Outside In: The Secret to True Happiness

Happiness is found by turning outward rather than focusing on ourselves. Everyone searches for happiness, but many people aren’t sure how to achieve it. In the talk “Choose Happiness,” Elder Larry R. Lawrence assures us that the Lord wants us to be happy: “Latter-day prophets have taught us that happiness… Continue reading

Learning Empathy through Our Trials: Christ Sets The Example

Through our suffering, we learn to have Christlike empathy for others. If God loves us, why do we suffer? Most of us have had to face this question, and modern revelation provides sound, intellectual answers. But when we’re struggling through trials, sometimes the intellectual answer isn’t enough to carry our… Continue reading

Homesick for Heaven

God is calling out for you to come home—and asking you to help your brothers and sisters on their journey back. Whether your family situation is idyllic and peaceful or strained and uncomfortable, you have a perfect home waiting for you up above. In the talk “A Yearning for Home,”… Continue reading

Mormonism’s Lost American Gothic: Rediscovering Joseph Paul Vorst

An unsung immigrant painter’s work resonates with Latter-day Saints. Individual suffering and heartache are not common themes in LDS artwork. Many of us prefer “uplifting” and familiar scenes—pioneers fearlessly crossing the plains, Helaman leading his stripling warriors, Christ descending from the heavens. Although most of the paintings by Joseph Paul… Continue reading

#floodtheearth: Hastening the Work Through Technology

In our media-filled society, what can we do to help the Lord hasten his work? Whether you’re a social media master or someone who hasn’t quite figured out what a tweet is, you can find help in Elder David A. Bednar’s 2014 Education Week address, “To Sweep the Earth as… Continue reading

Counsel or Command? Listening to Church Leaders’ Advice

I struggled to understand how someone called of God could say something that hurt me as much as it did. I’ll be honest. I used to really distrust Church leaders. I had been hurt, and I didn’t want reconciliation. When I was dating the guy I later married, I went… Continue reading

Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust

What’s the little bit of magic we need to recognize and understand so we can continue exercising faith and trusting in God’s plan for us? Patience. It’s a word and a concept I’ve come to both love and hate. We’ve all heard the saying “good things come to those who… Continue reading

3 Ways to Improve Your Scripture Study

Know Christ by knowing how to study the scriptures. I started reading the scriptures on my own when I was twelve. I opened a copy of the Book of Mormon, and in about a year I’d read it from cover to cover. When I finished, I took a two-week break… Continue reading

Doubting My Place, Placing My Trust

How do we find belonging when we feel out of place? At a time when I didn’t think I could ever be—or even wanted to be—the “ideal LDS woman,” I often asked myself, “Do I really belong here?” At that time, my testimony in Christ as my Savior and in… Continue reading

Facing Tragedy with the Blessings of the Gospel

How can we find peace in the moments of greatest tragedy? When a lone gunman opened fire on February 14, 2018, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, he caused grief and heartache for many families. Among those personally affected by this tragedy are Madeleine “Maddy” Wilford, who was shot but… Continue reading