From monster truck driving to the Olympics and the NFL to the NBA, many famous athletes have found the gospel and discovered the fullness it brings to their lives. Here are just a few remarkable stories of athletes who have converted to the Church.

In the third grade, Jill Fernald shocked her family when she arrived home with blisters covering her hands. She had failed a swinging exercise on the monkey bars in gym class, then practiced for hours on the bars after school until she earned the teacher’s certificate of achievement.

Recently on Facebook, Elder Dallin H. Oaks gave members a glimpse inside his office and showed off a very unique piece of art: a world map with tiny names and tags pinned all over it. Here’s what he had to say about it:

Though Latter-day Saints recognize its priceless truths, it appears the public recognizes the Book of Mormon as a significant part of American history.

Hiking is a time to enjoy the wonderful beauty of nature. But when we veer from the safety of the path, we put ourselves in danger of becoming lost.

Author Steve Lemmon was inspired to write a series that combines his love for the Savior with his love for travel and fun and he’s done it just in time to whisk your family on a grand adventure.

Thousands of lights adorn the grounds of the Sydney Australia Temple during the holiday season. Similar to lighting displays at other temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the presentation also features life-size nativity characters and an art show. The collection of paintings in the show chronicles the life of Jesus Christ from birth to resurrection, a story that is particularly interesting to individuals of the many non-Christian faiths who reside in Sydney. Christmas lighting displays are uncommon in Australian culture, so the staging at the temple provides a unique means of celebrating the holiday for thousands of residents, according to Alan Wakeley, country director of Public Affairs for the Latter-day Saints.

Representatives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints addressed the role of the Church’s global humanitarian outreach efforts at a meeting at the United Nations in New York City on 27 February 2014. The gathering was part of the Focus on Faith series of the Nongovernmental Organizations (NGO) Relations and Advocacy Section of the U.N.’s Department of Public Information (DPI). The U.N. officially recognized the Church as an NGO several years ago.

Russell M. Nelson serves as an apostle of the Quorum of the Twelve for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But before he was called as an apostle, he was a world-renowned heart surgeon and member of the team that created the first machine to perform the functions of a patient’s heart and lungs during open-heart surgery (“Russell M. Nelson”). In this biography of Russell M. Nelson, read about his early years and the miracles he saw in his career as a heart surgeon.

On Monday afternoon, just hours before the Alabama Crimson Tide blew out the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the BCS National Championship football game, Peggy Fletcher Stack posted a short note at the Salt Lake Tribune‘s Following Faith blog on the Catholic pregame rituals of ND. Specifically, Stack drew readers’ attention to the Mormon story embedded within a fuller exploration of that subject at the Wall Street Journal: Star linebacker, Heisman Trophy runner-up, and devout Mormon Manti Te’o joins his teammates in “attend[ing] a Catholic Mass, receiv[ing] ‘a priest-blessed medal devoted to a Catholic saint,’ and ‘kiss[ing] a shrine containing two slivers Notre Dame believes came from Jesus’ cross.’” He was even photographed receiving a blessing from Notre Dame president emeritus Father Theodore Hesburgh (a blessing Te’o reportedly sought out).