My Second Life … As a Latter-day Saint

The Salt Lake City Temple

The first time I heard the story of Joseph Smith and the First Vision was at Temple Square in Salt Lake City during a guided tour. I believed it. But my family didn’t. My father said it was the most bogus story he had ever heard. I was crushed and… Continue reading

Getting Your Feet Wet: The Faith to Act

Feet in water

As you wait for the waters to part, don’t hesitate to start walking. Trust that soon enough you’ll see the dry ground beneath your feet. As a high school senior, I prayed daily about which college to attend, but I did not get an answer from God. Frustrated, I eventually… Continue reading

How to Avoid the Rut of Spiritual Apathy

Green mountains

Remembering God’s love will strengthen your spiritual resilience and protect you from the trap of spiritual apathy. I peered out through the dense fog at the Ribeira da Torre Valley of Santa Antão, Cape Verde. As the clouds parted and sunlight illuminated the view, my jaw dropped. Enormous mountains covered… Continue reading

Stormy Days and Mountain Waves: Finding Strength

Ocean waves at sunset.

We were created to withstand and overcome even our most challenging trials. Have you ever asked the question, “How could God let this happen?”  I have. I was 17 and struggling with severe depression, and I couldn’t understand why God didn’t just take it away and help me feel normal… Continue reading

Humility Will Take Us Home

Man sitting with hands clasped to cover his face

We are taught to “be ye therefore perfect” (Matthew 5:48), but is this actually attainable? With the help of Christ, it is—in time. We’ve all experienced feelings of pressure or stress. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed with simple everyday tasks, school, work, or the expectations of family and friends. My to-do… Continue reading

How Jacob 5 Helped Me Cope with Sickness and Grief

Trees in field

Jacob 5 isn’t just a story about some olive trees and a few blue-collar workers; it’s a testament that Christ loves each one of us and that he, the Lord of all, rejoices and weeps with us through our mortal experience. In October 2018, I was diagnosed with a lifelong… Continue reading

Empowering Our Children

How can we protect and empower the children in our lives? Marissa Widdison turns to examples from the Savior’s life for answers. Each day, children are bombarded with new dangers, and as adults it can be hard to know what we can do to help the future generations stay on… Continue reading

The Book of Mormon: Corrective Lenses of the Soul

Glasses on a book

Through reading the Book of Mormon, our spiritual field of vision can be widened and strengthened. In the talk “The Eyes of the Blind Shall See,” Elder Lynn G. Robbins identifies six ways in which having two eyes is better than one and how these benefits are metaphors for having… Continue reading

An Antidote for Pride

We all know pride is a problem, but how do we avoid it? President Eyring has a suggestion. Moroni warned that our dispensation would struggle with pride: “Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. . . . I know that ye do… Continue reading

Choose to Believe: Faith Is a Choice, Not a Happenstance

We often think of a testimony as a burning flame we have to feel in our hearts. In reality, the base of our testimony is simply choosing to believe.  Faith is frequently described as a feeling that suddenly overcomes someone after a spiritual experience. While spiritual experiences can greatly strengthen… Continue reading