me, the mormon.

if you know me or have followed my blog for long, you will know that i am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. or more commonly referred to as, "the mormons". for me, one of the most wonderful things about our church is that we believe in living prophets. we believe that after the killing of Christ and His apostles, many essential parts of Christ's church were taken from the earth and that through the Prophet Joseph Smith, the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored in its fulness. that fulness includes the return of prophets and apostles who guide and lead the Lord's people as they did in biblical times. each spring and each fall we hold what we call General Conference where we are treated to spiritually uplifting words and counsel from the prophets and other leaders of the church. i look forward to these times each year! it is such a rejuvenating thing for me. i love it! this past weekend just so happened to be conference weekend and i was so inspired by the messages given. so many of the words spoken were so timely for me and they touched my heart strongly.

a few days ago one of my neighbors asked me if i enjoyed going to church and if it helps me on a daily basis. i gave her my answer but then thought on the question for the entire day following. i do enjoy going to church. i don't just enjoy it, i love it. but even more than "church" i love the gospel. i love my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and i love that by going to church i can be with people who share those same feelings. we can strengthen each other and learn from each other. we do not have paid clergy of any kind. we have no specially trained teachers or speakers at our meetings. as members we teach one another and we learn from one another. we seek for the guidance of the spirit in these things. we are counseled to read our scriptures and pray daily and to seek personal guidance from Heavenly Father and inspiration in all that we do. we are counseled to become self reliant, to avoid debt, to help others selflessly, to serve others with a glad heart. i have yet to meet a perfect mormon. i am certainly far from it myself. but i do try each day to improve myself and draw closer to my Savior. doing this helps me every day, just as my neighbor asked. knowing of His love and feeling it helps me each and every second of the day. and going to church and worshiping and serving with people who are engaged in the same cause is really just the icing on the cake. with faith in Christ, the teachings of His gospel coupled with the church have blessed my life enormously.

another question that has been raised {although not to me directly} is "Are Mormons considered Christian?" i personally find this to be a silly question but i suppose that is because i am a mormon and there has not been a day in my life that i did not believe in Christ. there has never been a day in my life that i did not rely on Christ, or love Christ. " And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." {2nd Nephi 25:26} i finally realized that it is silliness on my part to be offended by those who would say otherwise. am i sad by it? i am. but when it comes down to it, i don't need another person to tell me that i am Christian because that very Christ who they speak of is standing beside me. He is guiding my life. He is leading my soul and forgiving my wrongs. He is teaching me to be a better mother and wife and friend. He is MY dearest friend. i just hope that i am living my life in a way that those who meet me and may have this question will know that yes, we are indeed believers in Christ, "in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." {1 Timothy 4:12}

i feel incredibly blessed to be a member of His church. and that is all for now.

xoxo.ash