Hi, I'm Patrick

I'm a Latter-day Saint!

About Me

I am a happily married man with four great kids. I love the outdoors, camping, fishing, archery, rappelling, and anything that gets my adrenaline going. One of my favorite things I have done is skydiving! I am juggling what life brings by trying to be a good husband, father, teacher (profession), student (working on masters degree), neighbor, yard worker, mechanic (my cars keep breaking down on me :), peacemaker (young kids...enough said), and friend. Real life can be crazy, but there is a bit of humor even in the rough times.

Why I am a Mormon

I am a convert to the Mormon faith. I don't want to mislead you, as I was actually raised as a member of this Church. But I feel that even if you are born and raised in a religion, there comes a time when you need to find out for yourself if what you have been taught is true.

I went through the motions of going to church and fulfilling my responsibilities up until my teenage years. Then I became more independent and stopped listening to my parents as much. Probably sounds familiar to you... I started going down the wrong path and getting into more and more trouble. I was one of those people who could hide what I was doing even though I am sure others noticed that I did not have that light that comes from following Jesus Christ. And whether they noticed or not, I could feel the emptiness and guilt within. I did as others may have done and just brushed off the feelings or replaced them with momentary fun. For quite a few years I did what I wanted to do, not caring about any consequences ahead of me.

Then came the time when the reality of God and of this religion started to weigh heavily on my mind. I wondered if this had all been a lie, and if I had just been taught that certain things were bad and that is why I felt guilty. Deep down I knew the truth. When I finally humbled myself enough to admit that I was not living a Christ centered life, then the weight really came of what I had been doing the last few years of my life.

See, we sometimes think that the weight leads us to Christ and then it gets lifted and all is better. That doesn't seem to be how it works. Yes the weight leads us to Him, but in all I have learned from my own experiences and from others, there comes that moment of hell. It is that moment when you realize how good God is and how much you have rejected Him. It is when you see sin for what it really is. It is a moment when you will do anything to be rid of the guilt, pain, and anguish you now feel. This is the moment that leads to true conversion, the moment when you realize that the love of Jesus Christ is your only hope for being redeemed. Then in this agony, as promised in the scriptures, Jesus reaches through all the darkness and brings you in to His marvelous light! In the words of Alma from the Book of Mormon, "there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains...on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy."

So even though I am not a true convert in the way we normally use the phrase, I am now converted to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Not only that, I have prayed about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its teachings. I know it adds truth to what good other religions have. I know there is true authority is this church directly from God. I know we do receive revelation through a living, breathing, teaching, and loving Prophet today. The children of Israel needed a Prophet to lead them through the wilderness, and we need that same type of guidance. We live in a world of fear, turmoil, and heartache. But through all of this, there is a beacon of light that guides us through. That light is Christ and His church on the earth. We do not have to wait for a future happiness in heaven. We can have that peace and happiness now, today!

I have had no better feeling in my life, even compared to looking into the eyes of my future wife during our wedding ceremony, or compared to being there for my four kids births, than knowing that I was clean after years of rejecting my God. It was not easy, as true repentance takes more than admitting and calling upon God. True repentance takes becoming "a new creature". But it is worth every effort!

There are more reasons than this of why I am Mormon, but I cannot express what years of living this gospel has added to my testimony. Let's just say a lot!

Personal Stories

What is hope and what do you hope for?

I hope that one day I can be all my mom wanted me to be! I think that statement covers about everything if you know what I mean!

I think hope is having faith that something good lies ahead for you or others. Without hope, why are we even here on earth. To live here and then die with nothing beyond earth life would be terrible. So I hope and believe there is something good ahead of me! I also hope and believe that there is hope not just in the end, but from day to day. I hope I can hug my wife again and wrestle with my kids. I hope I can get my school work done! I hope the students I teach will put away their cell phones for once! :) And I especially hope I can build relationships now that will last into the eternities.

How I live my faith

I am a seminary teacher and I teach about 175 high school students per semester. Because I have the privilege of teaching teenagers the gospel of Jesus Christ, I have not only seen the impact the gospel has had in my own personal life, but also hundreds of others who are trying to make it through some very tough years...(you remember how hard high school was!) I have other responsibilities in my local church, but my biggest responsibilities are in my own home. I still struggle, as you may, with trying to be the best person I can for my family. I know that when I follow the teachings of Christ, the spirit in my home feels better and there is a lot more smiles and laughing. Living my faith can be hard at times since I am not perfect, but God definitely rewards every step I take in the right direction. I am grateful our God is a merciful God!

Mormons believe Jesus Christ is their Savior. Why do we need a Savior?

Patrick answered...

Mormons believe that there is life after death. We can see our loved ones again and be with our families. There is a God that we can return to. But in order to return to God and be in His presence, we must be clean from all that is bad. So here is the problem. I have sinned and therefore I am dirty, but in order to get back to God I have to be clean. So what cleans us? No matter how good of a life I try to live, my efforts will not be enough to make up for my sins. I alone cannot make up for all the wrong I have done, nor all the hurt I have caused others. We are not just talking about the past either because I will continue to sin throughout my life. Heavenly Father knew this, so He sent His son to suffer for my wrongs, and yours. If we have faith in Him, show true repentance, and we are willing to follow Him to the end, then He can let the ladder down into the hole we have dug for ourselves and let us out. That is the good news of the gospel!

Some people are addicted to drugs or pornography and they cannot find a way out. Let Jesus lower the ladder to you. Some of you may not have been able to forgive yourself for past mistakes, so grab the ladder. Some of you are so depressed that you see no reason to keep going, why not try climbing the ladder instead of staying in the pit. Some of you have felt like you have messed up so bad that there is no hope for you, but I think you will be surprised at how far His ladder can reach to lift you out. There is not a single situation in life that God cannot help you with. Even though He may answer our prayers differently than what we may want, we need to trust that His goal is to get us back to our Father in Heaven, and He will do whatever it takes to get us back besides forcing us. Jesus is our Savior and He wants to save you, so let Him!
Devin answered...

We all mess up with things we can't go back and fix. Jesus can fix it.

Do Mormons worship Joseph Smith?

Michael answered...

We don't worship Joseph Smith. Although we recognize that our faith hinges on whether or not he was a prophet of God, we only worship God, the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. We honor and respect Joseph Smith in the same way we do Moses, Abraham, or any of the ancient prophets.