To all Heavenly Father’s children who are living in these Last Days, I would like to bear my testimony about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, of which I have been a member for over 60 years.
I was baptized for the remission of sins and received the gift of the Holy Ghost by laying on of hands by missionary Elders of our Church in the year of 1962. These ordinances were administered in the same way as we read about in the New Testament by the Lord’s Apostles.
In 1962 at the age of 22, I had never heard of the “Mormon Church” (that name is what other people have called us), nor had I seen, heard, or read anything about our Church. Neither had I ever heard of Joseph Smith the Prophet nor the Book of Mormon; if I had heard anything about our Church, it simply did not register.
Before I joined our church, I was a devout Baptist, and I still have a great love for the Baptist Church. I always remember having a deep respect for the Lord Jesus Christ. At age 6, I was with my family attending a Tent Meeting and I accepted an “Alter Call” by walking up front and kneeling down to pray for forgiveness of my sins and accept Jesus Christ as my Savior. I will never forget that night and how happy I felt that I was now saved and going to heaven.
Growing up as a young man, I spent many nights praying that God would forgive my sins and after many prayers, I felt God had forgiven me. I was weak and it was easy for Satan to tempt me to sin. I fell into the same path of sinning many times and then asked for forgiveness. But in the end, I did become a strong follower of Jesus Christ and his teachings.
Even at a young age, I would lead my cousins and friends into the woods to pray. As I grew up, I had many discussions with everyone who would talk to me about the Gospel. I had lots of thoughts on the mysteries of the Gospel.
For example, I believe we were the angels that had cast Satan and his angels out of Heaven and were now living a temporal life here on earth to learn to distinguish good from evil and how to overcome evil by becoming strong in following the word of God.
At the age of 18, I enlisted in the Navy. At age 21, I was stationed on the submarine tender USS Nereus in San Diego, California. I found myself discussing many different ideas and beliefs about the Bible with my fellow servicemen.
I agreed with some and disagreed with others, many of which were of different faiths. Each one sincerely expressed their views on so many different ideas and thoughts about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as found in the Bible.
One day as I was standing in front of my bunk bed, I noticed a small military edition of what I thought was a Bible lying in the middle of it. As I picked it up, it felt so special—the same feeling you have when you pick up the Bible, but it was not the Bible as I first thought.
It was a book named “The Book of Mormon.” I thought to myself that this book must have something to do with the Muslim faith but as I went through the pages, I read many comments about our Savior Jesus Christ.
As I was holding it, I felt moved by the Spirit to read this unknown book. So, I began reading, starting on page one. Within just a few pages (maybe 5 pages) I knew this was a true book of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as testified to me by the Holy Ghost.
As I was reading, I found many truths about the teachings of our Savior and the commandments of God. This confirmed to me that these were scriptures teaching about the gospel of salvation in the Americas.
As I was reading, I asked around to see if anyone knew anything about this Book of Mormon, but no one did. However, just as I was almost through reading the entire Book of Mormon, I found someone who knew about this book. They invited me to their home to listen to discussions from two wonderful missionaries.
Everything the missionaries taught me was confirmed by the Holy Ghost to be true. In August of 1962, I was baptized by Elder Crapo for the remission of my sins and was confirmed by the laying on of hands by Elder Black to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost as taught by the Apostles in the New Testament.
I bear witness to all those who read my testimony that The Book of Mormon comes from our Heavenly Father and if you will read it prayerfully, you will receive a spiritual confirmation from the Holy Ghost that this is the Word of God.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I bear my solemn testimony that the Book of Mormon was written by prophets starting around 600 BC and that it covers a period of about 1000 years. It bears witness of the Holy Bible. This is God’s work. It can help you grow your relationship with our Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ.
Richard Allen Ledford
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Thanks to Richard Ledford for sharing your heartfelt and inspiring testimony. Your journey of faith and discovery is a powerful reminder of the Lord’s hand in guiding us to truth. We are grateful for your willingness to share this sacred experience with others.
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Holly Wallace is a writer and storyteller drawn to meaningful questions and overlooked details. Her work explores Latter-day Saint life and culture through faithful inquiry, inviting readers to pause, consider, and engage more deeply with what matters most.
