Wow, time flies! 4 years ago when Mitt Romney was making his first run at being President of the United States, I posted parts of an article I found in an old magazine. Here we are 4 years later and he’s at it again, but this time has made it further in the race. Anyway, we have a wonderful elderly sister in the ward who has been receiving Church magazines for, well… forever!

"Brace yourself for the anti-Mormon slime machine!" That's the warning from Kyle-Anne Shiver, a frequent contributor to the American Thinker blog, who speculates that "Mitt Romney's religious faith is likely to be mocked, sensationalized, disparaged and dragged through the media gutters" in the event of an election race between Romney and President Barack Obama.

For Ed Willis, life was one harsh blow after another. Born into generational poverty within a system that was not designed for the success of Black men, most of his options led to dead ends. But in between jail time, drug addiction, unemployment, the struggles of racism, and family strife, there were brief flashes when the light of Christ touched Ed's heart, instilling in him a desire to know and to be more. He sought meaning and self-worth wherever he could find it—including, for a time, as a member of the Black Panther Party fighting for freedom, racial equality, and underprivileged children in California's Bay Area. But what began as a sincere effort toward a worthy cause would ultimately lead to further involvement with drugs, violence, and relationships in turmoil. But his lifetime of hardship was, in its own way, preparing him to receive the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Mauli Junior Bonner works in both the music and film industry. He writes for or develops some of the biggest names in Pop music, including Ariana Grande, Camila Cabello, Stevie Wonder and others. In film, he is an award-winning writer and director of stories following black pioneers in the early Church Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mauli is also a highly sought-after public speaker and gives trainings on “The Art of Connection.”

This month, Elder Robert D. Hales posted a very interesting anecdote to his Facebook page. In it, he told about a priesthood leader and a teacher who said to him, “If you want my counsel, be prepared to take it.”

With all the questions regarding marriage and priesthood lately, we should not be surprised to see that the Church has given us insight on such things so many years prior to things coming to a head, as they seem to be doing in the USA now.

Alixa Brobbey was born and raised in the Netherlands. She lived in Ghana for two years before traveling to study English at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. She’s grateful for her goodly parents and loving younger sisters, the gospel, and the opportunity to call three different countries home. Her mother is Alice Brobbey, whose essay also appears in A Place to Belong.

The following is a segment of an address originally given by Latter-day Saint Wendy Ulrich, Ph.D., at the FAIR Mormon conference and reposted with permission. To access the first part of the address, click here.

Over 180 years ago, on May 15, 1829, the priesthood of God was restored in a quiet and remote corner of what used to be Harmony, Pennsylvania. This past Saturday, September 19, President Russell M. Nelson traveled back to this sacred spot to dedicate the Church's newly developed site and visitor's center, making the surrounding areas the last of the major historic Church sites to be developed.

Manual 3; Supplement from "Revealed Quorum Principles" by Michael A. Neider