Josh Searle

How Our Fear of Condoning Sin Keeps Us from Loving Others

By Josh Searle

August 16, 2017 06:11 PM MDT

Occasionally I get a letter from a concerned parent about their child in a gay relationship or leaving their Christian faith. Often these parents are paralyzed with fear. Fear of condoning or accepting immoral behavior yet fear of losing their child to choices the parent disagrees with. Based on correspondence with these parents, I feel many in the name of “truth and righteousness” draw their swords only to find it turned into a tragic event that was avoidable.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

2 Words We Should Never Think When It Comes to Challenges and Loving Others

By Josh Searle

July 15, 2017 11:34 AM MDT

I've lived much of my life deciding whether or not people deserved my compassion. And I had a fantastic formula for deciding this: if their challenges were easier than mine, then no compassion was given on my part.

2 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

The Dream I Had About a Funeral That Showed Me We Are the Links in God's Miracles

By Josh Searle

July 04, 2017 01:40 PM MDT

What do you do when you have a dream that someone you know on the other side of the world gets cancer, dies, and you attend the funeral? That’s exactly what happened to me a few years ago. I awoke from the dream thinking, "even if this person were to die from cancer, who would notify me of such an event?"

5 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

When I Was Assaulted by a Redneck in a Parking Lot (+ the Spiritual Lessons It Taught Me)

By Josh Searle

June 16, 2017 08:21 PM MDT

One day while entering a grocery store, I noticed an elderly woman leaving with a loaded grocery cart. I gently put my hand on her shoulder and said, “Ma’am, those canned goods look awfully heavy. Can I load those into your car for you?” She responded, “Oh yes, that would be wonderful. Thank you so much.” I then pushed her loaded cart as she placed her arm in mine.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

One Dangerous but Common Way of Thinking That's Keeping Us from Experiencing Heaven Right Now

By Josh Searle

June 14, 2017 03:27 PM MDT

When I thought of heaven, I visioned a physical location where my true happiness would finally start. It was a place where challenges did not exist, stresses of life were gone, and I would be with amazing family and friends forever.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

How My Deceased Mother Answered My Father's Desperate Prayer in a Dream

By Josh Searle

June 06, 2017 06:58 PM MDT

Shortly after my mother committed suicide by setting our home on fire, my father, younger brothers, and I temporarily moved with my aunt and her family.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

Why It's Okay to Admit I'm Struggling Being Faithful Today

By Josh Searle

April 24, 2017 12:34 PM MDT

Yup, that’s me in the above picture raising my hand. I too, struggle with being faithful. I wish my personal life looked like so many other lives portrayed on social media or even in Sunday School class as extremely happy and valiant and active members of the gospel.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

Feeling Down? Then Don't Bless Your Food

By Josh Searle

April 08, 2017 04:00 PM MDT

That title is correct. Feeling down? Don't bless your food. I was in Taiwan teaching English to a Buddhist family and discussing typical daily prayers in the USA. They were confused when they learned we asked God to bless our food.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

When President Hinckley Told a Muslim and Jewish Story (+ What We All Need to Learn from It)

By Josh Searle

April 06, 2017 04:50 PM MDT

So much content on social media and in person-to-person interaction is filled with hate. Black vs. white, democrat vs. republican, straight vs. LGBT, anti-Trump vs. Trump, conservative vs. liberal, religious vs. non-religious. I haven't even mentioned the "movements" that preponderates current news. I find the yelling matches of typing fingers to be an exhausting, venomous rhetoric. How can such conflict be resolved?

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

How My Anger Towards the Quorum of the Twelve Was Washed Away

By Josh Searle

March 29, 2017 01:52 PM MDT

Josh Searle was one of many gay Mormons whose stories were featured on the Church's website, mormonandgay.lds.org.Here is just one of the Church videos that shared his story:

2 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

Gay Mormon Shares What It's Like Being Gay in Family-Oriented Church (+ The Powerful Insight That Changed His Perspective)

By Josh Searle

March 22, 2017 02:12 PM MDT

Josh Searle was one of many gay Mormons whose stories were featured on the Church's website, mormonandgay.lds.org.Here is just one of the Church videos that shared his story:

2 Min Read