Hi, I'm Sally

I'm a full-time student going for Early Childhood Education. I am an avid reader. I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I was fortunate to grow up in the church. When my parents got engaged, they decided they wanted religion to be a part of their future family. Thankfully, this church caught their attention, and it was the first and last place they looked. They were married in July of 1988, baptized in October, sealed in December of 1990, and I was born in August of the next year, with my brother following two years later. We aren't a perfect Mormon family, but my parents tried their hardest to teach my brother and I the gospel (especially when they were still learning most of it themselves), and I will be forever grateful to them for doing so. I grew up in the same church building my whole life. Leaving my family and my ward family for my first semester of college was one of the hardest things I've ever done. After going to school where there was a very small branch and no YSA program to speak of, I felt the lack of church involvement having a negative effect on my life. I came back for my second semester Freshman year, and just finished my Sophomore year. while I have been going to school, I have also been attending my YSA program's FHE and institute every week for over a year and have grown so much as a person. My testimony of this church and everything that that encompasses has grown immensely, and I have learned so much more about myself. I'm excited to move out again and to go to a church school in the fall with my new appreciation for having the presence of church programs in my life.

Why I am a Mormon

When I was younger, I went to church because my parents did. After all, who sets the example for us early in life? But the love they taught me to have for the gospel carried over into my pre-teen and teenage years. As a child, they taught me to ask for myself whether it was true; so as I became older and was no longer content with surviving off of others' testimonies, I had those lessons to lead me in the right direction. I spent a lot of time in my adolescence worrying whether or not I actually had my own testimony, or whether I had just been spoon-fed the gospel my entire life and went along with it because I didn't know anything else. There is a story that I heard once that I have never been able to find again, but has still stuck with me, that addressed this issue. It compares receiving a confirmation that the gospel is true to a flood of light in our minds. Children that grow up in the gospel have minds that are constantly exposed to the light of the Spirit. So unlike adult converts that have been in darkness their whole life and then received that flood of light with the confirmation that the church is true, those people that grew up in the church that pray for their own witness of the truthfulness of the gospel receive the same flooding of light, only it does not have the same effect after they have been exposed to this light all their lives. After understanding I did not need to have an extravagant experience while praying for myself, I realized I had building my testimony my whole life. I have felt the Spirit testify to me many times that Joseph Smith truly did see God the Father and His son Jesus Christ, that he restored Christ's church to the earth, that the Book of Mormon and the Bible are words of God, that we truly have prophets on the earth today, and that God hears and answers prayers. I cannot deny the testimony that I have been given, and I cannot live without the sweet feelings of joy, happiness, and peace that this gospel brings.

How I live my faith

Much of my time is spent in church programs because I have learned to love the influence that it has in my life. Every Sunday I spend three hours in church. The first hour is spent taking the sacrament and listening to speakers from within our congregation talk on gospel subjects. Then at this point in my life I spend my next two hours in my calling, or assignment, in the Primary, which is an organization of all the children ages 3-11. It's a wonderful chance to help teach them the basics of the gospel and to have a positive influence in their lives. It is one of the times I am most able to feel Heavenly Father's love for others. On Monday nights my YSA (Young Single Adult) program has FHE (Family Home Evening). It is a great opportunity to be with other people my age that have the same standards and values that I do. We have fun while helping each other grow in the gospel. We also have Institute classes every Thursday night to learn about different areas of the church; we just finished a unit about building an eternal marriage. But outside of actual church activities, the best way I know how to live my faith is by setting an example. The best way I know how to show other people what I believe is by conforming my actions to the gospel and by using the example of my Savior Jesus Christ in everything that I do.

Why don’t women hold the priesthood in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? How do Mormon women lead in the Church?

Sally answered...

Women do not hold the priesthood because that is how God has made it. Even so, women still have an equally important part in His plan. We are blessed with the gift of motherhood, and the ability to bring human life into existence. We also have our own chances to serve within and outside of the church. We have our Relief Society, consisting of women ages 18 and up, which is a program within the Church founded by Joseph Smith to meet the needs of those around us. There is one in every congregation of the entire church, and every woman has the potential to lead or to participate. We also serve in the Primary, which is the organization of children ages 3-11. We take part in the teaching and rearing of these young souls presenting the opportunity to lead and to serve as well. There is also the Young Women organization, that consists of girls ages 12-18. Women are needed to preside in this organization as well as to teach and lead these girls. There is no other church or organization on the earth that is more set up for the equality of men and women.
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Kathryn answered...

As a primary president in my ward, I share in the direction and leadership of our ward. I don't feel secondary in any way. Whether you have the priesthood or not, you are still responsible to listen to the direction of the Savior. The priesthood is a tool and power that is the same power of the Savior. It allows the human authority to do work on earth, particularly perform ordinances, and bless others. As if the Savior was here in person during His ministry accounted for in the New Testament. I would use an analogy to compare the priesthood as a car. A car is an amazing tool allowing you to get you from here to there. I don't mind my husband driving and I can offer some navigation or work the radio, as long as we and our children get there.

What is the Book of Mormon?

Ben answered...

We believe in a loving Father in Heaven who desires all of his children to have His precious word. "Know ye not that there are more nations than one? Know ye not that I, the Lord your God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above and in the earth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth?" (2 Nephi 29:7).

Of course, with any thing concerning God, it is important to find out, personally, if the work is true. What better source can we trust than God Himself? Through prayer we can know, independently of anyone else, where the truth lies concerning any matter.

In the introduction to the Book of Mormon we read: "We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost." I testify that this pattern of revelation is true. If we take the time to study it out in our minds, ponder upon the truth and ask God, in faith with desire to act upon our answer, that we will receive. He has answered me, and He will answer you when you ask in faith.