Hi, I'm Jake

I'm a husband, a father, a thinker, a college football fan, an avid reader, and currently a law student.

About Me

I grew up in Spokane Washington as the youngest of four boys. I met and married a cute girl from Idaho while in college at BYU and we have two children. I enjoy playing sports, reading books and being with family.

Why I am a Mormon

I am a mormon because I believe in Jesus Christ and have felt his spirit as I have participated in the church throughout my life. I'm a Mormon because I've read the Book of Mormon and believe it to be true. I'm a Mormon because I believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet called by Jesus Christ. I'm a Mormon because I have felt the holy spirit day by day confirming to me that God lives, that Jesus Christ is my Savior, and that true happiness comes from following the teachings of the Savior. I'm a Mormon because I have tested this faith, tried its teachings and know for myself that it is true.

Personal Stories

Please share your feelings/testimony of Joseph Smith.

Many of my ancestors intimately knew the Prophet Joseph Smith. My fourth great grandfather John Solomon Fullmer slept on the floor of Carthage jail beside the Prophet the night before Joseph was killed. They spoke into the night and the Prophet told him of his desire to see his family one last time and to be with the saints again. After his death, my great grandfather wrote a pamphlet about his experiences with the Prophet before he died. Among other things, he wrote his belief that Joseph and his brother Hyrum were two of the most Christlike men who ever lived, and compared them to Peter, James, and John, the Lord's apostles.

Unlike my grandfather I never had a chance to meet the Prophet, to look him in the eye, to listen to his teachings, and to judge him for myself. But over time, as I have learned about Joseph Smith's life, and read the Book of Mormon and other revelations he was inspired to bring forth, I have come to believe that my grandfather was right. I believe that Joseph Smith was a true apostle of Jesus Christ. I believe that he was called of God in his youth, like Samuel in the Old Testament. That he was an ordinary man like Peter, and that he saw the Lord in a vision like Paul.

How I live my faith

Most recently, I have been teaching new primary children during Sunday School. It can be tough to keep the attention of three year olds but I love their simple faith in Jesus and their desire to be good kids.

What is the priesthood?

Jake answered...

The preisthood is the power and authority of God delegated to men on earth to accomplish the works, designs and purposes of God. We believe that Joseph Smith was called to be an Apostle of Jesus Christ, and that he was visited by the resurrected Peter, James, and John, three of the original Apostles in the New Testament, and that they conferred upon Joseph Smith the priesthood authority to organize and establish the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We believe that all priesthood authority must be conferred by someone holding the priesthood physically laying their hands on another and conferring that priesthood power upon them. However, we also believe that since this is God's power, and not man's that God will only work through those who are worthy to hold this sacred trust.
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Ethan answered...

I like to approach questions by looking at the words of things

"priest" has reference to either the concept of one who leads, one who is elder, or one who is holy I like to remember that the words 'holy' and 'whole' are linked by a common ancestry. When something is 'holy' it's essentially saying that it's complete, that it's healthy..

And "-hood" makes reference to the state of being, and not just any state of being but a state of being that's worthy or correct for it's placement. That is, that it's done properly.

So one could say the priesthood is leadership or a point of reference that's completely suited to the position in which it's been placed.

Another way to look at it is to say it's God's perfect order. That is, it's God's perfect arrangement.

In our Church we often give a definition of priesthood as being "the authority to act in God's name" and that's exactly what it means to be a part of God's perfect order. If God commands something to be done by you, and you do it, then you are acting under, and with that portion of God's authority that he's permitted you to exercise within his perfect order.

Just as with any instance where someone tries to act in the name of someone else there are bound to be those who try and do so falsely. That's why God has things ordered in such a way that one can know for certain if someone has His God's authority, or not.

Do Mormons worship Joseph Smith?

Jerad answered...

No. We worship only God the Father and his son Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith was a prophet of God chosen to restore the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullness back on the Earth. We deeply respect the man and all that he did for man kind as through him the Church of Jesus Christ and the authority which is called the Priesthood was restored to the Earth. The anciant people of Israel deeply revered and respected Moses and all that he did for them, but did not worship him. Joseph was a true Prophet of God and we see him as such, and we only worship the Father and the Son. Joseph was a servant of God and taught about how we should only worship God and Jesus Christ. The purpose of a Prophet is to point us to Christ and help us to know his will, and in these times as terrible as they are, we need the guidance of Prophets to help keep us on the path that God has put before us.