DISCLAIMER: This post is meant to only share what I believe and invite you to learn more. Please do not take offense!
Most people know that I'm a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Since that's a mouthful, we are also nicknamed "Mormons". That is only because we read The Book of Mormon alongside the Bible. It's more record of Jesus Christ, only it takes place in ancient America. It is an awesome book that has changed my life! But the main reason I'm writing this post is because I LOVE being Mormon and I want you to know why! So here are 10 reasons YOU should be Mormon, too!!! (There are billions more, but 10 seemed like enough.)
1. Jesus Christ is the center of our faith. A lot of people believe we don't worship Jesus Christ...but we do! (Just check out the church's full name.) We believe in the same Jesus Christ that other Christian faiths believe in. He is the Son of God and died for our sins.
2. God still speaks to the world through a prophet. Remember in the Bible when God called prophets? Well guess what?? He still does! There is a living prophet today named Thomas S. Monson, and there are also 12 apostles. Joseph Smith was the first modern-day prophet who was called by God to restore the Church of Jesus Christ to the earth after years of people creating their own faiths. The only way you can know there's a prophet is through listening to what he has to say and praying to know for yourself.
3. The Book of Mormon is MORE evidence of Christ! In a world of people with little to no faith in Jesus Christ (although there are many who do believe), it's such a blessing to have another testament of Jesus Christ in book form, just like the Bible! The Book of Mormon is the second witness that proves of Christ, and both can be read side by side to learn more about who He is and how we can be like Him. It rocks! Plus, it's much easier to understand because it hasn't been translated a million different ways and times like the Bible! (Only once!)
4. No paid clergy. Most faiths have a paid bishop or pastor, and that's their life career. Our 14+ million members worldwide, from the prophet to the bishops to the members, NO ONE is paid. It is because of our faith in Christ and the order which God creates His Church that we are all willing to volunteer much of our time to it. We also follow the commandment of tithing, where 10% of our income goes towards building churches and temples, feeding the poor, and other church organizations. Plus the church is exactly the same everywhere in the world!!! As it should be. (To help settle some of the dispute, a small stipend for living expenses is served to the prophet and apostles. However, most have retired from successful jobs when they are called. There are also jobs associated with the Church media and such. What I was getting at is that we don't have people that go to school to become prophets and apostles and bishops and that becomes their job. They are called by God. Just wanted to clarify.)
5. Biggest missionary program EVER! There are currently about 74,900 missionaries throughout the world in 405 missions. None are paid, they don't get to choose their destination (the prophet and apostles do that), they go for 18 months to 2 years, and start as early as 18 years of age. We even have to save our own money to serve! Why do we do it? Because we know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ and will bring more happiness and peace to your life than you can ever know otherwise! That's why I did it.
6. Death does NOT separate families. God put us on this earth in families so we can learn and grow together. We all have a need for a family unit where we can learn how to avoid the evils of this world and become strong. Satan is constantly attacking the family today because it is the most important thing in our lives. But would God put us here in families just to break them apart at death?? Of course not! That's why when we are married it is not til death, but for all time and eternity. This is done in the 141 temples around the world, where families are being united every day.
7. Temples!!!!!!!!! You've probably seen a temple in a picture or real life, but they aren't just pretend castles. In ancient times, God commanded His people to build temples to perform sacred ordinances, like marriage which I mentioned above. With the restoration of His church through the prophet Joseph Smith, temples became a commandment once again. They are beautiful and the House of the Lord on earth. You can feel the peace there even just walking around the grounds.
8. Authority from God. No one can just stand up and decide they have authority from God to start a church. That's what people thought in the days after the death of Christ and His apostles. Many churches were formed and people had this idea that they could start a church however they wanted. Some had good intentions as well. But that authority that was given by God to baptize, preach the gospel, basically run His church on earth, was brought back! Now it lies in our church, because God restored it through a prophet just as He always has.
9. We aren't perfect but we have the same goals! Lots of people think members of our faith are supposed to be perfect robot clones of each other! At least, that's what it feels like sometimes. Nobody is perfect, and everyone in our religion (or any other for that matter) struggle with something. We may not always follow our faith perfectly, and we make mistakes, but most of us share that same goal: to try to follow the example of our Savior and be united as families for all eternity.
10. HAPPINESS FOREVER! I am in no way going to say that being a Mormon means no trials. FALSE. But, we can handle our hard times and our struggles so much easier with the knowledge we do have. Happiness is so much more abundant when we follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and try to be better everyday. People often ask me how I can be so happy all the time, and it's because I know where I came from, why I'm here, and where I'm going.
So, ready to be Mormon???! Well maybe not yet, but you can know for yourself if all these things I've said are true by learning and praying.
Request a FREE COPY of The Book of Mormon by clicking here, or even better invite the missionaries to come share more with you by clicking here! If those are too intimidating, check out the website below to learn more and even chat with missionaries online. You won't regret it.
WHAT HAVE YOU GOT TO LOSE????
www.mormon.org
Here's the Book of Mormon ONLINE! :) https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm?lang=eng
**For all those who have things to share, THANK YOU! I appreciate all the positive and not-so-positive feedback! :) I didn't realize how many people would end up reading this and I'm extremely grateful! But just know, I WILL NOT post rude, bashing, or vulgar comments. I moderate all of them. If you have nothing nice to say, don't say it at all. THANKS AGAIN!
This was awesome, I always love reading your blog! :)
ReplyDeleteAmen sister!! I mean daughter...love you, Mom xxx
ReplyDeleteExcellent! I'm going to send this to my children... They already know, but a little reminder once in a while never hurt anyone! Thanks...
ReplyDeleteWow youre are so right, hopefully people really are touched by what you said, Being a member of the church is one of the greatest things on Earth, and one of the biggest presents God has given us, he has restored the church for us to know the truth! I am so happy to be a Mormon <3
ReplyDeleteI love it. Going to share it on my facebook page if you don't mind.
ReplyDeleteLovely article with one small clerification, I do believe when you get to the point of full time service- most positions in the church are not full time service- they get a modest stipend if their current funds are not enough to support them. While this is not making a "Salary" per say. I feel it is misleading to suggest that none of our higher church authority get any money from the church because that is just not true. Should their needs already be meet via retirement or book revenue they would not need to accept that stipend as many do not. There is also a Business aspect to the church of organizations and boards that aren't funded by tithing. Leaders receive compensation for the work the do in the business ventures of the church.
ReplyDeleteHer statement still stands: there is no paid clergy. Leaders of the church don't live in a manner that would show the improper use of tithing. They do not get paid for their service, but are rather provided the means to stay in their calling. Without the church paying for their housing, food, etc, they wouldn't be able to afford the calling, and that is no good
DeleteIt was never suggested that no one receives money from the church. Just that no one is paid. You stated that they get a stipend if their own funds cannot support them. Members sometimes receive church funds when they need assistance as well. Those serving full-time are no more getting paid than those members receiving fast offering funds. Tithing is for the support of the church. If the Lord calls someone to full-time service and they cannot support themselves in that position, they are assisted in the work. That's all. :)
ReplyDeleteHey, just post a link to where they can download the BOM! Much easier than waiting for a paper copy.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.lds.org/pages/mobileapps - here anyone can download the full canonized set of scriptures free of charge. It also comes stocked full of other materials. The Gospel library is priceless! Or, just go here if you are on a desktop! :) http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm?lang=eng
DeleteThanks! Great post!
ReplyDeleteAwesome post!
ReplyDeleteHow do I follow/subscribe?
Thanks! You can get emails when I post by entering your email in the sidebar that says "follow"! :)
DeleteBeautiful!
ReplyDeleteWhere in the Bible does it mention another book. The Book of Mormen just randomly appeared... and only Joesph Smith could see it or translate it, not even his closest friends could see the tablet, and then he conviently lost it?? How could you lose such a sacred thing?... that's a big gamble to put your faith in
ReplyDeleteHis closest friends did see the book. 11 of them in fact, and they recorded and signed their testimonies of having actually laid eyes upon the actual gold plates. In addition to that, even though some of them left the church over personal disagreements with the church, or for becoming antagonistic to the church (and so would have every reason to deny!), not one, not a single one of the 11, denied having seen the plates with their own eyes.
DeleteYou can read these testimonies at the beginning of any Book of Mormon, as the Testimony of Three Witnesses or the Testimony of Eight Witnesses.
Also, Joseph Smith never claimed to have lost the plates. Instead, he reported that they were taken back by the same messenger that delivered them to him. You may still be skeptical of that claim, but "losing such a sacred thing" is not suggested anywhere.
Yeah, we such a racist cult that we have people of every colour and culture in our membership across every country in the world. Pretty sure we're not racist.
DeleteIsaiah 29 mentions, A book that is "[A] voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit" from "out of the ground," "sealed" and to come "out of obscurity, and out of darkness". Some non-LDS folks have claimed that this is the New Testament. However this can not fit due the the references of the many years without a church. There are other references in the Bible to the Book of Mormon. Rather than argue, I'd just like to point that such does exist.
Deletehaha i thought the same thing when i first read the book of mormon. Im hispanic, so i took it personal, but in fact, dont we read in the bible that God himself commanded the jews to never mingle with other races? Nonetheless, neither book is presuming that God is racist or anything like that. And more importantly, that it is not the focus of either book. Looking at this with an intellectual perspective will not take you anywhere, as for me, it was only until i came across this little page turner that i understood how to tackle this issue "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God...because they are spiritually discerned" (I Corinthians 2:13) You must read the book, understand the doctrine that is taught and ask God if its His, He alone will let you know if your presumption is right or wrong.
DeleteHope this helps
~a former doubter of what he later realized to be true.
We don't have the original copy of the New Testament on the Earth either. Over time, it has been edited, revised, and lost. But the cool part is that it still has an effect on billions of people today. Even though they've never seen Jesus and the original accounts of His ministry can no longer be found, people still believe with their whole hearts that it's true. It's similar with the Book of Mormon. I don't have to see the original record to know it's true.
DeleteThe Book of Mormon also did not randomly appear. It was hidden in a safe place for hundreds of years by the prophet Moroni, who then visited Joseph Smith and told him where it was.
DeleteI encourage you to read 2 Nephi chapter 29, it explains it perfectly.
DeleteAnd, as for Black People being "cursed" The Book of Mormon actually does not say that about black people, so many people misinterpret what was being said, the real curse was being cut off from the presence of God, the darkening of the skin was to differentiate the two groups of people, so that the Nephites would not mix with the Lamanites and receive the same cursing, which is to be cut off from the presence of God.
omg... we mormons are the best. we just know better - ugh ... if only everyone else could see the whole truth. #blessed
ReplyDeleteActually, it is one of the main doctrines taught in the church to be humble and to know that we aren't better then anyone else. We believe that God loves us all equally and most of us are always striving to be the opposite of self-righteous. We might come off the way you say because…It's true. We do love our gospel. It makes us happy. It gives us hope. Most of us love being members but, we don't look down on those who don't feel the same way or aren't in the church. We just wish they could feel the same happiness that we feel from knowing what we know about the savior and the plan of salvation. After all, if you find something that makes you happy, don't you want to share it with other people?
DeleteNot sure if the person who commented this was serious, or even Mormon... because no one is better than anyone else, so don't be so prideful. But yes, we are blessed, and want to share those blessings with everyone around us.
DeleteI appreciate all your feedback, good or bad. Just trying to share what makes me happy! I hope you all can do the same with whatever makes you happy. <3
ReplyDeleteI have a question about #2. For you personally, what were the top 5 most meaningful revelations that the prophet has received in your lifetime?
ReplyDeleteSometimes, when I am reading about the beginnings of the restored Church, I think about how exciting it must have been at that time to hear each new revelation shortly after it was received. How thrilling for a world (that thought of God as a spirit without form) to learn about His true character, a glorious man of flesh and spirit, which all of us were created to resemble. With all the arguments among the different religions about how (or even if) baptism should be performed, what a relief it must have been to learn about the correct baptism that Christ received. What a joy it must have been to learn about the restoration of the priesthood, the details of the Plan of Happiness, and the blessings of the temple!
DeleteThings are a little less dramatic these days. With all of the basic truths of the Gospel revealed again, the current prophet and apostles do not often receive new and startling doctrine. The revelations they receive are mostly concerned with encouraging us in areas where we are lacking and preparing us for the Second Coming of Christ. They also receive direction in matters of the administration of a growing Church, clarify the meaning of the scriptures, and put down false doctrine when it starts to creep in. Simply, they do what Peter and the Apostles did after Jesus left them to run the Church. In their day, disagreements arose concerning circumcision, the priesthood, resurrection, and many other things. The apostles were there to testify of the truth and return the Church to the right path. I am so thankful to have a prophet and apostles today for the same reason! We can see how, after the deaths of the original apostles, the church fractured into many different churches with different beliefs. For hundreds of years, people argued and interpreted the same verse of scripture a dozen different ways. But now, if there is confusion about a scripture, we have a prophet who can tell us what was really meant when God inspired it to be written. We can also receive the guidance we need as the world changes, moving further and further from the way of the Lord.
That being said, here are the top five most meaningful revelations that the prophet has received in my lifetime:
1. Worthy of a Temple Recommend—I received a testimony of the truth of the Church in 1994 when I was 14, when Howard W. Hunter was the prophet. I didn’t start listening to Conference right away so I missed the Conference when he spoke as president. But I heard about it plenty. His revelation of God’s will concerning the temple has meant more to me as an adult then it did at that time, understandably. Now, I am married with three young children and it is sometimes difficult to attend the temple. But President Hunter revealed, “It would please the Lord if every adult member would be worthy of—and carry—a current temple recommend.” I try to do that even when I can’t go for a while.
Delete2. The Family: A Proclamation to the World—When this revelation was declared through President Gordon B. Hinckley in 1995, the majority of Church members read it and thought, “That’s nice.” It wasn’t startling or amazing because it simply said what we knew to be true: Family is important. We are male and female. We were created in God’s image. Marriage between a man and woman is ordained of God. Most of the rest of the world agreed with those things at the time. So what was the point? But fast-forward to the present and suddenly things are very different. Traditional marriage is at an all-time low, with a marked increase in premarital cohabitation. Many nations and U.S. states have legalized gay marriage. Popular opinion has turned away from ideals that were once commonly accepted. The Lord knew this would happen. So He gave a revelation to “warn and forewarn”, years before it happened. And it was a warning, not just to the Church, but to the world.
3. Smaller Temples—When President Hinckley took the stand in October 1997 General Conference, there were just 50 operating temples in the world. When he announced the revelation to build smaller temples, the world-wide membership rejoiced. Many members were given access to the blessings of the temple, even if they didn’t live in an area heavily concentrated with latter-day saints. Astonishingly, more temples were built in the next four years than had been built in the previous 120. Today there are 141 operating temples with 30 others announced or under construction. Who could have imagined that in 1996?
4. October General Conference 2001—The twin towers had fallen a month before. The world was in turmoil. But the Lord spoke to His prophet. President Hinckley gave us comfort and counsel in the face of uncertainty. He also declared that the prophecy given in Joel 2:28-32 was fulfilled. The entire Conference was very meaningful to me, offering personal direction for my life. It included revelation for the world and the declaration that a prophecy had been fulfilled. If you have a few hours, the whole Conference is worth watching again. http://www.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2001/10?lang=eng
5. Lowering Age for Missionary Service—When Thomas S. Monson announced in 2012 that they had prayerfully pondered the age at which missionaries might serve missions and had lowered it, excitement swept the Church. Although I had already served a mission years before, I was no less excited. I felt the “rightness” of the change and knew it would bless the lives of many. The Lord is preparing to send forth an even greater army of missionaries and revealed to His servants the way in which it was to be accomplished.
There are many more that have been personally significant for me, but many are very personal and would not be interesting to someone not involved in my life. I tried to share the revelations here that would mean something to others beside myself.
thank you for sharing! love it!
ReplyDeletethank you so much for sharing a little bit about what we as Mormons believe! thank you for being so concise. every time I try to talk about the gospel, I end up on some tangent of a tangent. but I have to say that growing up in this wonderful church has been the greatest blessing in my life. I absolutely LOVE The Lord and this Church. :) <3
ReplyDeleteYou may want to update some of your figures--in the most recent Conference, President Monson shared that there are over 15 million members and over 80,000 missionaries in the field. :)
ReplyDeleteHoly crud! I'm seriously gonna use this on all my friends. You just threw out answers to several common questions in a simple understandable way! YOU ARE AMAZING.
ReplyDeleteAwesome amen!!!!
ReplyDeleteTo answer the question of "Where in the Bible does it mention another book?" The Bible actually prophesied of the Book of Mormon and the Prophet Joseph Smith in the 37th Chapter of Ezekiel, specifically verses 16 & 17
ReplyDelete"Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah,(Bible) and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, for Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: And join them one to another into one stick and they shall become one in thy hand."
I encourage anyone to read this chapter and pray with sincere intent to know the truth and Heavenly Father will testify of its truthfulness unto you!
I am a Mormon and I am proud! <3 Let no one stop us!
ReplyDeleteLove this! <3
ReplyDeleteGracias por compartir tu fe, pero la iglesia católica es la iglesia verdadera.
ReplyDeleteSi usted quiere, puede leer el libro de Mormón. Lea y rece sobre la validez del libro. Yo sé que usted recibirá su repuesta. Yo sé porque es como yo recibí mi testimonio.
DeleteYo creo en el libro de Mormón porque yo creo en Dios, quien le ama a sus niños y no cambia. En el pasado, el Dios de la Biblia hablá a sus profetas. Yo creo que Dios todavía habla a sus profetas hoy. Me encanta escuchar a la palabras que ellos hablan a todo el mundo. Que Jesucristo vive.
DeleteBeautifully written! Thank you for sharing your testimony. :)
ReplyDeleteI stumbled onto this blog post. I'm not a mormon but I am very interested to learn more. I have to admit, the idea of a living prophet sounds very appealing to me. I've often wondered why there were no prophets today like in bible times. Is there anywhere I can go to read his prophecies?
ReplyDeleteThanks for your interest James! I invite you to definitely go to www.mormon.org to learn more basics about our faith! But here are some highlights from the recent talks given by the prophet and apostles. http://www.lds.org/general-conference
DeleteThanks steffany. I went to the link you sent and read through some of the sermons.
DeleteJames, that is wonderful that you would love to hear more from the Prophet of God! I encourage you to take comfort in knowing that his words truly are straight from the Lord himself, given out of love for us, and that you can trust in whatever he says. His words are God's, and it's like getting new scripture all the time!
DeleteSincerely
A lover of Jesus Christ, and his True Gospel
James, it truly is amazing that God loves his children enough to have prophet to guide the whole world regarding what is pertinent in present time. For instance, although Noah was a prophet he could not give the help needed for those in the day of Moses and so on. As it states in the bible in Amos 3:7 - "the Lord God will do nothing save he shall reveal it to his servant the prophet." But when Christ was crucified he left it to his apostles and then they were eventually killed. For a period of time the earth was in an apostasy, and there was no prophet. That is the great message of the restoration of the fullness of the gospel, the same gospel that existed in the primitive church. Today is the most trying of times in the history of mankind and God would not leave us without a prophet. The scriptures are of course extremely important in knowing his word but it is vital to have that living mouthpiece to guide and direct us in the last days as Satan is so rampant. It gives me such a feeling of safety and peace.
DeleteThanks for this post! Kim Johnson
ReplyDeleteThis is GREAT! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWhat a AWESOME post! I love this! You are a great example to share something like this with the world. People in other religions somehow assume that we Mormon's aren't educated about our religion or history. Now they don't have to assume anymore.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting! This is awesome and much needed reminder to us all:)
ReplyDeleteThere are some paid workers for the church, a good friend of my parents is an accountant for the church. Other than that I think its cool that you are so happy being Mormon... It's not for everyone, but I'm glad that you are happy.
ReplyDeleteThank you from an investigator!
ReplyDeleteI am curious regarding your point #8. You say that no one can stand up and just decide they have authority from God to start a church. But isn't that how all churches are started? Someone claims to have the authority from God to start said church and voila, the church is started. Just wondering if you can clarify how the Mormon church is different from any other church to have used the authority of God to start a church.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great question! In short, we believe after Christ was crucified and the apostles died, the authority from God that Christ also gave His apostles to heal, baptize, and run His Church was lost. People then interpreted the bible differently and started their own churches, but they were not truly called by God and given that same authority. They only had pieces of the truth, not to say they weren't good people though. It wasn't until Joseph Smith was called to be a prophet in 1820 that the church Christ established in its' entirety was formed on earth once again. There's a great video you can watch http://youtu.be/i98Bs2nSCNM if you'd like that explains it a bit more. Hope that helps!
Delete