Hi, I'm Toni

I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I am a wife and mom to four active kids. I love hiking, camping, and spending time outdoors with my family and enjoying the beautiful world God has created for us. I love to read and discuss great books, especially with my kids.

Why I am a Mormon

In my youth I struggled with understanding who I was and what my purpose in life was meant to be. I had always believed in God, but really didn’t have an understanding of Christ or His purpose in our Heavenly Father’s plan. I met some wonderful Christian friends in college and they shared their faith with me. They helped me learn more about Jesus Christ and the atonement. But as I read the scriptures for myself, there were still so many questions that my friends or even my pastor couldn’t answer.
I particularly struggled with the concept of the trinity. I just couldn’t understand if Jesus and God were the same being, why Jesus would need to pray to himself. How did Stephan see Jesus and Heavenly Father together as two separate beings?
Then I met a young man, who shared Joseph Smith’s first vision with me. I was excited at the possibility that God does still talk to his children, but I have to admit that it was hard for me to accept what I was hearing. Much of my disbelief was due to the many “anti-mormon” things I had been taught. My new friend challenged me to pray and to seek the truth for myself. This too was new to me. Would God really tell me? I had always prayed and I knew that God answered my prayers, but I had never asked for personal knowledge.
It took me many months of reading and learning all that I could about the church before I was brave enough to finally ask God. I will never forget that night. I knelt beside my bed and poured my heart out to God. I told Him how I wanted to do the right thing. I wanted to follow Him, but I was afraid. What if this wasn’t right? What if my evangelical friends were right – that Joseph Smith wasn’t a prophet? I didn’t want to be led astray. I sat quietly for a long time and finally asked – Is this really your church? Did you really appear to Joseph Smith? Slowly a peaceful feeling came over me. I felt as if I had been wrapped in love. And I knew. I knew in my heart and in my mind. Yes, Joseph Smith really saw God. Yes, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church.
I have never regretted my decision to join the church. Over the years I have grown closer to my Heavenly Father. I have learned to love my Savior, Jesus Christ, and to truly understand all that He has done for us. I am grateful for His sacrifice and the atonement. I know that someday I will return to live with Heavenly Father again. I know that He loves me and that He does answer our prayers. I know that He wants each of His children to know the truth and that if they will ask, He will testify to them just as He did to me.

Personal Stories

How has the Holy Ghost helped you?

Heavenly Father never wants us to be alone. He wants us to always be able to feel His presence. To accomplish this, He has given us the Holy Ghost. I am so grateful for the Holy Ghost in my life. The Holy Ghost comforts me when I am sad or lonely. He helps me know when I read my scriptures that what I am reading is true. He testifies to me of Gospel principles and helps my faith grow. But I am most grateful for the times that the Holy Ghost protects me from danger. For example, I love to garden and one day as I was clearing rocks from the soil near my home, I saw something scurry out from under one of the rocks that I had moved. I thought it was just one of the little lizards that are so abundant in the desert. As I reached over to pick it up to show my son, the Holy Ghost whispered very strongly, "Don't touch it!" As I looked more closely I discovered that the "little creature" was not a lizard, but a scorpion instead. I am severly allergic to scorpions and being stung would have made me very sick. I am grateful that I had the Holy Ghost to warn me that morning. Heavenly Father does love each of His children and I know that if I listen carefully He will protect me.

How I live my faith

I have the wonderful opportunity to work with the young women, ages 12-18, of the church. I have learned so much from these wonderful young people. I am encouraged as I see these beautiful girls stand for what is right. Sometimes they must stand alone, but they know that the blessings of obedience far out weigh the momentary pleasures of this world.
When I look at them, they seem to have a special "glow." They know they are daughters of God. They know Heavenly Father loves them. They know Jesus Christ is their savior. And this knowledge gives them the strength they need to face the challenges of our world today. I am so proud of them!

Do you really believe there is a prophet like Moses alive today?

Toni answered...

The world we live in can be very confusing. There are many people trying to tell us what to do and how to live. It can be difficult to know what is right and who to trust. Before I learned about the church, I would read about the prophets in the Old Testament. I would often think how lucky those people were to have a prophet that would lead and guide them through the difficulties of this world. I wondered why God would give those people someone to guide them, but would seemingly leave us all alone. It just didn't seem fair, after all aren't people today just as lost and confused as the people of the Old Testament?
I was really excited when I learned that God has given us a prophet today. He has given us someone to lead us and guide us through these confusing and dangerous times. There is someone who can tell us what is right. There is someone we can trust to help us find the path to our Heavenly Father. We do have a prophet today and if we follow his counsel we will be safe.
Steven answered...

Definitely! In fact, it is hard for me to imagine the world without them. We live in difficult times with wars, economic uncertainty, and just issues and questions that are unique to our generation. Prophets are able to speak with God and relay critical guidance to us that help us to always know what God would have us do.

I believe God loved His children enough in the 'old' days to send His prophets to guide and teach them. He is unchanging, and loves us equally and continues to always have His prophets give us instructions that pertain to our generation.

Why are only some Mormons allowed into temples? Is there something secret going on in Mormon Temples? What goes on in Mormon Temples?

Don answered...

Recently I taught a Sunday School lesson about the Apostle Paul who was cast into jail because of being falsely accused of taking non-jews into the holy parts of the ancient temple. The penalty for doing so was death. It caused me to think of the sacredness of the temple, and that people throughout history have gone through a preparation process in order to approach God through temple worship.

In our time, both members of the church and non-members who have not prepared are turned away from the sacred parts of the temple not because of secrets, but rather due to the sacred nature of the temple and the preparation required to go there. Anyone can go to the temple, given they prepare themselves and demonstrate that preparation in a visit with those responsible for qualifying persons for entrance to the temple.

I love the peace that comes from being in the temple, having prepared myself to approach the Lord in His house. I feel His Spirit there. I am grateful that others who are there have prepared themselves in the same way.

Anyone who wants to know more about the nature of the temples can ask any missionary what it takes to qualify to go there. My personal experience and witness is that it is worth qualifying oneself and experiencing the beauty and peace that is constantly there.