Our seminary class took Elder Bednar’s challenge seriously to flood the earth through social media.
So far:
• TikTok – not bad
• Instagram – eh
• X – apparently a tougher mission field!
LDS community… help the youth out. Follow and repost if you see something worth sharing
To those who doubt: Justin and Kenna Valdez moved away from family so they could more easily walk away from their faith. But their eight-year-old son still wanted to be baptized.
Sensing a door opening, a wise stake president scheduled us for a ministering visit to their home. Kenna eventually confided that she still had faith in the Savior, and even a testimony of the Book of Mormon, but faced a few triggering issues that held her back.
We promised them that as they anchored on the things they believed, the Lord would help with the things they didn’t. Overcoming their concerns was not an issue of resolving every faith question but of helping them recognize the Holy Ghost.
As President Dallin H. Oaks recently taught, “You live in a season where the adversary has become so effective at disguising truth that if you don’t have the Holy Ghost, you will be deceived.”
Justin and Kenna began to make the changes necessary to come back to church. Six months after our visit, Kenna texted me: “Hi Elder Gilbert! We are ready to be sealed as a family.”
This is a photo from the day they were sealed at the temple.
Softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling all of us home.
@FiredUpCoug It’s good. Worth the watch. My kids hadn’t really followed season 3. They were all pleasantly surprised. It’s standalone, not trying to be more than it purports to be(not carrying the weight of the saga alone). Grogu is fantastic. Don’t sit on it.
YAMS ALERT.
Missionary in Venezuela.
Emergency hymn: Jesús es mi Luz.
Companion punchline: “Where is she?”
Funny joke. Real lesson.
Find your hymn. Find your anchor.
#saintsonx#ldsx@ComeUntoChrist
Senior night. D1 commits. Big schools. Big futures.
And then— “She’ll be serving a mission for her church.”
No spotlight. No scholarship announcement.
Just quiet conviction.
This rising generation really does have the capacity to change the world.
#SaintsonX@ComeUntoChrist
The brass serpent is a strange symbol at first.
Why would God use the image of what was hurting them as a sign of healing?
God can take a symbol of death into a sign of deliverance…
#SaintsonX#ldsx@ComeUntoChrist
@JoahFussell Love the tie! I’m also a venezolano reencauchado…served from 94-96. Got to Cumana and Margarita island, but never to mariguitar.
And we love posting our YAMS!
@defense_of_fam Helaman provides some good insight on the “call is coming from inside the house” moments that we are definitely experiencing in the latter days.
@ThisMomSaid@ComeUntoChrist Thanks for the feedback! We had a good chuckle about a talking donkey at first, but that turned in to a good discussion about how sometimes we can be spiritually blind to what’s happening right in front of us.
Turns out the donkey was the spiritual giant in the Balaam story.
This week we asked our seminary students what the “unexpected donkeys” are in our lives — the things that feel annoying but might actually be protecting us.
Don’t curse the guardrail!
#saintsonx@ComeUntoChrist
In recent months, we’ve seen remarkable growth in the number of missionary applications and in the creation of new missions around the world. Many wonder why this is happening now when it contrasts with trends that suggest that the rising generation is less engaged in religiosity.
Several factors are probably operative, including some intentional changes the Church has made over the past several years for children and youth. One of the most important is focusing bishoprics more intensively on the rising generation, specifically on the young men and young women.
Another is that the For the Strength of Youth Conferences are more readily available. These are spiritual experiences for so many and spur interest in sharing the joy of the gospel.
Finally, more families are engaging in earlier scriptures study, especially with the aid of Come, Follow Me curriculum. This has altered Sunday worship practices.
As more young women choose to serve as sister missionaries, there seems to be a leavening effect. They affect the work with members, they affect how young elders serve, and they have a significant impact in their missions.
And importantly, young women and young men learn to work in counsel with each other. I believe this will have a major impact on the work of salvation and exaltation as these missionaries return home and already know how to work and function in councils in ward and stake settings.
What we are witnessing today is more than growth in numbers. Across the world, missionaries are demonstrating a deep devotion to the Savior and a sincere consecration to His work. An increasing number express that their fundamental reason for serving is their love for Jesus Christ and their desire to join Him in His work—an inspiring reflection of the faith and commitment that characterize today’s missionary force.
As the work goes forward, this is indeed a joyous and marvelous work and a wonder.
Happy Mother’s Day from Coronado Seminary!
We had a blast creating some Old Testament Mother’s Day cards.
Which one is your favorite?
#HappyMothersDay#SaintsonX#OldTestament#lds