“Not everything in life is . . . black and white, but it seems that the authenticity of the Book of Mormon and its keystone role in our belief is exactly that. Either Joseph Smith was the prophet he said he was, who, after seeing the Father and the Son, later beheld the angel Moroni, repeatedly heard counsel from his lips, eventually receiving at his hands a set of ancient gold plates which he then translated according to the gift and power of God or else he did not. And if he did not… he is not entitled to retain even the reputation of New England folk hero or well-meaning young man or writer of remarkable fiction. No, and he is not entitled to be considered a fine teacher or a quintessential American prophet or the center of great wisdom literature. If he lied about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, he is certainly none of these” (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, "A Standard unto My People," delivered at the CES Book of Mormon Symposium, 9 August 1994, BYU Marriott Center).

Alma 23-29

“I’ve always struggled with my testimony of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Tami wrote on her blog in August of 2016. “My testimony was always on high or off. There was no in between. I’m sure people wonder . . . if I had a very strong testimony at times in my life how in the world could I just let it waste away? I don’t have the answers to that question. I’m stubborn? Satan is a jerk? I’m forgetful? I left my room without thinking to pray? Yeah, probably all of those combined into a big mess.”

“If the Book of Mormon came into the hands of the "Mormon" people through their own ingenuity, then men and women ought to investigate it and prove it. If they prove that it did not, then they must acknowledge that it is inspired and came from God, for it is a direct evidence that the Lord has spoken in this dispensation. No man can read the Book of Mormon with a desire to learn the truth and deny the things that are in it. No man can read the Book of Mormon with a desire to know the truth and be honest in his heart without becoming convinced that it is real and that it does come from God. Joseph Smith said that he received it from an angel and that he translated the records into this present book by the gift and power of God. I know of no greater evidence that the Lord has revealed himself in this dispensation or in the latter days than the Book of Mormon” (Samuel O. Bennion, Conference Report, April 1918, p.44).

I have always enjoyed pointing out to my students verses in the scriptures that are about them. Last week as my New Testament students studied John 17, I suggested that certain verses in this great prayer were about them:

More behind the scenes from the article

On the airplane home from my mission, I sat next to a young journalist. If you've seen the old Church video A Labor of Love, you can imagine exactly what our conversation was like. He asked me a bunch of questions about my experience as a missionary, I cried as I relived the previous 18 months, and then like any missionary hoping to cap off their mission's end, I gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon. A few weeks later, I got a Facebook message from this man who said he had been reading the book I gave him but was confused by 2 Nephi 5. I was embarrassed that even after having spent 18 months as a missionary, I had to do some research before I replied. But what if we actually prepared for conversations like this? What if we tackled questions like these in our homes and talked them out as a family?