Are you a convert to the LDS (Mormon) church?

Question

Would you share your story?

Answer 1

Yes.
I was in Jr. College, not sure if I would transfer, or just get a job somewhere, when an Aunt invited my family to see an outdoor play. On the way there (a two hour drive) my heart lept within me when we were about 30 minutes from the town it was in. We got there early and decided to visit a museum on a college campus. I wasn't very excited about this whole outdoor play thing as it was in the middle of summer in TX and I'm not a very outdoors person. Nor am I one to visit museums with people, because I always feel rushed. But as soon as we pulled into the parking lot of the museum, I had this overwhelming feeling that I needed to be there. It was almost like when I stepped on the campus sidewalk, the feeling said I didn't need to move from that spot. It was SUCH as strong and undeniable feeling that words can barely express it. Since my family was waiting on me and I had waited there for a few moments, I moved on. We were in the museum for about 1 1/2 hours and the whole time I felt at peace and kept thinking about the singularity of that sidewalk experience. As I walked the museum, everytime I got close to a back door, which led to the campus itself, the feeling returned with greater and greater intensity. To the point that I almost decided to forego the play and just stay there, for no apparent reason. But before leaving I talked with one of the museum people and they gave me info on how to apply to the college. I applied, to the shock of not only my family but myself. It never occured to me that I might NOT be accepted. This all happened in early July. In mid August I started college there. The first semester went by without anything to write home about - really. Then in late March a group of friends and I were in one of our rooms and started talking about our backgrounds. Where we came from, what brought us here, etc. Eventually it came to religion and we all started talking about our specific beliefs and in a non threatening, non "out to convert you" way discussed what made our faiths beliefs similar and different from the other persons faith. I found that I couldn't participate in that conversation. I had never thought about the topic before. I was a member of the Methodist church, and became an adult member at 11 or 12. Then due to some family issues I started working in the nursery during church shortly thereafter, so I never attended Sunday School or the Church services. I believed in Christ. I believed in God. I identified myself as a Christian. But beyond that, I didn't know what I believed and certainly didn't know what the Methodist church believed. This upset me. I wanted to know what the Methodist church believed and if what they believed was the same as what I believed. So I went to several different on campus people/pastors/etc. But they couldn't give me what I wanted. So I went to the Library. (weird huh!) I found this book that contained 1 - 2 page write ups about the different religions in the world, written by members of the different faiths. I loved it! Finally a source that asked the same questions to all the different religions. I looked up Methodist and found their answers to the questions didn't match up exactly with mine, but it was sort of close. I started to look up the different faiths of my friends. Then sort of got into trying to find a religion that believed exactly as I did. I soon found that a lot of what was being said was hard to understand, and found myself longing for a list of their beliefs. I started only looking at those write ups that contained a list of beliefs. I had looked at all of my friends religions, except one, and several major religions outside of Christianity. I decided I could not deny the Christ. Then I looked at the last religion of my friends. The Mormon religion. And as if it were written specifically for me, I found it! This wonderfully simple, yet thorough list of major beliefs called The Articles of Faith. I found that I agreed with almost everything that was stated in these wonderful 13 articles of faith on the first reading. It was so exciting to find this! As I read over this page for the third and fourth time, I found that I wanted to know more. I craved it. I HAD to know more about what this church believed. But how do you tell someone, hey, I want to know more about your church? Fortunatly for me, this new found friend suggested in our next get together that if anyone else was up for it, we could take turns going to each others churches. No pressure, just to get a clearer handle on not only what we believed, but what each other believed. For some reason I wasn't going to go, but then it was like that suggestion was the conversation stopper. Finally a Catholic girl said she would go if someone else would go too. So I volunteered.
Sunday came and the three of us went to church with our Mormon friend. And decided we would visit the Catholic church next. Teresa (our Mormon friend) was the only one in our group to have a car. And let me say at this point that Teresa had serious word of wisdom and chastity issues, and I think that if she hadn't been the loveable slut she was ( I say that with love, and not to throw stones) I probably wouldn't have gone. But we got there late (I later found out she wanted to skip the sacrament). As soon as we entered the chapel - crossed the threshold, the Holy Spirit seemed to smack me right in the chest - as though I'd hit an invisable wall I stopped in my tracks momentarily, looking up to the stand as I did. No one seemed to notice, except this one guy. We sat on the back row and no one even noticed we had walked into the room. I looked at the clock and noted we were late. They passed the sacrament, and I felt it would be wrong to take it even though Teresa said it would be alright. In a few minutes the guy that sort of noticed I had come in stood up to speak. I thought, Great, so the one guy in the room who noticed me is the pastor! He stood up and you could tell he was a little flustered. This caused a little movement by some in the congregation, as if this were unusual. Then he turned to this other guy (who I later learned was the Bishop) and said something. Then he comes back to the mic and says, Brothers and Sisters, I've come here today with planned remarks on a topic given to me by the Stake President. (pause) But I feel VERY strongly that I'm not to give that talk, and since I have no other prepared, I ask for your prayers in what ever it is I'm about to say. For there is some one in the audience today who needs to hear this. I have no doubt that the Holy Spirit will work through me today to deliver the message this person needs to hear, although I don't know who it is that needs to hear it. I've had this feeling now, (looks at clock) for about 10 minutes, and I don't know what else to do but to open my mouth and let the Lord dictate what will be said. For those of you who have heard this before, please bare with me." I too looked at the clock and noticed that it had been exactly (almost to the second) 10 minutes since I had entered the room. I knew that whatever he was about to say was specifically for me, maybe others too, but for me as well. When I looked back at the stand, he was looking right at me. At first I thought he was looking at my friends who were loudly whispering about some of the cute boys in the chapel. But then, I realized he was looking at me, specifically. There was a link established between us. I knew it, and he knew it. I'm not sure what his talk started out on, but soon I found myself thinking Gee, I always wondered about that. Then he said something else and I realized that I believed that too. Then I would think of a question I had, in hopes that he might cover that, or to try to remember it to ask him after his "sermon". No sooner had I thought of the question than he answered it. No sooner had he answered it than I knew it was true. Then I started to think of a question, but before I could complete the thought, he was answering it. Before he finished answering I was thinking of another while paying attention to the answer. This went on and on, and at some point I was no longer thinking of questions, but it was like he was reading my mind before my mind thought of the question. Almost intercepting the question before it came to mind. All the while our eyes were rivited to each other, to the exclusion of everything else in the room. It was as if no one else was in the room, no sounds from other people were perceptable. Then slowly, it was as if we both new we needed to continue this train of thought person to person and not with a lot of other people around. Slowly, we lost our connection, and he sat down and we sang one verse of a closing hymn before another guy (the Bishop) thanked him for his remarks and mentioned that Sunday School would be cut short due to the time. I didn't look, I just kept looking at the guy (who by the way, I learned years later was a High Counselman). We (my friends and I) were introduced to the Bishop and we were invited into a non-member, new member Sunday School class. When we arrived there were others there all non members. The teacher seemed a bit flustered as if he REALLY wanted to start, but for some reason couldn't as if something were holding him back. This went on for quite some time, when all of a sudden the door opened and it was the guy who had just spoken. He said, Ah, here you all are! I've been looking for one of you. Which one of you was I speaking to? (and going around the room he asked) Was it you?...Was it you?... Was it you?... He was close to asking me and I wasn't sure what I would answer. Then someone else said they thought it was them, because they had been investigating the church for several weeks. His look indicated that this gentleman was not the person he was speaking to, but just about that time the teacher insisted that if we were to cover anything in the remaining time, we must begin. However the guy and I exchanged glances and I nodded. Then the teacher realized two of us didn't have a Book of Mormon and scurried off to the library to get us copies. The guy said a couple of blanket statements to the class indicating that he really hoped whoever it was got what ever it was they needed. The teacher returned with about 5 minutes left in the class. He asked the others to go on to the next class while he gave us (my Catholic friend and I) our Books of Mormon. He invited us to read the highlighted passages and come back the next Sunday. My Mormon friend wanted to leave, so we left. I was sad to leave, and my friends oblivious to what had just happened to me could speak of nothing except the cute boys. That night I began reading the Book of Mormon and found that the only way I could stop was by making myself stop with a promise to read more as soon as I got some sleep. I read every night that week. I didn't read it fast, because I wanted to understand it, contemplate it, and really absorb it ( I thought I would have to return the book when I had finished it since it came from the Library). The next Sunday Teresa said she didn't feel like going to church, so we didn't. I was VERY disappointed, but I continued to read/study. The next week I asked her if I could go back to church with her, and amazed she said yes. I attended regularly for a few weeks. Then one night Teresa said that she had one of her meetings with the Bishop (who was an art instructor on campus) and felt that she needed someone there with her for moral support and asked if I would go with her. I was hesitant. This was something between her and her Bishop. I knew it was about her loose morals, and felt that I might be intruding. She almost insisted it be me. So I went. To my and the Bishops surprise, she had set us up to meet and talk about the church and what I wanted to do next. He was appologetic and didn't want to push. I was extatic, it was just what I wanted. I told him that in a couple of weeks I would have to go home for semester break and during that time I would do my best to finish the Book of Mormon, and that when I returned I wanted to do whatever needed to be done to be a member of the church. This took him by surprise and I think he thought I was joking, but I wasn't. During Spring Break all I did was read the Book of Mormon. I forced myself to eat once a day, but that seemed to be a chore and felt unnecessary. I prayed almost constantly. I did not want to be decieved, which I couldn't imagine being, but with everything happening so suddenly, and with my belief growing at such a rapid pace I began to thing that perhaps I was going too fast. I prayed and prayed, read and read. I finally became insistant that I recieve an answer to my prayers. The answer came so suddenly that it scared me. Even though I wanted an answer, I never really expected one. My answer was, Tonya, you know it's true. You've always known it's true. Now, go and do something about it/with it. Right then and there I knew and could never deny that the Book of Mormon was true and that any church who abided by it's teachings was true. And that I MUST be baptized into that church as quickly as possible. But it was three more days before Teresa and another friend would be coming by to pick me up to go back to college. I called her asking if we could go back early. She thought I just couldn't stand my parents any longer and said she had to stay a couple more days but we could leave on Sunday. We made the 8 hour drive back to college and that's when I asked her if she could put me in contact with the Bishop, that I HAD to talk to him. Surprised, she said it would have to wait until the next day. It was a tortuous 12 hours, but the next day finally came and I met with him telling him that while I had not finished the Book of Mormon, I had to be baptized - that day if possible. Stunned, he explained that there were lessons I needed to take from missionaries first. Anxiously I pressed him to get them here and let's do this. He made a few calls and said that the missionaries could meet me at a members house the next evening. I asked how many lessons were there? Six. Can we do them all at once? No. Ok, then how about one a day. That way I can be baptized next Sunday. Stunned silence by the Bishop, he just said we'd have to see. I told the missionaries the next day that I wanted to be baptized as soon as possible and that they needed to come back the next day. That Sunday I was baptized. I was barely old enough. I was baptized June 7 at 19 and my birthday was 1 month and two days later.
That's it. That's my conversion story. I was introduced to the church in late March and was baptized 2 months and 3 weeks later.
I firmly believe the sole reason I was at college was to be introduced to the church. I have not gone on to use the degree I got there, and now hold a position that a High School graduate is qualified for.

Answer 2

I am not a convert, but I almost was.
When I was asked to pray over the Book of Mormon, the answer I got was "read it". I obeyed God and found myself very confused.
What helped me sort this out was to look at the history of the church and what it teaches. That helped me to realize that the LDS church was a false church led by a false prophet. God had commanded in Deuteronomy that we have nothing to do with either, so I left.
In the interest of brevity, I have left out many details. If you want to know more, please let me know.

Answer 3

My father had been a member of the Church since he was eight years old, but had been inactive since he was about eighteen, or for about twenty-five years. During that time he had been married to my mother and had had me a little over sixteen years earlier.

Because my father was a member, we had several copies of the Book of Mormon in our house. Occasionally I would pick it up and thumb through it a bit. At that time, I didn't know it, but I could feel the Spirit very strongly and had, as small as it may be, a testimony of the restored gospel.

My uncle has always been very active in the Church. He never gave up on my father and always did all that he could for him. Also, my mother, at the time, worked for a man who was the non-member in a part-member family. The testimonies of both my uncle and that sister brought about a desire in my father to be sealed in the temple.

The rest is history. My mother and I were baptized on the 23rd of April 2005, we were sealed as a family on June 1st 2006, and I am turning in my mission papers later this year in April.

Answer 4

No, are you?

I was diagnosed with atheism at age sixteen, and the Mormons wouldn't have me. I was shuned. In a blind rage I sang LDS hymns backwards.
Later I converted to Imaginary Society. Eventually I was sainted by Pope Constance of Pagosa Springs, Colorado.

Answer 5

I have done LSD but never LDS. Though being in a mormon church would probably be quite similar to using a mind-bending drug and just as harmful to the old brain.