Hi, I'm joan patterson

I was born in a military family and traveled and lived throughout the world during my live. From Japan to Brazil and beyond.

About Me

I am a Mother of six children, Twelve grandchildren and two great grandchildren. I love to spend time outside doing sport activities. My favorite pass time is scuba diving and horse back riding.

Why I am a Mormon

Growing up in a different church created a lot of questions about the validity of the Bible. The Book Of Mormon has help me better understand the Bible and what Christ really wants from us as his saints on earth.

How I live my faith

I currently teach the 16 - 18 year olds in the church. They constantly have many questions about living the gospel and relating to the word of God. They keep me young at heart.

What do Mormons believe concerning the doctrine of grace?

Matt Gibson answered...

We believe in grace 100 percent . No one can be saved, except by grace. There is nothing we ourselves can do to earn eternal life. But, we do believe that we will NOT receive grace unless we live our lives in accordance with what Christ has taught. When Christ ransomed us, became the author of our salvation, and also the perscriber of the conditions of repentance. He's told us that we need to have faith in him, repent, and be baptized for the remissions of sins, so that we may be sanctified by the Holy Ghost. He also told us that we need to endure to the end, meaning continue to strive to live by his teachings, otherwise we cannot be saved by grace. There are many today who teach that baptism is not necessary because it is a "work". We know that Christ set the example to make it perfectly clear. He also said in John chapter 3 verse 5, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
You might be thinking now, "what about those who never got a chance to be baptized?", well Heavenly Father is perfectly fair, and that opportunity will be provided for everyone to make that decision, whether in this life or in the next. The point of Baptism is making covenants. Without making these covenants Christ cannot give us grace.
Hence the doctrine of grace, and doctrine of works, coinside with each other. One cannot be without the other.
Carlos answered...

There is a passage from the Book of Mormon that can help us understand the doctrine of grace:

"And the way is prepared from the fall of man, and salvation is free... there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah... he shall make intercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved"

We fully belive in justification and reconciliation by grace - it is an essential doctrine of the Church, and is found repeatedly throughout the Bible and the Book of Mormon.
Anyone who believes in Christ shall be saved and inherit all that the Father has; however, we need to understand what it means to believe - we need to understand the word "believe" as Christ intended it to be understood.

The prophet Joseph Smith taught that faith is a principle of action. Yes, it's true that all we need to do to be saved is to believe, but believing isn't just a verbal declaration - true belief requires action.
Knowing that the world is full of breathable air isn't enough to live - we actually need to act on that knowledge and breathe in order to keep living. Likewise, having faith in Christ isn't just something that we say we have - we have to act on that belief. I can't honestly claim that I have faith in Christ and know that His path is the path to happiness if I'm not consistantly trying to gain that happiness.

We fully believe in salvation by grace, but it's possible to fall from grace if we lose our faith - and if we are not doing the things that Christ requires of us then we do not have true faith.
All we need to do to attain grace is to develop faith in Jesus Christ, but developing faith unto salvation in Jesus Christ is a lifetime endeavor which requires our absolute best sacrifice.

What is the role of the husband and the wife in the family?

Katie answered...

Husband and wife in a marriage are meant to be equal, partners. The husband is the head of the household and is responsible for the temporal welfare of his family. His role is to support his wife. The wife is also to support her husband and to nurture her family both spiritually and emotionally. Husband and wife are meant to work side by side in providing a safe haven from the world for their family. Their roles are different, but equally important and essential to building the family and the community.