More Mormons

This guy gets it

2011-11-09T20:00:00.000-08:00

This feeling of wanting to be better, that's why I am a mormon. Scripture and Prayer have given me more peace in life than anything else. I'm so glad God loves me enough to give me tools to be close to him when I use them.

Juliette

2010-11-08T20:26:00.000-08:00

My cousin B's little girl Juliette ran was hit by a driver in a Mcdonald's parking lot this weekend. She was transferred to a hospital near my home and died Friday night. I'm going to her funeral on Wednesday in Idaho. My whole family (45 cousins plus kids and friends) fasted and prayed for my cousin B's family this weekend. I honestly lacked the faith that such a loss could leave the family with any kind of sanity. I still hoped my prayers would count. But today, her sister said that B and her husband have peace. I was a little shocked, but I'm not skeptical. I hope they continue to feel it.

Loss and death.
Healing and peace.
How to get from one to the other? Jesus Christ

This week at church people kept mentioning the atonement of Jesus Christ, (Atonement= redemption).
Such a complex and important principle.
Losses, weaknesses, sins, and all kinds of sadness are part of this human experience.
But miracle of miracles happen: peace, healing, or compensation come.
This gift is grace, in that we are undeserving every time.
It is pure love, in that we are the recipients of unconditional and boundless heaps of it.

Too often I forget that I can access this power. I try to fix it all on my own. I forget that I can go to the Savior and give him my burdens and he will make them light.

"God has infinite attention to spare to each one of us. He does not have to deal with us in the mass. You are as much alone with Him as if you were the only being He had ever created. When Christ died, He died for you individually just as much as if you had been the only man or woman in the world." C.S. Lewis

I don't know what you have lost, but I know that God can make it up to you.

Juliet: A Life Story from Candice Rail on Vimeo.

Food for thought...

2010-09-16T20:20:00.000-07:00

I am learning something new everyday.

The other day what I learned was how important it is not to judge people.
I realized that when I am worried about what my neighbor is doing or not doing I am not worried about loving my neighbor.
When I am worried about what my husband is or is not doing I am not focused on loving him as the Savior would have me do and I loose focus of what matters most to my relationships and my salvation and that is L.O.V.E.

Just an article I liked. Ya, lots of name dropping, but I don't feel misunderstood.

2010-07-25T19:14:00.000-07:00

The rise of a new generation of Mormons

By James Crabtree

Published: July 9 2010 17:10 | Last updated: July 9 2010 17:10

Ben McAdams is neat, he’s helpful, he’s unfailingly polite. The
35-year-old is a family man, one of six siblings and a father of
three. People warm quickly to him, and talk of his modesty and strong
work ethic. He neither drinks nor smokes. And when we meet for
breakfast in a sparsely decorated canteen in Salt Lake City, he is
wearing a dark suit and a tie.

In other words, McAdams is what the world expects of Mormons.

In other ways, however, he is less typical. Until recently, he was a
fast-rising star at Davis Polk, a prestigious New York law firm – a
job he won straight from Columbia University’s law school. He then
worked for both Bill and Hillary Clinton, before becoming, at 35,
Utah’s youngest state senator. His is the most conservative state in
the US, and yet he’s a moderate Democrat who won his district – and
his reputation – by helping to broker a deal over gay rights. This,
mind you, from a man whose church was pilloried for bank-rolling
California’s successful 2009 “Proposition 8” referendum against gay
marriage. Whose faith was a headache to Mitt Romney throughout
Romney’s 2008 presidential run. And whose religion has been unable to
shake a reputation for “plural marriage”, officially abandoned in
1890.

Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor
Mitt Romney (second row left) and his wife Ann Romney speak with
Senate majority leader Harry Reid

Put simply, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or LDS
for short, has an image problem; and yet, tellingly, McAdams doesn’t.
And he’s part of a much bigger crowd: for the first time in its nearly
two-century history – one that began, according to the founding myth,
with an illiterate farmhand, Joseph Smith, being visited by an angel
in western New York state – Mormons are moving from the periphery of
modern American life to the very centre. From Romney’s failed tilt at
the presidency to the tales of everyday polygamous families in HBO’s
popular drama Big Love, Mormonism has become increasingly visible over
the last generation. Where its most famous acolytes were once the
Osmonds, leading lights now include politicians such as US Senate
majority leader Harry Reid (a Democrat) and Romney (a Republican);
Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight vampire saga; Glenn Beck, the
popular conservative talk-show host; and self-help guru Stephen R.
Covey, the author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Those are the household names. As important are the Mormons who play
central roles at the companies and institutions that make America
tick: Gordon Gee, president of Ohio State University (one of the
biggest in the US); David Neeleman, founder of JetBlue Airlines; J.W.
(“Bill”) Marriott, head of Marriott International; and Jon Huntsman
Jr, ambassador to China – to name a few. And while firm data are hard
to come by, off-the-record interviews conducted for this article
suggest that a generation of Mormons in their thirties and forties is
accelerating the trend. For every Hill Cumorah Pageant – an annual set
of performances starting this weekend in which a cast of 650 enact
scenes from the Bible and Book of Mormon before massive audiences near
Joseph Smith’s birthplace – there are much more mundane scenes being
played out across the US: an investment banker in New York said, “I
was at my final day of interviews at JPMorgan during my senior year in
college. They took students from Princeton, Yale, Harvard, U-Penn and
Brigham Young University [a Mormon university in Utah]. I was like,
‘what the hell? BYU?’ Then I slowly realised how many Mormons there
are on Wall Street.”

‘Twilight’ author Stephenie Meyer

The CIA has its eye out for Mormons, who, people say jokingly, ace the
mandatory drugs and lie-detector tests. Blue-chip corporations are
recruiting, too. And at Harvard Business School, female students note
ruefully that attractive male classmates are invariably associated
with one of the “three Ms”: the military, the management consultancy
McKinsey or Mormonism.

In that complaint lies the conundrum: much of the US still sees
Mormons as weirdly strait-laced at best, cultish at worst. Yet elite
institutions are embracing them. What does that fact say about the
world’s youngest major religion – and about success in modern America?

. . .

Despite its public reputation, the Mormon church is the outstanding
religious success story of the past hundred years. Approximately 1.7
per cent of the US population are LDS members, just slightly fewer
than describe themselves as Jewish. Global membership rose from
250,000 in 1900 to one million in 1948, to 13 million today. The
church is probably the world’s richest per capita religious
institution, too, with assets estimated at between $25bn and $30bn.
(That’s £16bn-£20bn; the Church of England’s portfolio in 2009 was
£4.4bn.)

Religious sociologist Rodney Stark, at Baylor University in Texas, has
predicted that the LDS will in the latter half of this century become
the first new world religion since Islam – just one reason that Smith,
who founded the church in the 1830s, is sometimes described as the
“American Mohammed”. There is something special about Mormons, but
what is it? The most fashionable theory regarding religious success at
the moment comes from economics, drawing on approaches developed by
the University of Chicago’s Gary Becker. Becker, a sociologist and
economist, argues that American church pews are kept full – while
those in Europe empty out – because the US is unencumbered by
religious monopolies (such as the Church of England or the Catholic
Church), leaving plenty of room for competition and choice. And
indeed, one-quarter of US Mormons are first-generation converts. The
US’s National Council of Churches data from 2008 rank the LDS fourth
among church membership in the US, with 5.8 million members – a rise
of 1.56 per cent from the previous year.

Yet growth alone doesn’t explain why some religions break into the
boardroom and why some don’t. American Jews and Hindus stand out in
socio-demographic surveys for their exceptional incomes and
professional accomplishment, but this flows not from growing
membership, rather from heavy investment in education and, in the case
of Hindus, successive waves of immigration by highly trained elites
such as doctors and engineers. Mormon success is different: unlike
Hindu immigrants, the newest LDS members in America – converts – tend
to be poorer and less educated than those with longer heritage in the
church. And older generations aren’t exactly funding ever-greater
achievement by younger ones: the PEW Forum on Religion in Public Life
describes Mormonism as lying “roughly in the middle of other religious
traditions on the socioeconomic spectrum”.

. . .

Actor Jon Heder, who starred in ‘Napoleon Dynamite’

Perhaps the most telling sign that Mormon success springs from
different roots is this fact: the church’s most successful members, in
terms of education and wealth, are also its most fervent. In most
religions, piety and professional success mix badly. Devout Jews earn
less, and tend to be less educated, than their less-orthodox brethren.
American Christian evangelicals save and earn less than those from
more moderate traditions.

Back at the canteen in Salt Lake City, McAdams reflects on why growing
up Mormon seems to help with professional achievement in modern
America. “I grew up here in Utah in a working-class family,” he tells
me. “My dad had any number of jobs over the course of my childhood.
Never one for too long, and with gaps in-between. He wasn’t the
greatest Mormon either, drinking and smoking. So we pretty much lived
pay cheque to pay cheque.” His was a childhood of limited horizons. It
wasn’t the case that money and success begot more money and success.
Rather, says McAdams, the thing that started to make a difference was
being a missionary.

At age 19, all Mormon men are expected to spend two years on a
mission. (Women serve too, but for 18 months, and at age 21.) It’s
tough. They pay their own way, often saving from childhood. There is
no discussion over destinations: McAdams served in São Paolo, despite
learning French for four years at school. And the pre-mission training
is gruelling: held at one of two dozen training centres around the
world (one is in Preston, Lancashire), “you get up early and work 12
hours a day”.

At the MTC’s headquarters, in Provo, Utah, visitors are not allowed:
my request for a tour gives pause to the church’s otherwise well-oiled
public affairs department. It takes weeks for the OK to arrive. When I
visit the campus in late February, I find a dozen redbrick buildings
with views of snow-capped mountains. Inside one building, I walk down
a long, empty corridor with pictures of Joseph Smith on the walls
alongside framed snaps of missionaries. A young man in white robes
stands, mid-baptism, waist deep in the sea; the photo is labelled
“Suava, Fiji, 1999”. In another shot, two teenagers in blue overalls
stand next to a bale of hay: “Seridal, Japan, ‘85”.

Here and at the other training centres, new arrivals are assigned a
“companion”; they will study, eat, exercise and sleep side by side
through the length of their stay. Life inside is regimented, and
leaving the grounds is not allowed. Ralph Smith, the MTC’s president,
says: “These young people are like most 19-year-olds, going to school
and playing video games. And here they are plunked down into a
situation here which is very structured, with significant demands on
them to study, work hard and set goals for themselves.” He swivels
round his monitor to show me a typical timetable, for a female
missionary heading to Ukraine. Her day begins at 6.30am, with lights
out at 10.30pm, sharp. She spends most of her time studying Ukrainian,
with shorter periods for eating, exercising and religious study.

McAdams says the MTC opened his eyes, not so much to discipline as
opportunity. “I found myself there alongside peers whose fathers were
bishops in the church, or from wealthier families. It was an
environment which wasn’t predetermined by who my parents were.”

. . .

Rodney Stark’s work shows that successful religions normally find ways
to “socialise the young”, and he argues that “nothing builds more
intense commitment than the act of being a missionary”. If missionary
training is tough for young Mormons, the sink-or-swim experience that
follows is often worse. I met with McAdams after our talk in the
canteen, for a conversation outside Utah’s gold-embossed senate
chamber. I wanted to discuss his time as a missionary in Brazil.
“Everybody says going on a mission is the best two years of your
life,” he says. “But that quote is not given by anyone in their first
six months.” McAdams remembers that, despite his language training, “I
still couldn’t really speak to anyone, and no one understood me. I
remember dreaming in English and then waking and remembering I was in
Brazil, where there was no one I could communicate with. It was
incredibly frustrating.” During a missionary posting, all contact with
family is banned, except for phone calls at Christmas and on Mother’s
day. And reading anything other than Mormon scripture is frowned on. A
senior investment banker and Mormon based in London, who was also a
missionary in Brazil, recalls how alienating this could be: “I
remember one of the very first lunches. All I wanted was a drink of
water, and I was ashamed because I didn’t know how to say it. I
literally started to break down.”

Armaund Mauss, professor emeritus of sociology and religious studies
at Washington State University who specialises in the study of
Mormons, has noted a “seeming paradox” in religion, in which some
faiths inspire loyalty precisely because “people become committed to
that for which they suffer or sacrifice”. And yet the suffering built
more than loyalty; it helped McAdams and his peers develop skills
eminently useful in modern-day business and government. As his fluency
improved and he learnt to overcome the rejection that followed
unsuccessful attempts to convince converts, McAdams embraced the
experience. And when it became clear that he was competent at his
work, the Church asked him to become a “trainer”, helping other
missionaries develop their skills. It was a subtle process of
leadership development.

Mormon and management guru Stephen Covey, who served his mission in
the 1970s in London, says the time abroad changed his life. While he
is careful to stress that the ideas in his books are not based on his
Mormon faith but upon what he calls universal, timeless principles, he
does remember particularly enjoying the chance to preach in public. “I
would hold public meetings at the front of movie lines, on the top of
buses, at Speakers’ Corner, or outside the Tower of London. Anywhere I
could get an audience.” He returned to America to tell his father he
no longer wanted to enter the family business. Instead he wanted to be
a teacher, ultimately signing up to become a student at Harvard
Business School, and then an academic. His mission, he says, “taught
me to take responsibility early in life. It gave me my voice.”

. . .

At the time, Covey’s decision to go to Harvard Business School was
unusual. But a former senior figure at the school told me that, over
the past 20 years, there has been a significant rise in Mormon
applicants. A more worn path for those missionaries with ambitions
leads to Utah’s Brigham Young University, the Mormon equivalent of
Harvard. The church subsidises entry, so LDS students pay only about
$5,000 a year, one-tenth of what full-paying students at Ivy League
colleges do. In some ways, BYU looks every inch an elite American
institution. In others it is starkly different: the day I visit, the
campus is at a standstill for a sermon from a church elder. I have
come to meet Kim Smith and Jim Engebretsen, two former executives at
Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers and now both professors at BYU’s
Marriott School of Business. Smith says Mormons were rare on Wall
Street when he first got a job in the early 1980s. But, as he puts it,
“banks like nothing more than finding an undervalued stock. And Mormon
graduates were just that: a stock which was cheaper to buy, and which
over-performed.”

Engebretsen uses a different analogy: Michael Lewis’s baseball book,
Moneyball. “Remember how Lewis talks about how the Oakland A’s would
find a second-rounder, and bring him in the first round instead? He’d
perform way better. The same is true for someone at BYU. If they think
this is their chance to play in the big leagues, they are going to
work really, really hard.”

They are also going to get more support, from family and community.
I’d seen piles of free wedding magazines near the dining hall, and no
wonder: about half of BYU students are married when they graduate. A
professor who asked not to be named says: “Being married, perhaps
already having a family, makes you more serious about life. It’s OK to
tell your parents your grades aren’t good, but try explaining it to
your spouse.”

Smith argues that church membership smooths out other hassles, too.
During his time at Goldman Sachs, he was asked to move to Tokyo, “a
completely alien culture”. But, he says, “I was made to feel part of
the LDS community within days. Because I felt comfortable, and my
family felt comfortable, and I was more effective at work.” McAdams
tells a similar story, of first arriving in New York for graduate
school: “My wife and I packed up a van and drove our stuff across
country. When we showed up at our place, there were 15 people there to
help us unload. We’d never met any of them before, but they moved us
in and invited us over for dinner. We had an instant social network.”
He found that this same church network also provided helpful
connections, both within his own law firm and to other people in the
same industry.

The networking advantage is particularly important in understanding
Mormonism because the church has no professional clergy. Mormon boys
enter the priesthood at age 12, taking the title of deacon. At 14 they
become a “teacher”, then a full priest at 16. Each title, and each
progression, comes with new responsibilities, and at each stage a
smaller number become leaders among their own age-group. The system
isn’t perfect. Not everyone is comfortable with the responsibility the
church demands. And most senior leaders are men; the church seems to
implicitly rely on a traditional, single-earner family structure to
help its male leaders balance jobs, church responsibilities and
families. But the result remains that most of the church’s senior
leadership positions are filled by professionally successful Mormons
taking time off from their careers. Perhaps the most celebrated
example is Kim Clarke, who quit as dean of Harvard Business School in
2005 to become head of BYU’s campus in Idaho. His colleagues were
baffled: “For them, it was like going into the wilderness,” he tells
me. Later he hit upon a phrase to explain his choice: “Try to imagine
you got a phone call from Moses.”

. . .

Ben McAdams believes that going on a two-year Mormon mission, at age
19, helped prepare him for professional life

In the meantime, the calls are coming from headhunters. Scott Nycum, a
managing director at JPMorgan, confirmed that BYU is now seen as a top
source of graduate talent: “These students are bright, mature,
well-educated, share our emphasis on adhering to highest standards of
integrity, have impressive work ethic and are very team-oriented,” he
says. “They fit extremely well with our firm’s corporate culture.”

Focus group research conducted with corporate recruiters by BYU’s
Marriott School of Business found that its MBA students, while not
noted as flashy leaders, were known in particular for their
“outstanding values, principles, and work ethic”. A Goldman Sachs
executive, meanwhile, says the bank is hiring LDS graduates in
increasing numbers, also impressed by their work ethic. The same was
true, I heard anecdotally, at top-tier law firms in the US. And the
CIA is reported to snap up LDS graduates for, if nothing else, their
language skills.

Will any of this change perceptions of the Mormons? As the late writer
and journalist Molly Ivins wrote, anti-Mormon bigotry is an “old dog
that still hunts”. But more up-to-the minute cultural analysis
suggests otherwise: an episode of South Park cheers the way a newly
arrived LDS family wins over the local community with pleasantries and
acts of kindness.

Ben McAdams thinks that while outright discrimination is rare, many
successful Mormons keep their heads down at work. Still, he says, “I
didn’t stand out like a sore thumb in my New York law firm until
someone offered me a drink and I said ‘no thanks’.”

The majority of LDS members are now abroad. Building a professional
elite in foreign cultures may prove harder than winning success in
all-American environments like Wall Street. But, interestingly, LDS is
especially fast-growing in countries with dynamic economies,
particularly Brazil.

In a corridor of the LDS Missionary Training Centre there’s a plaque
listing the dozens of languages taught to missionaries who study there
– including Cebuano, Hmong and Tagalog. Next to it is a world map
showing the countries in which the church operates, highlighted in
bright colours. Only China and a handful of Middle-Eastern states
remain grey. The last century saw a Mormon conquest in America. During
our lifetimes, we may see the rest of the world follow, too.

James Crabtree is the FT’s comment editor.
If you want
to see it straight on the Financial Times site go to:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/938ff454-8a32-11df-bd30-00144feab49a.html
You will need to register for free.

Making Mormon friends everywhere I go

2010-06-24T22:33:00.000-07:00

I went to a conference in Hong Kong. Its almost over. I have made friends. However, the connections I have instantly upon entering a country because I am LDS should never been discounted. I’ve been to church in dozens of countries, and in most every city in the US I have been to. Almost every time I have gone to church in another country or city I have either known several people there, or been connected in another way. Besides the fact that religion connects us, my global church community really does make it feel like it is a small world. I had lunch at my old roommates house today. I am eating dinner with a new friend tonight who met my other old roommate in DC two weeks ago. I’m going shopping with a woman from Alaska tomorrow who was at the conference and is LDS. I think I may have one of the best networks available to me by being a member of my church. Say what you will about specific religious beliefs I hold, but my church has an outstanding welfare program globally, supports the largest women’s organization in the world, and advocates for family values. I can walk into any LDS church in the world (which I do often), and leave with friends, dinner appointments, social engagements, and get help in any other way I need. At home, my local congregation can offer me support in every aspect of my life. They will move my furniture when I move, they can finance the education of poor students in congregations around the world, and the focus is never on the status or popularity of my clergy person, because service in the church is voluntary and who your clergy is changes every few years. What is stable is that every congregation in every part of the world is learning the same principles under the same organization.

Seeing other NGOs around the world, other welfare systems, other women’s societies, other scholarship funds, other social networking systems at this conference and around the world makes me appreciate that there is something good and right about my membership in the church. Besides being religiously supportive of me, it needs my needs, and attempts to do the same of its congregations.

Faith- a choice

2010-03-24T21:52:00.000-07:00

I find myself wanting to be independent at times. Too independent. Independent from God. What a joke! As if I could avoid his influence, or could want to avoid his influence. I've been thinking about how difficult it can be at times to deal with doubt, choose faith, be religiously oriented, and sort out the rest. It can be overwhelming at times to dive into the dirty river channels of our minds. Its even harder when your friends are in the river with you. Its nice to have some people on the banks to pull you out into a better perspective. I can be by the river and enjoy it. In fact, I may even enjoy it better when I am not drowning in it. We become like those we are around.

I read this and thought I would share it to remind me, and you, that we get what we focus on consistently. Faith requires a correct understanding of Jesus Christ. Obedience to his principles develops trust in him. Strong faith is developed by obedience. The greater the measure of obedience to God, the greater the endowment of faith. Faith comes from a consistent patterns of obedient behaviors and attitudes. Personal righteousness is a choice.

Perhaps faith is attainable based on how much you show you want it.

LDS.org - Ensign Article - Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ

Never stop having adventure or spreading good will

2010-02-22T13:46:00.000-08:00

My Aunt and Uncle are serving a mission for my church in Borneo. My aunt wrote this article for the churches newspaper.

Krapp's Last Tape

2010-02-18T18:52:00.000-08:00

I went to the play Krapp's Last Tape last week. It was written by the wonderful Samuel Beckett and directed by one of my oldest friends Jayci T. I wanted to include what Jayci said after the play.

"The pressures of the world today make us feel like we are never good enough and that we need to keep achieving goals to be worth anything in this life. In so doing we sacrifice the important things, which leads us to a very unfulfilled and lonely life. I feel this is something we all are facing...Are we losing focus and getting lost in the ways of this world by working towards these goals? Have we lost sight of the important things in life that bring us happiness? President Monson said, "This is our one and only chance at moral life--here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and nonexistent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey--now (Oct, 2008).""

I loved this. It made me realize how I often get the result of my own efforts. My situation is the consequence of my own actions. Go live! Sow and Reap a great life.

There is something to be said about living good.

2010-02-07T10:13:00.000-08:00

Doing things that are universally good like love, sacrifice, kindness, alms always bring good consequences. Being selfish, insensitive, ignorant, and mocking usually bring bad consequences. I feel these are truths not to be trifled with. I believe in absolute truth. I really do. I also believe in not judging others. God can decide what he'll accept, he being just and at the same time merciful.

When my friends tell me its all subjective and everyone's beliefs are right for them, I DO feel uncomfortable. There can not be absolute truth and subjective truth at the same time. I'm not saying there is a single row of events that are right for everyone, but I am saying, NOT EVERYTHING GOES. There is right. There is wrong. I think its dangerous to do some much justifying on a case by case basis. It's not about what you think. It's about what God thinks. Taking him out of the equation is a quick way for anyone to justify any decision based on their own selfish appetites.

Anyways. I just wanted it known. I believe in absolute truth. Good and Bad. I'll do my best not to judge you, if you promise me the same.

Tithing

2009-12-11T12:48:00.000-08:00

When I pay my tithing, things always miraculously work out for me financially. I might not be rich, but money doesn't give me trouble.

Price to Pay...

2009-11-30T01:00:00.000-08:00

Today as I prepared and taught a lesson to my primary class of 10 & 11 year olds, this came as an answer to prayers, a sort of ah-ha/reminder moment.

Over two hundred members of the Willie and Martin handcart companies died before they could reach the Salt Lake Valley. None of the other handcart companies coming to the valley before or after them suffered so many problems.

Some years after the Martin company made their journey to Salt Lake City, a teacher in a Church class commented how foolish it was for the Martin company to come across the plains when it did. The teacher criticized the Church leaders for allowing a company to make such a journey without more supplies and protection.

An old man sitting in the classroom listened for a few moments and then spoke out, asking that the criticism be stopped. He said, “Mistake to send the Handcart Company out so late in the season? Yes. But I was in that company and my wife was in it. … We suffered beyond anything you can imagine and many died of exposure and starvation, but did you ever hear a survivor of that company utter a word of criticism? Not one of that company ever apostatized or left the Church, because everyone of us came through with the absolute knowledge that God lives for we became acquainted with him in our extremities [difficulties].

“I have pulled my handcart when I was so weak and weary from illness and lack of food that I could hardly put one foot ahead of the other. I have looked ahead and seen a patch of sand or a hill slope and I have said, I can go only that far and there I must give up, for I cannot pull the load through it. … I have gone on to that sand and when I reached it, the cart began pushing me. I have looked back many times to see who was pushing my cart, but my eyes saw no one. I knew then that the angels of God were there.

“Was I sorry that I chose to come by handcart? No. Neither then nor any minute of my life since. The price we paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay, and I am thankful that I was privileged to come in the Martin Handcart Company” (quoted in David O. McKay, “Pioneer Women,” p. 8; emphasis in original).

This post is to ask, what is the price we pay to become acquainted with God? What price do each of us pay to become acquainted with our Savior and His Love?

Doctrine and Covenants 24:8 says, Be patient in all thine afflictions, for thou shalt have many; but endure them, for, lo, I am with thee, even unto the end of thy days.

Right now I am thankful for the many answers and blessings I receive daily. More recently there have been times I have looked back to see who was "pushing my cart". I have told myself I will get that test done, that paper written, or those five loads of laundry folded and then I do not think I can go on any more, only to realize that through some miracle I keep going. There are many personal life situations I know of right now that can relate to this. Mine seems unimportant compared to others, yet I know He is there for me and for YOU. I know there are angels helping each of us through our many difficult life experiences and I am thankful for that!

(I shared this on my personal blog so sorry if it is duplicate for anyone.)

happy thanksgiving!

2009-11-25T13:33:00.001-08:00

2009-10-28T15:26:00.000-07:00

this last week i really learned that even though people may abuse their agency, it will never interfere with God's plan for us. and trust me, He has a plan.

Fatherhood-

2009-10-14T21:57:00.000-07:00

I just saw Death of a Salesman in play format. Then I saw this. What a successful man.

a lil bit of remembrance

2009-09-11T08:31:00.001-07:00

Today is 9/11. It's a bit different spending this day in New York City.

I was touched by this man's story of survival. He was on the 85th floor of the North Tower. He survived the initial tragedy of the day, but like so many others he struggled with feelings of guilt and sadness for years. He is a survivor. He, like so many others who didn't make it, is worth remembering.

May we always remember with hope.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkWc_EKLs4E

Free yourself from yourself, and allow yourself to have some faith.

2009-08-25T11:36:00.000-07:00

"It is hard to see how a great man can be an atheist. Without the sustaining influence of faith in a divine power we could have little faith in ourselves. We need to feel that behind us is intelligence and love. Doubters do not achieve; skeptics do not contribute; cynics do not create. Faith is the great motive power, and no man realizes his full possibilities unless he has the deep conviction that life is eternally important, and that his work, well done, is a part of an unending plan."

Said by Calvin Coolidge- 1924

I've been thinking about cynicism and doubt a great deal this week. In the end, I have only found that I am my worst enemy and choosing the other path of faith, hope, and optimism is so much more fulfilling.

just a quick thought...

2009-07-20T17:04:00.000-07:00

...yesterday our high councilman spoke. it was one that really moved me still has me thinking the next day.

he mainly discussed how Christ was free to fail, and so are we. The main difference being that Christ place our Father's will before his own. This just reminded me of how we are all given the ability to perfect ourselves in this life, just as Christ did and heeded us to do, but we must learn that we need to follow our Father's will and not our own. He also challenged us to learn to do something without our own will in focus....This is exactly what Christ did, which is why he did not fail.

He also pointed out the numerous times Christ sought solitude away from the world, and counseled us to do the same. We are completed inundated with technology and the media and the world, that we need meditation. It is during those times, without the clamoring of the world, that we are able to realize who we really are, and understand our Father's purpose for us without fervor. Simplicity brings happiness.

A quick one liner from the talk, that has really stuck with me and still has me thinking is that caring can do so much more than cure, and that we are in society that places a higher concern on curing.

Thoughts on this final statement?

Happy easter

2009-04-12T14:49:00.000-07:00

An easter video.

I love Jesus Christ and the message of hope and rebirth he gives to me.

I can be better and different and so can everyone else.

Bodies are sacred

2009-04-07T09:17:00.000-07:00

I read this article recently on pornography. It's not for kids to read. It just reaffirmed to me my own beliefs about how sacred bodies, sex, and marriage are. Keeping a problem like this a secret only increases its intensity. Shaming someone for this problem, has also been shown to only increase the problem. If you have a problem, be open, honest, and humble. If someone comes to you with this problem, accept them and offer to help. After all, people can change. This is a really great internet program that allows every site you see to be sent to one person.

Mormon Messages

2009-03-15T10:15:00.000-07:00

I think something neat that the church has been working on is the youtube channel Mormon Messages. One of the videos just recently posted is Why Mormons Build Temples. You should definitely watch it, subscribe to the channel, and check it out often.

I really appreciate how the church has responded to recent criticisms and bad press. I feel that they have done so in a spirit of understanding and patience. This is the best response for the world to have.

This spirit of understanding and patience greatly enhances our own discussions with others as well. In the video on why we build temples, there are two Harvard professors interviewed that exemplify this. It means so much to me that they are able to praise what they see as good in our beliefs. It softens my heart and extends their knowledge of the eternities. Now I don't know if they fully embrace our temple practices, however, they have seen something praiseworthy in our practices and have learned something from them. I feel we could follow suit with others and reap so much more understanding on spiritual matters when we see good in others' beliefs and rituals.

Harvard Student on being "Mormon"

2009-02-08T23:18:00.000-08:00

Day of Faith: Personal Quests for a Purpose - 3. Rachel Esplin from Harvard Hillel on Vimeo.

Average college age student discussing what her faith means to her personally at a conference at Harvard. I thought she was well spoken and I can't help but identify with her.

A New Perspective

2008-12-27T21:17:00.000-08:00

Hello all. This is my first time to actually blog on this blog. In fact, I spend a lot of time trying to figure out what I could possibly contribute. I am glad that we have this forum though, because it causes me to rethink the principles and ideals placed before me.

Tonight I would like to openly reflect with you all thoughts that I have experienced as of late regarding Christ. Over the last couple of months, I have studied the Book of Matthew. I have never so intensely studied the first half of the New Testament before, so this was quite the treat. In fact, as I reflected what my gospel studies have focused on, I realized that they mainly involved the standard gospel principles, church history, digging deep into secular questions with a gospel aspect, etc. I also have studied a lot on Christ, but mainly overarching themes regarding Christ, such as the Atonement, repentance, resurrection, etc. I soon realized that I had never really concentrated on Christ the human being.

I know this sounds weird, like, of course he was a human being. But to dilligently read and ponder the book of Matthew, sometimes reading the same chapters repeatedily, I really got to know and understand Christ's life history. I got to know a new aspect of his ministry that I have always grazed over. In fact, now that I better understand his life here on earth, his sacrifice for us has never been more real to me. On the flipside, I have never more fully understood Satan's purpose and plan either.

So in a nutshell: I love Jesus the Christ. I am grateful for his life here on earth and the obedience he exemplified and for the agency he exercised in following through on the Lord's plan, because it was no easy task. I wish I could articulate better the feelings and understanding that I have in my heart, but I know that the Lord knows of my love, because he knows all of us individually. As we start the new year and begin our long list of resolutions, lets make sure that we include getting to know our Savior. He already knows us, so we just have to open our hearts to the knowledge that he has to offer us. Happy New Year!

His season

2008-12-05T09:20:00.000-08:00

Just thinking- It's coming up on christmas time and once again I am reared for giving, service, and family. I mean that too. I feel like a mood has struck me to do good, and it may just stay indefinitely. I am grateful for the traditions of my family that have taught me that service is a way of life. Even though this has become such a commercial holiday, I think people do act differently. People look for little ways to do things they normally wouldn't do for others. My words today are to follow those impulses that want you to do good. Christmas is a perfect time to practice doing what Christ would do. I know he lives and is my Savior. I know he died and was resurrected to benefit all men, even the ones who don't know about him. I know his Father, God, loves us all.

Marriage

2008-11-07T23:10:00.001-08:00

I want to take a moment to write down my thoughts on marriage and same-sex marriage. In very general terms... here is my stand on same-sex marriage:

I have friends who are gay. I work with people who are gay. I believe that being gay is ok, however acting that out is, I believe, sin in God's eyes, the same way sex outside the bonds of regular marriage is sin.

I see this push for the right to gay marriage as a way for a gay couple to have the government validate living together and acting out the sin. So then, how can I, in my belief, vote in favor of the government to validate this sin? I can't, and so if my civic duties give me a choice in the matter I will make the choice to not allow gay marriage to validate acting out gay tendencies.

Motherhood...

2008-10-12T08:15:00.000-07:00

I found this neat way of explaining motherhood on a friends blog and wanted to share it here...
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?" Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible mom.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude, but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, "I brought you this." It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription:

"To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees."

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals – we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it." The workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness.. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime, because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine for a monument to myself. I just want him to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there."

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

And lastly a quote by Elder M. Russell Ballard of the quorum of the twelve apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from the May 2008 Ensign. "I hope all of you dear sisters, married or single, never wonder if you have worth in the sight of the Lord and to the leaders of the Church. We love you. We respect you and appreciate your influence in preserving the family and assisting with the growth and the spiritual vitality of the Church. Let us remember that “the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World”). The scriptures and the teachings of the prophets and apostles help all family members to prepare together now to be together through all eternity. I pray that God will continually bless the women of the Church to find joy and happiness in their sacred roles as daughters of God."

Human Touch

2008-10-08T07:01:00.000-07:00

Well said:

This family has had a bad accident in which a husband and wife were badly burned in an airplane incident.

Our loving Savior Jesus Christ went about His ministry on this earth blessing and teaching his flock. He cleansed the lepers, healed the sick and raised the dead. He washed the tender feet of His disciples. He asked the children to come to Him and sit upon His knee. He blessed the children. And He did it all with the human touch.

Read it here.

Talking about policies

2008-09-29T19:51:00.000-07:00

I was speaking with some of my peers who happen to be mormons, like me, and in the social work field about public policy last week. I was touched by the conversation we had and I wanted to share part of it. We began by talking about social policies for welfare. Specifically, the old traditional jewish way of welfare, the judeo-christian way of thought, and the historical policies that many other nations have adopted that shape the way we make policy. We were trying to make sense of policies in the United States and connect them with how we should act towards policies and what it means to take care of our citizens/fellow human beings. Someone pulled this quote out, and I wanted to share it.

"Charity also includes your attitude toward those who have not. In all of my reading, I cannot recall one experience of the Savior asking a man whether he was working, whether he would have worked if he had a job, or even whether he was worthy to receive charity. He seemed to never have a concern for inappropriate begging. Consider the palsied man who was lowered through the roof, the two blind men calling to Him during His triumphal entry to Jerusalem, or the Canaanite woman. When he fed the five thousand and the seven thousand, He did not ask how many had personal supplies or who had eaten most recently; He gave freely to all. Sometimes when we are accosted by panhandlers, excuses are often legitimate. The recipient might be going right back into a bar or liquor store; he or she might indeed by part of a syndicate; a woman might be carrying another persons infant or child merely to evoke sympathy. Maybe the emergency for which they need financial help is fabricated. But then again, maybe not. What if we truly turn away the needy? If we give to the poor and the panhandler, the beggar and the widow, deserving or undeserving, it will be accounted unto us as righteousness. Charity, in my humble opinion, would suggest that it does not make any difference. In fact, I believe that those who best exemplify charity do not think about worthiness; they simply give." -Vaughn J Featherstone, "The Incomparable Christ"

That being said, this doesn't mean I am going to walk down the street handing out $20 dollar bills. I suggest donating to established charities. It does mean I'll try not to judge the worthy from the unworthy. That goes for beggars as well as those "worthy" of my time, kindness, and friendship. I am convinced that as I study God and his son Jesus Christ, I learn to be a better person. Even more, my ability to be a better person is strengthened by their perfect examples. I may not be perfect, but Christ died so that one day I can be with his grace.

(In response to a comment from another post- mormons believe we are saved by grace after all we can do. This means that we believe that we must obey and follow God's laws in order to gain specific blessings. It makes sense if you think about it in terms of consequences. To certain actions there are certain consequences. Certain commandments have certain blessings that follow. Mathew 7:21 Not everyone who sayeth, " Lord, Lord," shall enter the kingdom on heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.- There is the short of it.)

Reputation of the LDS Church

2008-09-18T15:42:00.001-07:00

Hey fellow bloggers...

In one of my classes this semester we will do a group project looking at global issues. My group will look at the Reputation of the LDS Church. I am really exciting to look into this issue and see what has been done, and how that has affected perception. I just wanted to open myself up for any suggestions that you guys might have- angles to take, questions to ask, resources to use and so on and so forth.

I have found out for myself that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is just what it says it is: The true church that Christ organized while he was on the Earth. It has been brought back to allow us to live in such a way as to prepare us to receive celestial glory and the type of life which God lives.

Comments are welcome! Please.
If you would like you can email me at alison.jo.williams@gmail.com

The Lord's Name

2008-07-27T19:05:00.001-07:00

The Jonathon and Stephanie Waite recently lost their youngest daughter in a drowning accident. It is a very sad thing. She has kept her blog almost since the day of the accident. Her writing immediately became so very rich and emotional. The spirit that is shared is amazing. Her perspective has helped me want to be a better father.

Today Stephanie wrote about how sacred her daughter's name is to her now. How she would never want it desecrated. Her deep, deep understanding of this has helped her teach the importance of not taking the Lords name in vain.

I strongly urge you to read her words. Her conviction and depth are tangible.

http://adailyscoop.blogspot.com/2008/07/in-vain.html

Lord's Day

2008-07-13T12:04:00.001-07:00

I was just feeling grateful today for Sundays. I love them. They recharge me. I feel peace, I look forward to church, and seeing friends or calling family. I have rarely had a really bad Sunday in my whole life. There is something to this resting on the 7th day!

Morality in the SLC newspaper

2008-07-03T16:53:00.000-07:00

I admit this is a heavy topic and considering all the positive things the LDS church is involved with like I could talk about like humanitarian aid and such, I may not be wise in even bringing it up. I may regret it. But- I think lots of people have a hard time understanding members of the church because of the gay marriage initiatives. I am not seeking to take a hard nose stand, but I am hoping some others will understand me (one member of the LDS church) better by reading this. Lets start first by saying I do not hate gay people nor think they are immoral for being attracted to their same sex. Second, I believe that more important than their sexual preference is their identity as a child of god yet I still respect the fact that they have a choice in how they will live their life. Third, gay or not, I admit I would like all people to make and keep a serious commitment (called marriage) before having sexual relations with their partners.

Why this topic? I started today looking up sites that have conversations going on about members of the LDS church. I found this one that comments on Mormons who oppose gay marriage.
The author claims that members of the LDS church have no right to say what is moral about sex or sexuality because "they" (all 13 million of us? are you sure?) do not oppose the war in Iraq that is killing thousands. That is a simple summation I admit. I for one am against the war, but that isn't what I want to talk about because I think his argument has false logic guiding his end assumptions. Hesitantly, I criticize his feelings about Mormons being closed minded. We should after all, be allowed the same amount of tolerance he gives to those who are considered untraditional, or open minded. It doesn't work to think you are open minded if you are just accepting what has not normally been accepted and then reject what used to be a norm. You are closed minded just the same when you reject the validity to another way of thought and living.

Mostly, I wanted to say here that the reason that I as a member of the LDS church choose to comment on sexuality and sex before marriage is because I want families to be strong. Studies, research, experience, has shown that kids and people do best with a "traditional (ma and pop)" family life. I work in the social work field and before that I was a high school teacher. I have worked with adolescents in residential treatment and with domestic violence victims in a shelter settings. These people are varied and all different. I loved them all- but the more I work in this field, the more I value what the family means to society. The influence of good parents, family atmosphere, and mentors CAN NOT have a price put on it. The lasting affects of feeling neglected or abused can be long lasting and have serious emotional damage attached. Parents that are untrue to their partners, fathers viewing pornography, or mothers who are verbally abusive are just a few of my main observances that are ruining families and hurting people everyday.

So am I against homosexuals having rights? No, not really. I respect others rights to make their own choices. But- maybe I am against them getting married if it threatens families even more. Time will tell about parents who are gay and I am belligerently willing to see what happens, though obviously biased at present.

I think a person's values NEED to influence their political decisions. That is what the framers of our constitution had in mind. Their idea was that the people and their republic would have decisions based on their personal values so the will of the people would be accomplished. The bill of rights then protects individuals that may be victims of their society. So I happen to value the model of the traditional family. I'll own up to it. I think eventually homosexuals will have the right to marry. Shifting cultural trends have often been incredibly important historically, and I recognize that this may happen and the world may NOT end. However, I do fear that supporting untraditional family units will make the untraditional, the traditional. This, in my opinion, would be job security for me, but perhaps a load of pain and hurt for others based on my professional and personal experience.

Until then, I'll continue supporting traditional families constitutionally, politically even. So to the author of the editorial, I am sorry you feel I have no moral right to have my values affect my political decisions, but I can not apologize for believing in the importance of families and the basic emotional needs that they provide.

The church's role: The LDS church focuses on making families strong and keeping them together. I would argue that many LDS church members do not support gay marriage- and I think this is for similar reasons as I have stated. Traditional family life is extremely valued. The LDS church teaches that family's happiness and success increases when the foundations have love and respect. They want equally committed parents and families that are trying to live the teachings of Jesus Christ. That would be the principle of service, love, trying to do God's will, and the ability we all have to change after making mistakes because of the savior. There are many people in our church who are not from traditional families and they are not looked down on. However, the principle of family life as a means of gaining happiness in this life is still taught. The church has some official stuff on their moral stances listed here.

With that said, I do fear posting this. I fear my experience with traditional families will be seen as naive, and my support of the traditional families will be seen as hating gay people and those in untraditional families. Such is not the case and I welcome respectful replies.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Feel free to make a comment in the SLC editorial if you want, or here. You may have to log in. It seems most comments so far have agreed with the author- which is why I decided to join this particular internet conversation. I would encourage you to say something yourself.

Also if you haven't read Elder Ballards talk yet- here you go.

Those of you who are authors in this blog, why don't you read the talk, then let it direct what you want to post about. Maybe you can make it a goal to post once a month. Give me feedback on what you want this to be.

Beneath the surface

2008-07-01T21:52:00.000-07:00

This is good. I like this idea of blogging about what means most to us. Our faith means so much to us.

Last summer, I was taught a little bit about addictions. Turns out I am an addict of sorts too. I think we all are in some cases. I basically got out of that conversation that addictions are something that we use to cover an underlying need and in the end keep us from resolving them. For example, youngins might use drugs to forget about the attention and love they feel they are not receiving from their overworked parents. As well, addictions extend beyond drugs and all that crazy stuff out there. I learned my running was an addiction...I ran, and still do, when things just don't seem to connect...frustration. Now, I say along with with you that running is a great alternative, however, it's still not the most healthy tendency if it keeps me from resolving that underlying need to put the pieces together and removing the frustration.

Today, I was reminded of that lesson. I visited with an amazing sister who is taking the lessons with the missionaries. She is making great changes in her life. The next hurdle is overcoming her addiction to smoking. I found it interesting how as she was taking out all of these bad influences and habits, her reliance on smoking was growing. A lot of that I think is because she never resolved the basic need and hunger that all of those influences and habits were covering up.

Well, I am really excited to see the restored gospel fill that void she quite possibly doesn't even truly know exist. I love the underlying principle of the word of wisdom and other commandments that to some may seem as if they were there to restrain. But really they protect us from covering up issues and challenges meant to be resolved. They turn us to the true source of refreshing...the atonement.

This is my favorite so far

2008-06-30T11:13:00.000-07:00

The Church has a new Ad Campaign titled Truth Restored. It used to be: Families, isn't it about time. I actually really love these new videos. You can find them in the newsroom site, or youtube.

2008-06-30T11:11:00.001-07:00

My friend Michael knows her. She is from Chicago.

The intention of this blog

2008-06-29T20:04:00.000-07:00

I recently read a magazine called the Ensign containing an article by Elder M Russell Ballard. He is an apostle in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints (LDS Church a.k.a mormons). He said, "There are conversations going about the church constantly. Those conversation will continue whether or not we choose to participate in them. But we cannot stand on the sidelines while others, including our critics, attempt to define what the church teaches...May I ask that you join the conversation by participating on the internet to share the gospel and to explain in simple and clear terms the message of the Restoration."

So here it is. A conversation. If you wish to join, member of my faith or not. I invite you.
Otherwise, I am hoping people I know will join me. Our faith is so important to us, why wouldn't we blog about it? I hear that over 85% of the internet media is negative about the LDS church when one searches for stuff about Mormons. This blog can be searched for. I hope people who are interested or even just curious will find it a place to see what a few actual members of the LDS church have say about it to each other and to the world wide web.