Maddie Tolk

Maddie is a content specialist for LDS Living. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English from Harvard and has published and edited content for the Utah Symphony | Utah Opera, Macmillan Learning, HarvardX, Utah Valley University, and Adobe. Maddie enjoys reading, playing the violin and piano, and watching musicals.

Elder Gérald Caussé displays a copy of the Book of Mormon in a video titled “Truths Unique to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”

Follow the Prophets

Elder Caussé lists 23 questions the Book of Mormon answers

By Maddie Tolk

July 22, 2026 01:47 PM MDT

“What a wonder it is to know what we know,” Elder Caussé says.

1 Min Read

Two young women read together on the couch with a little girl listening next to them.

Latter-day Saint Life

This story will inspire you to reopen your scriptures

By Maddie Tolk

July 16, 2026 10:40 AM MDT

A prophet called this account “one of the finest stories in all of the scriptures.”

3 Min Read

Primary General President Susan H. Porter shares her testimony from the new Temple Square Visitors' Center in a video titled "Never Alone Through Jesus Christ."

Help for Life Challenges

Pres. Porter shares one of her darkest moments—and how she found light

By Maddie Tolk

July 15, 2026 01:44 PM MDT

On the day of her husband’s funeral, President Susan H. Porter discovered that their home flooded.

2 Min Read

From left to right: Lowell Gould, Nancy Gould, Margie Bradford, Dallas Bradford, Candy Olson, Della Lee, and Sheri Flygare gather for games as part of their ward dinner group in Bountiful, Utah, in 2025.

Stories of Faith

This ward dinner group has been meeting for 50 years—here’s how

By Maddie Tolk

July 02, 2026 08:28 PM MDT

The friends shared what they’ve learned after more than 600 meals together.

3 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

Why Andy Reid says conducting the Tabernacle Choir was one of the highlights of his life

By Maddie Tolk

July 01, 2026 03:14 PM MDT

“You [could] compare this to what you do when you win a Super Bowl. I mean, it was just that exciting.”

1 Min Read

Lloyd E. Oaks and Dallin H. Oaks in 1939

Follow the Prophets

A poignant way Pres. Oaks honored his father

By Maddie Tolk

June 16, 2026 01:13 PM MDT

“I was not yet 8 years old when he died, but his influence lives on for me and his descendants.”

1 Min Read

Elder Gerrit W. Gong video workshop on AI, June 2026

Follow the Prophets

Worried about AI? 9 quotes from Elder Gong to help you navigate it wisely

By Maddie Tolk

June 12, 2026 02:17 PM MDT

“Artificial intelligence can answer questions, but it cannot answer prayers.”

1 Min Read

The Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Wednesday, April 29, 2026.

Latter-day Saint Life

Be part of history: How to volunteer during the Salt Lake Temple Celebration

By Maddie Tolk

May 29, 2026 08:50 AM MDT

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help people learn about and tour the newly renovated temple.

2 Min Read

Nana Okofo Ogyefo Amoako II Odikro with Dr. Thomas Appiah (Diaspora Chief: Nana Dr. Oboafo Kwamena Essuman Appiah I )

Stories of Faith

‘Just come and see’: The remarkable dream that led a Ghanaian chief to join the Church

By Maddie Tolk

May 21, 2026 09:56 AM MDT

“It’s amazing how such significant events can happen through small and simple things.”

2 Min Read

A woman speaks over the pulpit during an LDS sacrament meeting

Latter-day Saint Life

Why Christlike leaders don’t need to be loud to teach with power

By Maddie Tolk

May 11, 2026 03:13 PM MDT

“I thought I had to change my entire personality to be a good leader. Then, I learned a powerful lesson from Sister Jean B. Bingham.”

2 Min Read

JennaBree Tollestrup LDS Living (cropped)

Stories of Faith

How this firefighter mom manages wearing life’s many ‘uniforms’

By Maddie Tolk

May 07, 2026 04:11 PM MDT

As a mother, firefighter, and member of the Tabernacle Choir, JennaBree Tollestrup serves in many different ways.

2 Min Read

President Dallin H. Oaks April 2026 general conference

Follow the Prophets

What Pres. Oaks said in his first conference as the prophet

By Maddie Tolk

April 05, 2026 04:12 PM MDT

Here are four themes President Dallin H. Oaks shared this weekend.

2 Min Read

Help for Life Challenges

Stirring new painting depicts how Christ eases our personal burdens

By Maddie Tolk

April 03, 2026 02:14 PM MDT

The image depicts the Savior gently placing His hands on the shoulders of a discouraged man.

4 Min Read

Stories of Faith

How one artist captures the Savior’s presence without painting Him

By Maddie Tolk

March 20, 2026 03:24 PM MDT

Morgan Casteel believes that landscape art can communicate the Savior’s love in special ways.

2 Min Read

LDS scriptures triple combination with the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price

Latter-day Saint Life

The scripture we hear so often we may not fully appreciate

By Maddie Tolk

January 28, 2026 03:39 PM MST

These verses imply a vital truth about our divine identity.

1 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

6 Hebrew words every Latter-day Saint should know

By Maddie Tolk

January 21, 2026 01:47 PM MST

These powerful definitions can help shine a new light on the Old Testament.

6 Min Read

Hand of woman picking apple in orchard - stock photo

Latter-day Saint Life

6 beautiful truths we know about Eve

By Maddie Tolk

January 15, 2026 03:30 PM MST

These restored truths clarify Eve’s courageous role in the plan of salvation.

2 Min Read

Temple Worship

9 exciting temple ‘firsts’ you may have missed

By Maddie Tolk

January 14, 2026 09:30 AM MST

Last year was filled with new temple milestones.

2 Min Read

Sister Tracy Y. Browning speaks at the First Presidency's 2023 Christmas devotional.

From the Church

Depression had me in darkness—how Sister Browning’s Christmas message led me to light

By Maddie Tolk

December 04, 2023 12:24 PM MST

Whether you’re managing depression or struggling to find joy this season, the First Presidency Christmas devotional invites us to remember the light.

4 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

The crucial phrase we often forget from the second great commandment

By Maddie Tolk

May 17, 2023 07:00 AM MDT

“God’s commandment to love and serve His children includes loving and serving ourselves—not only because self-love fills us with more love to give others, but also because He wants us to love ourselves the way He loves us.”

4 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

How a World-Renowned Artist Converted to the Church and Shares His Faith Through Unique Art

By Maddie Tolk

November 13, 2018 02:02 PM MST

Latter-day Saint artist Jorge Cocco Santángelo (Jorge Cocco) has always felt the calling to create. “There isn’t one point in time when I became an artist. I just developed as one,” he says.

5 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

4 Tips for Managing Your Family's Screen Time

By Maddie Tolk

August 30, 2017 09:06 PM MDT

Technology can be an amazing blessing. It allows us to connect with family and friends, to spread the gospel, to participate in family history work, and to access spiritual and educational resources almost instantly. While technology can be a powerful tool for good, it can also be a distraction from the things that matter most. In a CES devotional for young adults, Elder Ballard taught:

5 Min Read

Latter-day Saint Life

4 tips for those who experience anxiety in the temple and at church

By Maddie Tolk

August 12, 2017 09:00 AM MDT

Latter-day Saints are promised blessings such as peace, strength, and increased spirituality when we attend church regularly and go to the temple often. But for those who live with some form of mental illness, such as anxiety or depression, it is not always easy or comfortable to attend church and go to the temple and feel the effects of those promised blessings.

4 Min Read

Fun

LDS Friends Star in Their Own Food Network Show Thanks to Their Unbelievable Gingerbread Creations (Photos)

By Maddie Tolk

August 08, 2017 03:00 PM MDT

Elisa Barber and Brenda Nibley are receiving national attention for their unique cookie creations. Barber, who owns The Baking Hive, a bakery in the Salt Lake Valley, attended culinary school in Ireland and gained experience as a chef in a prominent London Michelin Star restaurant and leading London bakery. Barber's friend Nibley has a natural flair for creating gingerbread houses and owns an artisan cookie architecture company called GingerGiddy. Together they have created some spectacular gingerbread houses.

1 Min Read