Live the Law of Chastity

Many people often treat morality and moral actions as subjective and relative to society's current mainstream beliefs.  We know, however, that that standard is no standard at all, but rather a slippery slope that brings a lasting sense of shame and guilt to the lives of its practitioners and believers.

It is the fixed moral standards of God that remain steady and sure.  It is His standards that bring us peace and true happiness in this life.  Chastity is the Lord's standard and expectation for us.

Chastity includes abstinence from sexual relations before marriage and complete faith and fidelity to one's spouse within marriage.  Marriage is necessarily a union between a man and a woman to fulfil God's purposes in establishing families and bringing His children to earth.  Strive to protect the God-given procreative power.  As you live a chaste life you will enjoy trusting and confident relationships with family and friends.  You will develop greater self-control and personal strength.

To be chaste requires that we strive to keep not only our actions clean, but also our words, thoughts and appearance.  The way we speak and dress reflects our personal convictions and thoughts.  It reflects who we are and what we want to become.  We should dress modestly.  We should use clean, wholesome, and uplifting language.  We should direct our thoughts away from the impure and unclean and towards that which lifts the soul and helps us remember Christ.



Avoid pornography in ALL its forms, whether visual or written or otherwise.  It will as surely enslave you as any other addiction would.  It will destroy self-respect and endanger or ruin relationships with those you love.  It is NEVER safe to indulge in anything that is even slightly pornographic.  Learn to remove and replace undesired thoughts when temptation arises.  A memorized hymn or scripture can go a long ways in helping us control our thoughts.

As we strive for continuing cleanliness and purity the Lord will help us.  Through Christ's Atonement we can have the strength we need to live according to God's standards.

Keep the Ten Commandments

The Lord gives us commandments to teach us how to serve Him and how to treat those around us.  Some of the most well-known of these commandments are the 10 commandments.  These commandments are still in force today.  Obeying them will bring the promised blessings of happiness and peace in this life.

Quoting from Exodus 20:3-17 (see also Mosiah 12:33-37 and Mosiah 13:11-24), the 10 commandments are as follows:

• "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (verse 3)  Other gods may include our money, our position or power in life, or our possessions.
• "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image..." (v. 4)
• "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain..." (v. 7)  Clean, wholesome language is pleasing to God.  It also reflects our personal values. Language that makes light of sacred things or that degrades others is demoralizing and demeaning; not just to others, but to our own soul as well.
• "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God..." (v. 8-10)  Our worship and activities on the Sabbath reflect our personal commitment to follow the Lord.  We should lay aside the entertainment and activities of the week and focus on spiritual, family, and service centered activities.
• "Honor thy father and thy mother..." (v. 12)  The family is the basic unit of society.  More importantly it is a central part of God's Plan of Salvation.  Strive to love and serve your family.
• "Thou shalt not kill." (v. 13)  Violence in any form drives away the Spirit.  Pay attention to your personal attitudes and actions towards others.  Also consider the content of the media that you spend your time on.
• "Thou shalt not commit adultery." (v. 14)  Immorality is just as dangerous to our welfare as any other sin, vice, or disease.  We should decide now to be chaste.
• "Thou shalt not steal." (v. 15)
• "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." (v. 16)  We should be completely honest in all our doings.  As we strive for honesty we will be recognized as someone who has integrity and is trustworthy; someone whom the Lord can trust.
• "Thou shalt not covet..." (v. 17)

As we honestly strive to obey God's Commandments we will learn of their truthfulness. (see John 7:17)  Choose this day to serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:15)



The Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through Joseph Smith

In the early 1800s God again showed His love for His children by calling a prophet.

As a young man, Joseph Smith honestly sought for truth.  His family was deeply religious and studied the Bible regularly.  Joseph investigated the many churches in his vicinity and studied the Bible to find which church to join.  The Bible taught that there would be "One Lord, one faith, one baptism..." so he sought that faith. (Ephesians 4:5)

While reading in the Bible, he came across James 1:5, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God; who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him."  Trusting that the Lord would give freely to those who ask and not chastise them for asking, he determined to "ask of God."

On a clear spring morning in 1820 Joseph retired to a grove of trees near his home.  There he knelt and offered a spoken prayer.  He later described his experience in these words:

"I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.... When the light rested upon me 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!" (Joseph Smith-History 1:16-17)

Joseph Smith saw God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.  They spoke to him and answered his questions concerning which church was right and which he should join.  Joseph was told that he "must join none of them" (JS-H 1:19).  None of the churches then standing had the priesthood authority of God.  This authority would be restored through Joseph Smith.

At later times Joseph Smith received the Priesthood under the hands of John the Baptist and Peter, James, and John.  These men came as angels and conferred the necessary Priesthood to baptize, give the gift of the Holy Ghost, and run the Church.

Joseph Smith was also led to a sacred record kept by the ancient inhabitants of the Americas.  He translated this record by the gift and power of God and published it as The Book of Mormon.  This Book is a fruit of  Joseph's work as a prophet of God.

Most importantly this Book supports the Bible in testifying of Christ's reality and divinity!

The Gospel Blesses Families

God has given us families in this life.  The Gospel can help us be happy in our families.  We can learn of Christ and live the way He lived.

The gospel will bring families closer together.  It will help them have good times together and enjoy each other's company.  Children will get along and will respect their parents and each other.  The parents will show love and respect for their children.  Together the whole family can learn and grow.  They will have opportunities to help each other overcome weaknesses.  They will be able to make it through hard times together and find strength that they otherwise might not know.

I know all this because I have seen it in my own family.  My parents taught us the gospel in our home.  They were an example to us in living it.  I learned patience, love and respect from watching my parents and listening to their counsel.  Granted I'm still not as patient, loving, or kind as I always want to be, but I know these Christlike attributes because I first learned them in my family.

How did my parents know what to teach us?  How did they know the Gospel of Jesus Christ?  They knew in the same ways that faithful followers of Christ have always known: through the words of the Prophets, both past and present.

Sexual Purity

Faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints live what is known as the Law of Chastity.  This law is a commandment from God and includes complete abstinence from sex before marriage and complete fidelity within marriage.  We are not alone in this belief.  Here's a video of youth from six different faiths talking about why they chose to be sexually pure.

Prayer

What is prayer?

"Sincere, fervent, and constant communication with the Creator of our spirits and bodies, our Heavenly Father" (A talk by Elder M. Russell Ballard)

"Faced with religious questions, a young man from the Czech Republic with an open mind found that he could get answers directly from God through prayer."

Watch a version of this video with English voice-over.

In my life, prayer is a constant theme.  Through prayer I have received peace and comfort and strength when it has been needed.  I have come to know that God is my loving Heavenly Father who knows me and cares about me personally.  I have gained a witness of Christ's atoning sacrifice and love.
   I know Christ's church is once again upon the earth in its fullness. I know living Prophets and Apostles lead the church by inspiration from God.
   I know you can pray to our Heavenly Father and receive answers and guidance for your life.

We Believe: For the Youth

  In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints a lot of emphasis is placed on teaching the youth.  Why?

Because of the importance of families.

  The family unit is central to our Heavenly Father's plan for us.  Strong families result from strong values.  If future families are going to be strong and based on eternal morals and values, then the youth now need to be taught and learn to live those morals.

And it's not just for this life.

  Before this life we lived in a family.  Each person who has come or will come to this earth is a literal spirit son or daughter of God and lived as such in His presence before this life.  Since God is a perfect, loving, heavenly Father he wanted to give us all that he has.  He has a perfect body of flesh and bone.  He has a fulness of joy and glory.

  The only way we could gain that fulness was to accept His plan for us.  We would come to this earth, receive a body, and have the chance to learn and grow as families.  We would experience trials, troubles, sickness, joy, peace, and health.  But because of the bad, we would recognize and appreciate the good.  "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things." (2 Nephi 2:11)  By faith in Christ, sincere repentance, baptism, receiving the Gift of Holy Ghost, and enduring cheerfully and faithfully throughout our lives we would qualify for Christ's grace and mercy to make up the difference between our debt to justice and our best efforts.

  After this life, we will be given the glorious blessing of living with our families in God's presence if we have lived according to His plan.

So, the church teaches the youth so that the youth can one day teach their families and so that after this life those families can continue eternally.

Who I am and why I'm "Mormon."

I am the oldest of six children.  I have 4 younger brothers and a younger sister.  My parents are still happily married after 22 years.  Our family has lived in Utah, Oregon and now Idaho.
  I enjoy good books.  Sci-fi, fantasy, historical fiction, etc....  I also really enjoy singing.  I was in choir during high school, then I was part of a barbershop quartet with 3 of my friends when I started college.  As far as college goes, I attended Brigham Young University - Idaho where I started a bachelor's degree in Chemistry.
  All of that is on hold right now because I am serving as a full-time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I have left my family and friends and set school and girls aside so that I can share the Gospel for two years.  And I'm not getting paid to do this.  I have volunteered my time and money to come out to Western New York and teach of Christ.

I have always had the blessing of knowing Christ's gospel.  But I do not think I ever fully understood what being a member of the LDS church meant.  I knew it was blessing my family and that we were happy because of it, but that was about it.  As a teenager I had to start making more decisions for myself.  Some of these decisions had to do with the way I would live my life.  I had to decide, for myself, that I would continue to live my life according to what I had been taught by my parents and the living Prophets.  It has been hard at times, but the comfort, peace, and security that have come from living the teachings of Christ have more than made up for the trials I have faced.
   Because of the personal trials I've gone through and the blessings I've received, I want to share what I know.  I want to share Christ's gospel and Heavenly Father's plan, because I know the happiness, peace and strength that comes from living in Their Way.

I know Heavenly Father loves all of us.  I know that because He loves us, He gives us prophets who teach of His Son, Jesus Christ.  I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is led by true prophets.  I know Christ is "the way, the truth, and the life." (John 14:6)