Why I love being a Mormon!

So I used to think it would have been cooler to have not been born into a Mormon family, but rather to have found The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints later on in life and become converted, so I could really know the difference of how the gospel as taught in the church really changed my life. However, I have come to realize how many many blessings I have had having grown up in the church, which has led me to have such a happy lifestyle now and so much understanding and so many great experiences I wouldn’t have had otherwise. And since I’ve been taught the gospel and commandments since I was young, I didn’t have to make terrible mistakes and go through a rough life to learn important life lessons the hard way. Not that everyone who finds the church later on does have a rough life etc, but living the commandments and standards of the church have protected me from learning some things the hard way.

I also used to think maybe people would think my commitment and conversion to the church was somehow less “valid” because it’s just what I grew up with. But I say very firmly that my commitment and conversion is my own. I am a Mormon because I want to be, not because my parents or friends or anyone else is. I have searched out teachings in many religions, and I have discovered for myself that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the one true church. The most important tenets of our beliefs center around Jesus Christ. I know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who suffered for our sins so that we can be purified and clean to enter God’s presence after we die, because no unclean thing can dwell in the presence of God. The sacrifice of our Savior is the greatest demonstration of His love for us. And He rose from the dead on the third day, making it possible for all of us to be resurrected as well and return to the presence of God. What a wonderful, profound, mind-boggling truth that inspires me to be better and try harder to do what Heavenly Father wants me to do.

So I feel pretty blessed to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I love being a Mormon! And here are some more specific reasons I thought of to explain why:

Prayer  –

No one expects you to just accept the teachings of the church no questions asked; everyone is encouraged to seek the truth for themselves by studying things out and ultimately going to the source of all truth–praying in all sincerity to God and asking Him to confirm if something is true. Or just plain asking Him a question, expressing doubts or concerns, etc. He answers! Most often the answer comes as feelings from the Holy Ghost, like peace, warmth, joy. Also as thoughts. James 1:5-6, Moroni 10:3-5,  Galatians 5:22-23, D&C 8:2-3, D&C 9:7-9

Truth –

The doctrines of the church contain all the truths we need to return to live with God in heaven with our families with a fulness of joy after we die. There are so many good religions out there with so many good people and good teachings, but The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims that its doctrines encompass all truth, found in the scriptures which are the Bible, Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, and Doctrine and Covenants, and also in continuing revelation from living prophets and apostles–we have the chance to listen to their official messages and counsel to the church once every six months when they convene at general conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. I love the scriptures! I love general conference! I love reading the general conference messages afterwards when they are published online and in church magazines.

A good 5-minute summary of many of our beliefs is found in the Articles of Faith. And again, these assertions are meant to be tested by prayer–if you wonder if this is really true, study it out, ask God with a sincere and humble heart and He will answer. D&C 1:30

Sense –

The teachings of the church just make sense! The core basic doctrines of the church answer life’s biggest questions…Where do we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after we die? Who is God? Why does God allow suffering and hard times, even when we’re good? How can I find happiness? How do I know what I’m supposed to do with my life? What is the role of Jesus Christ in my life? How can I stop feeling guilty for things I’ve done wrong? What is right, what is wrong? How can I stop making the same mistakes?

I don’t know everything, but I do know that God is our Father, He loves His children, He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for us, and He wants us to return to live with Them.

Joy –

I have received so many blessings from being a member of the Church, it just makes me so happy! Of course I have bad days and get in moods and go through difficult times, but I really feel like on the deepest level and often on the surface as well, I am truly a happy person. 2 Nephi 2:25

Application –

At church we’re always encouraged to apply what we’re taught into our daily lives. It’s not just listen to a Sunday sermon and forget about it the rest of the week. There’s so much to learn! I love it! We’re encouraged to study the scriptures and pray daily both individually and as families. We’re encouraged to serve others and basically just live our religion day in and day out. James 1:22, James 2:17-18, 1 Nephi 19:23

Character –

Everything we learn at church points us to become better people, better spouses, better children, better neighbors, better Christians. And it’s not just about listening to lessons and sermons to improve our character. Since the church has lay ministry/volunteer leadership that rotates every so often, church members could be asked to serve in different capacities for a time, like a teacher for Sunday school, a secretary for the women’s organization (Relief Society), pianist, etc etc. Since those assignments are not our professions, we definitely have chances to learn new things and grow from those experiences!

Organization –

The church is so organized! The leadership is organized on all levels, worldwide, regional, local. Jesus Christ is at the head of the church, it being The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but He directs the church through the prophet and president of the church, who is the worldwide leader. In addition to the prophet and his two counselors, we are also led by twelve apostles, as in Christ’s day. They direct the affairs of the church worldwide and organize regional leadership, who in turn direct regional matters of the church and organize local leadership, who in turn direct local matters and organize their local congregations. Ephesians 4:11-14

More on the whole being organized thing–everyone has a group/program to be involved with that fits their life situation: Primary for children, Young Men and Young Women for youth, Relief Society for women, priesthood quorums for men, young single adult groups, etc. The church keeps records of births, deaths, membership, ordinances, tithing and offerings, and who is serving in what capacity at the time. Even though it’s a hugely diverse church with members across the globe, the organization provides for unity in doctrine worldwide. The church issues standard teaching curriculums to all congregations, which is so cool because I can know that on Sunday I am probably getting the same Sunday school lesson as someone in the Philippines or South Africa or wherever. The organization is also awesome for mobilizing aid in times of need like disasters, sickness, births, deaths, etc.

Family –

The church promotes strong families! Friends, jobs, school…everything comes and goes, but family is constant–I’ll always be daughter to my parents and sister to my siblings, and  the church always teaches ways to be better family members so that we can live happily with them forever. In temples we can be married so that our union is sealed together not just for this life but through the eternities, also with children. I love my family and I love the temple! The family proclamation is an inspired document from the apostles and prophets.

Programs –

The church has awesome programs to help people! Perpetual Education Fund to help people with low incomes go to college; Provident Living to help people get budgets in order, prepare for emergencies, and generally be more self-reliant;  Humanitarian Aid to help in times of natural disasters or other hardships; Personal Progress to help young women progress spiritually; Duty to God to help young men progress spiritually; Faith in God to help children progress spiritually; family history to help people find their ancestors; LDS Family Services to help with adoptions, counseling, etc. The Church Education System includes seminary to teach youth from the scriptures during the week, Institute to teach adults from the scriptures, Brigham Young University, etc.

Visiting teaching and home teaching are also cool programs of watching over all members of the church. As women in Relief Society, we’re assigned to go “visiting teaching” with a companion to a certain number of other individual women, sharing an uplifting message, giving encouragement, and seeing what their needs are and how we can help. Similarly, the men are assigned to be home teachers, although they don’t just visit other men, they visit and watch over other families. Visiting teaching and home teaching are on a monthly basis, although the point is not just to make a visit and be done–the point is to really become friends and watch over each other.

Community –

We have such a great sense of community with people at church. No matter where you move to, it’s like you will have an automatic extended family there to help you get moved in, find a job, recommend good schools, be your friends. You are never alone. And there are always fun and uplifting church activities going on.

Outreach –

With so many good things to offer, especially the essential truths of salvation, the church is always encouraging us to reach out to neighbors, friends, people of other faiths, etc to serve them and share the gospel with them. Full-time missionaries spend 18 months to 2 years, paying their own way, to go preach the gospel in locations they have been assigned to by the general leaders of the church. I was a missionary in Chicago, Illinois and I loved it! There’s nothing quite like sharing the joy of the gospel with others and seeing how their lives change for the better because of the gospel coming into their lives. Pretty cool. We try to share the gospel when we’re not full-time missionaries as well, not so much in going out door-to-door but more like in conversations with friends, through the internet, other ways as well. Anything to uplift someone else 🙂

A lot of the outreach of the church is also through many of the programs I already mentioned.

Resources –

I feel like there is such a huge wealth of manuals, magazines, talks, videos, images, etc etc etc–all available online on lds.org and mormon.org–that we can turn to or use for any topic. Of course chapels have a library with print materials and videos and other materials, but the church is doing such an amazing job keeping up with technology, including having a Facebook page, public affairs YouTube channel, Mormon messages YouTube channel, separate Mormon channel website, Twitter page, and Google plus page.

Mormon  Tabernacle Choir –

It’s a pretty great-sounding choir! Very good for uplifting music. A couple times I have been to Music and the Spoken Word, their weekly broadcast in Salt Lake, and I loved it. We also have some of their albums and have a Pandora station with their music. Not that we don’t listen to other stations…I definitely like our Regina Spektor, Way Back into Love, and Mana music…but it’s good to listen to some nice uplifting music from the Choir.

Of course I also think it’s awesome that Jacob played and recorded with the Choir when he was with the Orchestra at Temple Square.

Conclusion

So I could go on and on. There are some things I plain don’t know, or maybe I don’t understand the hows and whys of everything, but as Christ said, “do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles?…by their fruits ye shall know them.” The church has so many good “fruits,” it is impossible to deny that at the very least, the church is definitely good. It has definitely been good for me in my life. And I have taken the challenge to study and pray to know if the church is true, and the Holy Ghost has confirmed to me in undeniable terms that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church, and, as the intro to the Book of Mormon states, the church “is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the second coming of the Messiah.”