Rebecca Miller is the instructor for the Independent Study Biblical Hebrew course at BYU and serves as an assistant instructor for HEB 131–132 on campus with Dr. Donald W. Parry. Before teaching Biblical Hebrew, she worked as a licensed dental hygienist for 14 years until she felt a strong prompting from the Lord to return to school to study Biblical Hebrew. Following that impression has led her into teaching and opened doors to grow both spiritually and academically. She is also a mother of seven and loves skiing, hiking, family history, and exploring National Parks with her husband and children. Learning and teaching Biblical Hebrew has strengthened her faith in the Lord and brought the scriptures alive with new meaning, and she loves sharing that same joy with others.

What does it mean to inquire of the Lord? We have a sneaking suspicion that it means more than asking a question, and a look at David’s life might confirm our hunch. For most of his life, David inquired of the Lord to know what he should do—and he was blessed. And sadly, David sometimes chose not to inquire of the Lord—and he suffered a lot of regret and sorrow. As we study 2 Samuel 5–7, 11–12 and 1 Kings 3, 8, and 11, we’ll look for examples of what it means to inquire of the Lord, and how this action can bless and protect our lives.

Should religion play a role in the Olympics? Well this year it is in a surprising way.

At age 19, Mitt Romney was a typical college student, schmoozing about politics, pulling pranks and sneaking away to see his girlfriend. Then he went on a 30-month Mormon mission in France. He returned to the U.S. in 1968 ready to start a family, steeped in his faith and eager for more responsibility in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Returned Missionary: Early to Home, Pt. 1 – Señor WritesThe following has been republished with permission from senorwrite.wordpress.com:

Thomas S. Monson loved spending summers at his family's cabin in Utah's Vivian Park. One summer day, he and his best friend, Danny, decided to clear a field so they could gather with their friends and have a campfire that night. The tall, stubborn weeds would not pull out easily. So Tommy had the idea to burn them up instead.

God has had a tough time over the past few years. On TV, in newspapers and on the internet, the debate as to whether faith has any relevance in a sceptical modern world has been as ubiquitous as it has been vigorous.

In 2008, as my book Shaken Faith Syndrome was getting ready for publication, I contemplated on the fact that most of the book engaged the negative influences toward belief; my book addresses these negative influences and provides specific answers to common anti-LDS arguments. But I was a bit bothered that I hadn’t really included some of the wonderful and exciting evidences in favor of belief. So just a few short months after Shaken Faith Syndrome came off the press, Cedar Published my book, Of Faith and Reason: 80 Evidences Supporting the Prophet Joseph Smith. While the critics cannot prove that God does not exist and that Joseph Smith did not speak to the Father and Son on a hill in Palmyra, neither can believers prove that an angel led Joseph to an ancient Nephite record, or that resurrected beings restored the priesthood to the young prophet. Instead, critics attempt to show that Joseph borrowed teachings and stories from his environment to create a fictional Book of Mormon as well as a man-made Church. These criticisms are addressed in Shaken Faith Syndrome. Believers can show, however, that there are many evidences which support and are consistent with the story told by Joseph Smith. There is evidence consistent with the claim that an ancient family from Jerusalem traversed the Arabian Desert in about 600 B.C. There is evidence consistent with the claim that Joseph possessed actual metal plates with the appearance of gold. There is evidence consistent with the claim that Joseph restored authentic ancient Christian teachings that were no longer practiced and/or taught by Christianity in his day.

Excerpt from an interview Religion News Service conducted with Cinco Paul, screenwriter of Despicable Me.

Well, there’s no clear answer to this, but gradually, and over time, we see that this has come to be. We largely put academic and spiritual learning in two separate boxes. Rarely are academics viewed as tools to deepen faith and develop character. And rarely is faith viewed as a vital part of academics.