Feel like you can’t do enough? This comforting scripture detail is for you

A powerful article onlds.orgshares the faithful stories of black members of the Church and their experiences before and after the priesthood revelation in 1978. This is the story of the Martins family.

Many churches of mainstream Protestant and Catholic religions are largely empty. I learned something about this supposed disinterest in religion that is flooding the developed world through an experience I had with a man that I met several years ago named Stephen Spencer. Asking sincere questions about someone’s supposed disinterest in religion is another way to engage in conversations about the gospel.

Many years ago when my children were small, my wife prevailed upon me to “be a good father” and buy a swing-set for the family. She envisioned the children swinging and playing happily in a yard full of neighbor kids, and then she could be a “Kool-Aid mom” by providing treats. In contrast to her vision of all the great things a swing-set would do for our children, I envisioned fights, broken arms, and worn spots on my grass.

"And in that day shall be heard wars and rumors of wars, and the whole earth shall be in commotion" (D&C 45:26).

In the ranks of today’s Latter-day Saints, there are thousands who serve in the armed forces. Here are 10 ways we, as an LDS community, can best support troops and their families.

This article is sponsored by Ketōnd.

In 1981, a Gallup poll reported, “Nearly one-third of all Americans—or about 47 million people—have had what they call a religious or mystical experience. Of this group, about 15 million report an otherworldly feeling of union with a divine being. They describe such things as special communications from deceased people or divine beings, visions of unusual lights, and out-of-body experiences.”1

I knew one man who claimed that he would be perfect by the age of thirty. He set out on a deliberate program, organized his goals according to a ten-year, five-year, one-year, monthly, weekly, and daily plan. He pushed and pulled and stretched and reached spiritually, as much as any person I have known. But he was not perfect at thirty. You cannot force spiritual things. I am acquainted with a woman who announced to several of our friends that she would make her calling and election sure by the time she was fifty years old. She has been faithful in the Church. She has long since passed the age of fifty and is terribly discouraged because the goal of her existence, so far as she knows, has not been realized. You cannot force spiritual things.

When I was released as a stake president, I was expecting a big thank you from the presiding authorities. I had worked diligently for years and felt I deserved such thanks. The weekend came, and the presiding authorities were focused on the call of the new stake presidency. They were not focused on thanking the outgoing stake presidency. After the stake conference, I felt disappointed.