Marguerite Gong Hancock is a techno-optimist in Silicon Valley whose family roots, faith, and passion for humanity inspire her to bring an abundant life to civilizations worldwide.

More than 2,000 miles from his destination, a seasick Alan Alderman steered a 28-foot-long boat crammed with five men. While Alderman had initially compared his epic journey across an ocean to those of scriptural giants like Nephi, Noah, and the Jaredites, at that moment Alderman felt more like Laman or Lemuel.

For Sharley Funk, whose husband Lance was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s, “anticipatory grief” has come to describe her life all too well, but she has also learned to lean on these important gospel principles to help her in especially tough moments.

This insight from Elder Christofferson can bring even more meaning to how you worship God.

INTRODUCTION: The story of Joseph makes me think about what it really means to be free. During the early years of Joseph’s life, while he was experiencing the viciousness of murderous brothers and the solitude of slavery and the pain of imprisonment, his brothers were (1) committing murder [Genesis 34]; (2) committing immoral acts [Genesis 35, 38]; (3) plotting murder [Genesis 37]; and lying to their father [Genesis 37]. Which of all the sons of Jacob was most free? There are some lessons to be learned here. Part of the answer to this question comes as we consider who bows to whom, and who sits on a throne, and who lives with decades of guilt and remorse.

This was a rut I was grateful to be stuck in one crisp, blue-sky morning in western Wyoming. Standing deep in a trough on a sparsely wooded hill overlooking the North Platte River near the outskirts of Guernsey, I felt the earth rumble as oxen mooed, whips cracked, and covered wagons creaked up the steep rutted incline hauling heavy loads of the essentials, and the trivial. Hardened women in bonnets and long skirts followed coughing in the dust, and men in hats on horses yelled at their livestock and encouraged children and the old staggering to keep pace. Among this rolling wave of humanity were hundreds of poor English and Scandinavian Mormons on foot who had no idea what awaited them in October of 1856 as they pushed and pulled two-wheeled carts with bloody hands ever-onward to Zion and the Valley of the Salt Lake for 1,300 tiresome miles in the ultimate test of their faith.

LDS Church members and missionaries in Oklahoma are joining forces with members of other faith groups and community service volunteers to do as much cleaning up as possible from the most recent round of tornadoes to hit America's Midwest before the next wave hits this week. "I've been here for 18 years and I've never seen anything quite like this," said Kevin Graves, president the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "People are used to tornadoes. It's a fact of life here. It's the sequence, one right after another, that is so unusual. And now they are telling us there are more on the way — maybe as soon as Tuesday. It's unsettling."

Borrowing from Old Testament language to refer to his friend as “a man of God” and “an honorable man,” LDS Church President Thomas S. Monson joined hundreds of friends and family members Wednesday morning in paying tribute to Elder Eldred Gee Smith, who died last Thursday at 106. Elder Smith, a direct-line descendant of Joseph Smith Sr., the first patriarch to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was called to serve as church patriarch in April 1947. In October 1979 he was give the status of patriarch emeritus. He was the eldest and longest-serving LDS general authority at the time of his death.

Teachers have a great responsibility to help the young people of the Church think clearly about gospel truths and how to apply them to the challenges they face, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said during the Church Educational System’s “Evening with a General Authority” February 8, during which he addressed seminary and institute instructors in the Tabernacle on Temple Square. Teachers of the youth and young adults of the Church are “vital to preparing the rising generation for their responsibilities in the Church and Kingdom of God,” he said.

About 15 minutes had passed since the last out in a game between two independent league pro baseball teams on a warm July night.