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{Lifestyle} 25 Days of Christmas Memories: Week 3

LDS Living has made this Christmas "bucket list" of 25 activities to do with friends and family this December that are a little different than the typical Christmas countdown to-dos. We've come up with 25 meaningful, memorable activities that will make this holiday season your favorite. (And remember, you can switch days around if it works better for your family.) Click on the links to get all the details for each day.

Mormons who use Medicaid

In a recently-publicized video, Mitt Romney criticizes people in the United States who rely on government programs such as Medicaid and argues that they don't "take personal responsibility and care for their lives." This group includes the elderly, the underemployed and a significant number of young Mormons like me. Last year the Salt Lake Tribune reported that "44 percent of births to parents who listed 'student' as their occupation" in Utah in 2008 were funded by Medicaid. About 39 percent of those births occurred in Utah County, home to a population that's about 80 percent Mormon and to LDS Church-owned Brigham Young University.

NPR: What does Mormon food culture say about Mitt Romney?

So far, we don't know much about Romney's tastes in food, aside from the occasional ice cream scooped from Bailey's Bubble in Wolfeboro, N.H., and his affection for feeding Jimmy John's subs to the press on the bus. However, parsing the eating habits of presidential candidates (to say nothing of sitting presidents) is now firmly embedded in America's cultural milieu. Just think: Ronald Reagan and jelly beans. Bill Clinton and fast food. President Obama and, well, most things chili-related, plus a bit of home-brewed beer.

Latter-day Saint Life

What Prophets and Apostles Have Said About Soul Mates

By Yvonne Liu

Do Latter-day saints believe in soul mates?

Martin Luther and a Life Changing Moment

By John L. Lund

Most of us are caught up in the hustle-bustle of daily living and rightly so. We are anxiously engaged in the daily pursuit of health, wealth, and happiness. During our sojourn there are moments when quite unexpectedly we are confronted with a life changing event. The experience will change the choices we make for the rest of our lives. The life-changing experience could be as simple as a poignant moment derived from watching a movie, reading a novel, perusing the Holy Scriptures or listening to an inspired speaker that jolts us into an introspective search for the meaning of our lives. It may be the awareness of a life threatening personal illness or the sudden passing away of a dear one. It may be as dramatic as a near death experience thrust upon us by a natural disaster such as a tornado, an earthquake or even a bolt of lightning.

How a Sudden Fog Literally Saved America

By Jeff Hampton

Since the early days of the Church, Latter-day Saints have celebrated America for its divinely inspired and Constitutionally protected right to religious freedom. The Church was founded and is headquartered in the United States, so this freedom was and remains instrumental in the creation, organization, and continuation of God’s kingdom on the earth. Consequently, Church leaders commonly echo what we learn in Nephi’s vision: God had a hand in the creation of America.

Fun

4 Hilarious Stories from Prophets and Apostles About Growing Older

By Adapted from "Best-Loved Humor Of the LDS People"

President J. Reuben Clark

Latter-day Saint Life

Elder Holland Shares Heartbreaking Letter from Gay Mormon + How We Can Show Love, Empathy to All

"To me, when you strive to lighten another’s burdens, you are truly angels of mercy in the most literal sense," Elder Holland powerfully testifies in a new Ensign article. Here is just a portion of his message. Read the full article here.

Latter-day Saint Life

The Life-Changing Lesson I Learned After I Was Sent Home from (and Returned to) the MTC

In early July, there was a question I got a lot: “Are you nervous?” and I always answered, “No! I’m only excited.” I had a lot of confidence in my own abilities then, and even felt invincible. I was so sure of my own abilities that I couldn’t imagine anything going differently than I had planned. As it turned out, I should have been a lot more nervous then. I didn’t really know what to be scared of because it was an entirely new experience, which meant that I was fearless. Fearlessness can be powerful, but through all my scary experiences, including panic attacks, going home, and the subsequent experience of finding my way back to the mission, I found a tool that was even better: courage.

Latter-day Saint Life

What the Church has said about myths, false doctrines surrounding race and the priesthood

Over time, Church leaders and members advanced many theories to explain the priesthood and temple restrictions. None of these explanations is accepted today as the official doctrine of the Church.