Alan 
A person’s integrity says a lot about their character. So it is not surprising that someone willing to bend facts and share half-truths and lies when creating the CES Letter would show the same lack of care in their business dealings. The public record of Jeremy Runnells’ nonprofit and for-profit businesses raises serious questions about … Read more
Last night I was awakened by two dreams. I do not know if the God was actually trying to communicate something to me or not, but they were vivid, and the interpretations I drew from them have given me guidance and comfort. Power To Overcome Evil In the first dream I was in a room … Read more
Elder Bednar explains the difference between having a testimony and being fully converted unto the Lord. A testimony is a beginning. It comes as we learn truth and feel the Spirit. Conversion is a deeper change. It is the consistent pattern of living those truths until they reshape who we are. He uses the example … Read more
The First Vision is perhaps the most miraculous and spectacular event of the last days. That God would again reveal himself to man shows the love of God, the fulfillment of his plan, and clarifies misunderstandings of doctrine that developed when the original apostles were killed, creeds were formed, and Christianity merged with Roman governance … Read more
After Hurlbut, the next very influential ex-mormon was John C. Bennett Few people in early Church history caused as much long-term damage as John C. Bennett. His name isn’t widely known today, but the ideas he created still show up in modern anti-Mormon arguments, in books like No Man Knows My History, the CES Letter, … Read more
Going through temple open houses is always a good experience. It’s neat to see the beautiful architecture of a new temple. As I took our four youngest children to the open house of the Burley Temple, it reminded me of when I was a teenager volunteering at the Bountiful Temple open house. I remember being … Read more
In this Standard of Truth Podcast, Dr. Dirkmaat discusses questions that can’t be answered without the restored gospel and why members who leave the Church struggle so much with the problem of evil. Without the restoration, and without the truths that came through Joseph Smith, there is no way to give a consistent answer. The … Read more
I listened to this talk by Jared Halverson that can help people who are working through doubts or questions about their faith. He explains how the plan of salvation mirrors our mortal experience. We begin with a “creation” stage where things seem simple and clear. Then we eventually hit the “fall” stage, where questions and … Read more
The Savior said, by their fruits ye shall know them. According to statistics, the more religious people are, the happier they are. When it comes to religiousity in America, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints are the most religious people in a number of ways. Prayer: Church members pray more than … Read more
While searching for information about the CES Letter, I came across the story of a once faithful member of the Church who once struggled with doubts about Church history and the Restoration. His slide into disbelief started from simple curiosity about things he had never heard discussed while growing up. Plural marriage, early Church history, … Read more