Hi, I'm Alesia

I grew up on a farm in Wyoming. I love microbiology. I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I love science--chemistry, biology, microbiology, you name it! I went to school at Brigham Young University and got my bachelor's degree in Clinical Laboratory Science. I did diagnostic laboratory testing at a regional hospital in Idaho. I met my husband hiking in Yellowstone National Park. We have two children, and I love being home with them while my husband goes to school. I hope I can use my knowledge of science to teach them about the wonders of the world around them and encourage them to be curious about how things work.

Why I am a Mormon

I grew up going to church and knowing about the gospel of Jesus Christ. I was taught about it from a very young age. When I was sixteen, I was accepted to the U.S. Congressional Page program and spent my junior year of high school several thousand miles away from home. While I was there, my testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel really solidified. I didn't have anyone telling me to pray, or read my scriptures, or go to church. I had to do it because I wanted to. As I lived the way I had been taught, I found answers to my prayers, and I knew the Lord knew me and loved me. I found out for myself that the church was true, and as I have gotten older, attended college, gotten married, and started a family, I am even more sure of my testimony of the gospel.

Personal Stories

What has helped develop greater harmony in your home?

Each week, our family has Family Home Evening. This is a time when we get together as a family, sing songs, have a prayer and a lesson about a principle of the gospel, and play games. It has helped our family to be closer together as we have set aside the time to be together every week. Our lessons are short as we have a two-year-old to keep occupied, but even these short lessons help us feel the Spirit in our home.

How I live my faith

I am currently serving as the ward music chairman. I love music, so this calling is great for me. I have learned so much about how music can invite the Spirit of the Lord as we listen and learn from the gospel messages found in music. I love the hymns of the Church and the stories of the early Saints and how much the hymns meant to them. I love listening to prelude music as I attend church. The teachings and doctrines of the gospel can truly be found in the music of the Church.

What are Mormon Temples used for?

Alesia answered...

We believe that in order for us to live with our Father in Heaven after we die, we each need to receive certain ordinances, like baptism. Some of these ordinances are performed in our temples. After we receive a temple recommend, which states that we have been interviewed by our local leaders and are living the standards of the church, we can go to the temple and participate in these ordinances for ourselves and for those who did not have the opportunity to receive the ordinances while they were living. Since temples are the House of the Lord, we can feel of the Holy Spirit and receive answers to our prayers as we attend worthily. Temples are also important to families. In the temple, we can be sealed to our family members. This means that families can be together forever, even after death. Temples are special places where we can focus on feeling the Spirit and leave the cares and troubles of the world behind for a little while.
Corey answered...

A temple is a house of the Lord, a place where we may worship our Heavenly Father and feel of His presence. It is a sacred place where no unclean thing can enter. Because of the importance and sacredness of the temple, a temple recommend is required and is received based on individual worthiness within the church in order to enter its holy walls.

The temple is where I go to find answers, to find peace, and to feel the Spirit. We are encouraged to go as often as possible and to attend seeking Spiritual guidance. Inside we perform sacred ordinances for ourselves and more often for others, those who are deceased. God requires that all to make covenants in order to return to His presence and many died without the opportunity to make these covenants. In the temple we perform the ordinances for them in their name giving them the opportunity to reject or accept the ordinance and thus enter into the presence of the Father. The temple is a very sacred and holy place.

Why do some call Mormonism a cult?

Jeff answered...

I think some call Mormonism a cult mainly because they don't understand what it's about. Before I was a Mormon, I used to believe that Mormons did not believe in the Bible, in Jesus Christ and a good deal of other things. I didn't realize how incorrect I was. There have been some pretty amazing things that have happened in conjunction with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and if you don't get the whole picture, then some of the stuff can sound pretty odd, and I think that's where I was before.
An example I sometimes use is: if someone told you that he had cut a man with a knife, from that limited piece of information, you'd probably report him for stabbing someone. But if you found out that this someone was a Doctor, and that he was preforming a surgery to save a man's life, having the full story completely changes your perspective on the situation.
In regards to the church I belong to, once I did have the whole story, I could see that Mormons were not cultish, but that they really are in fact Christians. I've even found that I have a stronger love of the the core things I believed before I was a Mormon, like the Bible and Jesus Christ.