Hi, I'm Stephen

I am a foster parent and I work with at-risk youth. I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I come from a large family, 56 including great-grandchildren, and family has always been important to me. The family structure was my course of study in college and that love has led me to work with at-risk youth and to be a foster parent with my wife. I have always been involved with sports from little league to football and wrestling. I also love outdoor activities, especially hiking, biking and camping and still try to get out and hike mountains in the valley as often as I can. My wife and I have 3 adopted kids, 2 through the foster system, and we enjoy giving them the same experiences with the outdoors that we had growing up. We have two beagles whom we take with us on all of our adventures. I have volunteered at 2 local high schools as an assistant wrestling coach. I also volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America and enjoy teaching youth about all of the fun that is waiting for them in outdoor activities.

Why I am a Mormon

The short answer to why I am a Mormon is that I have a witness through the Holy Ghost that it is true. The long answer is that despite being raised in this church, I had to gain my own testimony that the restored gospel was true. Whether it was answers to prayers, moments of inspiration, quiet confirmations while reading the scriptures or one of the thousand other small experiences with the Spirit, they all add up to the foundation of my relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I don't describe these relationships as belief, because I feel like I know them. I know that they love me and provide my family and I with the things we need. I know that despite not being able to have children biologically, Heavenly Father is bringing them to my wife and I by other ways. I know that He has provided us a way to return and live with Him forever as a family. I know that this plan is so important that they called certain individuals to be witnesses through the power of the Holy Ghost. I know that when we read or hear their words, we can receive the same power as our own personal witness that these words are true. I know that despite all of the different faiths, churches, opinions, and scriptural interpretations, there is a source for God's definitive truth. I'm a Mormon, because all of these things have led me back to where I began...in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I know there are prophets and apostles on the earth today. I know that they have been given the authority to act and speak in the name of God. I know that this Plan of Salvation is taught in fullness only in this church, and having the complete knowledge about where I came from, why I am here, and where I am going is important to me. I am a Mormon, because I have received the Holy Ghost and trust in its assurance.

Personal Stories

Please explain the part prayer plays in your life?

One of my more recent experiences with prayer has to do with inspiration and trusting God's promises. My wife and I can't have children naturally, so we use adoption and foster care to build our family. We had a foster placement of 2 beautiful girls whom we loved deeply and felt were supposed to be part of our family. When CPS was nearing the point of severing the final parental rights allowing us to petition for adoption, they found an aunt that agreed to take custody. We prayed constantly for guidance and reassurance that God's will would be done. Each time I felt peace that the girls would stay with us. My wife went to the first transition meeting with this aunt and the girls. She came away doubtful, because this aunt was so excited to get the girls back in their family. I tried to hold onto that feeling of peace, but I started to waiver too. After many prayers that week, I was at a church meeting when I felt the Holy Ghost very strongly. God had chosen that time to give me the reassurance that I needed. I had an overwhelming sense of peace and had the undeniable reassurance that no matter how things appeared right now, these girls would not leave our home and custody. My wife went to the second meeting and not 4 hours afterwards, she received a call from this aunt, who was in tears. This aunt hadn't realized that we wanted to adopt the girls and knew in her heart that she wasn't supposed to have them. She said that she was going to remove her request for custody. Ten months later we finalized the adoption and had these girls sealed to us for all eternity. I know that prayer was the only way for us to receive the peace and confirmation we needed to get through this trial. Our Heavenly Father puts obstacles in our way for a reason and always gives us the blessings we need to overcome if we rely on His strength.

How I live my faith

Service is an interesting part of membership in this church, because we don't pay anyone to preach or lead. We serve by assignment or calling and the callings change. We are all expected to participate even if it starts out in small ways. Luckily as we grow our love for Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, we grow our desire to serve. I have had the privilege of serving in dozens of callings from as early as 12 years old. My opportunities have been as varied as teaching members in their homes, teaching in formal classes, speaking in church, visiting the sick in hospitals, performing priesthood blessings for the sick, organizing service projects and fundraisers, working with youth in scouting, assisting the congregational leader known as a bishop, and serving 2 years full time as a missionary in Washington D.C. Formal opportunities to serve are only part of how I live my faith. When we accept the gospel and are baptized, we lay down our old life and become a new person patterned after Jesus Christ. That means we try to do the things that He did. Helping a random person in need wasn't a calling or assignment, but He did it because it was the right thing to do. Likewise some of my most meaningful service has come because I listened to a prompting to help a stranger. I think that is when I feel the greatest connection to my Savior, the random opportunities for little acts of kindness.

What do Mormons believe about Jesus Christ? Do Mormons believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God?

Stephen answered...

We believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and the savior of the world. He performed the atonement so that all of us could overcome sin and death to return and live with Heavenly Father again. We believe that before being born He was known as Jehovah. The scriptures tell us that Jesus Christ is the "only begotten of the father." This means that Jesus didn't have an earthly father, but God the Father. Since Heavenly Father cannot die, this gave Jesus power over his own death. Jesus lived a perfect live without committing one sin. Because of His sinless life and His power over His own death, he was able to perform the act that took upon Him all of our sins. It was such a physical and spiritual burden, that He sweat great drops of blood. Three days following His death and burial, He was resurrected to a glorious body and promised redemption from death to all of us on earth. We believe that we must accept Jesus as our personal savior, exercise faith unto repentance, and take upon us His name to be saved in heaven. Once we enter into His grace, we believe it is our call to share our testimony with anyone who will listen.
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Nathan answered...

I go to college in what many people consider the "bible belt" of America. Many people assume I'm not a christian or that I don't believe in Jesus Christ as the literal Son of God. Most people don't realize just how christian our faith is and they're usually surprised at how similar many of our beliefs are. The truth is Jesus Christ is the Son of God and there is no other name by which people can be saved. Jesus Christ is my savior and the Savior of the world. His goodness is available to all and brings happiness to anyone who reaches out to Him.

Why do some call Mormonism a cult?

Suzanne answered...

I don't know. Quite honestly when labels are used I think this comes from someone's desire to quickly explain away something that they don't understand. If they really took a hard look at the church it would be easy to tell that Mormons do not blindly follow any human being. I think maybe someone who might use that label could look at the level of commitment and obedience found among the members of this church and casually explain this away as blind obedience. They certainly do not see the personal struggles and the effort that maintaining a personal relationship with God requires. Like most Mormons I think, I do what I do out of devotion and love. It may start out as duty and habit, but as I have come to know God and His mercy and love (the big picture) I can't help but want to keep the commandments. I don't follow a person, I follow God and His Son and they help me every step of the way.