They are stories that took place thousands of years ago—stories that, at times, feel so removed from our present day that we feel we just can’t relate. But as she studied the Old Testament in 2022, the same year her world got rocked by a cancer diagnosis, Anne Bednar found that those stories came alive. And the people in them? They weren’t all that different from her. On this week’s episode, Anne helps us see just how applicable the scriptures can be to our unique life circumstances if we take the time to study their pages.

Early in my career as a psychologist, I worked with a client who suffered from depression. Knowing that depression is primarily fueled by inaccurate, negative thoughts, I set out to help him change his thinking. Each week he would come in with a very pessimistic view of life. I’d tell him to try to focus on the positive. One particular time, he responded by providing a long list of negatives in the world, including widespread poverty, school shootings, dread health crises, pollution, domestic violence, hatred, ethnic genocide, social inequality, etc. He said, “How can I focus on the positive when there is so much negative all around us?” His answer gave me pause. I didn’t know how to respond. Was he actually correct? Were my attempts to get him to “think positive” simply a naïve overlooking of all the drama, death, and injustice that seem to plague the world every day?

Do you remember watching the giveaway episodes on Oprah? Did you ever feel a tad envious of the audience when Oprah would say, “You get a gift! You get a gift! Everybody gets a gift!”? Well, today we’re going to study about a different—but infinitely more valuable—type of gift that you already have. In this week’s lesson of Doctrine and Covenants 46–48, we’ll learn about spiritual gifts and how we can use them to help those around us.

You may be tempted to look at 3 Nephi 17–19 and think, “What’s there to study in just three chapters?” But these chapters are packed with a treasure trove of gospel gems, including when Christ heals the multitude, blesses the children, gives the sacrament to the people, and so much more. And so as we prepare for general conference, let’s dig into this week’s lesson, grab our colored pencils, and study these chapters like we never have before.

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Did you know that the Book of Mormon doesn't begin with "I, Nephi?" In our first study group of 2020, Tammy and her friends Sharmaine and Tamu dig into the real beginning of the Book of Mormon — the introductory pages — and share how the entire purpose of the Book of Mormon can be found in just four simple words.

In 1830, the same year the Church was organized, a former slave named Peter became the first documented Black member of the Church. Nearly 200 years later, Mauli Bonner first heard Peter's story when he started exploring his own faith as a Black member of the Church. This journey led him to Paul Reeve, a professor at the University of Utah who has studied Blacks in Church history extensively. On today's episode, Mauli and Paul explain not only the importance of the stories of early Black Latter-day Saints, but also how their stories can strengthen our faith and our testimonies of the restored gospel.