HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU!

The posts I have written in this blog are part of the first blog I have ever done.  I just thought it would be fun to share ideas on many topics with anyone who is interested. I have always believed I can learn something from anyone if I just listen.  Others of you should start blogs and share your thinking with those interested.

So, apparently people who have known me during different parts of my life are interested in my religious conversion.  Those of you who knew me when I was growing up in Coronado, San Diego, CA are probably surprised that I am a religious person.  I was surprised, too!  When I was in my junior year of high school I was introduced to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka the Mormon Church due to the fact that members of this church believe in the Bible and in the Book of Mormon as testimonies of the divinity of Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Savior of the world.)  So, others gave us the nickname "Mormons" long ago initially in a somewhat dirisive way. Now, members of this church are fairly well respected but the nickname "Mormons" has stayed with us.  It is a little hard to say the full name of the Church anyway...the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
I became a member of the Church at age 17 and served as a missionary at age 19 in the Spanish American Mission with headquarters in San Antonio, Texas.  I learned the Spanish language in that mission.  I returned home and attended Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah (the largest private religious university in the US).  I met Sherri there and we were married in 1968.  We have ten children from 32 to 44 in age and forty grandchildren at this point in time. I retired recently from the faculty at BYU where I was a clinical professor and psychologist for 38 years. She and I just returned from another three year mission to Chile in South America.

I love "ideas"---on almost any topic so you will note that I have written about a number of random ideas so far in my blog. But, following along with the story of my conversion that I have briefly shared in this posting I thought I would answer a question someone sent to me recently....."what is the Book of Mormon all about?"

I will briefly answer that question and if anyone has further questions you can post them on the blog or communicate with me at sparky7264@gmail.com  

The Book of Mormon is an ancient record of a people who lived on this the American continent between 600 BC and 400 AD (a thousand year history of this people).  It is considered by members of the Church to be scripture as is the Bible.  The Book of Mormon is also called ANOTHER TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST.  The Bible testifies of God the Father and also of His Son Jesus Christ who is the Savior of the world.  The Book of Mormon also testifies of those very same things. So why do we need it or have it?  The Bible contains the account of the life of Christ in the Old World including his life and death and resurrection...including his teachings to the people there.  The Book of Mormon is the history of a people who left Jerusalem in 600 BC and came to this, the American continent.  It a a thousand year history of their experiences here...all written by prophets of God in the Americas just as the Bible was written by prophets of God in the Old World.  Jesus Christ visited the people of Nephi in the new world after his resurrection and taught them.  Since they saw him and heard him the Book of Mormon prophets, like biblical prophets were able to testify of His reality and divinity as the Son of God.  So to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints the Book of Mormon is ANOTHER witness of Jesus Christ testifying hand in hand with the Bible.  Two testimonies from two different parts of the world...but testifying of the same Christ and who He was and is.  It is called the Book of Mormon as the prophet who compiled all the records of the other prophets writing in the book was named Mormon.  He, Mormon, compiled the ancient records into one record--today called the Book of Mormon.
So that briefly tells you what the Book of Mormon is and why it is important to us.

Some wonder if members of our Church are "Christians".......yes, we are.  Notice the name of Christ in the name of the church. For your interest I will cite one scripture from the Book of Mormon  written by the prophet Nephi who testifies of Jesus Christ.

Nephi was a Book of Mormon prophet as were Isaiah, Moses, Jeremiah, and others in the Old Testament along with the Apostles of Christ who wrote much of the New Testament)

The prophet Nephi wrote the following in around 550 BC... "And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies , that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.....And now behold, I say unto you that the right way is to believe in Christ, and deny him not; and Christ is the Holy One of Israel; wherefore ye must bow down before him, and worship him with all your might, mind, and strength, and your whole soul; and if ye do this ye shall in nowise be cast out." 2 Nephi 25: 26, 29

This gives you some idea of what attracted me to the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have been an active member of that church for 51 years now.  It has been a great blessing to me and to my large family.
Have a nice day.  I will write on some other random topic in a few days......