Question for LDS (Latter-Day Saints)...?

Question

Hello, LDS! I hope I do this right. This is my first time on Yahoo Answers, hehe. Anyways, I have been meeting with a couple of LDS missionaries for the past few months. I am currently a non-denominational Christian but I am seriously considering converting to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I've been reading the Book of Mormon and asking the missionaries questions about it, and I just feel really inspired. I know a few people who are already members and they are some of the nicest, most wonderful people I know. I've attended some services and I can tell that these people truly love and accept Jesus Christ. I was just wanting a little bit of feedback from the LDS about how the being a member of the church has impacted your life. Did you convert or were you a lifelong member? Did you have doubts at first? Things like that. Any comments would be greatly appreciated. Thank you SO much! :-)

-Hannah

LDS - Thank you all for your sweet, wonderful answers! You are all so kind and insightful. I actually cried reading some of the replies, hehe :-)

I will continue to pray about it, and talk to the missionaries and ask questions. I really appreciate all of your honest, genuine answers!

I know for sure that the church is not a cult! I can't possibly imagine why people would even say that, other than to drive people away, but it won't work with me. I know this is a decision I have to make myself!

Answer 1

First of all, I like to say thank you to Andrew who did point out that there were a lot of people not of the LDS faith who seemed to be bent on trashing those who are even considering joining the LDS faith. Thanks to him, I am reminded that there are plenty of people outside of the LDS faith who have a true sense of honor.

As for myself, I am a convert to the Church myself from the age of 20. I did serve a mission and I did take classes from the local Institutes of Religion as I went to college before and after my mission. All the different things and doctrines I have learned in the Church have been wonderful, but they pale in comparison as to the true impact The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has in my life.

What is that major impact in my life? Very simply, there were members of the Church who helped me by keeping me committing suicide.

Yes, there were members who were able to console me at a time in need where I felt that my own life was no longer worth living. But I wound up coming to this home of these Latter Day Saint friends and in their loving care they were able to teach me that there was a Father in Heaven who deeply cares about me and wants me to be and feel loved. And I easily believed them because every time I had visited their home in the past, I could feel a tangible spirit of love wrap its arms around me and welcome me into my friends' home. But this same feeling, I could not get anywhere else, including my own home and my old church.

I know now what that feeling is. That is probably one of the most sacred revelations from the Holy Ghost that most people alive strive for: The feeling of being loved by One who has power over everything.

That spirit of love is the proof for me that God is real and He is in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This is where he wants me and everyone else to be. His love and wisdom is there, guiding modern day living prophets and apostles. And how else can we emulate the ancient christian church without following living apostles, much like the early Saints followed their living apostles?

In a way, for those christians to say that they no longer need current revelation, that's almost like saying that they no longer need to be in contact with God's love. How wise is that? I don't want to be deprived of His love ever again. And I feel you may believe the same way too.

As for my doubts, having a restored gospel of Jesus Christ coming back to the earth made sense, since there were many arguing over the points of doctrine within just the christian churches. My personal doubts came from the thoughts of how my family and friends would behave if I became a member. How much strife would it bring to the family.

Unfortunately, it did bring in some arguements throughout the years and bad feelings between me and family members still exist, because I chose to be a Latter Day Saint. At least my mom is a peacemaker in the family. But there are thoughts out there that because of the stresses brought in from conflict over me joining the church, that the stresses caused a lethal heart attack in my father at the age of 56. And yes, those accusations threw me for a loop, for how could I defend myself when their "proof" was my own father's grave marker. I am still going through my healing process for that.

So I do forewarn you that there may be times that seem to be very bleak. But the Savior and his servants had their share of hardships too. You can choose to rely on the Lord and anyone else who is also willing to help and are Christ centered as well. We can become each other's mortal guardian angels if we will it.

Remember to keep clinging to our Savior Hannah, and be full of faith, which will keep fear away. Maybe in the near future you may get the privelige to be someone else's mortal guardian angel, because you have been taught the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and accepted his covenants via baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

Mya the Lord continue to bless you Hannah, and I hope that you would be willing to invite your fellow helpful Saints to your baptism. Just make sure you don't do the invite as a broadcast, but rather as a personal one-on-one invite, so that you have better control over who would show up.

Sincerely,
Alvin R.

Answer 2

I've been a lifelong member (as has several generations of my family on both sides; even had some ancestors - my three greats-grandfather and his parents live two houses down from Joseph Smith & family in Nauvoo!).

When I was younger, I did kinda wonder a bit. How does one KNOW that the Church is true? You always hear about it from other members, but how do you know for yourself?

Then, when I was 15, I was at Scout summer camp, and it was raining hard the first part of that week (unusual for that part of California in July), and my tent partner and I said a prayer Tuesday night that the rain would let up so that we could have a good time. Then, I felt it. An overwhelming peaceful sensation that everything would be all right. I'd never felt anything like it, but it was right along the lines of the feelings others said they'd experienced when they felt the Holy Ghost. I've felt the Holy Ghost three other times since then (including one time when I was with the missionaries when they had a woman and her young daughter pray, in accordance with Moroni's challenge, to know if the Book of Mormon was true; the feeling of the Holy Ghost bearing witness of its truthfulness was so thick you could almost cut it with a knife!), but that was the first, definate time I KNEW for myself it was all true. (And yes, just for the record it stopped raining at scout camp early the very next morning, and we all had a blast the rest of the week!)

I think the Church has made a very posative impact on my life, and the life of my family. I honestly don't know where I'd be right now if it wasn't for the Church and its teachings. I think I'm a much more caring and giving person than I'd be otherwise.

I'm also kind of saddened by some of the negative things said about the Church (the important thing to remember is that the vast majority of the anti-Mormon stuff you'll enounter in places like this aren't even remotely true, or, while technicaly correct, are deliberately misrepresented by people outside the church to make it seem like it's saying something completely different than what's actually meant). I wish I could share those good feelings from the Holy Ghost (to say it's a warm fuzzy feeling doesn't even begin to do it justice) with those people, so they, too, could know of the Church's truthfulness with as much conviction as I do. The knowledge that God loves you and cares about you is one of the most amazing things you'll ever experience!

If you have questions, by all means ask! Ask the missionaries, ask other LDS people you know off-line, ask the LDS people here. We're always happy to tell you about what we believe and why we believe it.

Answer 3

First of all, I'm so happy for you!! I'm glad you are going into this with an open mind, and asking God what He would have you know. People on here will say many things to try and keep you from following your heart, or what the Holy Ghost tells you is right. It isn't their fault, they just don't know any better.

I have been a member all my life, but not a real practicing member until a few years ago. I thought the church was too restrictive, didn't let me live my life the way I thought I wanted to. I started looking elsewhere, at different churches, different organizations. I even looked into a few pagan religions. None of them really had the answers I was looking for. There were holes in some things that I heard, and I couldn't understand why. I really went overboard with my "independence". I thought I knew it all! I could be my own person without God, thank you very much! Then some things happened in my life to make me start to re-evaluate what I really believed.

I started attending church again. I started really studying not just the BoM, but also the Pearl of great price, D&C, the bible. I started to really pray to have answers about things in my life. As I would read, I would get those answers. Some were really easy and would almost smack me right in the face, others were really soft and hard to pick up on. But little by little, I began to have faith that the LDS religion was really the one I needed to stay with. Every question I had could be answered, every problem had a solution. There were no holes!! That really hit me one day, and since then, I have been a very active member.

Edit-
Feel free to email or IM me. If I don't answer right away, it's because I'm dealing with my girls. But I'll answer as soon as I get back!!!

Answer 4

I Hannah, I'm a member, and a convert. Congratulations on your choice to meet with the missionaries!
The impact of the gospel on my life has been tremendous. ... I can't begin to explain all the ways that my life has changed for the better in the almost 15 years since my baptism. While I would never be confused with an angel, I never did anything really, REALLY bad either. Throughout my life, as I look back on it, I can see God's hand leading and guiding me towards decisions that would be protective from the bad stuff, and condusive to accepting the gospel readily when presented with it. When I had the opportunity to get a Book of Mormon, and having promised to read it (I strangely felt that this was a promise I HAD to keep, even though most other promises I didn't at the time) I was a little apprehensive at first not wanting to be decieved (even though I had never heard of the church before). I was quickly granted a portion of the Spirit that testified to me that this was(is) the true church. Not understanding the ways of the Spirit I pressed the matter in fervent prayer, desiring some audible or more concrete answer to my prayers. It was finally impressed upon me that I had already recieved an answer to my prayer and that I knew - and always knew, that the church was right. That's been the closest thing to a doubt I've ever had. And I can't really say that it was really even a doubt, but more of a strong desire to know for sure that it wasn't Satan trying to decieve me. It wasn't until I had already made my decision to become a member of the church that I was introduced to the missionaries. Within a week of meeting them I was baptised. That may sound really fast, but the Lord had already done the work, a little at a time, throughout my almost 20 years before being baptised. I'm the only member of the church in my family. A friend once told me that she heard our Temple President (who also just happened to be my first Stake President) say that the Lord is very selective/protective of who He puts in a family to be the first member of the Church in that family. And that those people, in a very real since are Pioneers just as surely as those who walked the trails to the West. I share this with you because if you decide to join the church and be baptised (which I hope you will), you will probably be the first member of the church in your family too.
I can't tell you how happy, at peace, and how soul-satisfying it is for me to be a member of the church. It defines me more than almost anything else. The values held and taught there are and were my values before knowing they were the values of the church. I've always been very family oriented, and have always had a very strong sense of right and wrong. And to finally learn that there is a church out there who believes as I believe filled my heart, and soul.

Answer 5

Joining the Church is a serious commitment that you make to God and to yourself. Make sure that when you decide to join, you join for the right reasons and you are going to stay. Don't join for your mother, don't join for your neighbor, don't join for the missionaries, the bishop, the nice members, or for any other reason other than that you have a testimony of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. People will say a lot about Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and others, but you need to decide for yourself, through God's help, whether the Church is true. Once you have that burning testimony in your heart, then you can join in good faith.

If you are going to join and then leave a year or two later, it would be better if you never joined because you will be judged at a higher standard.

I wish the best of luck to you, study everything you can about all of the great things the Church does and has done in the past, and the great influence it has been for others. Your testimony will always have trials, and you may often have doubts, but if you were POSITIVE when you joined that God had told you it was true, then you will be able to weather all of the storms.

Answer 6

Hannah,
I am glad to hear that you are seriously considering converting to the Church. I am glad that you have been reading the Book of Mormon and talking with the missionaries.

I was a convert to the Church...I joined the Church a little over 10 years ago and it has been the best! I have always been 100% happy with that decision....But I didn't have any doubts at first (so to speak)...what happened was...I didn't know...then suddenly God revealed to me that it was true and then I did know. Mine was a sudden conversion, but I think the majority of the conversions in the Church are more subtle and build up a little at a time...and my testimony of the other commandments I had to build up and I still work on...But God showed me that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He was crucified for the sins of the world...and then God showed me which Church to join....The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! So that part I had down then (and now)--- but a lot of the other commandments have been difficult for me to live, but I keep on trying and doing my best!

If you do decide to join the Church (which I would definitely suggest for you to do)...I would suggest that you immediately develop some good habits that will keep you active! the big 3 are "CPR"...1. Church (go every week and take the sacrament) 2. Pray (every day) 3. Read Scriptures (every day)...
may God bless you!

Answer 7

Hi, I have been a life-long member, 26 years. I was "born under the covenant" meaning my parents were sealed in the temple so I am sealed to them.

What do I love about the church?
#1 The promise of Eternal Family. What more wonderful blessing could our Heavenly Father give us, than to be with our families, children, spouse, forever and through all eternity.
It is truly the Lord's church and he is at the head of it, leading and guiding our prophets. President Woodruff said once that the Lord chooses those who will do his will to lead the church, and if that person does not do it in accordance with His will, He will remove them. Very interesting, we know the Lord is in charge.
I, as I am sure like many others, have had my questions, I would not say doubts because I have never doubted the church was true. (Satan is the one who plants doubts, not our Heavenly Father. Remember that.) There were times I have went to the Lord in prayer and have received many answers to questions and have had many spiritual experiences that I know have strengthened my testimony - which of course should be ever-growing. Sometimes new members have what is like a "spiritual high", they know the gospel is true, they get baptized, go to church and then the newness wares off...and satan sometimes steps in and tries to confuse us and cause doubts. Just remember, to stay strong, put on the "armor of God"... study your scriptures daily, pray daily and whenever needed, attend your meetings, be faithful and I promise you, you will be blessed. I know the gospel is true and I love it. I cannot imagine a life without it or my eternal life without my family.
Email me anytime.

Answer 8

Being a member is a great thing, with this you will be able to recieve the gift of the Holy Ghost which will lead and direct you in all things if you listen to it.

You will also be able to partake of the sacrament, its is symbolic of the body and blood of Christ.

Just a side note, Every member of the church at some point in his/her life, has a converting experience whether or not he has been in his life all there lifes.

There have been some times that I have felt a little discouraged because of mass numbers of callings that were extended towards me. But I promise you that the Lord will help if you ask and the Holy Ghost will confirm all truth.

Good luck!

Answer 9

The other LDS have given much with their true testimonies. As for me, I was brought into LDS church by my parents, but they went inactive before I was anywhere spiritual. Thank god for my brother, who care enough to remind me that I am a child of God. I started to attend church meetings, but feeling a lost because I did not yet feel the Holy Ghost as many others have spoken of. So I took the challenge of searching and reading the Book of Mormon, and sure enough, during a lunch break, when I was reading the Book of Mormon, the feeling of the Holy Ghost came, and I am sure and know that God lives, and the Book of Mormon is true.

It has been more than 35 years since, I have been married with my sweet wife in the temple, and have 4 wonderful kids.

to conclude, bear in mind that, LDS members are not perfect, but your faith should be in Christ, not the members.
Just hold on to your "Iron Rod", (word of God), and you will find eternal happiness.

As for the anti -mormons, I find them to be a waste of their time, just wish they would spend time spreading what they think is true, rather than bad mouthing another religion.

Answer 10

Hannah, I joined the Church in September 1965 and knew without a doubt it was the true restored church on earth and that the Book of Mormon was an inspired testament of Jesus Christ.

Joseph Smith translated from ancient Reformed Egyptian the words that are now in the Book of Mormon. He had less than a third-grade education, yet he accomplished what no educated writer could do, given the magnitude, the setting, and the histories of two different civilizations that are in those scriptures. I am educated and I write novels and short stories, but I could not have written something as complex, divine, yet completely in line with the Gospel as the Book of Mormon.

Andrew's words are obvious: many disbelievers will hammer you left and right about your choice to join the Church. Why do you think, that of all the Christian churches, only the LDS Church receives such condemnation from other so-called Christians? Think about it and the answer will come.

Meanwhile, continue with your missionaries. Ask questions and probe. More important, pray in private to our Heavenly Father for His guidance before you commit to baptism. You will make the right choice for your salvation and exaltation to come.

Answer 11

Hannah,
First i am so sorry that you have to sift through all those crapy responses. Most were rated so bad i couldn't even see them on my screen! Anyway, i am not a convert in the sense that i was born in the church, but i do have a conversion story. Being born into it, i guess i took it for granted. when i hit 18 i decided i was going to show independence from my parents and stop going to church. Slowly as i continued not to go to church, i started letting other things creep into my life and started making some very questionable and down right bad choices. I moved out of my parents house and didn't go to church until i was almost 21. those 2 1/2 years were the worst, most angry and lost years of my entire life. Long story short, i was in a miserable fight with an ex (not a member) you blunty yelled at me i wouldn't be happy until i went back to church. It was like someone hit me in the head. I went the next day (it was saturday:) I have been every sunday since. I have been so happy and have never had a stronger testimony. It doesn't matter what anyone else believes, it is what is in your heart. If you know that it is true, and you know that it makes you a better person and your life more fulfilled and happy, than who cares about all that hogwash people try to tell you. Also having been a member my whole life, i know what it is like to constantly be misunderstood and ridiculed for things that half the time have no speck of truth to them at all. Don't let anyone influence you. You do what your heart tells you. If you feel good about something, than do whatever you can to pursue that. If you feel badly or a dark feeling, run from it like Satan was chasing you himself. My parents are converts, my father in law is a convert and an amazing guy, i know so many that have converted and their testimonies are so strong and i have seen the difference it makes in their lives including mine. I love the church and I love my Savior and i know that His teachings are true, and i would do anything to protect because i know that what i am doing is right. I would never want to go back to life that i had when i was away from the church. It's a lonely, angry and confusing path that i wish never to step foot on again. Hope that helps. And remember to follow your own heart. Only you know what is best for you.