lot of studying of the Bible and seemed very wise. He said that he just loved going to church and singing and doing the altar calls and doing nothing but worship the Lord. He said that if you didn't like going to church, then you probably wouldn't like heaven. To me, it sounded like a waste. After joining the Church, I now realize that everyone should have a calling and everyone contributes to the work of the Church. With my calling in the Church, I truly feel like I am doing my part to build up the Kingdom. I am not swooning at the feet of the Lord nor am I playing a harp all day long. If this is like the Celestial Kingdom will be, definitely count me in! Maybe the member of the Stake High Council was trying to remind you that worshiping Our Father is also about doing good to our brothers and sisters.

The first time was at the old Albertson's near 19th ave(?) and Indian School. The second time was at one in North Phoenix. For a guy who is constantly having fuel pump problems, he sure does get around.

That's a very good idea and I will keep it in mind in the future.

I remember being a parking lot of an Albertson's in Phoenix years ago. I didn't have much cash after shopping, but this man came up to me and said, hey my car broke down. It needs a new fuel pump and it costs $XX. I need to get home. It just so happened that I had a used universal electric fuel pump in my trunk from another car so I told him, hey i have a fuel pump. Where's your car? I can install it for you and get you back on the road ASAP. He made excuses about how it probably wouldn't work. Then he asked for taxi fare home(the bus doesn't run that late). I told him, no problem, I'll give you a ride home. He walked away. Fast forward a year later, I was at the same Albertson's and he showed up with the same story. I asked him again if he wanted me to install the free fuel pump. He walked away very quickly.

VOL: You are young. I used to think exactly like you do. It's not about paying the bills and getting the privilege of doing whatever you want to do. It's about setting boundaries(ie rules). Parents need to be setting boundaries. Now think about a teenage girl caught in a bedroom with a boy. Parents find out, freak out and get very angry. The girl explains that she was doing nothing wrong and just studying. She says the parents must be unreasonable and vocalizes that they don't trust her. The parents get angry because they just don't know what happened. Can they trust their daughter? This is why boundaries are important. Imagine the parents sitting down with her and making a rule that she isn't allowed to be in a room alone with boys. If she is caught in a room with a boy then the parents can discipline her not for being alone with a boy in the room, but for crossing one of the boundaries set. It doesn't matter what was done in the room or whether she is trusted or not, simply that she was disobedient. In the case of the OP, my daughter wouldn't be given a phone in the first place, but I did give her one, then my rule would be that she is not allowed to use for anything but calling her parents. I'd have no problem then requesting the text messages sent because any text message sent to a friend would be a case of her being disobedient. It wouldn't matter what was on them, just that she was disobedient.

I don't think the question should be if you should be reading them or not. The question should be, does she have a need to have a cellphone? Does she have a need to be able to text? Is she crossing boundaries that you have set? If you feel comfortable with her having the cellphone and being allowed to text whomever she wishes whenever she wishes, then you shouldn't be concerned whether you need to be able to read them or not. If you don't feel comfortable with her having the cellphone and/or being allowed to text whomever she wishes whenever she wishes, then maybe you need to set appropriate boundaries. If you have appropriate boundaries set, then the only thing you need to be concerned with is if she is crossing the boundaries or not. Think about the responses you would get if you said: "I believe that my daughter is crossing boundaries that I have set concerning her use of the cellphone. Do you think it's ok for me to read my daughter's text messages?"

Don't tell that to the elders. The fact that they wear black shoes is proof that they are still using shoe phones. See, according to recent research, black leather continues to offer the highest quality signal transmission properties of any material. The use of the black shoe phones means better range with much more clarity than even the highest tech regular phones.

I don't Fannyfran meant my post, Elphabam but if she did, then I think she may have missed my transition to seriousness where I took the "funny" comment and then related it to an experience of my wife's and how some people still do believe those kind of things. Wait a second, I think I got it. I gave a testimony of how my wife overcame those kind of lies and joined the church. Let me guess, that is the sick comment, right? Fannyfran, you had me fooled all along. You're not one of those anti-Mormon protesters, are you? FF, in case you can't tell, I am just using a little light hearted humor, I love ya and I know ya mean well and I thank you for making the posts you have.

I think making the comments are a way of showing just how ridiculous they are. I think keeping a positive attitude about it all is important. It's incredible the kind of lies that are being said about the Church and church members these days and in the not so distant past. My mother-in-law attended church with us after my wife and I got baptized just so she could see for herself what went on in during sacrament meeting. Her own faith was shaken when she realized just how wrong the priests had been. But maybe you are right connerific, maybe people like that renown Russian religion expert are coming on this forum to get their indepth research on the truth about Mormons. Maybe we need to rethink some of the threads where people talk about CIA operations.

Interfax-Religion Is it only missionaries who are CIA agents? What about all American Mormon missionaries? As an American Mormon in a foreign country, who do I contact in the church to ensure that I am receiving my stipend from the CIA? How much should I be getting? When I am sending back intelligence, who do I give the intelligence to? Should I contact the Mission President? Do you think Mr Dvorkin could give me the answers to those questions? He sure seems to have many other answers to ridiculous questions.

No, they aren't, but they should be. I guess it's only natural to think that everyone with a big, happy family is Mormon.

If you are visiting certain restaurants on a regular basis, maybe buy him a gift card for the restaurant or even just one of those visa gift cards. You can do some math for a good amount to give him. Just give it to him as a appreciation gift. Tell him he can spend it any way he wishes, but you'd love for him to spend it on you. :) He can pay every time without thinking that you are the one actually contributing. At least that's how I would feel. When I was dating my wife, she wanted to contribute on our dates but I felt uncomfortable with her paying. A few gift certificates solved the problem. Just an idea. I am sure others can come up with much better advice.

Yes, you'll be expected to do that one on your first fast and testimony meeting after joining the church. Seriously though, my wife had a lot of fears about what they did in the Mormon church. She grew up Catholic and she can remember when the Mormon church first came to her village. The priests made it very clear what someone would expect in the Mormon church and giving up your first born and biting the heads off of chickens wasn't far off from what they were warning against. She was honestly scared the first time she went into an LDS church and she begged me not to go. In fact, the only reason why she went is that I took myself and the kids two times when she was away on work. The kids loved the primary so she begrudgingly agreed to go for one time only as long as she was allowed to leave the church as soon as she felt uncomfortable and that I would never ask her to go back. She hasn't missed a single Sunday since that first Sunday. Back to the OP, I think being a member of the church means being a member of a family. Not everyone sees eye to eye but people act out love, just like a family. Just like in an family, there are chores to do and every job is important. I remember my stake president saying that the most important job in the church is the one who hands out the hymnals on Sunday morning. I think he's right about that. You can hang with anyone you want to and have friends who are non-members, you just need to remember who you are. Maybe that's important. I used to feel like an orphaned child who never knew who his father was until I realized that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me and that He wants me to rejoin my family.

I don't know about any of them. Not a single one of those pictures look anything like the Joseph Smith I saw in the Restoration video.

When I first contacted the Church, I requested a book of Mormon on the website and for them to have a missionary come visit me. A missionary called me up about 2 weeks later and told me the nearest missionary was 600 miles away but he'd happily send me some materials and call me up after I got them. I got the stuff and two days later he called me up. I told him, I was still reviewing them. Two days later I lost the sim card in my phone(I changed between two of them often). A few days later I started reading the book of Mormon and then proceeded to the Gospel Princples book he sent to me. My family watched the Restoration video many times. I knew that the Church was true and I waited two years before actually meeting up with a missionary(after moving to a new country). I am certain to this day that Elder Enz(sp?) believes without a doubt that I blew him off and wasn't interested. But then again, maybe he doesn't. When you get up the courage, talk to the missionaries. It's a life changing experience. I know there is a lot of fear in the unknown, but the truth is that calling the missionaries is the beginning of your trip back to your family.

Feeling upset with how the bible can be misinterpreted so many ways by so many different people is what led Joseph Smith to the grove to ask of God. That's powerful to me because I went through the same thing. I studied the bible extensively but using mainstream doctrines, I was left confused. After reading the Book of Mormon, everything became very clear. I've learned that the confusion comes from Satan and he wants us to be confused about the real meaning. Thankfully, we have prophets today who can help us know what the Lord meant.

In the Philippines. He did a Q&A. Of course everyone was too shy to be the first to ask him a question. But encouraged by my wife whispering, don't you dare ask a question, I rose my hand, stood up and asked a question about any advice he could give about reaching out to family members who are Catholic since his father was Catholic. The Q&A lasted two hours and my wife and I left with no question unanswered. We both knew that we had been in the presence of a true prophet, seer and revelator of God. Of all things that he talked about, the one that most impressed me was about being an answer to our prayers. You need to be willing to be the answer to your prayers. There was just so much wisdom there. I am so lucky to have been shown the Restored Gospel by the missionaries.