This is Fine

How smart are your kids? Here’s a quick intelligence test you can give while telling a story: Late one night some very smart rulers in beautiful fancy clothes are in a room discussing what they should do next. They are in a lovely wooden building where lots of people live. One ruler says they need …

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Stand Forever – Considering one of the Primary Questions

A loving individual recently shared with me Elder Corbridge’s BYU talk from 2019 – Stand Forever. If you are not familiar with the devotional address, I recommend you take a few moments and either read or watch it. I like Elder Corbridge. He is forthright, direct, and down-to-earth. He is earnest in his approach and …

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Hyrum Smith – A Prophet Unsung

Having previously read Whitney’s outstanding biography (Joseph Smith Revealed – A Faithful Telling), I appreciated the thorough research and copious footnotes accompanying that volume. In this latest profile of Hyrum Smith, I was pleased with the similar detailed treatment. Although not as much has been recorded about Hyrum either in his day or since, Whitney …

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Hyrum Smith Resources

Recently, a new biography was published about Hyrum Smith (1800-1844), Patriarch, Prophet and President of the Church. While I know of at least a dozen biographies of Joseph Smith, I was surprised to discover there are only four published histories of Hyrum (of which I am aware). I now have all four of these accounts …

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Righteousness

Denver spoke on RIGHTEOUSNESS Sunday, Nov. 20 at 6 pm MST. It was broadcast live on YouTube: Here is the link to the recorded broadcast From the glossary on Scriptures.info: Righteousness is conformity to the Divine Law.1 God measures differently than does man. Being “righteous before God” may not mean the same thing one thinks …

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Unity in Humanity

Visit the Facebook Page – Join the Meeting on Zoom I was updating my blogroll and noted several sites I visit regularly have listed the upcoming Unity in Humanity online Zoom conference scheduled for Saturday 22 October 2022. If you click on the image above, it will take you to the Zoom meeting page. There is …

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Hebrew Book of Mormon

In my previous post about the Restoration Archives, I noted it contained many links to sites important to recovering and continuing the restoration. One of those is the Hebrew Translation of the Book of Mormon. I knew about this project and have been following the progress. There was a recent update on the site dated …

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Attending the LDS Church After Resignation

As many long-time readers know, I am not worthy to speak at fellowship gatherings or to minister in the ordinances of the gospel, either in or out of the LDS Church. I cannot administer the Sacrament in my own home because my wife does not sustain me (besides, the LDS Church withdrew that option now that COVID is over), nor can I minister in fellowship gatherings, again, because I am unworthy to do so without the support of my wife. Yet, I am content. I love my wife and as far as I know, she loves me. Surely God will bless us as we strive to avoid contention.

MESSAGE TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

May this Holy Christmas illuminate your minds and inflame your hearts before the Infant King who lays in the manger. And just as the choirs of the Angels and the homage of the Magi united with the simple adoration of the Shepherds, so also today your commitment to the moral rebirth of the United States of America – one Nation under God – will have the blessing of Our Lord and will gather those who govern you around you.

A Work For Zion Has Begun

God cannot produce Zion for, or with, people who refuse to labor. Because His promise is for the results of the labor and nothing else. As far as I know, none of us, and certainly I, cannot provide for everyone. But, I can provide for my own family. And each of you should labor to do the same

Restless About the Work

A desolating scourge shall cover the earth. All those who have not taken the holy spirit for their guide but instead have accepted the mandated solution from Babylon will find themselves defenseless and with no immunity to the sickness.

Dealing With Evil Spirits

It seems the LDS Church has almost discounted entirely the concept that evil spirits are real, that they can and do influence us and that we have power over them through faith in Jesus Christ to send them to the light. The rest of this post is a direct quote from Mel’s autobiography, “The Search for Light and Truth,” published in 2010.

That You May Abide The Day Of His Coming

I’m an Adventist. No, not a Seventh-Day Adventist. I am a Latter-day Adventist. In other words, I believe strongly in the second advent of the Lord Jesus Christ along with all the prophesied tribulations and destructions. I am certain we will eventually experience terrible social, political, economic and physical catastrophic events that will destroy millions …

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Angel Moroni – Angel Nephi

I took occasion yesterday to read the paper “The Religion of the Fathers” in a slow and methodical fashion. It is sixty-nine pages, and I did not want to rush through it. I sat through four hours of listening as it was delivered a few weeks ago, now I wanted to read it to remember, confirm and verify the impressions I had when I first heard it but also to absorb the message more fully. Therefore, I sat still as I read, listening for the impressions of the spirit, seeking to know the Lord’s mind.

It took me six hours to read, ponder and look up many of the footnotes. It has the best defense of the Book of Abraham I have ever read. I had heard some of the history of the Egyptian dynasties explained before, but besides my own personal witness from the Lord that it is a valid record and is scripture, perhaps these three statements from the middle of the paper best conclude the matter for me that the opponents of the Book of Abraham have long been barking up the wrong tree.

Answer to Prayer on Sealing

For the next few years, I am yet a captive of Babylon. So much of my time and energy is given in serving others each day. Sometimes, it is a challenge to not resent it, especially when I must deal with those who are accusatory or abusive. But it never fails, when I pause and say, “Why, Lord?” He responds, “so you will understand what it is like to be falsely accused and abused.” Translation: some folks resent IT people for not preventing their IT problems.

A Prayer for Understanding of Sealing

Oh Lord, can a man and a woman who love each other and have demonstrated a lifetime of human love together and who believe in the life hereafter be together in the eternities even though one is a faithful member of the LDS church and one has resigned their long-time membership in the LDS Church and does not recognize or acknowledge the claims of authority of the President of the LDS Church to bind or seal on earth and have it recognized in heaven, or that authority can be delegated to others?

Attending a Wilderness Religious Retreat

After several kind yet firm invitations from a good friend, I decided to accept an invitation to join him and five or six hundred other like-minded individuals to leave the comfort of my Southern California home for a weekend in the wilderness somewhere south of Mesquite, NV. This place is out in the wilderness, away from the city lights, a place that reminds me of where someone would go of they wanted to get away from all the comforts of civilization.

There Shall be no Disputations Among You

I believe the Lord is gathering a people, the angels are preparing those who will gather at the tops of the mountains to await his coming. I remain convinced it will yet be in my lifetime. There are many who write about the seven year cycles of preparation before the coming of the Lord. We are in a time of final preparation, the last seven years. No, that’s not original with me. You can find lots of folks who write about this, but I am not one to promote timeframes.

For I Have Seen Him

… once they were assembled, she gathered her strength, sat up in bed and told them once again how much she loved each of them. She then said, as best I can recall from what Carol has told me, “You need to get Christ in your life. He is real, for I have seen Him.”

I am the True Vine

The LDS Church currently teaches they have the fulness of the temple ordinances and all that God intended to reveal on the subject. Again, I totally disagree. The LDS Church did not previously believe or teach they had the fulness of the temple teachings. That is a recent claim and is simply not true.

Civil War, Tribes and Fleeing to Zion

Communication systems have failed. There is no cellular network. There is no central government, either on a national or state level. There is no police force, no military. No fuel for the fighter jets and tanks. Our great health care system with all the hospitals, medicines and lifesaving power has been decimated. Distribution of goods is non-existent. Civilization has gone back a hundred and fifty years. No cars, no working sewage systems, no more water distribution.

Returning to Church in California

There is something wonderful about ceremony and ritual that gives strength to the ordinance of the sacrament. Although we have been able to partake of the sacrament in the home of our Elder’s Quorum President each week, there just seems to be added strength in worshiping together in a larger body.

My Interview with Dr. Jana Riess

I don’t think the current leaders of the LDS Church are intentionally trying to deceive the saints. They’ve inherited this huge unwieldy beast and are doing the best with what they have. Brigham created a monster because of his insistence that polygamy was commanded of God. Church leaders today don’t even want to talk about polygamy, the elephant in the room.

Why I Decided to Leave Mormonism

I did not leave Mormonism. I resigned my membership in the LDS Church. Given the current emphasis by the LDS President on removing the word “Mormon” from the vernacular, I would say the LDS Church has left Mormonism.

Changing Religious Beliefs

I used to be very careful to ensure I was on the right side of every question, in the right place at the right time and that when I taught, I made sure what I taught was very much in line with what I knew the Brethren taught. I studied their words just as much as I studied the scriptures, perhaps even more so.

Core Religious Beliefs of an Apostate

Although it’s been six years since I resigned, I still believe the majority of what I believed before I had my name removed from the records. I’ve read reports of many folks who have left the church over the years. Some expressed they felt betrayed by the leadership. I don’t feel that way.

My Life as a Mormon

The problem with subjective spiritual experiences is that they can’t be verified. Or can they? I’ll share an experience that is more in line with the standard orthodox LDS narrative about what we can expect to receive from God if we seek Him with faith and real intent.

2021 Conference and Passover

As we seek to return to the faith and religion of the Fathers, it can be rewarding, instructive, and exciting to taste of the experiential wilderness-learning opportunities and then to share with each other those things we are taught.

Secret Combinations Among Us

…this is a blatant attempt of this secret combination to destroy our nation and all about it that is good. They seek to destroy our past, the first step in revolution. The secret combination can be found in the groups that support this murderous movement.

Network Engineers in Zion

Can you imagine a world without electricity, laptop computers, the Internet (I’m using all three right now) and cell phones? What would you do with yourself all day? How would you survive? What if you couldn’t get your medications from the local pharmacy? What if the local grocery store no longer had food to sell? What if you could no longer get any gasoline for your cars? Is that where the myth of walking to Zion came into the church?

Fellowship is a Wonderful Thing

I do not believe the LDS Temples are as pleasing to the Lord as they claim them to be. I do not think he is pleased with the expense of these edifices, as beautiful as they are. I am confident He would be much more pleased if the money were used to help the poor. Yes, there is a need for a temple in Zion, but the LDS Temples simply do not qualify.

Beautiful Southern Utah

It is Zion returning. He comes with the City of Enoch, which was taken up. But before He comes, Zion must be established here and prepared to meet Him when He comes. The Lord is working to prepare a people who will be that Zion. They are few in number, cast out because of their beliefs that are not in line with the traditions of the church fathers.

The Heavens Are Open

“You, to be competent in teaching your children, must first have the Holy Ghost as your guide. Then, once you have that, you ought to have familiarity with the scriptures, just as Hyrum was told to first learn what was in them before trying to teach others. Then you are qualified to go and teach your children, and you have an obligation to do that. Children are the means to preserve Zion. Without the conversion of children, Zion has no chance of surviving.” (Denver Snuffer)

The Most Correct Book

Joseph Smith said that the Book of Mormon was the “most correct book” of any book on Earth. This is because it was not translated by man. It was translated by God. He is the author of the book. He gave the words to Joseph through the Urim & Thummim, the seerstone and later by direct revelation as Joseph’s gifts were developed. The Book of Mormon did not get translated from reformed Egyptian into English. It was given by revelation from the Lord. At times, Joseph did not even look at the plates to translate.

Gramarye and Come Follow Me

I’ve watched blogs come and go, especially Mormon or LDS-themed blogs. I have a list of sites I read regularly, with almost all of them related in some way to the Mormon restoration movement. I hope this one stays. Based on my dialog with the author, I have a feeling this blog will be worth watching. I have added it to my blog roll.

Insights from a Prophet’s Life

Last week, for the first time that I can recall in the five years since I had resigned my membership in the LDS Church, a good brother of the ward stopped me on my way to the car after church and said, “I just wanted to tell you how much I admire you. Each Sunday you come to church, sit next to your wife and listen carefully to the speakers. I know you’re here supporting your wife even though you’re not a believer. You stand tall in my book.” I wanted to correct him that I AM a believer, but the time wasn’t right.

You Do What You Want

In a recent email exchange with a reader, we discussed the idea of being led by the spirit, particularly in regard to what we choose to read and to study. It is a fascinating topic and worthy of consideration.

My reader had asked me for some additional clarification of my positions on a few doctrinal and historical questions. I provided links to some of Denver’s papers and a few of my own posts. He responded he had read my posts but felt constrained by the spirit to not read any of Denver’s materials, even though he said he tried.

Suicide Among LDS Youth in Utah

Through artificial means, mankind has devised ways around that core structure to bring children into the world. Two men or two women can now become parents without going through the same method set forth by God. However, this defeats the purpose of the divine plan, which is to unite a man and a woman in the procreative process. That unity is much more than physical, it binds the couple together at a much deeper spiritual level.

Joseph Smith and Polygamy

If you love LDS history as I do, especially the Nauvoo era, you will love this book. Be prepared for a refreshing and unusual treatment of the subject. This is decidedly not a telling of the story of Mormon polygamy from the standard or traditional LDS point of view. The author takes advantage of RLDS sources that most LDS authors will dismiss. This book is a call to repentance, especially to those who still believe polygamy is ordained of God or was taught or practiced by Joseph Smith. If you are a descendant of a polygamous family, you must read this book. Your appreciation for Joseph will increase and your eyes will be opened about how polygamy really came about in Mormon history.

Excommunicated Mormons

I took a few weeks recently to closely examine what I believe. I made a short, concise list of about forty relevant doctrines, principles and practices. I wanted to offer the list to kind and well-meaning folks who have asked how they could help me come back into the LDS faith. For the most part, there is a a lot of commonality in what we believe.

Temple and Family History Work

God demands that our hearts turn to the fathers or we will be wasted at His return. This requirement is not to turn to them in just a figurative way, where we do genealogical work to connect ourselves with our recently deceased forebearers. That work is a wrongheaded effort to seal people to those kept in prison. The return of our hearts will require us to have the same religion, and the same beliefs in our hearts that the original fathers had beginning with Adam. Only in that way will our hearts turn to the fathers.

Mutual Agreement and Disputations

We have the opportunity to vote on a definition of “Mutual Agreement.” The Lord was petitioned to define the phrase for us a few years back, especially in connection with our many disputations over the Statement of Principles to be used as a Guide and Standard. He did so. It was short, clear and concise. His response honors our agency. He reminds us we must choose. Mutual Agreement means we choose to not dispute one with another.

General Conference April 2019 Sessions

No, this post isn’t about the LDS / Mormon General Conference to be held 6-7 April 2019 in Salt Lake City UT. This is about the Restoration General Conference to be held 19-21 April 2019 in Grand Junction CO. I know it’s a bit confusing to call it General Conference, but that’s how it is labeled when it gets into the archives. Perhaps it should be called the Temple Conference since that is the theme. This is about the Saturday breakout sessions.

The Ordinance Has Been Changed

In the comment section of a recent post here on LDC, a long-time reader asked some excellent questions about the sealing power, the temple and the ordinances there. His questions caused me to go to the Lord in prayer to obtain greater understanding. I share some of what I have learned here in the hopes it will help others with similar questions.

A Time of Reflection, Part Eight

Perhaps the key takeaways from this post will be the following: 1) In spite of the fact that there are now 162 LDS Temples, we need a temple to which the Lord can come and in which the Lord’s servants can administer authorized ordinances of salvation anew. 2) The ordinances administered in the LDS Temples are no longer valid because they have changed the ordinances and therefore broken the covenant.

A Time of Reflection, Part Seven

Carol and I were first introduced to wine in the Sacrament in a fellowship meeting after one of the lectures in 2014. I think it was Las Vegas. We were invited by members of the Colorado fellowship to join with them to meet and talk about what we had received that day. To me, it was an amazing spiritual experience, and not because of the wine. I felt the sweet spirit of the Lord being poured out on this humble fellowship gathered that night.

Update on General Conference Schedule

The organizers of the upcoming General Conference scheduled for Fri-Sat-Sun 19-21 April 2019 in Western Colorado / Grand Mesa area have asked various bloggers to share the updated schedule. More detail can be found at the conference site, and greater detail will be added in the weeks to come, but we are sharing the schedule as it stands now.

A Time of Reflection, Part Six

The LDS Church is NOT the Kingdom of God nor is it Zion. It is long been taught that it is both, but this is erroneous. Zion will not be established in Salt Lake City nor will it be in Independence Missouri. They simply don’t fit the scriptural prophecies.

Mike Stroud Has Been Excommunicated

Just by sheer coincidence, I happen to have written a number of posts that have the word “Excommunicated” in the title. It has always amazed me to see the number of hits I get each day on those particular posts. Today, at least five of those posts are in the top ten. It makes me wonder what people really want to know about LDS excommunications.

A Time of Reflection, Part Five

I accepted a covenant the Lord offered in September of 2017. I rejoiced on that day and continue to marvel that we have been offered this covenant opportunity. Even the people of Joseph’s day were not offered and therefore did not receive this covenant. In fact, they were condemned and rejected by the Lord because they treated lightly the Book of Mormon, which God always intended to offer as a covenant to His people.

A Time of Reflection, Part Four

I have reflected often on this event that was such a turning point in my life. It meant a lot to me then and it still does today. It is significant for several reasons, but perhaps the most significant to me is that it was and is an outward sign to the Lord that I accepted the message of his servant.

A Time of Reflection, Part Two

I was astonished when I read that the long-promised Testimony of St John had been revealed and shared for our edification. That is, if you believe the Lord, through Joseph, in section 93 was referring to the testimony of John the Beloved and not John the Baptist.

They Have Changed The Ordinance

In temple symbolism, the “this” used has no real value, but “that” holds eternal value. If an unbelieving person obtains access to “this” temple symbol, but fails to understand its relationship to “that” which is eternal, they have nothing of value.

A Testimony Revisited

Carol and I had one of those conversations Sunday after church. I was talking with a friend about preparations for the upcoming April conference in Colorado. After our phone conversation concluded, Carol said, “We need to talk.” Uh-oh. “Okay,” I said. “What about?” “About the elephant in the room.” “Ah, yes.” I knew what she was …

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Setting My House In Order

A recent change in employment has given me the opportunity to pick up blogging again. I dusted off my blog, gave it a new look and discovered I made the list of Top Mormon Bloggers. Who knew?

A Response From The Lord

A master called his servants and told them, I send you to a far off land where there is no stone and command you to there build me a house. When you are done, send me word and I will come there to dwell.

Doctrine of Christ Conference Update

Doctrine of Christ Conference March 18th – 19th 2017 — St. George, Utah, USA The website at DoctrineofChristConference.com is being updated with the following information on February 27, 2017 About this Conference The idea for this spring conference came after the September 2016 Boise Doctrine of Christ Conference where an amazing thing happened – people …

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