The Bingham family, currently living in Oregon, has been dealt more than their fair share heartache. Three of their five children have been diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition that can be fatal. The Binghams are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (a faith often inadvertently referred to as the Mormon church), and they have unique and powerful ways of handling their adversities.[1] 

The Binghams’ Story

When Sierra, Jason and Stacy Bingham’s oldest daughter, was six, she was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, and after a whirlwind of medical care and angst, Sierra received a heart transplant. This alone was an intense and rigorous experience. The Binghams thought that their family’s heart concerns were behind them. Then their third child was diagnosed with the same condition.

Lindsay, the second of the Bingham children to be diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, also needed a transplant, and when she received hers, Sierra’s body started to reject her transplant from six years previous. Through medical treatment, doctors were able to stabilize Sierra’s heart and body, but the Binghams are still left with anxiety and concern. Their son Gage started exhibiting signs of heart failure when he was only three. The Binghams’ medical journey is far from over.

Trusting in Priesthood Blessings

Each of their children who have had heart difficulties have also received priesthood blessings. Mormons believe in the “laying on of hands,” as practiced in the Old and New Testaments. Men in The Church of Jesus Christ can be ordained to offices within the priesthood, predicated on worthiness. Through the priesthood, which is the exercising of the power of God, worthy holders can administer blessings of healing and comfort.

Sierra, Lindsay, and Gage all received special priesthood blessings when they were in the throes of their medical emergencies. These blessings call down the powers of God to heal, support, and comfort the recipients. The most important thing to know about blessings, however, is that those involved need to trust in God and in His will and timing.

Mormons Believe in Miracles

When Lindsay was facing the same road that Sierra walked earlier, Jason wrote on the family blog that God blessed Sierra with a miracle and that He could do the same for Lindsay. Mormons believe in miracles and know that God’s power knows no bounds or limitations. The Binghams understand that God has His own plan for their family, and while they may not know the details, they do know that God loves them and is caring for each of them.

We should note that not every situation results in the miracles we pray for. Again, God has His own plans for us, and we need to trust that His will is wiser and more grand than our own. Heavenly Father will always lead us to Him and will always empower us to handle whatever trials we face. Having faith in God doesn’t mean that everything works out the way we want it to; what it does mean is that we can trust that whatever happens will be for our good and eternal growth.

Stacy and John admitted on their blog that at the time of Sierra’s transplant, they thought that had checked that trial off of their life list. After their experiences with Lindsay and Gage, however, they have come to realize that perhaps that initial situation with Sierra prepared them for the challenges their family would face later in life. Faith in God means that we can gain a broader and more eternal perspective, so that we may better handle the trials we will inevitably face.

Mormons Serve Each Other

Apart from the emotional tax this experience has had on the Binghams, these ongoing medical issues have been wearing physically and financially. Mormons who go to church with the Binghams have reached out in love to help in whatever ways they can. In Mormon congregations, this often means providing meals, childcare, and even financial help. One of the Binghams’ friends created a donation site where anyone can donate money to help cover the costs of the family’s medical care.[2]

The Church of Jesus Christ places immense value on serving others. They believe that often God uses His children on earth to answer the prayers of others, and in the case of the Binghams, that principle is lived in the lives of real people.

Trials aren’t easy–they were never meant to be. Sometimes we may ask God why we have to experience certain hardships, and in those times we need to trust in Him and know that He loves us. He will strengthen and support us as we make our way through this mortal life.

The apostle Peter was addressing the early worthy members of Christ’s Church when he called them a “royal priesthood”:

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light…(1 Peter 2:9).

Although some friends of other faiths think Christ was the great and last high priest, although He is the greatest high priest, the priesthood continued under His apostles even after Christ’s great sacrifice.  Priests were called as the apostles were called, from their worldly vocations, to serve in Christ’s Church.  This pattern, and the priesthood authority and power, have been restored in these latter days, the dispensation of preparation for the Second Coming of Christ.

In Christ’s ancient church there was no paid clergy.  Although Christ’s followers were originally considered a sect of Judaism, Jesus never called any member of the paid Jewish clergy to administer in His Church.  Instead, seeing into the hearts of men, He called fishermen and publicans to be His under-shepherds.  This is also the pattern in Christ’s Church today.  There is no professional clergy in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often inadvertently referred to as the Mormon Church.  All worthy men are eligible to hold some measure of priesthood, which is the power and authority to act in the name of God, a portion of the power by which God runs the universe.  Women share in this power, and it is by and through this power that every spiritual gift named in the Bible abounds in this, Christ’s true and living Church.

Administration and Ministration in the Mormon Priesthood

Nowadays, people seek spirituality as they shy away from organized religion.  This is in most part due to disappointment with religious organizations of our time and with the professional clergy of those churches.  God’s true Church, however, does exist on the earth, and it is remarkable because it has been organized by the Savior Himself through modern prophets, according to the organization of Christ’s ancient church.  In other words, God’s church should be the most organized religion on earth, and it is.

The administration of The Church of Jesus Christ is managed through the Church’s lay clergy.  At the top is the prophet, the apostles, and the seventies, just as in biblical times.  There are seventies over various areas of the world who oversee not only congregations (wards) and administered groups of congregations (stakes), but missions administered by mission presidents.  The prophet, apostles, and first two quorums of the seventy serve for life once they are called out of their worldly vocations.  Other seventies, bishops who lead congregations, and stake presidents who lead groups of congregations, usually serve in their positions for about 5 years.  Experienced leaders train new leaders.  Manuals and teaching materials are correlated and are the same world-wide, as are teaching schedules and activities.  The Church is the same wherever you go, and congregations are organized by locality, so members don’t flock to leaders with charisma.  The prophet and apostles and a few other higher leaders who serve long-term may receive a financial stipend if they need it (most don’t), but all other positions in the church are entirely unpaid.  This prevents “priestcraft,” or preaching for gain.  Mormons are counseled not to aspire to positions and reminded that “calls” to serve come from God through the promptings of the Holy Ghost to those who have stewardship over them.  As a woman in the Church who has served in many callings of great responsibility, I can testify that God does indeed choose Mormons for callings through their leaders, as I have taken those names to my bishop.  I received them through inspiration, and he confirmed them through inspiration.

Administration of The Church of Jesus Christ is shared by men and women.  While men are apostles, seventies, mission presidents, bishops and stake presidents, women head the Relief Society (women’s organization – over 6 million strong), Young Women, and Primary (children’s organization) of the Church.  Administration on the local level follows the same pattern.  All welfare requests go through both the Relief Society President and the Bishop of a congregation.  On the general church level, female leaders counsel with male leaders before and after decisions are made through revelation.

Ministering is also a shared responsibility, since service is the watchword for Mormons.  A great deal of good is performed by both men and women in the Church, both in planned service and spontaneous, private service:

Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness…(Doctrine and Covenants 58:27)

Offices of the Mormon Priesthood

As at the time of Christ, there are two priesthoods, the greater (Melchizedek) and the lesser (Aaronic) priesthoods.  The formal name of the higher priesthood is The Holy Priesthood after the Order of the Son of God.  It is called the Melchizedek Priesthood (after Melchizedek, King of Salem, and great high priest of the Old Testament) to keep from using the name of deity too often.  It is referred to numerous times in the New Testament.  It is the priesthood the apostles held that enabled them to perform miracles of healing and other manifestations of God’s power.  This same power with the same results is fully manifest on the earth today in God’s true church.

Worthy young men as young as age 12 may become Aaronic priesthood holders as Deacons and at 14 may become Teachers, and at 16, Priests.  A priest can baptize and bless the sacrament (like the Eucharist).  The Aaronic priesthood deals with the foundational principles of the gospel — repentance and sacrifice — and holds the keys to the ministering of angels.

Worthy young men as young as 18 may be ordained to the Holy Melchizedek Priesthood.  Male Mormon missionaries receive this priesthood and make higher covenants in Mormon temples before they depart for missionary service.  Thus, while not holding the same administrative position in The Church of Jesus Christ as an apostle, they do hold the same priesthood power, just not the same keys for exercising it, nor the same callings in which to use it.

Women and the Priesthood

It is through priesthood power that miracles happen.  When people say there is power in prayer, it is the priesthood power that makes things happen — God’s priesthood, Christ’s priesthood.  Although women do not heal others through the laying on of hands as a pattern in the Church, through temple covenants, women share in the priesthood power of their husbands and may bring forth miracles through prayer.  They often receive revelation for guiding their families and performing their callings in the Church.

Women also exercise priesthood authority within the walls of Mormon temples, sealing ordinances upon other women there.  In the eternities, women will share every blessing and power with their husbands as priestesses to the Most High God, if they merit exaltation into His presence and become co-heirs with Christ.  There is no disadvantage to women in the assigning of men to certain positions of administration in the Church or to certain kinds of ministration in the Church.

What all worthy Mormons yearn for is to eventually have their “calling and election made sure.”  This is to receive by the sealing power of Elijah, the assurance that one will be sealed up to eternal life in the presence of the Father.  Women have all the power they need to eventually reach this point.  The more they progress in their attributes to become more like the Savior, the closer they get to the point where they can see Christ and know that He lives and be assured of eternal life.

As a Mormon woman married in the temple to a worthy Mormon priesthood holder, I have had many years of experience both in service and in receiving the myriad blessings of the priesthood.  When I or one of my children have been ill or confused, my husband has exercised his priesthood power through the laying on of hands to give us priesthood blessings of comfort and healing.  Many of these have been prophetic and have given us guidance to help us into the future.  I have also been able to call upon this shared power to heal my children or better understand them, through prayer.  These healings have been great.  I am the daughter of a mother with Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and her mother was likewise afflicted.  Through the very real priesthood power, I have been healed of every injury —emotional, spiritual, and psychological — caused by that situation.  The priesthood is one of my greatest blessings.  I can’t imagine life without it.

Happiness Is Part of God’s Plan

One of the greatest promises of The Church of Jesus Christ is happiness. In fact, one of the central doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ is what Mormons call The Plan of Happiness (this plan is also called the Plan of Salvation and the Plan of Redemption). The Plan of Happiness is the plan whereby God enables the salvation of each of His children. God’s son, Jesus Christ, volunteered to come to earth to live a perfect life so that He could suffer for our sins and make it possible for us to repent and return to Heavenly Father. For Mormons happiness is found in repentance and in the grace of Jesus Christ.

One of the things I most love about God’s plan for us is that its whole purpose is to make us happy. If anyone knows what true happiness is, God does, and He has set forth a plan whereby we can find that happiness that He desires for us. Our happiness is so important to our Father in Heaven, and I find great comfort and peace in that.

Only One Way to True Happiness

The world will tell us that happiness is relative and that we can find happiness in whatever we feel is right. This wishy-washy approach to happiness is a lie from Satan. Sure, all of us may find superficial happiness in certain things, but the only way to pure and everlasting happiness is through Jesus Christ.

The reason Jesus Christ is our only way to eternal happiness is that He is the one who redeemed us from sin and death. In the Book of Mormon (a book of scripture complementary to the Bible and key to The Church of Jesus Christ), the prophet Alma teaches that “wickedness never was happiness” (41:10). No matter how we spin it, we will never be happy when we disobey God’s commandments. God doesn’t issue commandments to be in control or tyrannical; rather, He gives us commandments to keep us safe and because He knows the best way to happiness.

Happiness Is Found in Family Relationships

One of the most important emphases in the doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ is the family. The family is central to the gospel of Jesus Christ, and second to redemption through the Savior, is the most important purpose of God’s Plan of Happiness. God designed His plan so that through sacred ordinances we can be with our families for eternity. This is a great and marvelous gift. Marriage and family are key to the gospel of Jesus Christ, and happiness is a crucial purpose of family life.

Because families are so important in the doctrine of Christ, Mormons put special effort and time into building their families. Certainly family life isn’t happy or easy 100 percent of the time, but happiness can surely be found in family life here as well as in the life to come. Mormons place great importance on building family relationships and strengthening their marriages, because for Mormons married in the temple, marriage is for eternity.

Happiness Can Be Found in Trials

For Mormons, happiness certainly doesn’t mean pain-free. In fact, your potential for happiness is increased when you experience adversity in life. Another Book of Mormon prophet Lehi taught that “there is an opposition in all things” (2 Nephi 2:11). You can’t know or find true happiness if you haven’t experienced unhappy times.

Regardless of our faith or creed, we will all experience adversity and trials; there is no way to live this mortal life without experiencing pain and heartache. Hardship is part of the package. Even in spite of this truth, we can still find happiness even when things in our lives are hard and difficult. This is where true happiness can prevail. When you root your happiness in Jesus Christ, you can find peace no matter where you go or what happens. The peace offered by the Savior can penetrate any circumstance and affect every person.

Sometimes happiness is hard to find, even with the gospel of Jesus Christ. In these cases, the grace of the Savior can still offer peace, comfort, and the promise of happiness. That’s what The Church of Jesus Christ has to offer: the truth about Jesus Christ and His everlasting and perfect atonement. For Mormons, happiness is peace, truth, family, and endurance–happiness is Jesus Christ.

One day I grew tired of his prodding, so with a little trepidation, I swung my leg over the bike and fired it up.  He gave me a quick lesson on shifting and braking and then I set out on the country road by our house.

I enjoyed testing out the steering along the bumpy road. The bends were conscious decisions rather than merely yielding to physics. I felt keenly aware of the wind on my face and through my hair. The air temperature played with the hairs on my skin as I neared irrigation sprinklers and then again as the air dried out. I determined which road to take and at what speed. Driving the motorcycle was completely different than being the passenger, and I loved it!

In seeking truth, I followed a similar path. Initially, I learned from others and I was content.  I felt comfortable riding on their vehicles of knowledge until one day I realized that teachers, friends, and family could not completely answer questions burning in my soul.

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often inadvertently called the Mormon Church), I believe in Jesus Christ.  His words to ancient and modern day prophets taught me how to become His disciple.  He taught the truths that can and do make us free through His perfect Gospel. My parents taught me that true answers come from God through the peaceful assurance of the Holy Spirit, who as a member of the Godhead, teaches and testifies of truth.

“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31, 32).

My prayers became more meaningful as I sought to know truth.  As a Mormon, I had been taught, and believed, that all mankind are the spirit children of Almighty God sent to earth to gain bodies and choose to follow His commandments or not. After our opportunities on earth, I believe that our spirits and bodies will be resurrected—to live eternally. Knowing these truths of God’s plan of salvation gave me confidence in making decisions  to remain pure and chaste, to avoid alcohol and drugs, and to maintain integrity in my schoolwork against tough peer pressure as a teenager. In High School, I realized that keeping God’s commandments does bring true freedom!

While knowing the truths about God’s grand plan for mankind, sometimes it was still hard to know that He had a specific plan for me. Studying the scriptures opened amazing avenues of learning to me.  Almost every major trial I’ve experienced in life has been identified and answered by someone in the scriptures.  The mechanics of the my story and his or her story were often different (no mention of High School Choir trips or car accidents), but as I saw the hand of God in each scripture story, I began noticing His hand in my life as well. I gained faith in His purpose and in miracles.

What Is Truth? And How Can I Find Truth?

While reading the scriptures, I learned that “Truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come. … And no man receiveth a fulness unless he keepeth [God’s] commandments. He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:24, 27-28).

A college friend took me for a motorcycle ride up a canyon one evening. I love riding in the coolness of evening time.  As he maneuvered the motorcycle, my thoughts wandered and I looked around aimlessly. I carelessly looked too far over my shoulder and the wind caught my glasses and blew them off my face.  My friend turned around and we quickly retraced our path.  The glasses were already smashed beyond repair by a car. I was left in near-sighted blindness.

An aimless, wandering approach to truth would not produce the effects I sought! The truths and freedom the Savior promised does not cross the careless, haphazard path of righteousness.  But, the promise is sure, “He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light…”

Clarity of vision comes through the Holy Ghost.  He is the Comforter, whom the Savior promised, “the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all thing to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26).

He testifies of the true nature of God. “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me” (John 15:26).

Joseph Smith’s Search For Truth

To have faith in God and Jesus Christ, one must have a true understanding of their characteristics.  The reestablishment of The Church of Jesus Christ in modern times began by an event known to Latter-day Saints as The First Vision.   After studying the tenets of religion and wanting to follow God’s commandment to be baptized, Joseph Smith read James 1:5 stating, “If any of you lack you lack wisdom, let him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not.”  Emboldened by God’s promise to answer his sincere prayer, Joseph knelt alone in a grove of trees to ask God which church he should join.

Joseph recorded,

I saw a pillar of light, exactly over my head above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. … When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other–This is my Beloved Son. Hear Him! (See Joseph Smith-History 1:16-17.)

God the Eternal Father and His Beloved Son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith!  The First Vision revealed God the Eternal Father and the Lord Jesus Christ again to mankind.  Their personal visitation corrected erroneous beliefs about the nature of the Godhead. God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three separate and distinct personages.  Knowing truth about the basic nature of God enables me freedom to build a true and lasting relationship with Deity.

How To Be Happy

In the record of the Savior’s people on the American continent called the Book of Mormon, the prophet Lehi taught his children about truth and choice. I’ve pondered a part of one verse for many years: “and men are, that they might have joy” (2 Nephi 2:25).  Joy in this world of hardship and depravity? Yes!

Lehi continued,

Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself (2 Nephi 2:27).

We are free to choose happiness or misery. We are free to choose truth or remain in darkness.  We are free to be changed by what we learn—internalize and repent of sins—or study truth without every coming to a knowledge of the truth.

I invite you to seek, and be changed, by the Savior’s truths! He truly is the Way, the Truth, and the Light!

I learned the truth that because of the Savior’s redemption of mankind joy is a choice. I can enjoy this amazing world and my life because I know that Jesus Christ truly lived and died for me and all mankind. I know that His commandments provide safety and freedom. I know that according to God’s merciful plan for us, we will live again after we die. Truth brings His peace.

Almost nothing captivates me more than riding towards a glorious West Texas sunset. The entire western sky blazes with heavenly fire. The reds, yellows, oranges, and purple hues blend together in a perfect harmony of Divine majesty.  The truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ blend together even more gloriously, for they proclaim our divine nature as children of God and His eternal plan for us. How can I keep from rejoicing?!  My insatiable appetite to continue learning the truths of God compels me forward into that beautiful sunset.

An Old Bible, Lost for Decades, Reveals a Mormon Family’s Ancestors

Ed and Dawna Jones serve as “senior Mormon missionaries.”  Senior missionaries are retirees who are willing to donate their time for 6 to 23 months in the service of God.  Senior missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often inadvertently called the Mormon Church, serve in many capacities.  Elder and Sister Jones are family history missionaries and offer their services at a Mormon Family History Center in San Diego, California.  These family history centers tend to be small and rely on the internet, genealogy software, and loans from the main library in Salt Lake City.  Before launching out on their mission, Elder and Sister Jones had worked on their own ancestral lines, submitting the information in order to complete Mormon temple ordinances for their dead.  These ordinances begin with baptism and proceed through covenants meant to join family members together in eternity.

One day at the San Diego LDS Family History Center, Elder Jones received a phone call from Gwen Whitlock.  She had in her possession an antique family Bible she had received from a gentleman who had found it in the trash some 40 years before.  She desired to donate it to the Center.  Not having much room for such things, especially a Bible this huge, Elder Jones was hesitant, but invited Whitlock to bring the Bible over, especially since it seemed to contain some genealogical information.  Family trees have often been handwritten into Bibles over the years.

A Miraculous Discovery

The rare Bible itself was a treasure. It was compiled by the Rev. Joseph Knight and published in 1815. It included the Old and New Testaments, as well as the Apocrypha. It also contained illustrations and a collection of beautiful etchings.

As they turned the pages, the Joneses discovered a more priceless and personalized treasure. Inside they found ornately handwritten genealogical records going back into the 1700s. When Dawna Jones saw the last name “Hammond,” her jaw dropped in disbelief. The names, dates and information belonged to her husband’s direct English ancestral line.

“It just blew our socks off,” Ed Jones said. “I knew there was a hole in the line, and … this (information) closed that hole. I didn’t have to look it up on the pedigree chart, I just knew. It was literally the biggest blessing we have ever received in family history. It was phenomenal.” [1]

Ed Jones’ mother had converted to Mormonism at the age of 87.  She had spent her final years engaged in family history work, and it seemed she had found everything that could be found. People at the library began to gather around the Jones’ and Whitlock, who was dumbfounded by what was transpiring.  Soon all were in tears at the obvious miracle which had occurred.  Whitlock had hoped to find the Hammond family, but had stumbled upon them “accidently.”

Over the years, Whitlock and her husband, the Rev. Carl Whitlock, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Pacific Beach in San Diego, have searched for a Hammond descendent among their friends and congregation, but to no avail.  Said Whitlock, “It’s been such a wonderful, spiritual story of how God put it (the Bible) for him to find, to bring to me, for me to hold it for them. Then for God to impress me to take it the day the Joneses were there is a miracle of huge proportions.”

Elder and Sister Jones want to return the favor, so they are researching the Whitlocks’ family history for them.

Miracles Attend the Work of the Lord

Since I am the only member of The Church of Jesus Christ in my family, I’m the only one working on family history.  It had been extremely difficult to find anything until genealogical help began to appear online.  Then things got somewhat better.  I had an uncle who had researched one line quite a bit, but he wouldn’t share the information with me for many years.  One day he received an email from a person he had never heard of.  The person was quite an accomplished genealogist, not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ.  She had been researching a line, thinking she tied into it, but she was mistaken.  My uncle had no interest, so he referred her to me.  She sent me a manila envelope containing a number of 8 ½” x 11” sheets of paper, taped together end to end.  It turned out to be a pedigree chart about 5 feet wide, taking one of my own ancestral lines back to 1700.

I can attest to the fact that family history work is of interest to us and to our deceased ancestors.  This work is proceeding on both sides of the veil, and it is inspiring and thrilling to be part of it.

It can be easy to look at our lives and think that God doesn’t love us. It can be easy to look at the world—at the wars, abuse, murders, sin, and depravity—and believe that God doesn’t care about His creations any more, or even that there must be no God at all. However, this is patently false. There is a God, and He is our Heavenly Father. He is a perfect being. Perfect. His love is perfect, no exceptions. He never messes up, never makes a no-good anything, never ceases to love.

Scriptures Testify of God’s Love

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sometimes called the Mormon Church, we believe in and love the Bible. The Bible is full of scriptures that testify of God’s love for us, and recount what God has done because He loves us. John 3:16 states: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” I’ve read past this verse so many times, but when I really stop to think about it, that’s pretty amazing. God, our Heavenly Father, loved the world (us) so much that He gave Jesus Christ to be our Savior. God loves us so much, and cares about us so much, that He wants us to return to Him.

Paul was also convinced of God’s love for us. He wrote to the Romans:

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39, emphasis added).

No other person, power, government, law, or even angels can separate us from the love of God and the love of Jesus Christ.

The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, also testifies of God’s love for us. Lehi, a prophet in the Book of Mormon, told his sons: “The Lord hath redeemed my soul . . . and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love” (2 Nephi 1:15). God, our Heavenly Father, loves us. We are His children, and He cares about us.

I know that God loves us. However, I can easily see where I could get confused, hung up, or have questions. For example: If God loves us, then why is life hard? Why do I have challenges? If God’s love is perfect, then how come I can’t feel it all the time? How can God love people who do wicked and awful things? As surely as others have asked these questions, I have asked them too, and come back to the same conclusion that God loves all of us.

Agency

Agency, the ability to choose and act for ourselves, is one of the greatest gifts we have. Each and every person on earth has agency, and can act for him or herself. God will never get in the way of our agency, or the agency of others. He wants us to choose correctly, but won’t force us. One reason why sometimes we feel pain or have challenges is because of our own agency or the agency of others. Heavenly Father will not prevent us or others from exercising their agency to make wrong choices. This does not mean that God doesn’t love us.

Sometimes, though, a challenge arises just because. No one’s agency caused the trial—it just happened. Don’t worry: Heavenly Father still loves us and knows our needs. Elder Hugh B. Brown, an apostle and leader of The Church of Jesus Christ, related a parable about a currant bush and the Lord’s will. He realized that as he, the gardener, pruned the currant bush to become a proper, fruit-bearing currant bush, he was hurting the bush. But he had a vision for the currant bush, and knew that pruning was part of the process. Elder Brown compared pruning the currant bush to our trials. Heavenly Father is the gardener, and knows what each of us can become. He knows what we need to experience in order to reach that potential, and sometimes pruning is part of the process. Because He loves us, sometimes He gives us trials, so that we can grow and change and become the person He knows we can become.

God is a Loving Parent

When I was learning to ride a bike, my dad helped me learn to balance on two wheels. He would run behind me, holding the seat to keep me from falling. As we practiced, I wobbled less and gained confidence. Eventually, he let me ride by myself. And I fell down. Did this mean my dad didn’t love me, because he let me fall? No. It meant he wanted me to learn to do it myself. He encouraged me to get up and try again, so I did, this time going a bit farther before falling down again. We repeated the process until I could ride confidently, without falling down.

Heavenly Father is similar to this. He helps us along, giving us parents and teachers to guide us. He has also given us scriptures, living prophets, friends, and Church leaders to help us. But He doesn’t want to shelter us from life. He wants us to experience the world, to grow and change. So sometimes He lets us fall down. It doesn’t mean He doesn’t love us; it means He wants us to use our agency, use what we’ve learned about Him, and become a better person.

How Can I Feel God’s Love?

Paul said that no other person or power can separate us from the love of God. I know this is true. However, I also know that sometimes we can separate ourselves from the love of God. Heavenly Father always is the same, always constant. But sometimes we make mistakes, and sin. When this happens, we move further away from God. God hasn’t moved—He is constant. We have moved away from Him. We need to turn to Him, prayerfully, humbly, and repent. He wants us to repent and come to Him, and when we do this we will feel His love.

Again, this doesn’t mean that God stopped loving us because we sinned. He still loves us even when we’ve messed up. It’s because He loves us that He wants us, beckons us, to return to Him. As soon as we even start to turn to God, He will reach out to us, and we can feel His love. We don’t have to be perfect to feel God’s love. We just have to be trying. We can pray to Heavenly Father, and we can feel His perfect love.

To learn more about God’s love and plan for each of us, please see these talks:

“You Matter to Him”

“As Many As I Love, I Rebuke and Chasten”

“The Currant Bush”

“The Will of God”[1]

Everything Centers Upon the Atonement of Christ

To atone means to reconcile a person to God by paying the price for the person’s sin, freeing the person from sin’s effects, enabling the person to return to God’s presence. The act of the Atonement includes Jesus Christ’s infinite suffering and offering Himself a ransom in the Garden of Gethsemane and on Calvary, His death, and resurrection.

The fall of Adam and Eve from the presence of God brought death and sin into the world. The effects of the Fall were overcome by the Atonement. The Atonement promises resurrection, the reuniting of body and spirit after death, to all who are born on earth. To be forgiven of sins, a person must have faith in Christ and repent of his or her sins.

The following quote by Church leader James E. Talmage about the need for a Savior impacted me so deeply that I wrote it in my scriptures and refer to it often:

Such then is the need of a Redeemer, for without Him mankind would forever remain in a fallen state, and as to hope of eternal progression would be inevitably lost. The mortal probation is provided as an opportunity of advancement, but so great are the difficulties and the dangers, so strong is the influence of evil in the world, and so weak is man in resistance thereto, that without the aid of a power above that of humanity, no soul would find its way back to God from whom it came. The need of a Redeemer lies in the inability of man to raise himself from the temporal to the spiritual plane, from the lower kingdom to the higher. (Talmage, Jesus the Christ, pg 25).

Christ’s Atonement impacts mankind, but the effects it has on an individual life is truly remarkable. A parable and two scriptural stories illustrate my path in understanding and applying the Atonement in my life: the prodigal son, the woman with an issue of blood, and Abigail and David.

Sins Are Forgiven Through the Atonement

In several ways, the story of the prodigal son is my story. A son demanded his portion of the father’s inheritance.  The father compassionately complied with his son’s rude request.  The son took the inheritance and quickly squandered it. Eventually, he survived by feeding swine. Then, according to the Savior’s words, “when he came to himself, he said…I will arise and go to my father…” (Luke 15:17-18). When he came to himself, he thought of his father.  How often have I repeated that process!  I do not think of God, when I am in the midst of sin, but when I “come to myself,” my thoughts can turn again to Him.

Generally, the younger son is considered the prodigal in need of repentance and forgiveness, but I see myself sinning much more egregiously as the older son in the story.  The older son stayed with the father fulfilling his obligation.  When the repentant younger son returned to a robe, a ring, and the fatted calf, however, the older son’s pride and anger were as disrespectful to the father as the younger son’s impudence. The father implored the eldest son to join the him in celebrating the younger son’s return. The last line of the story is, “for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found” (Luke 15:32).  I have often wondered if the son joined the family celebration or not.  The open ended-ness of the story enabled me to see myself as the older brother.  I have a choice.  Do I swallow my pride and return to the Father?  His open invitation invites both brothers to return to Him.  His great mercy and compassion to the youngest son demonstrates His unfailing love and desire for every child to return.  His patient appeal to the oldest son entreats us to throw off our self-righteousness and pride and become like Him.

The parable of the prodigal son teaches me of God’s great love for me when I choose to run away from Him or become prideful and self-righteousness.  I can repent of my sins and through the Atonement’s grace can be forgiven for those sins.

The Atonement Heals All Injustices

The Savior also promises that His Atoning power heals all wounds, griefs, and injustices. The story of the woman with an issue of blood illustrates the power of the Savior to heal all wounds.

Behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour (Matthew 9:20-22 ).

The unnamed woman sought out Jesus believing that He could heal her affliction. She humbly approached Him and reached for His healing power. Her faith in Him enabled Him to heal her. I struggled with a victim mentality for years.  I could not find peace. I took my “issue” to the Lord many times. When I was finally willing to drop it at His feet determined that it would not define me anymore, and walk away, He healed me. While my wound was not instantly healed, over time I grew stronger and my perception of the world changed. One day my mother asked me about the incident and I realized I had not even thought of it in months. The wound was absolutely healed!  Through subsequent years, the Savior has even healed the scar. I have been reborn, a new creature.

Applying the Atonement’s Merciful Grace To Others

While in the wilderness of Paran, David and his band protected the shepherds and flocks of Nabal.  David sent messengers to Nabal requesting food and water. Nabal refused hospitality to David. Furious, David determined to kill Nabal’s household. A servant told Nabal’s wife, Abigail.  She hurriedly prepared food and sent the offering to David. She and her servants met David on his way to destroy them.

Abigail fell on her face at David’s feet and said the most remarkable thing, “Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be…I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid…” (1 Samuel 25:24, 28).

Without bitterness or anger, like the Savior, she took Nabal’s sin upon herself to save the lives of her household, and ultimately shielded David’s soul from a rash decision’s effects. I’m glad this story is not open ended.  David immediately came to himself and said, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel which sent thee this day to meet me: And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand” (1 Samuel 25:32-33).

As the Savior takes upon Himself the sins of others, He stands in their place before us and says, “upon me let this iniquity be: and…forgive the trespass…”  Just as I believe the Atonement can be efficacious in my life, I believe that the Atonement can be efficacious in the lives of everyone around me.  The Savior, and Abigail, teach me to see beyond sin and defensive pride into the heart of him who has offended me. Like me, he or she is also a child of God. The Savior’s Atonement enables me to become more like the Him and share the mercy He gives me with those around me.

I invite you to apply the Savior’s Atonement more fully in your own life.  If you have questions about the Atonement or how to repent, please contact the Mormon Missionaries.

Taught to Pray—In the Car

In the quiet of the car, I do a lot of praying. Even on short drives, I find myself talking with my Father in Heaven. On longer drives—especially when I’m the only driver—I find myself pleading with the Lord to help us arrive at our destination safely. The scriptures teach us the pray always. One of my favorites is in the Book of Mormon—another testament of Jesus Christ, a companion scripture to the Bible and a record of God’s dealings with some of the peoples who lived in the ancient Americas.

Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things ye shall be lifted up at the last day (Alma 37:37).

In these times of heartfelt prayer, I have received sweet answers of comfort. One such occurred in the summer of the year that my husband and I were married. I was in turmoil over a very personal issue, and I was driving on the freeway in Salt Lake City. I was crying, praying and asking my Heavenly Father why this event occurred. I looked up at a billboard and it read, in big, bold letters: Let it go. That was my answer. I had never seen that sign before, and I never saw it after that. But I was taught by God in the car that day to let go of the confusion and turmoil and allow the peaceful comfort of the Holy Spirit into my heart. Elder Quentin L. Cook, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles—with the First Presidency, the governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sometimes inadvertently called the Mormon Church—said:

Peace comes from knowing that the Savior knows who we are and knows that we have faith in Him, love Him, and keep His commandments, even and especially amid life’s devastating trials and tragedies. … Remember, “God is not the author of confusion, but [the author] of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33). [1]

Taught to Listen to the Promptings of the Holy Ghost—In the Car

 I grew up in Indiana but went to college in Idaho and Utah. Whenever my siblings and I went home, we always drove straight through without stopping for the night. I had two experiences during these 24-hour trips that taught me to always listen to the promptings of the Holy Ghost. The first one happened one dark winter night when two of my sisters and I, crammed into the cab of a little Isuzu Pup truck, were driving home. I was behind the wheel, and all of a sudden the thought came to me that I needed to switch lanes. We were driving downhill on the Interstate, and there were no lights on the road. So I switched lanes. As soon as I did, we swooshed past a camper sitting in the lane we had just vacated. We were stunned. There were no lights on the camper, and I would not have seen it until we collided. I was shaken but grateful for the prompting that prevented an accident that dark winter night.

The second time, I didn’t listen to the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit. The summer that I graduated from college, my sister Rachel and I decided to visit our oldest sister in Arizona before heading home. As we were driving down an isolated two-lane highway somewhere in rural Utah, we needed to make a pit stop. To our left was a remote rest area, hidden from view of the road by trees. To our right was a gas station. Immediately the thought flashed in my mind that we needed to stop at the gas station. But I didn’t want to feel obligated to buy something, so we stopped at the rest area. I got out and used the facilities first. There was an eerie feeling, but I thought it was just me. Sometimes I have an overactive imagination. But I went as fast as I could, and prayed the entire time that I would be safe and protected and not hurt or killed. I thought it was all in my head until I got to the car and told Rachel it was her turn. She said, “I don’t have to go that bad. Let’s get out of here NOW.” We never found out the reason for those feelings, but I have always felt bad that I didn’t listen. Elder Boyd K. Packer, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, said:

It is difficult to separate from the confusion of life that quiet voice of inspiration. Unless you attune yourself, you will miss it. Answers to prayers come in a quiet way. The scriptures describe that voice of inspiration as a still, small voice. If you really try, you can learn to respond to that voice. [2]

As we turn to the Lord in all things, we are teachable. If we take the time to reflect upon the word of God and listen to the promptings of the Holy Ghost, we can be taught by God—even in the car.

Blessed from the Beginning

I have to admit that I had a good start, having been born in post-World War II America to educated parents.  They provided me with the ability to get an education and develop my talents.  We had lots of books in the house, had access to dental and medical care, and all the perks associated with the middle class.  But I was wanting spiritually.  I can see now that God led me in a direction from my youth so that I would find The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often inadvertently called the Mormon Church).  Finding the Church at age 15 saved me from the vicissitudes and craziness of the ‘60’s and helped me to navigate a safe path through my college years.

Protection and Guidance

Although I was the only member of The Church of Jesus Christ in my family, I found support in my friends, church associates, and college roommates.  I strove to live according to the commandments of Jesus Christ as they came down through Mormon prophets, and living those commandments saved me from some pretty dangerous stuff.

I never did smoke or use drugs.  I never drank.  And I worked to follow the Lord’s standard of sexual abstinence outside of marriage.  My freshman year of college, I attended my parents’ choice of schools for me, and it was a party school.  My friends there struggled every day with their decisions, especially in the area of sexual morality.  Their desires and the peer pressure they faced placed them in the position of trying to make their way with a situational morality.  They never could find a standard that didn’t shift with the occasion.  They struggled with guilt and the wonderment that comes with trying to formulate a new life philosophy on a daily basis.  They seemed agitated and confused.  If they drank too much, all their decisions blew away with the wind, and they had to deal with the aftermath.

The hardest part about my freshman year of college was having these students, many of them older and more accomplished than I, come to me crying about their rootlessness.  By the end of the year, I was drained.  I was too young to carry their burdens, especially if they weren’t interested in making the sacrifices necessary to join me on the path Christ has laid out for us.

I transferred to a college owned by The Church of Jesus Christ, and there, I had an easier time.  I married a returned Mormon missionary, and we established a home and started a family.  Having been raised by intellectual parents in an adult-oriented home, I had to feel my way into Mormon motherhood with help from the Church provided by the loving sisters there who taught me many skills.

How the Truth Has Made Me Free

Because of the revelatory commandments of The Church of Jesus Christ, my husband and I have been free from many of the things that trouble our peers in the world at large.  We have never had to worry about the possible ravages or damage caused by sexual promiscuity.  In our eternally committed Mormon temple marriage, we have enjoyed decades of intimacy without any lonely periods.  We have been able to work through any low spots in our marriage with an eternal perspective in mind.  We’ve had no addictions to interrupt our good relationship.  We’ve raised six amazing children and now have thirteen super grandchildren  a large and loving family with enough members that there is always someone to call upon in times of need.

We have enjoyed personal revelation and  the power of healing through the Mormon  Priesthood to carry us through times of illness and financial difficulty, and by following the Holy Spirit, have enjoyed experiences that might not have otherwise come our way.  We’ve lived in five countries and traveled in many, many more than that, meeting wonderful people all over the world.

We have avoided the spiritual confusion caused by not having access to the Real Answers.  The more we study our faith, the firmer we become in our assurance that God lives, and that Jesus Christ is the Savior of us all.  We have had real help from the other side of the veil.  It has actually saved my life on several occasions.  I feel truly free   liberated, if the adjective fits.

As far as worldly pursuits are concerned, I never did write the Great American Novel… but there is still time…over the years, the value of truly excelling in a career has faded.  I’ve watched those who reached these worldly pinnacles burn out, fall down, their health or personal connections crumble, and it’s been easy to see what is really important, and how free I really am.

Why Do Latter-day Saints Believe in Modern Prophets?

The Bible says that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever and that calling prophets has always been part of His plan from the beginning (Hebrews 13:8; Amos 3:7). In ancient times, God called prophets like Abraham, Moses, and Elijah, and gave them authority to spread His words and perform His work for the salvation of His children. As a Latter-day Saint, I personally believe that God’s work is not yet finished, and as long as there are souls left on earth to be saved, we need God’s direction through his chosen servants so that we may accomplish His work according to His will.

Unfortunately, some people including most Christians think that God does not speak through prophets anymore, and that if you need divine direction, all you need to do is read the Bible because it contains all of God’s words. Others claim that John the Baptist was the last prophet, citing Luke 16:16. However, the Bible tells us that after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God continued to call apostles and prophets and even appeared to them. The Lord appeared and spoke to Saul (later known as Paul) on the road to Damascus. He declared a famine in Rome through the mouth of Agabus (Acts 11:28). He also appeared in visions and other divine manifestations to His chosen servants (Acts 7:55-56; 9:10-12; 10:9-16).

Considering the accounts above and many other witnesses, to argue that God does not call prophets anymore is to deny the scriptures. If God does not call prophets today, then we may as well think that He does not care about His children now as much as He did then. I believe that God is not partial. He loves all of His children equally. And because of that, He provides continuous revelation to help us answer questions pertaining to our generation.

We Must Listen to Modern Prophets

J. Reuben Clark Jr., a former Church official once said about latter-day prophets: “We do not lack a prophet; what we lack is a listening ear by the people and a determination to live as God has commanded.”

As a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ, I know that God is our Father in Heaven and all people are His beloved sons and daughters. Today, He has again shown His love for us by calling another prophet to guide us through difficult times of economic uncertainty, wars, shifting values, and questions that are unique to our time.

God’s living prophet today is Thomas S. Monson. As a prophet, he presides over The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and receives revelations for the benefit of all people, both in and outside the Church. He is not just a Mormon prophet or a prophet of the Latter-day Saints; he is God’s prophet for all people. With all these unpleasant things happening around us, I am convinced that our greatest need is to really listen and then to follow the counsels of God through His modern prophet.