Personal

Let me start off with this disclaimer. No disrespect is meant for the Temple, I work in the Temple, and I love it dearly. The quotes about the Temple, the Holy of Holies, and Washing of Feet are quotes from either public addresses or from the writings of the general authorities. Since I’ve returned from my mission in 2014, I …

The 12-Step Program is a special recovery program created to help those struggling with addictions to overcome and heal. However, the addicted aren’t the only ones who need healing. We are all struggling in one way or another and the 12 steps to addiction recovery can improve all of our lives as we strive to grow closer to God. Each of …

Chad Hawkins is an LDS artist and author known for his stunning sketches of temples around the world. His most recent book, Temples of the New Millennium, tells the unique stories of each of the Church’s 150 temples.  We recently sat down with Chad to get his unique perspective on temples, his journey to document them through art, and in …

The Bible is an amazing book…as long as you see it for what it is and what it’s not. The Bible is certainly not ‘infallible’ and it’s definitely not ‘complete’. Anyone who tells you that, just doesn’t understand where the Bible came from and what it went through in order to reach us. The Bible has stood alone for many years…but …

I was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) when I was twelve. I’m not going to lie: it wasn’t the most exciting news to hear as a 12-year-old. I would have much rather been diagnosed with good looks or extreme athleticism, but instead I had self-doubt and anxiety.  I still have OCD today. I experience irrational OCD and anxious thoughts …

Since I watched the new Star Wars movie “The Force Awakens” I’ve been thinking continually about light versus darkness. In the movie, one of the most impactful scenes for me personally was when Kylo Ren was talking to the old helmet of Darth Vader, who, SPOILER ALERT, is his grandfather. In the scene he tells his grandfather, “Forgive me. I feel …

Insidious. Destructive. Powerful. These words describe one of the most commonly used tools of the adversary. Known as shame, this tool was one of the very first used by the great beguiler to try and alter the relationship between man and God forever. Sadly, it is a very effective tool. But what is shame and how was it introduced? More …

For many, music is a special conduit to the spirit of God and can express a depth of testimony that is inadequate with words. This is no more evident than in the powerful hymns performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. During the Saturday Morning Session of the 186th Annual General Conference of the Church, members were treated to a stunning …

As members of the Church, we often hear about the importance of agency and choosing the right. But choosing the right isn’t always as easy as looking down at your CTR ring. The decisions that I have had to make and pray about are often challenging in my mind because the roads I can take are very similar. I often …

When it comes to dating, I take some courage from the story of Adam. You might find that strange, seeing as Adam only had one woman to choose from (ignoring apocryphal tales about Lilith, of course). In the account in Genesis, however, we get some evidence that there actually was a choosing process, and I would even call it a …