Mike and Cristine Mason have been married for over 5 years, they are the parents of a beautiful and active 2 year-old boy.  They were baptized March 22, 2009.  Mike is a salesman, Cristine works at a university as an administrative assistant.  The following excerpts are from an interview with them conducted May 16, 2010.

How did you find the LDS Church?

Mike: Back in 2003, I received a revelation that Jesus Christ was real and that I am a son of God.  That revelation just hit me and I was walking around for three days singing hallelujah.  And I thought, “Well, if I’m a son of God I’d better read what that means, because the only Son of God that I’m aware of is Jesus Christ.”  So I went to start studying the Bible, day and night I just read it and read it and read it.  Then I realized that I needed to be baptized, but the only thing I knew was that there were churches that baptize you.  So I’d go and try out different churches, and it would be good for awhile, but then we’d run against some theological differences–what the Bible says and what they were doing was two different things.  And my enthusiasm would wane, and I’d fall back into the world again and then start searching for a new church again.

The last church I went to before I found The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints helped me break out of a lot of the molds of the things that happened in the 4th Century.   During the 4th century, the Nicene Creed and the doctrines that came from the Creeds bind a lot of the Protestant churches up from receiving further revelation.  The United Pentecostal Church didn’t believe in the trinity, they believed in Jehovah as Jesus Christ.  So they helped me think outside the Protestant box, and when I came to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I was already believing that Jehovah was Jesus Christ, though the Pentecostals still saw them as one God, all grouped together.  But again, the Bible hit their doctrine, and I knew that the Bible was my Gold Standard, so my enthusiasm waned.

At that time, I was working a lot of hours, making a lot of money, living the luxurious lifestyle.  But I was not spending any time with my family.  I could feel us spinning apart–my child was growing up without me.  One night I saw the end coming–I knew that if something did not change, it would all completely fall apart.  And there was a commercial on TV (and I HATED these commercials growing up–”Isn’t it about time”).  So I saw the website, www.mormon.org and I got on and started comparing the doctrines and things just started lining up–”oh my word!  They’re not kooks!”

As I was talking with the missionaries, I had question after question after question–they even brought the Mission President to our home to help answer my questions.  There had been nothing else that I had found that had been this living, this powerful, as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Just the fruit, what it has brought into our lives, the way it has changed my life.

Cristine: I’ve always felt that light inside me, driving me to seek religion.  I grew up as a Catholic, we went to church on Sundays–even though I didn’t have much community involvement.  But I’ve always had that fire for the Lord.  And after we got married, we began this search together.  And we were attending that Pentecostal church, and it was good, but not great.  And all of the sudden one day, [Mike] had done a search on my phone and I saw “www.mormon.org” on my phone and I thought–”what is this?? Oh my goodness, where are we going now?”  One day he happened to mention that some people were coming by that night to teach us a little bit about it.  One night he had been in their parking lot and he met with the Elders and they really got in to the meat and potatoes of it all.  At first I was a little hesitant, but I decided that I would just feel them out and see what they were saying and if it rang true, then I would listen to them.  So they came and I thought, “Well, this isn’t so bad.  It sounds like it could be true.”  So then that opened the door for me to listen and accept it.

And then I have realized, “Wow, this really is a fullness.  Why would it all just have to be in the Old World?  Why couldn’t Jesus have come to this continent?  People are always saying, “Don’t put God in a box” and then they limit what He can do or where He can be.  It helped me to believe, to have that testimony of the Book of Mormon as another testament of His life.  As we got into more discussions with the Elders, we had more and more little revelations of the truth of it, as well as starting to see the fruits of it in our own lives.

Have you met with opposition as you’ve joined the church?

Mike: I’ve had friends that I’d left from other churches that I knew I had to tell them that I had joined the church.  One gentleman, who I had been friends with for the longest time, he is a die-hard Pentecostal and I knew that my first test of being a member of the church was that I had to bear him my testimony.  And he rained fire on my head.  He wanted to argue, he wanted to fight–and I just stayed my course and kept repeating, “I know this is true because I thought about it, I’ve prayed about it” and the result of that conversation was that I realized that my hands were now welded to my plow.  I had taken that step of commitment.

When my mom found out what church we were going to, she said, “Are those the Mormons?  You know they don’t even believe in God.”  I’ve had to go against my grandmother, the matriarch of the family–very strong and hard-headed sometimes.  I’ve had opposition from my family.  However, my dad supports it–he’s seen the change in us.

Cristine: Most of the opposition we’ve had has come through his side of the family. I remember one weekend we were on vacation, and his grandmother found our primary book [Cristine teaches the children in the Church's Primary organization], and said, “that looks like a nice program, but they don’t teach from the Bible.”  And I said, “Yes they do.”  She warned me that I should be careful and really think about what I was doing, and I replied,  “You know I take this pretty seriously, and you can be sure that I have prayed and thought about it.”

How has it changed you?

Mike: The change has come about in three ways: The first was spiritually.  It helped me eliminate a lot of bad physical habits, all on the spiritual power of my testimony.  As soon as I knew the church was true, I quit my smoking and other habits that instant.  Never looked back.  The power of the testimony just happened instantly.  The second is mentally–I have a mental illness that was misdiagnosed for a long time, but after becoming a member of the Church, cleaning up my life and finding balance with everything, I’ve been able to be re-diagnosed with much better outcomes.  The third is physically (Mike has lost over 60 pounds in the last few months and he looks great).  But it’s also changed my marriage–the way I relate to people and the way I relate to my wife.

Cristine: And the Lord is who brought Mike and I together, and as we’ve studied together, it’s helped us seal our marriage.  Again, the fruits are evident in our lives, as well as our little boy’s life.  Sure, he’s a little hyper, but his prayer life is coming together.  He’s the first one at the dinner table who reaches out his hands and says, “let’s pray”.

Additionally, we have received so much support and encouragement with the Church, especially when things were really at their worst.  We ask ourselves, “Could we have gotten that help anywhere else?”

And I had a friend at work, who is LDS, and I would go to her and ask her about the Church.  I remember when Mike was having difficulties with his illness, I would go to her and say, “I just want to go somewhere where people will accept him for who he is.  It is not a very easy thing to accept a person for their differences, but I am just hoping that this place will have the structure in the men’s group that they would accept him, and not shun him.”  And thus far it has gone really well.

Mike: I would echo what Peter said to Christ when Christ asked him if he was going to leave Him too, and Peter answered, “where would we go?  You have the truth.” And that is what I would say today.  In our year and some months in the church, I haven’t been the perfect Latter-day Saint, but it comes back to–where else am I going to go?  This is where the truth is.  And as far as waning excitement that has happened in the past with previous churches, I’ve already been through the peaks and valleys with this church, and the Spirit just draws me back in.  We’re here to stay.

You’ll often hear phrases like, “I know that God lives,” and “I know Jesus died for my sins,” and “I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.”  Sometimes visitors come away from these meetings non-plussed by our uber-confident ‘knowledge’ of things.  It got me thinking.

Whenever someone says they know something, they are saying they have high confidence that their belief coincides with objective truth.  We do this all the time.  You say, “I just know the dentist is going to lecture me on flossing” because 1) he’s done it before and 2) you still haven’t been flossing.  Your previous experience and the evidence of your behavior lead you to this prediction.  There are many ways we gather knowledge; I’ll list a few here for illustration:

• Personal experience (five physical senses,  sense of balance, pain, hunger, etc.)
• Emotion and intuition (love, fear, instinct, etc.)
• Experiences of others (advice, anecdotes, biographies, etc.)
• Logical and mathematical proofs (a priori)
• Found evidence (archeology, historical documents, paleontology, forensics, etc.)
• Robust scientific experimentation that controls for all variables (physics, chemistry, etc.)
• Scientific experimentation/observation that controls for variables where possible (sociology, political science, economics, etc.)

We all tend to have some level of confidence in these methods, some more than others, depending on many factors, but each of these can lead a person to say “I know…” if the learning method is compelling enough.  Even so, many would argue that none of the methods I listed above are capable of producing reliable knowledge of things as transcendent as God.  Archeological digs might lend credence to a religious belief, but surely not firm knowledge.  These critics have a point, so I would add one more item to the list:

• Revelation from God

God speaks to His children in various ways.  He gave Joseph prophetic dreams that came true; He spoke to Moses from a burning bush (and also face-to-face).  He sent an angel to Mary to announce the birth of Jesus.  Joseph Smith saw and listened to the Father and the Son in a grove of trees.

To Joseph of Egypt, Moses, Mary, Smith and many others, those experiences were indisputable.  They had every right to declare, “I know” instead of “I believe,” and they did.

For most of us, though, the glorious visions and visitations of heavenly beings haven’t yet happened.  For us, God has promised another form of revelation: a personal witness of spiritual truths through the power of the Holy Spirit.  He is available to bear witness of the Father and the Son.  ”By the power of the Holy Ghost, ye may know the truth of all things” (Moroni 10:5).  This witness may be less dramatic or conspicuous than an angelic visitor, but its convincing power may be even more sure than a vision (see Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, 2:151; 1 Nephi 17:45-46).  Because of His subtlety, it may take many prompts for you to hear the Holy Ghost and again many more before you trust them enough to say “I know.”  But it can happen.  This is how I know God lives and that Jesus is the Christ.

You can know, too.  Like other modes of learning, it won’t necessarily come in an afternoon of mild curiosity, but it will with dedicated seeking, knocking, and asking over the course of weeks and months and years.  Begin now and you will taste the deliciousness that is the knowledge of God.

Anyway, so in this particular Family Home Evening lesson we read the scripture Alma 33:11 which describes praying in faith through one’s afflictions. I asked my children if they knew what the word “affliction” meant and explained to them that it is something difficult: when something hard happens in life and we maybe don’t know what to do or how to get through that experience and I told them it is important to pray to make it through these times of difficulty. My four year old son has been playing a video game with my husband and when I talked about afflictions, he immediately drew a corollary to this game. They’d stopped playing last time at a point in which the characters were stuck on one side of a large crack in the ground and my son commented that he just didn’t know what they were going to do about it or how they would get their guys around or over this big hole in the earth. When he said the closing prayer that night, he asked Heavenly Father to help them to find a way to get around that big crack in the ground in their game.

Maybe it’s one of those “you had to be there moments”, but this touched my heart and I know my children and I were both taught that night by the Holy Ghost. My eyes got a little misty as the scripture Mosaiah 3:19 came to my mind and I marveled at the simplicity and depth of my son’s faith. I know that he believes and accepts what I’m teaching him. I know that he loves his Redeemer, Jesus Christ. My son was taking my lesson to heart and applying it to his sphere of understanding. Would that we all prayed with such faith! Would that we never doubted that our omnipotent Father in Heaven cares about us and whatever we may be experiencing. I know this to be true.  Jesus is the Christ, he suffered for your sins, died for you and was resurrected again because of that great love that our Father has for each and every one of us. Just as my son prayed for help to get through what he truly saw as a difficulty in his world, we can pray for any difficulty in our world and I know our prayers will be answered.

In the course of my journey as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, there have been numerous times where I have questions come up that challenge my faith.   I can’t speak for all Mormons, but I would assume that we all go through these cycles from time to time.  I picked this topic to write about, because I want others who are not of our faith to know that I do have questions and from time to time finding answers to these questions causes spiritual turmoil.  However, it is during these times that I grow the most spiritually.

The foundation of my belief is rooted in Joseph Smith’s testimony that he was in fact visited by God the Father and Jesus Christ.  This visit came in response to Joseph’s prayer to know which church he should join.  They gave him specific instructions — he was to join none of the churches, because none of them were right (Joseph Smith History 1:1-20).  What followed next in Joseph’s life is phenomenal:  through him Jesus Christ re-established his Church, the Book of Mormon was translated, the authority to act and perform ordinances in God’s name was given to man again, and the list could go on.  I will always remember the day that the truthfulness of this man’s testimony was written upon my heart by the Holy Ghost.  I feel much the same as Joseph did:  I know it and I know that God knows it and I cannot deny it (JS-H 1:25).

However, even though I know Joseph Smith’s story to be true, from time to time, something will come up that causes me to wonder.  For example, polygamy, or how the priesthood was distributed prior to 1978.  These challenges of faith, no matter how big or small, cause me to reflect and evaluate.  Sometimes, they cause me to think, “how could God’s prophet do this, or say that?”  I learned a long time ago that there is a reason; however, in these times I have yet to discover the puzzle piece that makes the picture complete.  Often I have to go back to the basics that I know to be undeniably true–that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that he did in fact translate the Book of Mormon.  In other instances, I have to sit down and think about other confirmations that I have received from the Holy Ghost about a particular piece of doctrine, whether it is prayer, fasting, scripture study, marriage, or the priesthood for a few examples.  As I do this and ponder my question throughout the day or weeks, eventually someone will say something, or I will have a thought that comes to me, always accompanied by another confirmation through the Holy Ghost.  Then I can clearly see what I was missing.

These experiences strengthen my faith and further buttress my basic testimony of God.  In this way I have been able to move from truth to truth and from grace to grace, learning about God and the grand plan that He has designed for our eternal happiness.  I am grateful that there is a God and that He loves me perfectly (as He does all of us), even if that means that from time to time I have to struggle in my faith, because it helps me to grow stronger.

The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles

As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth.He was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New. Under the direction of His Father, He was the creator of the earth. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). Though sinless, He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness. He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38), yet was despised for it. His gospel was a message of peace and goodwill. He entreated all to follow His example. He walked the roads of Palestine, healing the sick, causing the blind to see, and raising the dead. He taught the truths of eternity, the reality of our premortal existence, the purpose of our life on earth, and the potential for the sons and daughters of God in the life to come.

He instituted the sacrament as a reminder of His great atoning sacrifice. He was arrested and condemned on spurious charges, convicted to satisfy a mob, and sentenced to die on Calvary’s cross. He gave His life to atone for the sins of all mankind. His was a great vicarious gift in behalf of all who would ever live upon the earth.

We solemnly testify that His life, which is central to all human history, neither began in Bethlehem nor concluded on Calvary. He was the Firstborn of the Father, the Only Begotten Son in the flesh, the Redeemer of the world.

He rose from the grave to “become the firstfruits of them that slept” (1 Corinthians 15:20). As Risen Lord, He visited among those He had loved in life. He also ministered among His “other sheep” (John 10:16) in ancient America. In the modern world, He and His Father appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, ushering in the long-promised “dispensation of the fulness of times” (Ephesians 1:10).

Of the Living Christ, the Prophet Joseph wrote: “His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:

“I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father” (D&C 110:3–4).

Of Him the Prophet also declared: “And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

“For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

“That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (D&C 76:22–24).

We declare in words of solemnity that His priesthood and His Church have been restored upon the earth—”built upon the foundation of . . . apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20).

We testify that He will someday return to earth. “And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together” (Isaiah 40:5). He will rule as King of Kings and reign as Lord of Lords, and every knee shall bend and every tongue shall speak in worship before Him. Each of us will stand to be judged of Him according to our works and the desires of our hearts.

We bear testimony, as His duly ordained Apostles—that Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. He is the great King Immanuel, who stands today on the right hand of His Father. He is the light, the life, and the hope of the world. His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son.

THE FIRST PRESIDENCY		THE QUORUM OF THE TWELVE

Her instructions were to take the peach pit home and bury it in a small pot.  Give it plenty of water and sunlight.  When the seedling gets to be about 6 inches high, plant it in a bigger pot.  When it reaches 2 feet, transplant it outside where it will receive lots of sunlight and water.  It seems like a lot more work and a lot more time than I originally counted on.  I decide to…

A.    Throw the seed out the car window as I am driving home and resolve to just come by her house occasionally and ask for a bushel of peaches. (Go to {A})
B.    Take it home and plant it outside in the spot where I am eventually going to put it in the yard and save myself a few steps. (Go to {B})
C.    Take it home and plant it in the small pot and water it faithfully for a few days.  At least, as long as it’s still interesting to me. (Go to {C})
D.    Take it home and do exactly as she says.  (Go to {D})

{A} As I throw the seed out of my window, I think—how would I know if this particular peach pit was even going to germinate?  I’m pretty sure it was faulty.  If she asks, I’ll just say it never came up, so would she mind just sharing her peaches once in a while?  I just saved myself a lot of trouble.  Unfortunately, my friend moves away the following year and my peach supply ends.  (Matthew 13: 4, 19).

{B} I take the seed home and wonder if it is even a viable peach pit—will it germinate?  Or did she just get lucky with her peach pit?  Maybe she wasn’t even telling me the truth about growing her pit into a tree!  I talk to a lot of my friends about it, we look stuff up on Wikipedia about peaches and what the likelihood is of them germinating.  I go to cherry growers websites, too (they are also stone fruits), to see if they have hints or facts about growing peaches.  I discuss it with people in the supermarket line.  I’m getting a lot of good information about peaches and I think I’m almost an expert on them.  I guess the time is right for me to have my own.

I decide just to plant it in the yard and see if it comes up.  I’m not going to bother with all the fussy details.  I plant it and, mercifully, the rain and sun cooperate.  One day as I’m out playing with my toddler in the yard, I notice a little seedling unfolding in the sun–the peach tree!  The only problem is that it is surrounded by thick Texas grass and weeds.  I check on it occasionally, but after a few weeks, the grass and weeds have won the battle for water and sun and the seedling is gone.  Hmm, I guess I should have just planted it inside like she said.  Turns out it was a good pit.  Unfortunately, my friend moved away before peach season came again and I didn’t get another chance to try it. (Matthew 13: 7, 22)

{C} As I leave her house, I am so excited and empowered by the idea that I could grow my very own peach tree!  I’m going to start a blog about it!  I’m going to take pictures every day to show the progress!  And maybe I will be able to find a little ruler that I can plant right along with the pit and then I can tell how much it is growing every day.  What should I name it?  Tabitha.  Definitely Tabitha.  Full of adrenaline, I rush right in and find a small pot (my first attempt at ceramics in 9th grade), fill it with potting soil and plant the seed.  I faithfully water it for a week.  Then less faithfully the next week.  Then we go on vacation for three days.  When I get home, I have kind of forgotten about it and it never really gets to be part of my daily schedule, besides, now I am too busy teaching myself Tae Kwon Do from YouTube tutorials.  Two months later, as I do the dishes, I look up and see it there.  Brown and lying in the dirt. The sun and drought has fried it.  Poor Tabitha.  I just got really busy.  (Matthew 13: 5, 20-21; Alma 32: 38-40)

{D} As I leave her house, I am excited about the possibility of having my own peach tree, growing right out my back door.  I already have a pot on my window sill with some dirt in it from another plant that didn’t survive the winter.  Maybe this tree will be luckier.  I decide to empty the old dirt out and put in some fresh, moist potting soil.  The kind with MiracleGro right in it.  This little pit needs all the help it can get.  Then I put it back up on the windowsill and remind myself that every time I make dinner, I will give it a little drink.  As soon as it is part of my schedule, it is easy to take care of.  My kids and I watch the little sprout grow and grow with fascination.

After a few months, we put it in a bigger pot and it continues to grow.  It only takes a year and a half to be hardy enough to plant outside.  A year and a half!  And now we’ll have fresh peaches each summer for the rest of our lives, if I continue to care for it.  I’d say it was a solid investment of time.  Good thing I did, too, because my friend moves away the next year and her peach tree is razed when the new owners take over the house.  We still talk about gardening stuff on the phone though.  It’s so great to have that in common.  As soon as my tree starts producing, I plan to send her a peach pit so she can grow her own again.  This particular variety is sweeter than any other I’ve tasted.  (Matthew 13: 8,23; Alma 32: 28-37).

If you are wondering what in the world I am talking about, read Alma 32: 28-43 and Matthew 13.  A gospel-centered life is a lot sweeter than peaches.  I know that it is viable and will germinate if you give it a sincere chance with diligent effort.  You can know the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ is true fairly quickly (a sprout), but to be able to stand on your own testimony takes a little time (say, a year and a half of dedicated effort) and finally receiving the fruit (a life changed through Jesus Christ) can take even longer, though I promise that it is worth the effort.

“And because of your diligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst.  Then, my friends, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you.” (Alma 32: 42-43)

This past week my family had a unique experience:  On Wednesday we saw my little sister off to be a missionary in Chile, and then on Thursday we met my husband’s little brother at the airport as he returned from his mission in Brazil.  To see the metamorphosis that these young men and women go through was incredible and I thought it might be interesting for some of our readers to know a bit more about these young people they see on bikes and street corners.

• Elders (the young men) and Sisters (the young women) are addressed by their title and their last name.  Mormons don’t all have the same first name.
• Elders are generally between 19-21 years old.  Sisters have to be at least 21.   There are also “couple missionaries” who are married and already retired.  They probably won’t tell you how old they are.
• Elders serve for 2 years and Sisters serve for 18 months.  Couples serve for 18 months as well.
• Nearly all missionaries first go to the Missionary Training Center In Provo, Utah for a few weeks before they embark on their mission.  There are 16 other MTCs throughout the world.  They teach the basics of language and teaching techniques.  Their language programs are so successful that several government organizations have approached the Mormon church to ask them what their secret is.  Unfortunately, the secret is the Spirit and a very real manifestation of the gift of tongues.   The State Department just can’t replicate that.
• Missionaries don’t choose where they want to go.  Otherwise, they would all end up in Venice, probably.  They are called by members of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles who receive their direction from the Spirit.
• Missionaries pay for themselves.  They aren’t church sponsored and they aren’t paid for their service.  They are very literally serving.
• There were 54,494 missionaries serving in 348 missions throughout the world as of April 2009.
• Missionaries always work in a companionship.  There are usually two, sometimes three, missionaries who live together, eat together, work together and teach together.   Nothing weird going on there, it is an extension of having two or more witnesses when they teach and testify.
• Missionaries don’t date.  If you want to talk to them because you are hoping they will ask you out, you are wasting your time.
• The missionaries’ purpose is to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to anyone who is interested.  They talk about the restoration of the Gospel through Joseph Smith, the Atonement of Jesus Christ and how it applies to us directly, why we are here on the earth and what our purpose is eternally,  and how to live a life in harmony with God.  When you meet with the missionaries they will likely present a series of four to six lessons introducing gospel concepts.
• When missionaries go home, they resume their normal lives.  Then they date, go to school, get married, reminisce about their missions, and stop wearing ugly ties.  In fact, if you have Mormon friends, ask them if they went on a mission.  They might have some entertaining stories for you.

So next time you see a set of missionaries walking around, get to know them.  (If they are wearing ugly ties, forgive them.  They are only 19).  They could be from anywhere in the world, and perhaps they were called to that mission just so that they could meet you.

Q.

This is an important topic.  Paramount.  Essential!  We’ve discussed the topic of prayer already here, here, here, and my personal favorite, here.  But I really don’t think we can emphasize prayer enough.  Too often religious discussions get bogged down in abstract dogmas like grace and works, deification, and canon.  These are good things to discuss, but we sometimes miss a chance to talk about what’s really practical in our lives here and now.

Many of our readers have never prayed before and probably feel intimidated at the thought.  I hope my step-by-step instructions will be helpful to you.

Step 1:  Prepare

Why are you praying?  A prayer is communication with your Heavenly Father, and there are many reasons to speak to Him.  Perhaps you are facing hard times and need help.  He can help you.  Maybe you need answers; maybe you just want to know if He is really there.  He will respond.  You can confess wrong-doing to begin repentance.  You can thank Him for blessings.  You can request to feel His love for you.

Meditation before prayer can help you focus your thoughts and will make your prayers more meaningful.

Another part of preparation is finding an appropriate time and place to pray.  I’m focusing this article on personal, private prayers, so alone time is key.  Turn off the music, find a quiet spot and allow yourself at least a few minutes without interruption.

Step 2:  Address God

Jesus began His famous prayer, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name…”  Jesus is the Son of God, so He naturally called on His Father in prayer.  I think it’s significant that He invited us to call Him Father, too.  The most powerful being in existence is your spiritual dad.  Remember this relationship.

Kneel.  It shows your respect and your willingness to defer to His wisdom.  It represents humility.  Your prayer does not depend on the position of your body, but it does depend on your attitude.  Kneeling reminds you to adjust your attitude.

Step 3:  Be Grateful

Express your thanks for the good things and people that are a part of your life.  Think of the beauty of earth, the love of your mother, your innate, sharp intellect, your home.  They are gifts from Father.  Try to recognize when the Lord’s hand helped you and let Him know you appreciated it.

Again, your attitude is key.  We are dependent on God for all our support.  As King Benjamin taught in the Book of Mormon, “I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants” (Mosiah 2:21).  Our gratitude is the least we can offer to Father for all He has given us.

Step 4:  Speak Your Mind Plainly

You can talk to Heavenly Father as easily as you talk to your own parents. Share your thoughts with Him, let Him know what your dreams are and what kind of person you hope to become.  Celebrate together your triumphs, and seriously reflect on your sins; request forgiveness.

He knows what’s halting your progress, and He can help you overcome.  Ask how.

You can ask for help with other things, too.  Things like: relationship trouble, career paths, patience, mathematics, lost car keys, what books are worthwhile, overcoming addictions, providing food, maintaining health, etc.  It’s really wide open.  There are things that are probably inappropriate to ask for (“please make my neighbor die”), but there is a wide field of possible blessings God is willing to grant, and is waiting for us to request.

Step 5:  Close Your Prayer in Jesus’ Name

“…in the name of Jesus Christ; amen.”  This little phrase, spoken in sincerity, indicates you have faith in Jesus Christ.  Every answered prayer is a miracle, and miracles can only occur with faith in the Redeemer.

The Book of Mormon prophet Moroni was confronted by the charge that God can do no miracles.  This was his response: “And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.  Behold, I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ, doubting nothing, whatsoever he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him; and this promise is unto all, even unto the ends of the earth” (Mormon 9:20-21).

This promise even extends to us today, whenever you pray to the Father in the name of Christ.

Praying in Jesus’ name also brings your heart and mind closer to the Savior’s.  Read a bit more about that over here.

Step 6:  Listen

This is the hardest step, especially if you are unaccustomed to praying.  You’ll sit there in silence for a moment, thinking about the things you said in your prayer.  You will analyze and over-analyze every thought that passes through your mind, wondering, “was that from me, or from God?”

Sometimes it will be obvious.  Sometimes it will be subtle.  Like a radio, we must tune into the signal and be ready to receive.  We will talk more about this topic in another article, but I want to leave you with one important rule:  if it is good, it comes from God.

Moroni taught, “But he that believeth these things which I have spoken, him will I visit with the manifestations of my Spirit, and he shall know and bear record. For because of my Spirit he shall know that these things are true; for it persuadeth men to do good.  And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me” (Ether 4:11-12).

There were many prophecies and scriptures that the Nephites had and all of them pointed to a Jesus Christ who had not yet come.  A prophet named Nephi, who lived around 600 B.C., wrote, “And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins”(2 Nephi 25:26).  They were looking forward toward Christ much in the same way we look back at His life here on earth and look forward to His second coming.  Other prophets such as Benjamin, Abinadi, Alma and many others taught the people concerning Christ, giving their testimonies as well.  They all knew of Christ and knew that He would come to redeem His people.

Of all the stories, lessons and prophecies in the Book of Mormon, none are as powerful nor of so great importance as when Jesus Christ Himself visited the people here in the American continent. Only five years preceding His birth, a prophet was sent among the people named Samuel.  His prophecies were exceptionally plain and precise.

And behold, he said unto them: Behold, I give unto you a sign; for five years more cometh, and behold, then cometh the Son of God to redeem all those who shall believe on his name.  And behold, this will I give unto you for a sign at the time of his coming; for behold, there shall be great lights in heaven, insomuch that in the night before he cometh there shall be no darkness, insomuch that it shall appear unto man as if it was day.  Therefore, there shall be one day and a night and a day… and it shall be the night before he is born.  And behold, there shall a new star arise, such an one as ye never have beheld.  And behold this is not all, there shall be many signs and wonders in heaven.

Helaman 14:2-6

Prophecies and signs of Christ’s death were also given.

But behold, as I said unto you concerning another sign, a sign of his death, behold…the sun shall be darkened…and also the moon and the stars; and there shall be no light upon the face of this land, even from the time that he shall suffer death…to the time that he shall rise again from the dead. Yea, at the time that he shall yield up the ghost there shall be thunderings and lightnings for the space of many hours, and the earth shall shake and tremble…and there shall be many places which are now called valleys which shall become mountains…And many highways shall be broken up, and many cities shall become desolate. And many graves shall be opened…and many saints shall appear unto many.

Helaman 14:20-25

Samuel also explained the mission of Christ on the earth and the importance of His coming.  Most people did not believe Samuel’s words but that did not stop them from coming to pass.  The night stayed lit five years later and a new star was seen.  Thirty-three years after that, earthquakes and storms leveled cities and darkness prevailed for three days.  To the survivors, however, Christ Himself appeared.

Chapters 11 through 28 of 3 Nephi contain His words and deeds among the people.  He allowed them to come to Him to be first-hand witnesses of the reality of His resurrection.  He chose 12 men to be teachers and leaders, giving them the authority and commandments pertaining to baptism.  Then, He gave to all the people the words that He gave to the Jews on the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5 and 3 Nephi 12).

Over the next few days, He continued to teach them the scriptures, heal their sick, give them the sacrament, and pray with them.  I would encourage everyone to read these words because they are such touching examples of Christ’s love for His people.  The effect that this visit had on the people was not forgotten.  For hundreds of years, the people were diligent in following the words that Jesus had given to them and it wasn’t until they had turned away from those words that they did fail, just as predicted many times beforehand.

The Book of Mormon is a remarkable book and contains many lessons that are applicable in our lives.  It also shows the sublime truth that Jesus is the Christ, and that He communicated Himself to His people here anciently.  They knew He was their Savior from death and sin and they heeded His words and were blessed.  The same holds true for us today as well.  By their testimony and the testimony of the Holy Spirit, we can know those same truths.

Explanation: it’s a conference where we all get to enjoy a few hours of inspired counsel from the general leadership of the church. And, yes, that includes addresses from the prophet of God: Thomas S. Monson. The meeting itself takes place in the behemoth Conference Center in Salt Lake City, Utah (note: by “behemoth” I mean “the largest theater-style auditorium ever built” [as seen in the picture]). But luckily some engineering kids figured out how to broadcast the entire proceedings of the conference to any and all of us by way of TV (check local listings), radio (check local listings), or streaming online. Or, stroll on over to a local LDS meetinghouse near you.

Here’s the lineup (Mountain Daylight Time):
Saturday April 4, 2009
10 am – noon ~ First session
2 pm – 4 pm ~ Second session

Sunday April 5, 2009
10 am – noon ~ Third session
2 pm – 4 pm ~ Fourth session

If I were you, I super-really wouldn’t miss out on this. When I watch these conferences, I am left on an invigorating spiritual high, wanting to love more, wanting to serve more, wanting to want to love more, wanting to want to want to love more, etc. Unfortunately and granted, this sense of goodness doesn’t last for nearly as long as it should, but then that’s why the entire proceedings of the conference are kindly posted online for review at any time.

If you think life is rough, let me introduce you to the diamond: General Conference.