Quit The Mormon Church

Originally published on Special Bulletin on January 31, 2009, here's Quit The Mormon Church:

I have been thinking of quitting the “Mormon Church.” Yes, if I can, I am going to get even with that church.

As soon as I can find another church that teaches about the Gathering ofthe House of Israel; the return of the Ten Tribes and their mission; there turn of the Jews to Palestine and why, and how they are going to build the temple;
the building of temples and what to do with them;
the mission of Elias, the prophet, as predicted by Malachi;
the method for the salvation of the people that died at the time of Noah in the flood;
the origin of the American Indian;
the complete explanation of why Jesus of Nazareth had to have a mortal mother but not a mortal father;
the explanation of the three degrees of glory (three heavens) as mentioned by Paul;
the complete explanation of why Elias and Moses did not die but had to be translated (since they both lived before the resurrection was introduced by Christ);
the restoration of the gospel by modern revelation as promised by Peter and Paul and Jesus himself;
the belief in eternal marriage and the family, and the knowledge and the place to seal for eternity;
that teaches abstinence from all harmful drugs and foods ;
and that sells the best fire insurance policy on earth, for the last days, for only a 10th of my income.

Yes sir, as soon as I can find another church that teaches all that, or even half as much, I will say good-bye to this Mormon Church.

The church that I am looking for must also be able to motivate 50,000+ youth, and adults, for the first, second or third time, to leave their homes for two years at their own expense and go to far-away places to teach and preach without salary.

It must be able to call, on a frosty day, some 5 or 6 thousand professors, students, lawyers, doctors, judges, policemen, businessmen, housewives and children to go and pick apples at 6 a. m.

It must be able to call meetings and get the attention for two hours of more than 150,000 men.

Yes, it must also teach and show why salvation isassured for children who die before eight years of age.

Could you help me find a church that teaches all that and hundreds of other doctrines and principles, which I have no room to mention here, and which brings solace and comfort to the soul;
peace, hope, and salvation to mankind, and above all, that answers the key questions that all the great philosophers have asked; questions and answers that explain the meaning of life, the purpose of death, suffering and pain;
the absolute need for a Redeemer and the marvelous plan conceived and executed by Jesus Christ the Savior?

Yes, as soon as I find another church that teaches that, and also that has the organization and the powers to make that teaching effective, I am going to quit the Mormon Church.

For I should not tolerate that “they” should change a few words in the Book of Mormon-even if those changes simply improve the grammar and the syntax of the verses - for, after all, don’t you think the Divine Church should employ angels as book makers, and clerks, to do all the chores on earth?

Don’t you think, Mr. Editor, that the Divine Church should also have prophets that don’t get sick and don’t get old and die, and certainly, that don’t make a goof here and there?

No, sir!

A Divine Church should be so divine that only perfect people should belong to it, and only perfect people should run it.
As a matter of fact, the Church should be so perfect that it should not even be here on earth!

So, I repeat, if any one of the kind readers of this imperfect letter knows about another church that teaches and does as much for mankind as the Mormon Church, please let me know. And please do it soon, because my turn to go to the cannery is coming up.

Also, “they” want my last son (the fifth one) to go away for two years and again, I have to pay for all that. And I also know that they expect me to go to the farm to prune trees, and I have heard that our ward is going to be divided again, and it is our side that must build the new chapel.

And also, someone the other day had the gall of suggesting that my wife and I get ready to go on a second mission, and when you come back, they said, you can volunteer as a temple worker.

Boy, these Mormons don’t leave you alone for a minute. And what do I get for all that, I asked? “Well,” they said, “for one, you can look forward to a funeral service at no charge!” Do you think you can help me to find another church?

Thomas D. Clark

[KLP: Check out http://mormon.org for more information about "ThisMormon Church" or more specifically, The Church of Jesus Christ ofLatter-Day Saints.]

Lacie broke her arm!!!!!!!

My poor little Lacie (the 5 yr old) broke her arm!!! This is the SECOND time
but on the OTHER arm! The first time was due to her daddy pushing her in the
Home Depot parking lot at top speed while she stood in the basket (against her
mother's wishes) instead of being seat belted in! Tyler took a corner a bit
too fast and Lacie went flying out of the cart, head first, onto the black top.
She suffered a severe concussion and broke both bones in her left fore-arm. Like
a BAD break! Luckily the bones didn't come out the skin, but her arm was like
jello! She didn't cry a single tear! So, tonight we'd gotten back from
Kadie & Tony's after having loads of fun watching the first Tomb Raider and
watching the guys play their Gran Turismo 4 game on the PS2, eating a delicious
dinner made by Kadie and eating some disgusting donuts brought by me, and got
the girls in their jammies and we were about ready to say family prayer when the
girls got wild and ran upstairs and started jumping on our bed (that's a no-no)
and giggling and laughing hysterically while Tyler and I talked downstairs for a
couple minutes about his history test he was about ready to start when we both
heard this loud BANG and then a few moments later a very freaked out and
panicked cry from Lacie. "Uh oh! That doesn't sound good!" So Tyler ran up there
and I walked (there's LOTS & LOTS of drama in this house with three girls
hee hee so I didn't realize it was an emergency) and Lacie was crying more from
being frustrated that we weren't up there right when it happened. She accused
me, while sitting at the top of the stairs cradling her right arm, "mom! You
were supposed to be there to catch me when I fell!!" Isn't that just the most
ironic and saddest thing?? Aren't parents supposed to be there when we fall
to catch us? That's what parents are for, right? No, I'm NOT feeling guilty cuz
it was totally not my fault, but I sure thought about that a little when she
said that. Anyway, I felt soooo bad!! She said, "I broke it! I broke my arm!
I broke the bones inside of my arm". I held her arm and her hand and they were
very loose and weak and wobbly. I KNEW it was broken just by the feel of it.
Last time she broke her arm (when she was 2 1/2) I had to hold her broken arm
then and it was grotesque!! But I know the feeling of a broken bone and I knew
it was this time, too. I held her in the car (I know that's a big no-no, too)
and we hurried to Orem Community Hospital ER with poor Sophie crying in her
carseat the entire time. She was totally confused and freaked out, poor little
thing! I called my parents and they and Josh hurried down from Lehi where
they met us in our ER room. Now get this. Lacie was perfectly CALM. She was just
fine! No crying, totally collected and reasonable and talkative, even started to
move her arm and hand around a bit and wiggle her fingers. The nurse-chick comes
in to check her. Now if any of you have ever brought your kids to the
doctor's or the ER for stuff like this they HAVE to check for signs of abuse. I
am so glad they do this!! There are so many reported cases of children coming in
with broken bones and bruises and the parents try to hit it off as some stupid
freak child accident when in fact THEY did it to their own children!! Pisses me
off royally! So they checked all her bones for any other possible breaks,
checked her head since she did bang that pretty hard on the wall, checked the
back of her neck in case she hurt it from banging her head, and checked for
bruises and for a fever. She DOES have a fever. 100.6! So they tested her
for strep. Luckily she got over that, but we figure she has the flu cuz the when
the nurse asked where she hurt she said EVERYWHERE! hahaha. When the nurse
asked her how bad her pain was and showed her little smiley-face pictures for
kids to see Lacie pointed at the #10 one!! Well, outwardly there was NOOOOO WAY
of knowing she hurt that bad!!! But she was pretty darn adament about that #10
being her worst pain! So, the nurse was thinking Lacie was being dramatic,
my parents did, and Tyler and I wondered, too, because she really CAN
be. They all decided they didn't think it was broken. They ordered x-rays
and she got pushed in a wheel chair. When the x rays were all done (she held
perfectly still) the radiologist had this little smile on his face and didn't
say a word. I was like, "hmmm". Then the doc came in before he saw the x rays
and evaluated her himself and said he didn't think it was broken because she was
acting like everything was just honkey-dorey, besides saying where it hurt. Then
he went out and looked at the x rays and came back in. His face!!
hahaha! He was completely shocked!! He said, "well, she's right! She knows
it's broken because it is!" She broke BOTH bones in her right fore-arm. Not
as bad as she broke the left arm 2 1/2 years ago, but bad enough! He was sooo
surprised! She broke it pretty good, he said. She had to have landed on that arm
really hard. And judging by the break he said she had to have landed on the palm
of her hand which took the brunt of her fall. He'd asked before if she felt
the bone break and she said Yes. He kinda had smirked at that, but now he knew
she knew exactly what she was talking about! My Lacie is no
dummy!! And, she takes after her mother having and EXTREMELY high tolerance
to pain!! Although mine has worn off A LOT hahaha. This little girl of
ours is amazing. I'm not bragging or exagerating, but she's near
perfect. She's extremely brilliant. She's so mature. She's so special and
unique. She really is my angel! It was a MIRACLE that I got pregnant with
her. Totally a shock! Not only was I NOT supposed to be able to have kids but I
was on birth control, too! I KNEW she wanted to come here and I could feel her
spirit before we even got married that she was in a big hurry to get here. I got
pregnant with her right after we got married. That very same month!! She was the
most PERFECT PERFECT PERFECT baby anybody could ever hope for or wish for or
dream for. Ask anyone who knew her. She was flawless. She even won all the
baby pageants we put her in!! hahaha. She won everyone's heart. She still
does, when she doesn't get all dramatic! lol Anyway, she's doing so
bravely right now. She's knocked out on Lortab on our couch, silently
sleeping. No crying or whimpering or complaining. Just being perfect, like
herself. :) If anyone wants to come see her this week PLEASE PLEASE DO!!!
She LOVES people (just like her mommy does) and LOVES visitors! And LOVES LOVES
LOVES CHOCOLATE!!! :) So if anyone feels like coming to spoil my little
girl please do, k? I'm not begging for a hand-out, just thinking about what
would make her happy. I'm sure she'd love to tell her arm-breaking story over
and over and over again like she does about her first arm-breaking experience!
lol She'd especially love to see any of her friends! Okay, I'm
babbling cuz it's late and I'm super super tired and love-struck by my amazing
daughter.

Who, And What, Is God

I've been wanting and thinking and feeling that I should write about God. So I'll do that today, being Sunday, and I feel that it's appropriate for the Sabbath.

The first and most important thing we must come to learn, understand, believe in and accept is the knowledge of God, who he is, how he is, and how that relates to and affects us as individuals and as a whole.

Over time God has had many different names and identities to all people. Everybody sees him in a different light and level of belief.

Where did God come from? When and where did the idea of God first come from anyway?

There are many different books of scripture (Holy Word) that come from "the beginning of time" or the "beginning of all things" or just the "beginning of this world".

History books and stories, legends and ghost stories all take us back to the belief of a God, or gods, and Lucifer, or Satan, the Devil, the Adversary, the Fallen Star, etc.

These are the most ancient and legendary stories of all.

Men throughout time have changed, made up, written, told, believed and dreamed up stories about God and the Adversary.

So which books are true?

Well, that's for you to decide, based on two things: Logic & Feeling.

Now, the most basic and logical beliefs of God, from my personal opinion and based on scripture, are as follows:

God Lives; he is live and living (Gen 1:27; Ex 31:18; Luke 24:39; John 14:9; D&C 130:1; D&C 130:22; Mosiah 7:27).

God is Immortal and does not change (Psa 102:27; Heb 13:8; Moroni 10:7; D&C 20:11-12; D&C 76:4).

God knows all things (Jer 1:5; Acts 2:23; 1 Nephi 9:6; 2 Nephi 2:24; W of M 1:7; Abr 2:8).

God is glorious (Ex 24:7; Num 14:21; Ps 19:1; Isa 40:5; Matt 6:13; Luke 2:9; Luke 9:32; John 1:14; Philip 4:20; Titus 2:13; 2 Nephi 12:19; Mosiah 4:12; D&C 4:5; Moses 1:5).

God is intelligent (Isa 55:8; D&C 88:41; Abr 3:19).

God loves (Deut 7:8; Isa 63:7; Jer 31:3; Mal 1:2; John 3:16; John 13:1; 1 Jn 3:1; 2 Nephi 1:15; Alma 13:29; 4 Nephi 1:15; D&C 95:1; D&C 138:3).

God is merciful (Ex 34:6; Deut 4:31; 2 Sam 24:14; Ps 69:16; Ps 116:5; Isa 49:15; Eph 2:4; Titus 3:5; James 5:11; 2 Nephi 4:26; 2 Nephi 9:8; Alma 9:26; Alma 42:15; Moroni 8:19; D&C 84:102).

God is perfect (Deut 32:4; 2 Sam 22:31; Matt 5:48; Heb 5:9; Heb 6:18; James 1:13).

God is powerful (Gen 17:1; 1 Sam 14:6; Jer 32:17; Jer 51:15; Matt 8:26; Matt 19:26; Matt 28:18; John 10:18; Heb 1:3; 1 Nephi 4:1; Mosiah 4:9; Alma 26:35; Hel 12:11; D&C 61:1).

God is wise (Job 36:5; Ps 136:5; 1 Cor 3:19; 2 Nephi 9:8; Jacob 4:10; Mosiah 4:9; Alma 26:35; D&C 9:3; D&C 10:43; D&C 76:2).

So we've been taught and shown that God knows all things, comprehends all things, loves, has mercy and justice, is wise intelligent, all-powerful, perfect, immortal and created all things and commands all things.

Pretty much, everything is up to God. Everything depends on GOD. God gives all life, all understanding, all intelligence, all things, and is the only way we can obtain salvation.

God does not make mistakes. God cannot lie (Num 23:19; Titus 1:2; Enos 1:6). God is not a God of confusion (1 Cor 14:33). God would not lead his children away, or tempt them to do that which is wrong and evil. God does not create evil. God does not waver or change, and is the creator of all things good, even all the commandments and the only way to salvation and Eternal life, peace, happiness and joy.

God is our father. We are his children.

If we love God, we will keep ALL his commandments, not just what suits us. We cannot assume that anything God says can be how we want to take it. If God says to do one thing or another or anything it is a commandment, logically speaking.

God also does not force. He has given us "free will", or free agency. He cannot make a good man do that which is bad or good, and cannot make a bad man do that which is bad or good. He cannot stop a murderer from murdering if it has to be stopped by force. God has power over all things BUT OUR WILLS. Our wills are the only thing we have complete control over. It is the ONLY thing we can give God. He cannot take it away. Man may try, the Adversary may try, but God will not try.

This is why bad things happen to good people. God has to allow wicked people to do what they want because he cannot force them otherwise. What they do in this life will be held against them in the next (at Judgement Day). Bad things that people do stand as a witness against them on Judgement Day. And those of us who witness or are victims to another's wicked behavior will stand as witnesses against them as well.

Because God cannot lie he will not teach false doctrine to anyone. He will not tell one man to do one thing and another man to do another. That is contradictory, and that which contradicts is a lying thing by nature.

God knows all things. He has all truth. And only through God can we obtain all truth. God will give it, because he has to in order to save us. AFter all, we cannot be saved in ignorance (Eph 4:18; D&C 131:6), and God knowing this has provided ways and means for us to obtain all that we need in this life to return to Him and live with Him for all Eternity, and with our families. God will not save a man who is willfully ignorant (3 Nephi 6:18). When we know the will and teachings of God and do them not then we are being willfully ignorant, rebelliously ignorant. God will not have mercy on us when we are like this. He would be a liar if he did. He will not save everyone just through his mercies, because there is justice that must be satisfied (Ex 23:7; Prov 17:15; James 2:21). We have to be proven in our works and in our faith, not just our faith in His mercies.

We cannot just live our life in ignorance, willfully disobeying God's commands, and suppose that we will be saved because of our faith in his mercy. That is not how God is or works.

I know what I have shared here to be true. May God's Spirit speak the truth of it to you. I pray you will understand, or want to understand and search these scriptures yourself, pray about it, and believe it.

This is the first and most important thing we all must come to know at some time in our life. And we must live our life in accordance with this knowledge if we wish to be saved in the Kingdom of God forever.