Yet, because the details of the vision are spread over nine different accounts that vary in emphasis and some finer points, many people do not know all they could about this remarkable and world-changing experience.Kerry Muhlestein, professor of Ancient Scripture at Brigham Young University, presents a faithful, harmonized version of the First Vision story to show how each of the various accounts might share select aspects of the vision yet all be consistent with the actual event experienced by Jospeh Smith. As the Prophet recorded or shared his remarkable vision, he emphasized different details depending on the audience and circumstances at the time. All nine accounts—four firsthand and five secondhand—are combined into one compelling story in this retelling of Joseph Smith's incomparable vision. Also included are the original accounts in their entirety so that readers can feel for themselves the powerful witness of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Strengthen your testimony of this singular, foundational event that would lead to the Restoration of Christ's Church upon the earth.

    Petrey's trenchant history takes a landmark step forward in documenting and theorizing about Latter-day Saints (LDS) teachings on gender, sexual difference, and marriage. Drawing on deep archival research, Petrey situates LDS doctrines in gender theory and American religious history since World War II. His challenging conclusion is that Mormonism is conflicted between ontologies of gender essentialism and gender fluidity, illustrating a broader tension in the history of sexuality in modernity itself.As Petrey details, LDS leaders have embraced the idea of fixed identities representing a natural and divine order, but their teachings also acknowledge that sexual difference is persistently contingent and unstable. While queer theorists have built an ethics and politics based on celebrating such sexual fluidity, LDS leaders view it as a source of anxiety and a tool for the shaping of a heterosexual social order. Through public preaching and teaching, the deployment of psychological approaches to "cure" homosexuality, and political activism against equal rights for women and same-sex marriage, Mormon leaders hoped to manage sexuality and faith for those who have strayed from heteronormativity.

    He cares about everything you go through and wants to hold you through it all. He sees your heart aches and cherishes every prayer. And God will answer your prayers. He has a plan in your suffering, and will use this season to strengthen you, and your relationship with Him. While there may be nothing good about the pain you may be in, He has the power to make your life good again. His love for you will compel Him to bless you and heal you.In these pages you’ll find the comfort you need. You’ll learn why God allows bad things to happen and how he intends them for good. You will understand His plan so that you can find peace again.

    Personal Accounts from over 100 people who knew Joseph Smith.

    This translation is readable and accessible for a wider range of readers than the King James Version. The original structure of the New Testament is restored and highlights features such as quotations, hymns, and poetic passages. New and extensive notes provide alternate translations, commentary upon variant manuscript traditions, and historical insights. Where applicable, the Joseph Smith Translation has been included. The notes contain the most complete list of cross-references to New Testament passages in the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants that have ever been assembled.

    Hunter asked members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "How often do we think of the Savior? How deeply and gratefully and how adoringly do we reflect on his life? How central to our lives do we know him to be?"    Living a more Christlike life has long been a theme of President Hunter's messages to the Saints. That We Might Have Joy presents thirty-two of these messages, each expressing his testimony that "Christ's way is not only the right way, but ultimately the only way to hope and joy."    The book is arranged in four parts"Making Christ Our Exemplar," "A Plea for Unity," "Facing Trials and Tribulations," and "Becoming Disciples of Christ." Each chapter within these sections draws from the scriptures an important message illustrating how using the Savior's life and teachings as our guide can lead to greater peace of mind and joy.    President Hunter summarizes well this theme in his talk entitled "Facing Trials and Tribulations": "Our task is to have the gospel in our lives and to be a bright light, a city set on a hill, that reflects the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the joy and happiness that will always come to every people in every age who keep the commandments."

    Help, Thanks, Wow ...in 30 minutes is the concise guide to quickly understanding the three simple prayers outlined in Anne Lamott's best-selling book, Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers. Understand the thought-provoking ideas behind Help, Thanks, Wow:* Learn what it means to pray, and the life-opening power of prayer, independent of your faith or lack thereof.* Inspirational stories convey Lamott's personal insight and exploration of faith.* Discover how the three essential prayers help us endure difficult times and continue to move ahead. In Help, Thanks, Wow, best-selling author Anne Lamott demystifies prayer, declaring that there are no rules--a higher power can be called anything, and people can believe in any religion they'd like (or none at all) and still pray.Prayer can take countless forms, but Lamott believes that it all boils down to three essential prayers: Help, Thanks, and Wow. Help is an admission of powerlessness and a plea for assistance; Thanks is a cry of gratitude; and Wow is the experience of awe.A thought-provoking spirituality guide for people of all faiths and creeds, Help, Thanks, Wow examines the importance of the three prayers vital to enduring hardship and experiencing a transformative sense of gratitude and wonder in the world.Help, Thanks, Wow ...in 30 minutesDesigned for those whose desire to enrich their faith exceeds the time they have available, Help, Thanks, Wow ...in 30 minutes enable readers to rapidly understand the essential ideas behind critically acclaimed books. With a condensed format and chapter-by-chapter synopsis that highlights key insights, this summary helps readers easily devote time to growing their faith.

    Brigham Young, second President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, and first Governor of Utah, was the founder and chief builder of the Great Intermountain West of the United States of America. He is recognized as one of the foremost colonizers and empire builders of all time. In this book Young is allowed to speak for himself. Excerpts have been made from his many discourses, and these have been arranged to show the coherent system of faith which he continuously taught his people and by which he was enabled to win success for his followers. Partial Contents: The Godhead; The Communication Between God and Man; Pre-existence, the Plan of Salvation; Free Agency; The Power of Evil; The Law of Eternal Progression; The Destiny of Man; Dispensations of the Gospel; The Last Days; The Scriptures; The Priesthood; The First Principles of the Gospel; The Word of Wisdom; The Family; Some Womanly Duties; Obedience; Gratitude, Humility, Devotion, Liberality, Honesty; Happiness and Social Enjoyments; Education; Self Control; Our Fellow-Men; Unity and Cooperation; Thrift and Industry; Wealth; Missionary Work; Visions, Mysteries and Miracles; Trials and Persecution; Political Government; Death and Resurrection; The Spirit World; Eternal Judgment; Salvation; Temples and Salvation for the Dead; Man's Search for Truth and Salvation; Testimony of the Truth; The Church and Kingdom of God on Earth; Some Effects of the Gospel; Joseph Smith the Prophet; and The Settlement in the West. See other titles by this author available from Kessinger Publishing.

    Dalton writes, "As daughters of God, we are each unique and different in our circumstances and experiences, and our part matters because we matter. We are no ordinary women. We are elect, and each of us has a unique, divine mission to perform." Having had the opportunity to travel throughout the world and serve and work among women young and old and in between, Sister Dalton has seen firsthand how the Lord has blessed each of us with distinct and divine talents. And when we use those gifts to become righteous women of influence on the people and the world around us, there is no limit to the good we can achieve. Sister Dalton highlights many of the qualities we are blessed with as women of covenant in these latter days. Though many of us may feel that we have only a small part to play in the building of the Lord's kingdom, Sister Dalton helps us to recognize that "by small and simple things are great thing brought to pass" (Alma 37:6). As we reflect on our roles within our spheres of influence and commit to act as disciples of Christ in whatever we do, we discover that we truly are capable of great things and that our work and contributions in the kingdom are anything but ordinary.

    In A Witness and a Warning you will find President Benson's counsel, insight, testimony and teachings pertaining to the Book of Mormon.

    Here the trials and triumphs of the early Muslims as individuals are well-portrayed. Their various paths to Islam - sometimes direct, sometimes long and tortuous, their devotion to the noble Prophet, their endeavours in peace time and their exploits in war - all serve to cast them in a heroic mould. This is the first of two (formerly published as a series of three) books based on original Arabic sources and written in a style that is lively and often gripping. The lives of the Sahabah or Companions of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, is a rich storehouse of knowledge, guidance and inspiration. The men and women whose stories are told here helped to lay the foundations of a new world order, and it is only fitting that they should be more widely known.

    According to Smith, Moroni told him of a buried stack of gold plates that were inscribed with a history of the Americas' ancient peoples, and which would restore the pure Gospel message as Jesus had delivered it to them. Thus began the unlikely career of the Book of Mormon, the founding text of the Mormon religion, and perhaps the most important sacred text ever to originate in the United States. Here Paul Gutjahr traces the life of this book as it has formed and fractured different strains of Mormonism and transformed religious expression around the world.Gutjahr looks at how the Book of Mormon emerged from the burned-over district of upstate New York, where revivalist preachers, missionaries, and spiritual entrepreneurs of every stripe vied for the loyalty of settlers desperate to scratch a living from the land. He examines how a book that has long been the subject of ridicule--Mark Twain called it "chloroform in print"--has more than 150 million copies in print in more than a hundred languages worldwide. Gutjahr shows how Smith's influential book launched one of the fastest growing new religions on the planet, and has featured in everything from comic books and action figures to feature-length films and an award-winning Broadway musical.

    The author also examines the surprising and significant effects of the Fall on the earth itself.It was not until the original writings of Moses and Abraham were restored that modern students of the earth's creation story were in a position to begin assembling the illuminating facts that are resented in this book.For those who enjoy contemplating both the findings of science and the revelations of God, this will be an extremely stimulating and provocative study.Among the questions addressed and answered in this book are:Where did the earth's creation take place? Who participated?Did the creation take 6,000 years or millions of years?How did life begin on the earth? How did it develop?Where did the dinosaurs come from? Why were they here?Did human beings live on the earth before the arrival of Adam and Eve?What really happened in the Garden of Eden?Are there evidences of God's handiwork in the rock record of the earth?Are there answers to the unresolved questions of earth scientists in God's revealed record of the creation?Why did the Fall have such important astronomical and geological implications for the earth?And finally: What we hear in church about the creation doesn't always match wat we learn in school--or does it?

    We want to know! We want to know the purpose of our life, why we are here on earth, where we came from, whether there is a God, who this God is, whether there is an afterlife, and so much more! These most basic and fundamental questions are hopefully in the forefront of our minds. And if they are not, it's never too late to start! This book offers some of the answers to these questions. It offers the answers found is our Creed. At first, the Creed can seem dry and unimpressive. It can even seem confusing and overly academic. But when properly understood, the Creed holds the answer to the questions we so deeply seek.