President Benton and Sister Benton currently preside over the Buenos Aires West Mission in Argentina. Pushing 400, 000 LDS members (Mormons) in Argentina, the gospel continues to roll forward. Yet, there are about 40 million people in Argentina–most of whom are of European descent, particularly of Spanish and Italian descent–with many wonderful people yet to reach.

There are about 168 missionaries in Buenos Aeres, the majority of whom are from Chile, and about 63 are Latin, of whom the majority are from Chile.  There are 14 sisters currently serving.

A little more than two years ago, we began a pilot program to teach English to the Latin missionaries. Elder and Sister Smith, missionaries from Orem, Utah, now serving in Buenos Aires, oversee that program.  There are three books with Church-related content, in 25 modules, for the Latins to learn English.  At the end of the course, they take a test and can receive a certificate from BYU for that course. In President Benton’s words:

The joy of that is that we are training up great leaders of the future; it dramatically blesses them to find employment of a higher calibre.

President and Sister Benton have issued about 40-45 of those certificates to Latin missionaries over the past two years.

For the full interview, please visit LDS Radio:

The five-plus-year-old non-profit–founded by Dave Neeleman, Ken Woolley and Jim Engebretson, is an enabler of site and content creation that will allow for Mormons to define for themselves who they are, to reclaim the media conversation, actively dispelling misperceptions about us, and utilizing the “Net”–the New Media and Internet–to be fishers of men in our day– and to do so judiciously, safely, and in organized fashion.

The beautiful metaphor of the net, as the Savior shared it in Luke, included a call to be ‘fishers of men.’ In a meaningful moment of reflection, it occurred to MGF staff that this Internet of our day is much like the fishing net of old–it is, in one sense, a new metaphor for the gospel “net.”  It is a tool of the gathering, the way through which the honest in heart can find the truth through anonymous and self-initiated searching and studying.

In visiting the homepage, you’ll find a listing of many of our lay sites, garnered around areas of interest for honest seekers wanting to know about us for various reasons—from simple curiosity to intense longing to know their purpose on earth. For a purview of the many sites created by lay members under the MGF global umbrella, visit the icon that lists many of those sites and allows you, through one-click, to browse respectively Mormon-themed topical sites–from Mormon temples to Mormon beliefs.  Select your own or mission language or the language of a seeker you know, and pull up and sit down and see what’s available for those Googling us, and for your own edification.

Then, to become involved yourself, just click on the icon, Ways to Share.

President Jonathan Johnson has spoken of President Kimball’s prophetic statement in a Regional Representative’s seminar, with great feeling and pointing to its significance for our day:

I believe that the Lord is anxious to put into our hands inventions of which we laymen have hardly had a glimpse…. When we have used the satellite and related discoveries to their greatest potential,…then, and not until then, shall we approach the insistence o our Lord and Master to go unto all the world and preach the gospel to every creature (Kimball 1994).

Now is the time, and More Good Foundation has made it simple to engage, and if you are already engaged, to maximize your influence.  For two of the many ways to contribute, check out SiteAdopt.org and LDSTalks.com. In addition, visit the Share tab mentioned above and see what works for you.

More Good Foundation believes that “ordinary is extraordinary”–that there is power, as Seth Godin illustrated well, in having others hear our story from “us”… You ‘are’ the content the world needs to see–and MGF’s goal is to make that positive content about all of who you are, available and accessible online, in a safe manner.

Below is just one of the many fruits of sharing the gospel online–this one resulting from a contact in Italy from an MGF blog by Giuseppe.

Penso che ieri sia stato il giorno più emozionante della mia vita. Il battesimo è stato…meraviglioso. Sono rimasti molto sorpresi dalla presenza del Presidente di Missione. E’ stato un giorno veramente speciale. L’emozione era quasi palpabile…la potevo leggere nei volti di tutti i membri, in quello del presidente di ramo. Tutti erano così Felici, ed io…sono immensamente grata di questo. Ho trovato una famiglia meravigliosa e delle persone stupende. Non sò se riuscirò mai ad essere grata abbastanza, per questa grande benedizione che ho ricevuto.

Translation:
I think yesterday was the most emotional day of my life. The baptism was…marvelous. It ‘was a very special day. The excitement was almost palpable … I could read it in the faces of all members. Everyone was so happy, … and I am immensely grateful for that. I found a wonderful family and beautiful people. I do not know if I’ll ever be able to express gratitude enough for this great blessing that I received.

To read more stories, click on the Stories icon.

The site also includes updates from the MGF Facebook Page. We welcome all of you to sign up now and join our page, and to tweet about all we are doing.

You can also share all the pages and sites you like by clicking on our Share buttons. Add links to our pages on Facebook, and spread the word.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.You may reach us through any website or through email at moregoodfoundation.org, or by calling us at 801.705.5104.

He serves as a partner at the RBL Group, a consulting firm focused on helping organizations and leaders deliver value. He studies how organizations build capabilities of speed, learning, collaboration, accountability, talent, and leadership through leveraging human resources. He has helped generate award winning data bases that assess alignment between strategies, human resource practices and HR competencies.

Publications:

He has published 20 books and over 100 articles and book chapters:

▪ Leadership in Asia, 2009

▪ HR Transformation, 2009

▪ The Leadership Code, 2008

▪ Companion for Strategic Human Resources, 2008

▪ HR Competencies, 2008

▪ Leadership Brand, 2007 ▪

Additionally, Dave edited Human Resource Management 1990-1999 and served on editorial board of four Journals. He sits on the Board of Directors for Herman Miller, and Board of Trustees at Southern Virginia University, and is a Fellow in the National Academy of Human Resources.

He has received, for his work, the Warner W. Stockberger Achievement Award, presented to him by the International Personnel Management Association to “recognize an individual in private or public life who has made a contribution toward improvement of public personnel management at any level of government,” and is ranked the #1 most influential person in HR by HR Magazine Ranked #1 most influential person in HR by HR Magazine.

Follow this More Good Foundation link to a website with more information on Mormons in Business.

Look forward to any comments or suggestions for people to profile, who are making a difference and who are engaging in that difference online as well as offline: email@moregoodfoundation.org, attn: KRT.

What to Watch For

Today’s ‘savviest innovators’ are in fact the ones that are inventing hot gadgets and applications The 2020 themes to watch for will be intelligent devices and cloud services accessed across a wide variety of platforms: web, smartphone, tablet, set-top box, smart surface, etc. By 2020 we will see next generation 3D HD Display technology, coupled with multi-modal (sight, sound, speech, touch) and services which help manage and personalize media. Imagine an experience more like Apple’s Knowledge Navigator (circa 1988), where a conversational intelligent agent helps to organize and synthesize your work or entertainment or personal schedule, all completely integrated and personalized for you.” -W. Luciw

What cloud services do you use? Google apps? Bootcamp to take your Itunes library to the cloud? Any MAC apps?

Unpredicted Outcomes of Inventions

At the pseudo-trivial, hand-waving, vague-generalization level–yes; many gadgets and applications will not be that surprising, especially when one includes the wild fantasies proposed in sci fi fiction. However, there are substantive examples of what exists now that wasn’t even fantasized 10-20 years ago. I expect we will see many innovations that almost everyone will find ‘came out of the blue’-notably including many unexpected, unintended results from innovation that was initiated for some entirely different purpose (e.g., it might be said that the foremost–and completely unintended and unpredicted–result of the invention of automobiles was the creation of suburbs with most people residing far-distant from where they work.” -J. Warren

What do you see coming?
What do you think this implies for Mormon messaging, public perceptions, member involvement in the conversation about faith globally?
Other related issues?

And be assured, regardless of your age, your accumulated wisdom, if you have been a faithful striving participant in the work, you know enough to share. You can articulate, among many other principles, the very purpose of life, your own responses to its challenges and access to the atonement and redeeming principles. Like the air we breathe, we take it for granted that we’ve got at our disposal a revealed set of truths regarding the pre-mortal, mortal, and post-mortal realities. That is more than one in seven say of those polled recently,  say they know–this was a poll of presently “unchurched,” self-identifying Christians in America, of whom there are millions outside of this study. 

About 14% of this self-professed Christian group among the un-churched larger group  feel they have any defined or clear meaning or purpose in their lives, according to a new Barna study survey-interviewing over 2,000 of them.  The question is: “How will we help them?”  In many instances, we can find them online as we share our knowledge of the purpose of life–and make our entries accessible and findable.

There are many  who consider themselves spiritual but non-religious. We work with them, interact with them online, and many of them, feeling ‘hurt’ by some experience within their past congregations, have distanced themselves.  While we cannot take accountability for others’ choices to be offended, we can invite others to return to fellowship and introduce to them the purpose of life in its fulness–and the gospel of Jesus Christ restored to the earth, as we as Mormons know it.

Other findings of the Barna research team regarding these self-identified Christians who’ve departed from conventional  church going, include the following:

• Two-thirds (68%) hold a biblical view of God – that is, He is the all-knowing, all-powerful creator of the universe and He still rules that universe today.
• Only one-third (35%) agree to any extent that the Bible is totally accurate in all the principles it teaches.
• Only one in seven (15%) claim that their religious faith is very important in their life.
• One out of five (22%) contends that the ultimate purpose of life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul.
• A mere one in seven (14%) claims to have a clear sense of the meaning and purpose of their life.
• And minorities of the group, ranging from one-quarter to one-third, support the notions of salvation by grace alone, Jesus Christ living a holy and sinless life on earth, and Satan existing today. (This is a stunningly pathetic portrait of the knowledge of Jesus Christ as Redeemer, perfectly sinless Son of God.)

I don’t know about you, but I am ‘not okay’ with this.

Lest you think it’s really not so and people must know they have a purpose. Check this out, written by a sincere inquirer and writer:

How to Find My Purpose in Life

Find Your Purpose in Life
Find my purpose in life??? A friend of mine asked me once, “Do you know why you are here?” Feeling kind of stupid because I really didn’t know, I replied, “No” and waited for a profound response. “To be of service.” Okay, so I did not want to admit that I never really gave my purpose in life too much thought. I was too busy worrying about bills, children, and my husband to think about why I’m here. Sounds kind of selfish, but years later, her words made sense to me. After I quit my job and returned to college at age 40, I still did not know what I wanted to do with my life, but my friend’s words made me realize my true calling would have to be something I loved, something I had a passion for that would also allow me “to be of service to others.” But how do I find my passion, my purpose? The answer came to me during my last semester in graduate school.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions
Things You’ll Need:
A computer or paper and magazines
Step
1

To find purpose in life, open your mind and be willing to discover an image or images that represents your passion. Look for pictures on the computer or in magazines. Google images is a good place to start on the computer. Soon you’ll be on your way to finding your purpose in life.
Step
2

To find your purpose in life, think about your life especially the years before you were eighteen. Think about your deeply held convictions about life. Choose pictures that evoke an emotional response. They just need to be images that involve a certain “sting” for you. It’s not nessecary that you know why they create an emotional response from you.
Step
3
Copy the images onto a word document or on a free web page. Google pages offers free web pages, and images are easy to post. If you don’t have a computer, cut your images out and glue them to a large cardboard. Your purpose in life will soon be revealed to you.
Step
4

Look for underlining repetitive themes in the images you choose. They will lead you to your purpose in live. Write about them on your web page, on a word document, or on a piece of paper. Search for a moment or moments during your childhood that connect to your theme. Eventually an image should appear for you that represents your passion or calling in life.

When Albert Einstein was a little boy, his father gave him a compass. He was fascinated by the compass. The compass was his image that represented his discovery of the theory of relativity after he became an adult.
Step
5
Keep writing about your image or images. Take your time. For some people, their image will appear right away. Others may take a little longer.
Step
6
After you discover your image, make changes in your life that will put you on the road to achieving your passion. You will find that your purpose in life will lead you to be of service to others.

Theres obviously truth here–knowing our purpose ‘will’ lead to service. What might we add to this tapestry for those seeking to know the ‘rest of the story?’

People are seeking.
People are knocking.

What will we do online? We can create a virtual door for them to open. Adopt a website on which you can share your convictions, your artistic talents, your family photos and activities, your modus operandi for making decisions. People hunger to know, as Reynolds Price says in A Palpable God, that there is a just God who knows them and an ultimate storyline that makes sense.

Would you like to be involved in making a difference. Let us know your ideas, and we will share ours with you as well. Please contact us with your feedback and meaningful insights and comments: email@moregoodfoundation dot org.

So, for a short tribute here to the Late Jazz Owner, entrepreneur, Latter-day Saint (Mormon) who vowed to himself not to lose perspective, change how he saw himself or others once he accumulated wealth and financial prosperity. Thanks, Larry, for continuing your influence on this side of the veil. Our love goes to you as we share a glimpse of your soul, shaped by the gospel of Jesus Christ and a love of your wife, Gail, and your family.

It wasn’t because we didn’t want things, but we wanted to build security more. Gail and I were uncomfortable with debt. We had always lived within our means. It’s important that husbands and wives share the same philosophy about money because it can be such a source of contention. We were fortunate because we shared the same upbringing and outlook on money. We never bought anything on credit, and our priority was to pay off bills. We had both been self-sufficient as teenagers, even while we were dating. Gail baby-sat and cleaned houses. I had a paper route and worked other odd jobs as a teenager. I saved up money and bought a Schwinn three-speed bike, and we used that as our transportation for dates — we’d ride double. We had been working since we were 12 years old.

When we got married, we continued to live frugally. On our honeymoon, we stayed in cheap hotels and bought our food at the grocery store and fixed sandwiches while we drove. We just didn’t spend money. We didn’t have a power mower for years. We owned one of those old-fashioned hand mowers with the twirling blades that was powered by sweat. We stayed in the same house — 1,700 square feet, three bedrooms — for four-and-a-half years, remaining there even after we had our fourth child. We didn’t landscape for years because we couldn’t afford it. We had no lawn. Our yard was dirt and weeds so tall that you couldn’t see the kids when they were playing out there. We could have afforded a bigger house, but it just didn’t feel right to take on that kind of debt. Just because the bank says you qualify for a certain mortgage doesn’t mean you should do it.

Our one luxury was an annual family vacation, but even those were spartan events. We’d go four-wheeling and stay in Motel 6, all of us in one room, and eat fast food.

I advise people not to change their standard of living as their income increases. Protect the base. It’s tattooed on my brain. I still won’t spend $60 at a restaurant. We eat at restaurants that have good food but are cheap — $15 or so for a meal. Gail still shops at Costco and buys things on sale. It’s just ingrained in her. If she buys something nice, it’s the exception. I drive what most would consider a normal car.

My conservative nature has proved to be advantageous and put me in a position to do some of the things I’ve done. One of my investments was a joint purchase of 48.8 acres of land near Littleton, Colo. It was in the middle of nowhere at the time. We could see that the city was going to expand southward and figured land there would appreciate. Eventually, they built a dam out there and then things started to develop, and we sold the land to a developer. When we returned to Utah, I had saved $88,000 — which I used to buy my first car dealership. By saving that money, I was able to start my own business and everything in my professional and entrepreneurial career began with that purchase.

Through the years, as my wealth grew beyond any of my wildest expectations and I could afford to buy things, I spent money sparingly with two notable exceptions — my Cobras and our current home. I have always been determined not to let money change me, and I hope I have achieved that. I have not wanted the accumulation of money to change my lifestyle or the way I treat others or cause me to lose perspective. For me, money was the means to an end, and that end is to help others.

Application & Challenge to Share Your Faith & Perspective Online
Have to ask: Have you written yours? Do you record the things that pass before your observation, that are generously taught to you by the Spirit? Start a blog or site today to share a slice of your life and faith with the world. Contact us at email at More Good Foundation or write a response to this post. How have you kept your priorities straight in the face of any worldly acclaim? or in the face of none that is visible but that is so evident in who you are and who others have become through God’s work in your life?

David is an excellent-souled, transparent, young Mormon, a Utah-reared single adult who has moved into the musical arena with alacrity, and who has kept centered amid an artistic world that requires filtering, and fusion of purpose and faith to stay focused on things that matter most. David has been riveted. He has been successful and He has known Who is behind that success.

David’s personal and musical review of his life to this point is available now for pre-order. For members and friends of all faiths, this work may answer some of the questions so often asked about David: “What makes him different, his eyes so light?”; “Why is so sure about his morality that he can refuse to autograph photos in inappropriate ways?”; “Why does he make intricate plans to visit the House of the Lord while on his busiest tours?” “What is the Source of his soul-presence, purpose, and how has life been for him with stardom thrust upon him as a teenager, and a Mormon young adult?”

David has decided to share his story with the world. Each of us can do likewise online–it doesn’t have to be a book, it can be a blog, a witness of Christ, an explanation of our desires to live a virtuous life, a statement of belief on Facebook, an answer to a seeker’s question.

What is your story of faith, and has it largely been shared or unshared? For ways to contribute, please visit sites mentioned above or check out siteadopt dot org or the More Good Foundation website at www.moregoodfoundation dot org.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Talent,

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Audiovisual Department) is entering early pre-production on a very large film project whose subject is “The New Testament,” under the direction of the First Presidency.

based on the events of the New Testament, to be produced near Salt Lake City, UT. We seek a broad variety of cast who resemble the cultures and races represented within the scriptural account, namely: Semitic, Roman, Greek, Egyptian, and others of Middle Eastern, Southern European, or North African origin.

We seek ALL possible candidates for a variety of roles: Actors and Extras. If you know of anyone who fits the following description and would be willing to participate in our production, please forward this information to him/her.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Generally, we seek individuals with darker hair, olive or brown skin tone, the ability to grow a beard (for men), and other common Semitic characteristics are desired.

LOCAL and NON-LOCAL
Near or far, we need you! We are currently exploring the possibility of providing food and lodging for those who may require it during the production. If you live outside of the state of Utah and would be interested in such provisions, please indicate this when you submit your information. More information about this option will be available late 2010.

PAYMENT
Positions will be PAID based on our standard rate card.

TIME TABLE
Shooting begins Spring 2011. We are gathering cast and extras potentials now in order to alert participants to important benchmark dates and respond early to questions such as…
· When do I start growing my hair?
· Where and when will the productions take place so I can arrange my work schedule?
· In which production(s) am I cast (or extra)?
· What should I bring? …wear? …expect?
· Where will I stay?
· How long will I be needed?
· How much will I be paid?
· etc.

LDS MEMBERSHIP
The hiring process for both active, worthy members of the LDS Church and non-member candidates remains consistent with previous practice. There are two paths by which a candidate may participate:

As an employee: The LDS Church can only hire as employees members of the Church who are ‘temple worthy’, as determined by their ecclesiastical leader.

As an independent contractor: Candidates who are affiliated with a legitimate talent agency or have an active business license can be contracted as independent contractors.

(Proof of compliance with employment/contracting criteria will be obtained once contact has been made.)

TO APPLY
STEP 1: Please send an e-mail to SLcasting@LDSchurch.org with TWO (2) Current Photos of applicant taken within the last 3 months: (1) Oneheadshot, face forward; and (2) One profile shot. These photos need to be close enough and of sufficient resolution to clearly see your
entire face and hair. “.jpg” or “.bmp” formats only, please. Save your files with the applicant’s NAME (ex. “yourname_profile.jpg”).

Actors applying for speaking roles should also include a current résumé in this e-mail.

STEP 2: Please go to http://goo.gl/kR1z and complete the online application form.

Please submit your application AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. The earlier you apply, the greater your chances of being included.

We will make every effort to inform you when your information has been received. Please be patient. It may require as much as four weeks to process your application.

Thank you for your support of LDS Audiovisual productions! We look forward to your submission!

Best regards,
Alisa Anglesey
LDS Audiovisual Casting
SLcasting at LDSchurch.org

Stephanie started a blog, in response to Elder Ballard’s call to participate in the conversation about who we are, and has received tremendous online response to her example of faith. One person, many lives changed as a result of the healing power and grace of the atonement of Jesus Christ.

When the real history of mankind is fully disclosed, will it feature the echoes of gunfire or the shaping sound of lullabies? The great armistices made by military men or the peacemaking of women in homes and in neighborhoods? Will what happened in cradles and kitchens prove to be more controlling than what happened in congresses? When the surf of the centuries has made the great pyramids so much sand, the everlasting family will still be standing, because it is a celestial institution, formed outside telestial time. The women of God know this.” -Elder Neal A. Maxwell, 1978 April General Conference

Mr. Neeleman was born in Brazil. His father was a journalist stationed there for United Press International. As a Mormon, Mr. Neeleman returned to Brazil to serve for 2 years as a Mormon missionary, emissary for the Lord Jesus Christ, when he was 19. Dave splits his time between Brazil and the United States, and lives with his wife, Vicki, in New Canaan, Connecticut.

WhyWeBelieve.com

New site launch: WhyWeBelieve.com

On October 31st, 2009 ten young single adult Mormons came together at the Boston Singles’ LDS Education Conference with one hour to form an idea for an innovative way to share the gospel.  Speakers at the Conference included David Neeleman, co-founder of The More Good Foundation and Mormon entrepreneur (former CEO of JetBlue Airways), Clayton Christensen (Harvard professor and innovation specialist, Mormon convert), and Elder M. Russell Ballard (one of the 12 apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).

Elder Ballard’s remarks to the Boston single adult audience included a bold invitation that every one in attendance “should have [their] testimonies written on Facebook.” Melissa Sevy, one of the group organizers, remarked, “With his words ringing in our ears, we formulated an idea and  found a way to make this possible.”

“‘Why We Believe’ is a new and unique website for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to create their own personalized web page where they may share their testimony of Jesus Christ online unobtrusively. This personal webpage link can be included on a person’s Facebook page or blog so that others may access their testimony. People can also come to the website and view testimonies according to specific gospel principles that they may have questions about.”

Some of the site features include:

1)      Personal profile with username and picture of your choosing.
2)      Personal testimony regarding user’s testimony of Jesus Christ and choice to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
3)      Video bar where favorite LDS Youtube videos can be posted on each profile, including Conference talks, Mormon Messages, and other positive faith-promoting video clips.
4)      Q & A: Website viewers can ask questions and initiate dialogue with those who have posted their testimonies, and engage in gospel discussions.

In early 2010, this Boston single adult cadre linked up with the More Good Foundation, which has an adopt-a-site initiative to assist lay members in creating sites or adopting an existing URL to engage in the online conversation. This initiative allows those interested to both independently develop and manage a site as well as to receive needed help and tools in either creating or maximizing online efforts to reach out to friends of other faiths effectively.

Derek and Brook: Mormons Share Faith Online

Meet the Boston Team
Derek Christensen has a Masters of Information Systems Management, and has been the genius behind building and designing the site. Brooke Svendsen, a freelance designer and video editor, assisted in designing mock ups, general layout and design of the site, and functionality testing. Katie Winder, a dance performance major at The Boston Conservatory, is working on marketing the site to the world through Facebook and other means. Brent Colson, currently working for a website design company, helped create the idea and is currently helping to test the site processes and edit for content. Bekah Ellsworth, an MBA currently working for the Federal Reserve, has served as the team leader and organizer. Melissa Sevy has a Master of Public Health and is the liaison between Why We Believe and the More Good Foundation.

Center 4, left to right: Melissa Sevy, Rebekah Ellsworth, Brent Colson, Katie Winder: Mormon Single Adults Share Faith Online

Please share this new website, WhyWeBelieve, with your interested friends and add the link to our post on your Facebook page!

For more information on how to adopt a site, please contact us at email@moregoodfoundation.org and join the More Good Foundation Facebook group.

Consider some faves:

• The F-11 key that enables you to use your full screen without toolbar interference; Control X to wipe out text
• The “undo arrow”–what would we do without it?
• The Iphone GPS, showing detailed shortest routes to our destination
• Boxed hair color (maybe not)
• Instant brownie mixes
• Templates for projects

You name it; we’ve gotten a shortened version of it.

Well, it’s not surprising that the world has taken to a shortcut for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: “Mormons.”  It is, after all, a long and holy name of the Savior’s restored Church in our day.  While we keep the sacredness of the full designation of the Church–receiving the name itself from the Lord Himself in revelation to His leaders–we do accept, as a people, the nickname “Mormons.”  Mormon, according to Joseph Smith, means, “more good.”  Mormons believe in bringing the Savior’s light and truth–more good, the best good, the saving good truths of the gospel and all that attends that–into the world.

Online searches for information about the Church include the frequent search for Mormon-themed words, including Mormon, Mormons, Mormon beliefs, Mormon religion, and Mormon doctrine.  Some of our friends don’t make the connection even between LDS (a Latter-day Saint or member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) and “Mormons.”

If you are visiting this site for the first time and are unaware yourself, we are one and the same.  Mormon is a nickname derived from a prophet who lived anciently, on this American continent, and after whom an amazing, true, profound and clear record of Christ‘s visit, is named.  (If you have not read this book, please drop us a note and we will be sure you receive one from us or Mormon missionaries, as you prefer at this point in your journey.)

Although there are millions of searches for LDS, we, as members, have reason to believe that most friends of other faiths seeking information about us do so by keying in the term and nickname, “Mormon.”  Few search for us from other faiths, using the official name of the Church.

There’s a difference, though, in calling the individual, lay members of the Church, “Mormons” and combining that nickname with the official Church name. While many will often Google, “Mormon Church,” the actual full inspired appellation is “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”  Just so you’re not confused by the nickname itself.

Still, for journalists, the Church requests that the initial reference to the Church be a full-named one, and that subsequent references to the Church include “The Church of Jesus Christ.”

In 2009, there were over 31 million searches for the terms Mormon, Mormons, and Mormonism.  This compares with about 32 million for LDS (Latter-day Saint).

In terms of the members, says Mike Otterson, of the Church of Jesus Christ’s Public Affairs office, “It’s simply a reality that people think of Mormons, they don’t think of Latter-day Saints,” Otterson said Thursday. “Mormon is here to stay.”

“Mormon is here to stay.”

Application

For those Mormons blogging, remember to use vernacular that friends of other faiths would understand when addressing families, the temple, your personal gospel insights and experiences, and to define terms or link to definitions and scriptures.

A Relief Society function sounds like a generic humanitarian fundraiser to a friend of another faith rather than a gathering of Mormon women striving to emulate Christ who reach out to those in need, and who are organized into a global affiliation, under the direction of a living prophet and his counselors.

Comments, questions welcome.

Source reference

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14805624

Modern day Mormon apostles, Dieter Uchtdorf and Henry B. Eyring, along with living prophet, Thomas S. Monson, bear witness of Jesus‘ life and Resurrection, and the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Happy Easter to all

Apostle and disciple, Elder Hales invites Mormons and friend of all faiths to seek things of eternal value, and to overcome addictive habits, desires to spend excessively, or buy things that entice us but that we don’t really need.   He recalls a time after his return from the service, after Christmas, when he and his wife entered a clothing store where they both saw a lovely dress. He offered to purchase it if she liked it, but after her try-on, Sister Hales, gently acknowledging its quality, declined the purchase, indicating that they couldn’t afford it.

Personally, downsizing to a town home, even though I sometimes miss the “great room” or extra space, has been personally liberating.  Watch, comment on,  and rate this video on YouTube.

19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his ^acoming?

The context of the chapter includes the labor of love, of shepherding, of ministering to others, of missionary and evangelistic labors.

There’s a prize to be had for those labors, but not a prize of this world.  It is the very presence of the Savior with us.  And nothing compares with that.  Nothing ever can. Nothing ever will.

Working to share His light and to be in His presence is a divine work, and a sure prize worth striving for, worth our lives and every expenditure of effort. It’s a mountain-top experience.

We have to keep the fire burning, the flame of the gospel lit in our lives.  The More Good Foundation torch is a reminder of this for each of us.

And yet, sharing the gospel is natural if we are filled with it to overflowing.  It has to spill over… Are you?  Are you gaga over what the Lord is doing in your life–His tender mercies? What can you do today to share your light, which is in Him, the Savior of the World? How about posting your thoughts about His guidance on your Facebook page or something you read that moved you in The Book of Mormon, that might help someone you know, in an e-card or text message.  Is there someone with whom you ‘hang out’ who is need of hope or promises, strength to overcome?  If you know someone, can you refer them to the Church’s sites or ours? Can you talk to them about your joy in the gospel?  I challenge you today to make a new effort, one, and to share those with us.

Sometimes we think we need  to know more or be more before we can be effective as Mormon member missionaries, followers of Jesus Christ. But we know enough, as Elder Ballard indicated, our testimonies are what we need, and those we can share.

What will you do in the next twelve hours to this end?  Please share your experiences with us.

“But this I say, brethren, the time is short … for the form of this world is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:29, 31).

Eleesha of MormonInsider.com

Well, welcome Eleesha, to your newly adopted website, MormonInsider.com. Eleesha is currently living in the Washington DC area, working by day and schooling at Georgetown by night. She has recently contacted The More Good Foundation, and has adopted an unofficial LDS website through our Site-Adopt initiative, which enables members to post about their lives authentically, so that “the best missionary tracts ever” (to quote the late and beloved Mormon prophet, President Hinckley)–the lives of faithful saints–reach the broadest audience.

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