Shortly after the special announcement by President Russell M. Nelson that we would now be “ministering” instead of “home teaching” and “visiting teaching,” a concern came over me that the words “minister” and “ministering” may become commonplace, no longer representing a depth of sacred spirituality. Those terms have always brought feelings of reverence and sacredness within me. In my mind, these terms represent the greatest of all ministers—our Savior—and His miraculous work. I began to review my life for what I had learned of ministering and how these acts draw us upward toward a life in Christ.

Troy Van Meter grew up attending The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He learned the Primary songs, made a few friends, and did the usual dance as time waltzed by.

I’ve been in the LDS publishing industry a long time, so a lot of books have washed over me through the years. Many have inspired me, uplifted me, and helped shape my testimony. But few have truly changed the way I see the world.

For blogger Middle-Aged Mormon Man, it was an easy decision to turn the first International Hug a Convert Day from last year into a yearly event. Nearly 12 months later, he never imagined the second annual Hug A Convert Day set for this Sunday would get this big, this quick.

During the Cold War, Ezra Taft Benson—then U.S. Agriculture Secretary—hosted Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and his family during their visit to Washington D.C. in 1959. With tensions high and hostility continuous between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, President Benson did not welcome the opportunity.

On assignment one day in Oklahoma, I had the opportunity to meet with a few of the families devastated by mighty twisters that had recently swept through that area. As I visited with the Sorrels family, I was particularly touched by the experience of their daughter, Tori, then a fifth grader at Plaza Towers Elementary School.

My family often traveled during the summer when I was young. And our travels often found us away from home on a Sunday. We always did our best to keep the Sabbath day holy, but the way we did it usually depended on the circumstances. Coming from a family of extremely shy children, we would often attend all three hours only if we were visiting with cousins that we could go to class with, but other times we would simply attend sacrament meeting before returning to our campsite or hotel to do more scripture study and prayers as a family. Sometimes our circumstances required us to be driving on a Sunday, but my dad always made sure we took turns reading in the scriptures, or would have us listen to scriptures or a conference talk instead of the radio.

Deseret Industries, a nonprofit work training business owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, will begin reopening some of its stores the week of June 1, 2020. These and additional reopenings in the coming weeks will strictly follow local government safety guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Customers should visit deseretindustries.org/reopen for the status of each location

LDS youths around the globe will soon have the chance to virtually mingle with professional singer and recently returned missionary David Archuleta.

I must admit, before my trip to New Zealand over the holidays I had never heard of the Mormon Maori prophecies. I knew that there are many Polynesian church members. I was aware that the most popular religion in the island of Molokai (the spiritual center of Hawaii) is Mormonism, and that there are many Samoan and Tongan church members. As for the Maori, I knew that they were Pacific Islanders. I knew the men danced the haka and the women danced with poi balls. I knew that they once practiced cannibalism (practice makes perfect!) and were considered fierce by early European seafarers who visited the islands. I knew that one of their greetings (touching foreheads and sharing a breath) is similar to the Eskimos (rubbing noses). So I was not a complete noob. And yet, I had no idea that many Maori converted to Mormonism in the 1880s. In the early days, 90% of the membership in New Zealand were Maori. Even as recently as the mid-90s, 60% of church members in New Zealand were Maori. We attended church twice when we were there; in Hamilton I would estimate 60-70% of the ward were Maori. The Queenstown Branch had only six local members in attendance, two of whom were Maori.