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 Posted: Fri Nov 26, 2010 11:54 pm
Mmm, I see. Very touching, almost tragic.. Im sorry that happened. And Im glad your happy.
Myself, I saw that everywhere I went, religion, opinions, and everything people thought or believed that was "undeniable" caused great turmoil, sometimes even wars. I saw that if I were to love everyone, nomatter their belief, I would truly "love thy neighbor". So, I asked my heart, and my heart led me to god. God told me that he is everything, yet he doesn't have to be anything. He told me in this dream. (sleeping at the time, self induced) That he only needed to be what we needed him to be, all he wanted was for his children to be happy, to love each other. I woke up crying, not sad, but happy. I mulled over the dream in my head. I decided it must have been a epiphany, not truly a message from god, though a vision to the truth, sent from an angel. I knew that god didn't need organized belief, he just needed belief. In his heart, he was us, and we were him. If we lost faith in him, it wouldn't matter. Only if we lost faith in ourselves would he have failed us, and us him. God as my savior, I love that dream, for all I can remember is that voice, and some color I could not describe, somewhere between light, dark, and with hues of every color...
It was beautiful, and I was at peace.
Until I told my christian parents my belief, and they kicked me out.
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 11:34 pm
Okay, I really hope I do not sound rude, discriminatory or anything of the like. I agree with you that it must have been a beautiful dream. It does not seem, however, that you were actively praying for an answer from God and it is my fear that Satan may be working on your desires for knowledge to turn you from God by telling you lies. God will give us answers when we ask for them and tell Him what answers we seek by telling Him everything in our hearts.
The Prophet Joseph Smith did this and was told by God and Jesus themselves that he would establish the true church on earth once more, since the earth was going through a period of time known as the apostacy. (Absence of the true church on the Earth.) God has given revelation to men when they have diligently prayed to know the truth or have asked for guidence.
I am not saying you are lying or being influenced by the devil. I urge you to pray to God to know the truth. I urge you to read the Book of Mormon and to pray to God with the fullness of your heart to know if what you saw in your dream was the truth. I urge you to pray until you've truely received an answer from God. I only urge you to do so because what you say does not match up to what Mormon beliefs are, that is all. If you pray diligently and receive revelation that what you saw and heard was the truth, I would be extremely grateful for having such a vision! ^_^
I will also admit that God has sent dreams and visions to men, such as Joseph Smiths' father, in preparation for the extreme task they have. Joseph Smith's father received revelation from God that his son (who was not born at the time) would become an instrument of God and restore the church. I do not know the meaning of your dream, but I urge you to pray about it so you may know more.
(Again, I'm not trying to be mean, offensive or anything, so I hope you don't think so. ^_^ wink
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2010 2:26 pm
AMG this guild has posts.
Well, to throw that back at you, with the same warning of course, not trying to be offensive. Y'know.
Personally, and As I have stated before, an organized religion, if not led by the prophets who made, or even Jesus himself, can be clouded by the beliefs and agendas of those in their power at the time, Now, I'm not saying you should question the teachings of your church, that is what brings you happiness, I have no right to dissuade you from that. But, question yourself, do you follow what your preacher tells you? Or do you follow what your book, and what the moral codes, and everything else teaches you? If you follow the preacher, you are then put in hold of both the moral guides and scriptures you hear, and the fact that he may not be giving it all to you, in an attempt to let his bias and agenda dissuade you from your own.
That's mainly why I dislike organized religions.
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2010 6:39 pm
You have no idea how happy you've made me!!!!!!
As a convert, I didn't follow any religion for a major portion of my life. I always hated the idea of paid clergy among other things. What sets The Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-Day Saints apart from others is the fact that we know, not just believe, that Joseph Smith Jr. was a prophet called of God to restore the true gospel.
We know that after all the apostles were slain the true church was no longer on the earth. The proper authorities were lost and a lot of the purity of the Gospel was tarnished.
When Joseph Smith Jr. was still just a boy (around 14-16 I believe), he prayed to God asking what religion he should join. "I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other--This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" (Teachings of the Presidents of the Church Joseph Smith pg. 27.) He was instructed by Jesus to restore the church and to translate what would become the Book of Mormon. It was a long and tedious task, but eventually was completed. He was visited by Moroni, an angel of God and given the proper authority to baptize, among other things.
These powers and authorities have been carefully passed down from one Prophet to the next and some powers and authorities are held by normal members. It's a little confusing, so I will be posting something up about the organization of the church.
We are led by a Prophet of God who receives revelation from God. We are led by bishops in our churches, whom are not paid and do not sit and preach at us. Our own members prepare short speeches for Sacrament meeting on a certain topic and we also have lessons for those still new to the church. We do not follow blindly like many others. We are always urged to pray for guidance for God knows what we need and will, in some way in His own time, provide for us.
We read from the scriptures that were translated by Joseph Smith Jr. and if we have any doubts about what we read, we pray to God and the Holy Ghost confirms to us that what we are reading is true.
(I hope that wasn't too confusing...)
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Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 6:23 am
Actually, That sounds both like a failsafe to the religion, well.. failing, and a great way to keep the church on the right path.
In the way of a failsafe, it would keep things like - "We still follow someone who is close to god in such a high manner, so therefore, we are closest to him"
In the way of it actually works - "We still follow someone who is close to god in such a high manner, so therefore, we are closest to him"
In both manners, it keeps itself upright.
But again, I ask, how do you know if you have a ba'al instead of a moses? A false prophet for a true one, a Judas for a Jesus?
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Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 10:25 am
Now, this is the part that people always flame and criticize. The best way to know is to do what we are commanded by God to do and to partake of the scriptures. By doing so, we are able to hear the still small voice that the Holy Ghost has, and by praying and asking, the Holy Ghost will confirm to us that this Church, this Doctrine, this Prophet is one of God.
I would say that the actions are also a good indicator, however, The Book of Mormon has a couple prophets that did go out and preached to the people false doctrine, however, God forgave them of their sins and they became great prophets. (Alma the Younger is a good example.)
To me, whenever I hear the Prophet speak or I read his talks online, I always feel the Spirit with me. It's not just a "hey, he's saying some good things," but rather a "God has revealed this to him, so therefore, this must be good" feel. So far, there hasn't been anything that I've heard of the church President doing that I don't agree with.
There's probably more I can say on the matter, however, I must depart for work... ^_^ By the way, I really like this conversation so far.
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Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2011 11:05 am
hello my name is Samantha.
i am not an official member of the church,
but i've been attending for a bit over a year now
and i plan on getting baptized.
i believe this is the true church of jesus christ.
i do believe that there is a living prophet today.
i say these things in the name of jesus christ amen.
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Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2011 12:27 pm
Sharpie.
I was going to read your post.
Then I saw the signature below.
That was the funniest s**t I have ever seen ever.
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Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2011 8:06 pm
I must say: this is a pretty well-done guild! *Impressed*
Who am I?
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I'm 22, female. I went on a mission to Macon, GA, serving primarily in Savannah and Georgetown. I've been a member all of my life. I would like to say that this does not mean I have "all the answers." I most certainly do not! Nor do these things mean I'm a "blind faither." I worked hard and studied everything I have a testimony of, prayed hard and came to the knowledge of myself that this is true.
Since this seems to be the place to bear testimonies, I will bear a simple one:
I know that God lives and loves us. He sent His Son to atone for our sins, so that we may live with Him again. I know that each of us is capable of living with Him again if we do our best each day and repent when we fall short. Change is always possible through our Lord Jesus Christ. I know that God restored His gospel and authority through the prophet Joseph Smith, and that He guides His children through a prophet today just like He always has. I love Him.
((EDIT: Also: not an official member of the guild. I just found it. *sending request*))
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Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2011 4:25 pm
I am Angelica Woods. I was converted into the church and baptized on December 18th, 2010, by my boyfriend, Matthew Connelly, who is going on his mission soon. He was supposed to go about a month ago, but things have gotten held up. Anyway...
I am a member of the church. I went to the temple yesterday to do baptisms for the dead. I've had blessings in my life and they have strengthened my belief.
I bear you my testimony in the name of our savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.
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Posted: Fri Jan 28, 2011 3:02 pm
Hello~!
I'm Katie and I've been a Latter Day Saint all my life!
I'm 20 and I'm currently in my first semester or college and I'm so excited about that.
I'm in an awesome Institute class where you can just feel the spirit.
I love to read and write and I enjoy painting and drawing.
I'm planning on being an English Teacher for high school and probably become a Writer in the middle of my career.
Right now I'm reading two books: The Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball, and The Fourth Nephite by Jeffery S. Savage.
Both are really good books and I'm also in the midst of reading the Book of Mormon for the second time.
I'm not married yet so I'm hoping that I'll meet the one in college or in institute.
Also I'm trying to earn my medallion since I was very rebellious when I was a teenager in the church.
=]
I also like purple, animals, and pixie stixs
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Posted: Tue Mar 01, 2011 11:08 am
I have a question for you guys!
What are your views on the shadow and the light itself, not the ones who dwell within them, God and Lucifer respectfully?
Are each really black and white good and evil? Or are those the purposes these energies are being used for?
I mean, without shadow, we'd all burn to ash in the light, and without light, we'd wander in the dark, and freeze, so there has to be a balance, yes?
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Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2011 3:33 pm
Wow, it's been a while since I've been on and I apologize for that. I don't entirely understand the question presented, but as far as I understand, light and dark are a way to symbolize God and Satan. The darkness is more symbolic of those things that are not good for us and is aligned with Satan. The light is more symbolic of things that are good for us and is aligned with God. For example, when Joesph Smith describes his vision, he describes seeing a light that was bright beyond description.
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Posted: Tue Mar 22, 2011 4:35 pm
I haven't posted in a while!
:O
But yea, it's Cupcakes here, namechange. It's for an rpc I'm using, so, how are y'all? biggrin
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Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 4:24 pm
Ello'!
My name is Joshua and I'm Mormon as well
I go to the Hacienda Heights 1st Ward
I'm 17
I love to draw Manga/Anime and play lots of videogames.
My fav. food is Chinese food! ^-^
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