5 ways to add a personal touch to a graduation gift

A slightly younger contemporary of Joseph Smith known to us only as “Mrs. Palmer” grew up on property not far from his family’s farm near Palmyra, New York. She never accepted his prophetic claims but has nonetheless left us valuable eyewitness testimony concerning his character.

Patrick Mason is the author and publisher of Planted, a book that offers helpful insights for members of the Church who are struggling with their faith. He shares his knowledge to Latter-day Saints abroad at firesides and through media outlets like The New York Times, Washington Post and ABC News. In this week's episode, All In host Morgan Jones talks with Mason about what to do when we, or those we know, have doubts or questions about the Church.

The following is an excerpt from Elder John H. Groberg’s book Fire of Faith, which details his experiences with his family as he served as a mission president in Tonga. During his service, Elder Groberg helped plan a jubilee celebration for the Saints in Tonga and promised the missionaries that, leading up to the jubilee, 500 people would be baptized into the Church in one month. The number seemed impossible. In 1966 the total number of members baptized into the Church for the entire year was 604. In 1967, the number rose to 833, but Elder Groberg understood the Lord was working miracles to move His work forward in Tonga. Below are some of those miracles that helped bring 507 people into the Church in one month in Tonga.

When our bishop is released and another man in the ward is called to serve in that capacity, what do we call the former bishop?

During the October general conference, in light of the new organizational changes, President Russell M. Nelson clearly stated that a bishop’s “first and foremost responsibility” is to care for the youth in the ward. But what about everything else in the ward? The Church News spoke with Church leaders who broke down what these organizational changes mean for not only the bishop but for Relief Society and elders quorum presidencies, Young Women presidents, and Aaronic Priesthood quorum advisers. Ultimately the change should affect all members of the Church, as it relies heavily on the bishop trusting ministering brothers and sisters to help take care of ward members and allow him to make the youth his top priority in his stewardship.

When I was asked by Brooke Walker, host of KSL’s Studio 5, to come on her show and share five things I’ve learned about faith from hosting All In, I tried to really think, “What do I know about faith that I didn’t know a year ago?” Unfortunately, I’m pretty long-winded and am not used to having a really strict time limit, so I am to blame for not having time to hit all five points on the show. However, I still wanted to share the lessons I’ve learned, because I think they’re valuable and I was grateful for the exercise.

Note: Learn more about Tony Finau's faith here.

Editor's note: The following responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Elder Uchtdorf addressed 1,647 missionaries at the Provo MTC in an hour-long devotional message given Tuesday. His message of love and encouragement was to remind missionaries of the unseen miracles that they can bring to the lives of others.