Years ago, before the Church instituted the three-hour block schedule for our Sunday meetings, we used to go to the chapel for meetings three times every Sunday—once in the morning for priesthood meeting, a second time for Sunday School opening exercises and classes, and finally a third time for a ninety-minute sacrament meeting. When I was a very young man, our ward’s Sunday School superintendent, Brother Marchant, came to our class one Sunday to ask for volunteers who would be willing to give the prayer, the 2½-minute talks, and the sacrament gem (a verse of scripture shared before the sacrament was passed) in the following week’s Sunday School opening exercises. My strategy was to quickly volunteer to say either the prayer or the sacrament gem. I was motivated by the desire to avoid having to give a talk at all costs! Unfortunately for me, I wasn’t the only person in the class with that strategy, and I missed out on my first choice, the prayer. I was quick enough, however, to score the sacrament gem assignment. Given the other alternative, I felt lucky.

January 10, 1989, was a more important day in Mike Guido's life than he realized at first.

“No.” For years that was producer Mitch Davis’s response to everyone who told him he needed to make a sequel to the Disney-distributed,The Other Side of Heaven. But 18 years, extensive financial support, and many miracles later, the saga of faith that began with the story of Elder John H. Groberg as a young missionary is continuing in a stirring sequel recounting the Groberg family’s time in the South Pacific region while Elder Groberg served as mission president.

Dear Dave,

You might have missed what went on the last week, but we've put together our list of the week's most popular stories so you don't miss a beat. For July 20 through July 26, 2013, these are LDS Living’s top hits.

A funny parody on a popular song. (Oh, how we Mormons love our parodies.)

MR says: No matter how picture-perfect our family life might seem, we all get flustered, we all struggle, and we all need help at times as parents.

I’ve been in the LDS publishing industry a long time, so a lot of books have washed over me through the years. Many have inspired me, uplifted me, and helped shape my testimony. But few have truly changed the way I see the world.

Father's Day just like Mother's Day can be hard for many people. There are those who are reminded of loss, of challenges, of fears, and of failures. But here's one reason we can always celebrate this holiday.

Today when you hear the word “theater,” you probably think of a dark room, enormous screens, and overflowing buckets of popcorn. But for some people, the theater still represents sweeping curtains, hours of rehearsal, and mic checks. That’s what it means for a small group of Latter-day Saints who are about to make their debut on Off-Broadway in New York this November with a new musical called An Enchanted April. “I don't think there has been a collection of members of the Church producing a musical like this for about 15 years,” writer and Latter-day Saint Elizabeth Hansen says. “The composer, our executive producer, our assistant musical director, our projection designer, our publicist, and two of our actors are also members. It's unique and quite remarkable.”