I invite all to increase trust in and develop a relationship with Heavenly Father, which will enable all to make thoughtful, faith-based decisions going forward. This is true of our LGBTQ brothers and sisters, their families, and Church leaders. We all have a place in the plan of happiness and I hope to provide a glimpse of that. But if for whatever reason, anyone decides not to stay, we can support them as they move forward with their lives rather than cut them off. We can keep the family circle together and leave the judging to our Savior and His perfect understanding.

    A fresh focus on our relationships with God and other people can transform our understanding and experience of the Latter-day Saint gospel basics of faith, repentance, baptism, and the gift of the Holy Ghost. In this book, Samuel M. Brown highlights continuity between the gospel’s first principles and ordinances and the highest ordinances of LDS temple worship. After encountering his tapestry woven of personal stories, scripture, LDS history, and perspectives of other religious traditions, you’ll never read the Fourth Article of Faith the same way again.

    In Dreams as Revelation, BYU Church history professors Mary Jane Woodger, Ken Alford, and Craig Manscill share guidance and counsel from prophets as well as their own insights to help readers recognize when a dream is revelatory in nature. With a foreword by Robert L. Millet, this book also includes chapters about scriptural dreams and Joseph Smith’s dreams, as well as original accounts of hundreds of carefully selected dreams, including dreams of the Savior, temple work, and more. In addition to being personally applicable for how to understand your own dreams, this interesting and informative book is a valuable resource for talks, lessons, and family home evenings.

    A Short History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

    He is, for example, a revelator, teacher, testifier, comforter, agent of the new birth, sanctifier, and sealer, to mention only a few of His roles. Unlike more inspirational explorations of the Holy Ghost, Robert L. Millet's The Holy Spirit focuses on the person of the Holy Ghost and examines His varied assignments in a way that is both spiritually strengthening and intellectually enlarging. Nothing has been written for decades about the Holy Spirit with so much breadth and depth.In The Holy Spirit, you'll find: Sound doctrine about the Holy Ghost that is in harmony with scripture and latter-day prophets. Personal experiences and inspiring stories from our history to help us both understand and draw upon the Holy Spirit in our lives. A helpful reference of prophetic teachings about the Spirit and His role in our lives.

    As an Asian American Latter-day Saint feminist and scholar, she feels the urgency of the Lord's command that the Church be one (Doctrine and Covenants 38:27).With her unique mix of humor and candor, empathy and idealism, Inouye draws upon her academic training in Chinese history and religious studies, her rich cultural heritage, her experiences raising a family in an international setting, her tangle with cancer, and her resilient faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ to unfurl vibrant reflections on the enduring question of what it means to be a Latter-day Saint today.

    It is an Odyssey through the greatest principles, ordinances and meanings of the Latter-day Saint faith in a comprehensive narrative. It will change the way you think of yourself, and of your life.

    Yet when understood, the temple can function in our lives as a modern day Liahona, giving us our bearings in our mortal journey back to our Father. Understanding Your Endowment is packed with insights and keys, which can help you unlock the temple's purpose and meaning in your life.Understanding Your Endowment examines topics such as covenant ceremonies, the initiatory ordinances, the endowment, and temple sealings in a manner that is plain and easy to understand while still respecting their sacred and confidential nature. Whether you are preparing to enter the temple for the first time or already attend regularly, your temple worship will be enriched by reading this book.

    It examines in appropriate detail the doctrines and practices which surround that holy building, and particularly their implications for the individual Church member.Part one offers the Lord's invitation: "Come to the temple." It sets forth the requirements for attendance- basically, preparation through worthiness- and the attitude and behavior appropriate for those attending that holy place on the first and all subsequent occasions. Part two deals in brief fashion with the ancient temples then turns to the central human figure in the work of the temple- Elijah the Prophet, who anciently held the keys relative to the sealing power of the priesthood. Malachi's prophecy and the human tradition about Elijah's return in the latter days are impressively set forth.Elijah's return and all that it means for the happiness and salvation of mankind are the themes of parts three and four. Following early Restoration scenes, here is the Kirtland Temple built at great personal sacrifice. Dedicated, it fulfills a major purpose in the glorious visions of April 3, 1836, the Savior himself introducing three heavenly beings who then convey priesthood keys. One of these is Elijah. Thereafter the revelations progressively develop the doctrine of temple work for both the living and the dead; under divine direction temple ceremonies are introduced and participants eagerly flock to the Nauvoo Temple; through President Wilford Woodruff the supporting work of lineage linking is clarified by revelation; and the spirit of Elijah is manifest both in and out of the Church as genealogical research and temple work blossom, temples multiply, and those beyond the veil assist those involved in the work here.The endowment with its sacred covenants and its elevating symbolic instruction, the sealing ordinance, and the other temple ceremonies are discussed sensitively and authoritatively.

    And the book itself provides some intriguing clues. But only recently has enough information come to light to make it possible to place the book in a plausible geographical, historical, and cultural setting. In An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, Dr. John L. Sorenson, chairman of the Department of Anthropology at Brigham Young University, presents a credible model for an ancient American background for the Book of Mormon. This model takes notice of extensive details given in the Book of Mormon descriptions of the land southward and of the land northward, of battle movements, of cities built and abandoned, of population and demographic data. Hundreds of geographical, historical, and cultural facts fall into place as his model is carried to its logical conclusions. How does Dr. Sorenson proceed? In a word, he asks more questions than he answers. His words are probing and carefully weighed. The results are great surprises and rewarding insights on every page. He asks questions like "Who were these people?" "What might they have looked like?" "Who were their neighbors?" "How many of them were there?" "How did they live, eat, speak, work, or fight?" He finds plausible answers to these questions by matching specific data from reliable archaeological and anthropological studies of Mesoamerica with the entire spectrum of cultural and historical information from the Book of Mormon. An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon is a thorough work of scholarship, a book that must be read by every serious student of the Book of Mormon.

    Through complete access to Nibley's correspondence, journals, notes and papers, Petersen has painted a portrait that reveals the man behind the legend. Starting with a foreword written by Zina Nibley Peterson (the author's wife and Nibley's daughter) and finishing with appendixes that include some of the best of Nibley's personal correspondence, the biography reveals aspects of the tapestry of the life of one who has truly consecrated his life to the service of the Lord.

    And its defenders too often fail to ponder it deeply enough to respond effectively to such criticisms.But, as author Bob Bennett writes, “For anyone truly interested in the Church and its claims, a thorough examination of the Book of Mormon as a possible forgery is a requirement. Instead of being just a footnote in an overall review of current Church activities, discussion of the book should be a primary focal point of the investigation.” with that in mind, he brings to bear his own fascinating experiences with the world of forgery in this careful examination of the Book of Mormon and its claims.In his role at billionaire Howard Hughes's company, Bennett had opportunities to help disprove two significant attempts at forgery: Clifford Irving's supposedly authorized biography of Hughes and later the fake Hughes “will.” In the process, he became acquainted with several tests commonly used to help identify a forgery. Leap of Faith chronicles the discoveries he made as he applied those tests to the Book of Mormon.Though Bennett concludes that “no final answer can be drawn about the authorship of the Book of Mormon on the basis of analysis alone,” his exploration of the book and explanation of its contents will be invaluable to anyone interested in understanding it more clearly. His own leap of faith provides a springboard for meaningful discussion by people of all faiths.This compellingly written work offers a unique perspective about a book beloved by tens of millions. It is made even more interesting by the author’s experiences working for the reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes, the victim of more than one attempted forgery.

    Monson. Beginning with President Monson's family heritage and his early years in Salt Lake City, it included his vocational preparation and his career in the world of journalism. More important, this inspiring book recounts his lifetime of Church service. Called as a bishop at the age of twenty-two, as a mission president at thirty-one, and as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve at age thirty-six, he has traveled the globe to minister to the Saints for more than fifty years. This book shares many of his personal experience, from his visits behind the Iron Curtain to his contributions on the Scriptures Publication Committee and in the missionary and welfare areas; it also provides up-to-the-minute information about his work as Church President.Filled with wonderful photographs and little-known accounts, this biography is a portrait of a leader who ministers both to the one and to the many, and who is completely dedicated to doing whatever the Lord prompts him to do.

    “Mortals have finite liabilities,” he explains, “and Jesus has unlimited assets.” By merging the two, exaltation can come. As long as we progress in some degree, the Lord will be pleased and will bless us. We must not only believe in Christ but also believe him — believe that he has the power to exalt us, that he can do what he claims. People will better understand the doctrines of mercy, justification, and salvation by grace after reading this book.

    Richard Lloyd Anderson, wherein he presents evidence from original sources on each of the eleven witnesses of the metal plates from which the Prophet Joseph Smith translated the ancient scriptural account known as the Book of Mormon.