Conference Talk: "Blessings of the Gospel Available to All" by Elder Joseph W. Sitati

You might not guess it if you saw it, but these maintenance workers are actually members of BYU's Vocal Point, and boy do they have a surprise up their sleeve!

In my psychology practice, there are times I’m able to work with members of the Church. They come with the same types of problems that non-LDS clients do: anxiety, depression, relationship challenges, parenting issues, etc. However, because of our shared faith I am often able to use a different approach with the Latter-day Saints than with other clients. I remember one particular client I met with years ago. He was having daily panic attacks and had come in to seek help. Among other things, I inquired regarding his personal spiritual practices, including prayer and scripture study. He said he prayed most days but rarely read from the scriptures. We talked about many other things that day, but I left him with the assignment to study the scriptures daily, focusing on those passages that promised peace.

One of the hardest commands the Lord gives us in the scriptures is one we don’t often think of: “be not weary in well-doing, for you are laying the foundation of a great work” (D&C 64:33-34). But what happens if you are weary? What happens if you are exhausted, burned out, over-stretched, and just need a break?

Despite what you may have heard on Broadway, there is no way to succeed in business without really trying. Even if you really try, however, you aren't necessarily guaranteed to succeed. There are certain things you need to know and understand. Provo resident Stephen W. Gibson, 72, knows those things and, nearly 15 years ago, made a decision to share that knowledge with some people who desperately needed it. In 1999, Gibson and his wife, Bette Gibson, temporarily moved to the Philippines to pursue the self-appointed task of teaching business principles to Filipinos who had served proselytizing missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but hadn't been able to move ahead with their professional ambitions after returning home. The Gibsons, both Latter-day Saints, considered becoming missionaries themselves in order to advance their plans.

When my Aunt Lily called my mom this week to tell her she had terminal cancer and just two weeks left to live, she explained the prognosis as though she feels like someone just came to her house, knocked on her door, and told her she had a unicorn in her back yard. Whatever happened and whatever treatments she chose, the unicorn was staying.

“The two things you aren’t supposed to talk about in this country are religion and politics. But that’s the explosive combo that makes this such a fascinating subject,” said Adam Christing, filmmaker and member of the Mormon History Association. "A Mormon President, Joseph Smith and the Mormon Quest for the White House" is a documentary that looks into the history behind the Mormon links to the U.S. Presidency, and it will be released on DVD on August 23.

MR says: Check out the advice of fellow Latter-day Saint parents as well as prophets and apostles about what dangers to avoid as well as how to still have fun with your family on Halloween night.

Dear Dave,

People ask me all the time if fighting about money is one of the most common problems in a marriage. But surprisingly to many, I don’t believe money is the root cause of many marital problems. Financial disagreements, though common, are more accurately a symptom of upbringing and other underlying problems that exist in relationships. The money itself is not the real issue.