by Whitney M., member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and student at Brigham Young University (BYU).

The Love of God the Father

We learn that scripture, even though it can be written about what happened to someone else, still applies to our lives and God’s blessings described therein can be our blessings also.  I’ve just read the inspired account of Moses’ vision of God and encounter with Satan, as recorded in a modern volume of scripture known as The Pearl of Great Price: Book of Moses.

What Moses learned in his vision about God, his relationship with Him, and the blessings and strength in that relationship as a child of God, can also be applied to myself. The first part of this revelation that affects my relationship with God are the words endless, without end, and never cease. This beginning part of the revelation teaches me about the steadfastnesss of God and reminds me of the promise that our Heavenly Father is always there. God’s love, support, and power are never ceasing.

After the vision described in Moses  …..(see below Moses 1:10)  and Moses is fallen to the earth and finally regains his strength like unto a man he realizes that man is nothing, which is something he hadn’t before realized. This statement reminds me of the scripture that says you cannot serve God and mammon. It helps me to remember that we are here because of our Heavenly Father and that without Him and his gospel we are nothing.

 And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.

 

God is Our Literal Father

I like this because it is humbling and reminds me that we need to respect, love and honor our Heavenly Father above all others. My favorite part about Moses and what he learned is when he is approached by Satan. Moses’s simple answer to Satan when asked who art thou is “I am a son of God.” I love this simple and powerful statement. This reminds me about God our Heavenly Father that He is like our earthly father. He is here to guide us, give us comfort,give us reproach, to listen and love.

This strengthens my relationship with my Heavenly Father because I know He is like my own father. His hand is continually reaching out to support me, but it is my job to have faith and put my hand in his to receive his guidance. I love that Moses learns that his Heavenly Father does not abandon him. When Satan is in his presence and he feels such despair he calls upon the strength of the Holy Ghost and his Heavenly Father. It is a powerful example to me. Moses was literally face to face with Satan. I only face temptation and sometimes my faith can waiver. To surely know that God, your Heavenly Father is always there is a great faith builder to me.

God’s Irrefutable Love

The last excerpt that left an impression on me is when Heavenly Father tells Moses that his work and his glory is to “bring about the immortality and eternal life of man.” If this doesn’t tell us of  about God’s irrefutable love for his children then I don’t know what does. Our Heavenly Father’s goal is to help us make it back to Him and knowing that He is there to help me accomplish this is a great blessing in my life.

Additional Resources:

More on the Nature of God.

Attend a local meetinghouse and learn more about God.

The Pew Forum, which is not affiliated with the Church in any way, did a study of Mormons in the United States. One aspect of Mormons in their personal lives involved their feelings about and relationships with God.

The study found that every Mormon surveyed believed in God, which was higher than any other religion previously

surveyed. In addition, nine out of ten were absolutely certain of God’s existence. Ninety-one percent of Mormons believe God is someone you can have a relationship with. All these figures are well above the normal for other groups.

What is it about the Mormons that makes them so likely to believe in God in a very personal way? One reason Mormons have a high rate of belief in God is that much time is spent teaching children and investigators of the church about God, and about how to find out if He is real. Those new to the faith, whether due to age or experience, are taught that they can pray to God and receive an answer to their sincere questions. They are taught to recognize how God communicates with His children.

Mormons teach that prayer is an intensely personal experience. Although prayers are offered in public and family settings, each member is also encouraged to have individual conversations with God several times a day. No recited prayers are taught; members are instructed to use their own words and to speak the deepest, most personal thoughts of their hearts. They greet God by name, thank Him for specific named blessings, and ask for those things they need. They close in the name of Jesus Christ. However, within the basic pattern of prayer, they are also taught to make prayer a conversation. There are many times when a Mormon simply wants to talk to God about an experience or a concern, and this too is encouraged. With practice, a person who prays soon becomes familiar with the ways God communicates with His children and learns to trust what he is experiencing.

This emphasis on prayer is one reason ninety-one percent of Mormons feel they can have a relationship with God. Another reason is based on the specific ways Mormons view God. They believe God knows them personally because He created their spirits and then, before the earth was created, they lived with Him for a time. During this time, everyone was becoming a real person, with talents, personality, and interests. Each person was deciding who they were and how obedient they were. God was there, as our literal Father, watching over us and guiding us. For this reason, His love for us is very personal.

Mormons view God as a literal Father, loving but strict. Good fathers understand they must make rules with rewards and consequences, and God is always a good Father. Mormons accept the rules and the natural consequences because they see them in the light of a loving Father, not a strict, uncaring, and distant ruler.

With this information in mind, it is easy to understand why Mormons who have a strong testimony of the principles of their religion have a nearly perfect rate of belief in God and a personal relationship with Him.

Personal Response by Natalie

Yes! He really does. I have felt the powerful assurance that God does hear my prayers many times in my life. I know that the Savior’s message, recorded in the New Testament, still rings true: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (Matthew 7:7).

Last summer I was preparing to begin my first year at Brigham Young University. As it got closer to the time that I had to move out, I began to get really nervous. I worried about who my roommates would be, how hard my classes would be, and how difficult living away from home for the first time would be. I remember one night being particularly worried and stressed about everything. In tears, I knelt next to my bed and prayed to my Father in Heaven that He would fill me with comfort. Almost immediately I felt a calm assurance wash over me and I knew my prayer had been answered. I knew that the Lord knew me and loved me and that I had nothing to fear. As I continued to look forward to starting the new semester, the words of this scripture went through my mind “Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not” (Doctrine and Covenants 6:36). This too, was a simple, peaceful reminder from a loving Heavenly Father that everything would be okay.

A couple of weeks ago I had another powerful experience with prayer. I had been going through a rough week-I had just finished an anatomy midterm, a difficult physics exam was coming up, final exams were in one week, and I had just had a bad break-up. To make it all worse, my family was gone on a vacation at the time and I was home alone. I felt depressed, discouraged, and very alone. I felt incapable and unloved. Again, I turned to prayer. I pleaded with Heavenly Father that He take away some of the hurt and sadness I was feeling. I pleaded also that my mind would be clear to concentrate on my test. At first I felt that God had not heard me or didn’t care because I did not feel better immediately. But I was very wrong! Not long after I got a phone call from my older brother, who was living in an apartment about twenty minutes away from my house. He asked me if I wanted to go out to dinner with him. Although to someone else this may have seemed random, I knew it was not. I knew that it was an answer to my prayer. It was exactly what I needed right at that moment-a kind older brother to talk to and joke around with. I knew that the Lord hadn’t forgotten me.

These are just two of many experiences I have had when God has answered my prayers. Sometimes answers come just as simple feelings of comfort or peace, and sometimes other people enter my life at just the right time. Frequently I will pull out a post-it note and jot down all the ways that God has answered my prayers in the last few weeks. I have a lot of sticky notes all over my room with answers and assurances that God cares. Some instances are large, and some are small: feeling comfort when my friend’s mom died, help on a hard Chemistry test, not getting sick when everyone around me was, flying overseas safely. The list continues to grow. As I reflect on these lists and continue to pray, I understand more and more that God really does love us and care for us. He knows our needs and hears our prayers.

Personal Response by Lance

I have known for a long time that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, but only in the last couple of years, while serving as a Mormon missionary, was I finally able to put into words the way that my answer came. There is a promise given by Moroni at the end of the Book of Mormon that if a person reads, ponders, and prays to know the Book of Mormon is true, the truth will be manifest to them by the power of the Holy Ghost. (See Moroni 10:3-5)

I read the Book of Mormon a few times growing up and I always felt that it was true, but I could never clearly express how I had come to that knowledge. I could honestly say that I knew by the power of the Holy Ghost that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, but I couldn’t describe what that meant. It was more than just a simple feeling. It was a strong conviction.

As a missionary I came across people who had highly varying beliefs about the Holy Ghost and the way that the Holy Ghost affects us. This caused me to search even more to find a way to clearly explain how I had received a testimony that the Book of Mormon is true. I was reading in the Book of Mormon one day and I found my answer.

In the beginning of the book of Mosiah there is an account of a prophet and king named Benjamin. Just before he died he preached a powerful sermon to all the people of his kingdom. At the end of this sermon he asked the people if they believed his words. Their response, exactly what I had been searching for, is given in Mosiah 5:2: “And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.”

The people of King Benjamin testified that they knew his words were true because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, or in other words, by the power of the Holy Ghost. The part of this verse that stuck out to me was that they described the effect that the Holy Ghost had on them. They said that the Spirit “wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.”

As I read this verse I realized how I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I know that the Book of Mormon is true because when I read it my heart is changed by the Holy Ghost. I don’t simply feel that it is true. It motivates me to change and to be more Christlike. I want to be a better person. My very desires are changed. My desire to sin is removed and I am given a greater desire to serve my Father in Heaven and my fellowmen.

I invite anyone who may read this to read the Book of Mormon along with the Bible. I can promise, just as the prophet Moroni promises, that anyone who sincerely reads and ponders the Book of Mormon and asks God in faith to know that it is true will know by the power of the Holy Ghost that it is true. This can’t be just a simple prayer of interest either. We must ask “with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ” (Moroni 10:4). Real intent means that we are willing to act on the answer that we receive. God will only let us know of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon if we intend to follow His teachings. The Holy Ghost will change your heart and guide you to live a more Christlike life. Living the teachings of the Lord in the Book of Mormon as well as in the Bible has brought so much joy to my life and will do the same for everyone who follows the same course.

Personal Response by Nathan

Answers to prayers come in many different ways. A good way to answer this question may be to explain some of the generic ways prayers are answered.

There is a method of seeking revelation (communication from God to man) that allows prayers to be answered. Seeking revelation correctly begins through effort on our part. A simple prayer is often not enough. Important steps to consider are fasting, pondering, and building faith to accept an answer. As we fulfill these steps, God will see our efforts and bless us accordingly. Often the best method of seeking revelation or answers to prayers is to make a tentative decision after our fasting, pondering, and faith building. Once we feel we have a good preliminary decision, we take the decision to the Lord and ask for His confirmation.

Confirmation through the Holy Spirit is certainly an answer to prayers and the most common way that I have found God answers my prayers. When I turn to the Lord in prayer, asking if a choice is correct, it is truly a miracle to feel the peace in my heart, the clearness of my thoughts, and the knowledge that I know a prayer has been answered. When a tentative decision I have made is not correct in the Lord’s eyes, I will feel uneasy and my thoughts will not be clear regarding the issue. In the April 2007 general conference Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorom of the Twelve Apostles spoke on this topic. Please see his talk, “Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer.”

The scriptures teach that the Holy Spirit gives us revelation, or answers to prayers, in many ways. See if you can relate to any of these ways in which the Holy Spirit answers our prayers:

John 14:26 -Teaches truth and brings it to remembrance
Romans 15:13 -Gives feelings of love, joy, peace, patience, meekness, gentleness, faith, and hope
2 Nephi 32:1-5 -Tells what to do
Mosiah 5:2-5 -Strengthens the desire to avoid evil and obey the commandments
Alma 19:6 -Replaces darkness with light
Joseph Smith-History 1:11-12 -Helps scriptures have strong effect
Doctrine and Covenants 50:13-22 -Edifies both teacher and student
Preach My Gospel (Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004), 96-97.

Many people are lead to God’s true teachings through answers to prayers. I have observed countless people search, ponder, and sincerely ask the Lord for direction and then receive confirmation from the Holy Spirit that the subject they have been studying is true. This process that I have attempted to explain is the way I know that I am following the path God wants me to follow.

Personal response by Jack
At age 50 I was body surfing with my 16-year-old son and his friend at Laguna Beach, California. I took one “last wave” and accidentally hit by forehead on a submerged rock, my neck was broken, and my spinal cords severed between the second and third cervical vertebrae. I was instantly paralyzed, lost consciousness, and woke up two hours later in the Laguna hospital surrounded by doctors and nurses. One of the nurses noticed my eyes were opened and said to me, “Jack, if you can understand what I am saying, blink your eyes once.” I blinked and there was a collective sigh of relief in the room. That began for me a new way of life that has continued on for the past 19 years.

Because of my faith in a personal God and his goodness I never was angry at Him, nor did I go around saying, with an attitude of self-pity, “Why me?” However, it did take time for me to realize that God and Christ felt my pain and suffering as much, if not more, than I did.

Although not angry about my accident and resulting paralysis, I was devastated and heartbroken for some time. It just seemed that I had lost so much and I could not conceive of living for any extended period of time completely paralyzed from the neck down and on life support.

I slid into a deep, dark, depression and there were those days I would have welcomed an early exit from mortality. I continued to pray however, and finally after a long period of preparation I was given a wonderful experience that made me know forever that God does feel our pain and is anxious to help us.

I came to the end of the rope. I hit the wall. I came to realize that no doctor or any man on this earth could do for me what I needed the most. I knew because of the nature of the injury I would never “get anything back.” What I needed and longed for was hope, peace, and the sense of well-being I had lost because of my accident. Finally I turned to God with all my heart and soul in prayer as I never had prayed before. I eventually came to understand how much I was loved by the Savior and a loving, kind, merciful, Heavenly Father. I didn’t see a vision but I was given a new heart and was filled with peace, joy, hope, and a sense of well-being I never thought I would ever feel again.

Those feelings have never gone away but have only intensified during the past 19 years; I came to understand then, and know now, that God and Jesus Christ do know what we feel and share our pain. I am convinced through my personal experience that they will take our pain and suffering upon themselves through their infinite grace and love if we will but trust them and come unto them with all our hearts.

Believing in the Scriptures, I have a feeling for how sensitive deity is to our suffering and pain in mortality. When his good friend Lazarus died and Jesus came to his aid and to comfort his sisters Mary, and Martha, the scripture says: “Jesus wept.” [John 11: 35] There are almost countless accounts in the Gospels of Jesus Christ healing the sick, restoring the dead to their loved ones, and manifesting incredible compassion to all about him.

As a resurrected being we read this moving account about Him from the Scriptures: “Have ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither. Have ye any that are lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or that are withered, or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them hither and I will heal them, for I have compassion upon you; my bowels are filled with mercy…And it came to pass that he commanded that their little children should be brought. So they brought their little children and set them down upon the ground round about him, and Jesus stood in the midst; and the multitude gave way till they had all been brought unto him… [then] he wept, and the multitude bare record of it, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them. And when he had done this he wept again…” [3 Nephi 17:7-22]

In a vision given to the Prophet Enoch the following tender scene has been preserved for us as God looked upon the wickedness of his people and the resulting pain and agony they were experiencing and would yet experience:

“And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the… people, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, saying: How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains? And Enoch said unto the Lord: How is it that thou canst ^aweep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity?” [Moses 7:28-29]

Yes, God does feel our pain! He is a God of love and compassion. I wish everyone who ever had a serious problem or challenge in their lives could have my experience. I know they can, but it takes faith, trust, and turning to God with all our hearts.

Respuesta Personal de Steven

Mientras servía como misionero mormónque era a menudo tan cuestionada sobre si o no nosotros, como los mormones, eran cristianos. Al principio no entendía por qué la gente se pregunta el cristianismo de una religión que lleva el nombre de Jesús Cristo en su título. Me di cuenta de que nosotros, como miembros de la iglesia mormona, son bastante diferentes de los miembros de la mayoría de iglesias cristianas en dos formas principales. Creemos en un libro aparte de las Escrituras para ir junto con la Biblia (el Libro de Mormón), y creemos que Dios sigue trabajando a través de los profetas de nuestro tiempo, empezando por José Smith. Llegué a la conclusión de que la gente debe pensar que no son cristianos, principalmente para los dos razones. Me gustaría compartir una experiencia personal para mostrar cómo estas dos creencias me llevó a una fuerte creencia en Jesucristo.

Cuando tenía 14 años de edad, que era un promedio de niño bonito que participan en algunas de las locuras del mundo. Me gustaría ir a la iglesia todas las semanas con mi familia, pero no necesariamente viven las cosas que aprendí el resto de los días de la semana. Una semana yo estaba en vacaciones de la familia, y me acaba de pasar a abrir el Libro de Mormón y empezar a leer (esto no era una práctica común para mí como un joven de 14 años). Sin embargo, en medio de mi lectura me encontré con una escritura que se hundió profundamente en mi corazón. Era una advertencia para vivir una vida recta, y advirtió de las consecuencias del pecado. Esta escritura permite que el Espíritu Santo para entrar en mi corazón y me dan ganas de cambiar. Recuerdo haber tenido un sentimiento de culpa terrible por haber desobedecido a ciertos mandamientos. Estos sentimientos de que el Espíritu me hizo arrodillar y decir un escrito la oración al Padre en el Cielo. Recuerdo que me pidió perdón, y no llegó de inmediato.

Seguí a orar y leer las Escrituras en las próximas semanas. Aprendí acerca de Jesucristo y su sacrificio expiatorio. Recuerdo que un día de aprendizaje que Cristo había vencido al mundo y todos los pecados del mundo. Me enteré de que Cristo había dado a luz y se sintió la culpa que yo sentía, y que había sufrido más allá de lo que yo era entonces experimentar, ya que su sacrificio fue para todos nosotros. Me enteré de que Jesucristo había superado esos sentimientos, y que ahora Él se levantó y junto a su Padre. Me pregunté entonces: “Si el Salvador había superado sus pruebas, él podría ayudarme a superar la mía?” La respuesta fue un absoluto y rotundo “¡Sí!” Él me ayudó, me ayudó a sentir una remisión de mis pecados y me ayudó a sentir la paz de nuevo en mi vida. Me sentí perdonados por el sacrificio de Jesucristo.

Este fue un punto de inflexión en mi vida. I se convirtió al Evangelio de Jesucristo, y yo no quería mirar hacia atrás. ¿Cómo fue este gran cambio ocurrido? Porque yo estaba leyendo el Libro de Mormón y el Espíritu cambiado mi corazón. ¿Cómo puedo recibir el Libro de Mormón? Debido a que Joseph Smith, un verdadero profeta de Dios, traducido ese libro para que lea hoy. El Espíritu no puede dar testimonio de mí de la veracidad de lo que estaba leyendo, si el libro eran falsas. Lo que yo sentía no era simplemente mi propia emoción artificial. Llegó con una convicción absoluta de que la verdad puede llegar a cada uno de nosotros, como hijos de Dios. José no podía haber traducido el libro si fuera un falso profeta. Doy testimonio de que Jesucristo es el Salvador del Mundo, y mi Salvador personal. Que es donde reside mi fe. Creo con todo mi corazón que Jesucristo llamó a José Smith como un profeta, y que el Libro de Mormón es otro testamento de Jesucristo. La Biblia y el Libro de Mormón van de la mano, tanto en la enseñanza de la misericordia y la gracia de Jesucristo. Creo con todo mi corazón que soy cristiano, y los de mis amigos que son mormones que viven la forma en que los mormones se les enseña a vivir también los verdaderos cristianos. Sé que esto es cierto.

Personal Response by Todd

“I know the Church is true…” I’ve heard the phrase many times growing up in the Mormon Church. Thousands of members of the Church say those words each day and millions each year. When I was in high school I started to doubt. I didn’t remember ever having spiritual experiences like so many talked about. It was hard to believe that my family and friends were really experiencing what they claimed. I grew up in South East Texas where the Mormon Church was a minority. I remember wanting so desperately to fit in, to be just one of the guys. However, one day as I was with a group of friends, I felt a powerful impression to befriend another kid at school who no one talked with. It kept pushing and pushing me. Of course I fought back. I’ve since come to recognize that impression to be the Spirit “which inviteth to do good…, and to persuade to believe in Jesus Christ…wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God” (Moroni 7:16).

That was the first time I felt something different. Simple I know, but it was the grand beginning of a witness. I will never forget the feeling of something beyond me encouraging me to ignore the attitudes of worldliness and seek for the world of a better. I knew at the very least that God was out there. Over the years I started to see God’s hand in my life. The principles of the gospel began to make more sense and I became addicted to learning and absorbing the doctrines taught over the pulpit and in the scriptures. My life seemed perfect. I found that I was much happier. Life’s burdens seemed lighter as I was trying to live like Jesus Christ. Eventually I decided to serve a full time mission, but it was while teaching the gospel in Mississippi and Louisiana that my perspective began to change. I had heard objections to the Church many times throughout my life, but I usually just dismissed them as farce. I had half-heartedly read some literature in the past but never found any substance to it.

One day as I was personally studying the scriptures, I came to a passage that made me really begin to doubt for the first time since I was a fourteen year old boy. The passage was in the Doctrine and Covenants and my interpretation of the verse challenged my reason. I had not read this in another organizations pamphlet…this was right there in the scriptures! It seemed totally perplexing to me. I read the passage again and again with no success of resolving my concern. After searching the Bible, the Book of Mormon and other references, I still was left confused and afraid. In this moment of total desperation, I dropped to my knees in humble prayer confronting my Father in Heaven, “I refuse to move from this spot until I have an answer!” I pleaded. Never had I prayed more fervently than at that precise moment. At first nothing came. I soon fell silent, waiting and pondering. I felt I should read the verse just one more time…as I did it was as if the Spirit of the Lord read it aloud to me and I immediately was overcome with a spiritual witness more powerful than sight. In an instant, my fear and anger melted away. Light, glory and truth seemed to burst out of me. I can’t remember a time when life seemed more clear. The answer came! My testimony for the first time was more than reason. Even my previous experiences of feeling the spirit seemed pale in comparison. I knew that what I was doing as a missionary was right. I knew the Mormon Church was true.

I know many out there are struggling, searching and feeling only darkness. I can only say, “Don’t give up.” Continue to look upward and trust in the Savior. I know God answers prayers. He wants all of His children to feel His love. He does live!

Personal Response by Nathaniel

Friends of other faiths have asked me why I wanted to go on a Mormon mission in the prime of my life. I was 23 years old, and most of my high-school friends had already graduated from college. My motivation for going on a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormon Church) stemmed not only from my parents’ encouragement but a conviction that a mission would draw me closer to God.

I don’t want to go into details into what a Mormon mission is. General information about missions and missionaries can be found on the official Mormon Church Web site at LDS.org. However, the mission was a period of significant personal growth for me. From September 2003 to September 2005, I traveled to, and lived in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Malaysia as a full-time volunteer representative for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church). I spent a lot of time talking to people on the streets and in the buses, knocking on people’s doors, and teaching in people’s homes. I would write or email my family and friends every Wednesday, but on the other days of the week, my companions and I would always be out in the streets-talking, knocking, and teaching.

This period was a period of deep spiritual refinement. Without the convenience of living at home, I learned to rely on God and not on myself; however, I struggled to put my faith in God. How could I find people to teach when I didn’t have the convenience of the Internet and the technology of search engines? How could I help people to change their lives when I wasn’t even making enough money for myself? These questions, along with many others, compelled me to seek help from a source who had all the answers-God.

I have always believed in God. I didn’t always express my belief publicly; nevertheless, I had my private and personal moments with Him. However, my experiences could not really prepare me for my mission. During the first few weeks of my mission, I struggled to know if what I believed was really true. It was a different matter altogether to believe in God and to teach someone about your belief in God. I asked many questions in those few weeks, and those questions didn’t disappear. It took weeks, months, and many spiritual experiences before I really developed a strong belief in God.

These spiritual experiences had always been precipitated by prayer. I remember an incident when I had lost my keys. My companion and I had just returned home from dinner, and I had reached into my pockets to get my keys when I found that my keys weren’t there. Fortunately, my companion had a set of keys, and we were able to enter the house. However, despite my frantic efforts, I could not find my keys in the house. Feeling very helpless and lost, I got down on my knees and began to offer one of the most sincere and humble prayers I had ever offered. I felt that there was no way that I could ever find those keys. They could have dropped out of my pocket when we were in the rickshaw. I could have misplaced them at the restaurant where we had dinner. There was just no way of finding them in the city of Lahore. I felt that the only way that I could find them was through a miracle.

A few minutes later, I heard the doorbell ring. My heart leaped as I ran down to open the gate. Standing in front of the gate was the rickshaw driver who had dropped my companion and I off at our apartment. He asked me if I had lost my keys-apparently, another passenger had noticed a set of keys lying on the backseat. I answered yes and began to thank him profusely.

I have often thought back to that evening where I had witnessed a miracle. In my mind, that evening was a watershed event because it changed my relationship with God. There simply was no other way for me to explain the experience, except that God had heard and answered my prayer. Through that experience, I learned for myself that God is real and personal. I also learned that He cares about us. I also learned that he hears and answers our prayers. I began to see Him as a fatherly figure. I began to talk to Him in the same way I talk to my own father.

Since that evening, prayer has become more than just a daily ritual. It has become a tool for communication. I begin to look forward to prayer, I no longer hesitate to get down on my knees to speak with my Father in Heaven, and the more fervently I pray, the closer I feel to God.

Yes. Latter-day Saint leaders and canonized scripture affirm that Mary was a virgin when Jesus Christ was born. Like other Christians, Latter-day Saints believe in the miraculous conception, though no miraculous means are ascribed to the method of his birth.

When Matthew quoted the prophecy “Assuredly, my Lord will give you a sign of His own accord! Look, the young woman is with child and about to give birth to a son. Let her name him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14 Jewish Publication Society of America), he translated the original Hebrew text or used the Greek Septuagint version with one slight change. He replaced the Greek word for “young woman” with the word for “virgin,” thus reinforcing the messianic nature of the prophecy (see Matthew 1:23).

Based on Matthew’s interpretation and the story found in the Gospel of Luke, Christians accepted from an early period that Mary was not only a young woman but also a virgin when Jesus Christ was conceived. Both Matthew and Luke independently reinforce each other’s story about this amazing event, providing a basis to accept that they have reported reliable historical information about Jesus.

Over the centuries, some Christians have questioned Matthew’s interpretation, but it has withstood the test of time as one of Christianity’s fundamental beliefs: Jesus of Nazareth was born to a virgin named Mary. Latter-day Saints accept the New Testament as scripture and find additional validation to the concept of virgin conception in their other scriptural records. The Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ, offers the testimony of Nephi, an ancient prophet, who heard an angel declare, “Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh” (1 Nephi 11:18). Additionally, Nephi rendered Isaiah’s prophecy the same way Matthew did: “Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign–Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (2 Nephi 17:14). The Book of Mormon prophet Alma testified that Jesus “shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God” (Alma 7:10).

In the early days of The Church of Jesus Christ (inadvertently called the Mormon Church) some speculated about “how” God accomplished this miracle, much as Jews and Christians have attempted to identify how God used natural law in the case of the Flood, the dividing of the Red Sea, or the gift of manna in the wilderness, believing that miracles conform to natural laws that are hidden to mortals. Despite any attempt to explain “how,” the Church has consistently taught that the Jesus Christ was the unique Son of God—different from all other mortals who had lived, were living, and would yet live. Current official Mormon Church doctrine and teachings by Church leaders in public and private let the scriptural record stand without commentary, accepting that “with God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37).

Matthew 1 : 20 – 21 states,  “But while he thought on these things , behold , the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream , saying , Joseph , thou son of David , fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife : for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son , and thou shalt call his name JESUS : for he shall save his people from their sins…”   But this does not mean that Jesus was the son of the Holy Ghost.   Many times in the Bible, Jesus is identified as the Son of God, and the Only Begotten Son of God.  (See (John 1:14; 3:16; 1 John 4:15; 1 John 5:10; 1 John 5:13; John 1:34; John 1:49; Mark 1:1; Matthew 14:33; Acts 9:20; John 6:69; John 3:17; 1 John 5:20; Matthew 16:16; John 11:4; 1 John 4:9; Mark 5:7; 1 John 5:9; 2 Corinthians 1:19; Romans 1:4; Acts 8:37, to name a few scriptures.)