Artwork by Jim Warren For most of my life, I have perceived the Gospel of Jesus Christ as a stairway to heaven. Like it’s a ladder I’ve been commanded to climb, deed by stalwart deed, until I eventually earn the requisite altitude for the pearly gates. It’s exhausting. I’ll tell myself, tough luck! Life wasn’t meant to be easy it was only supposed to be worth it! And along I go on the stairmaster of life, mostly happy but also miserable, because I’m viewing the Gospel in terms of ascension, when I think it is meant to be more about proximity. It’s strange, because I have always known on a logi ..read more

By Greg Barnett //  I’ve known I was gay since I was about 12 years old. I grew up in a pretty typical LDS household and had wonderful parents and leaders who were loving and supportive, so I never felt depressed, or suicidal, or like God hated me. My story is pretty atypical in that regard, and I feel very blessed because of it. To anyone who identifies as LGBTQ, know this: You are loved, and important, and valuable. You have so much to contribute, and you are not alone. Will and Sarah are going to have some amazing thoughts for you, but I want to focus on everybody else. The 90 and 9, as it ..read more

This past year I have experienced a lot of change. I moved to California from Utah, scored a new job, and in turn I’ve made a lot of new friends. Within my new circle of friends I have often been asked, “What’s your story?” In the past, I was okay with watering down my history to the point in which it was so mundane, no one cared to ask follow-up questions. But I found that those interactions made it hard to form connections and develop meaningful relationships, so I decided I would take a different approach. As I’ve been asked this question over the last year, I have felt the strong need to ..read more

By Sarah Bowers //  Recently, a college student at BYU came out in public, and has since become the face of a campaign that seeks to bring awareness to the LGBT population at BYU (Faces of USGA). This student said, “I’ve been afraid to speak up for a long time because I think some people just don’t want to hear it. And I understand why; the existence of homosexuality makes things complicated. But people like me can’t be expected to carry the burden of secrecy to allow others the luxury of ignorance. We are here. I think it’s time we all stop pretending that we aren’t.” I really connect with th ..read more

Rosemary Card is the creator and founder of Q.NOOR, a clothing company whose aim is to “merge the formerly mutually exclusive worlds of faith and fashion to provide you with comfortable and beautiful temple dresses.” She is a former model, a returned missionary, an entrepreneur, and a faithful millennial Mormon.  RB: So you grew up between Salt Lake and New York City – can you tell me more about that? RC: So I was born in Salt Lake City and lived in NY with my family between the ages of 8 and 12. We moved back to Salt Lake where I started High School at East. I then moved to New York City when ..read more

Have you heard of this hot new dating app Mutual? It’s like Tinder for Mormons. At least that was what I thought until I spoke with founder Cooper Boice. Now it’s only mostly what I think. RB: Let’s get through the basic stuff. Where are you from, etc.? CB: I grew up in Carlsbad, California, served a mission in Argentina and then graduated from BYU with a degree in…finance. (We both laugh at this. He said it with such disappointment.) I moved to Arizona after graduation with no idea what I would do. I just felt like I should be there, and after a stint teaching escape & evasion classes for ..read more

1: “You are literally a daughter of the Almighty. There is no limit to your potential. If you will take control of your lives, the future is filled with opportunity and gladness. You cannot afford to waste your talents or your time.” 2: “Let me say to you sisters that you do not hold a second place in our Father’s plan for the eternal happiness and well-being of His children. You are an absolutely essential part of that plan. Without you the plan could not function. Without you the entire program would be frustrated.” 3: “There are some men who, in a spirit of arrogance, think they are superi ..read more

This post was anonymously written by a courageous friend. We are honored to share her story.  I was raped in my bedroom while wearing a baggy t-shirt and sweatpants by an acquaintance who I had invited over. I wasn’t brutally attacked in a dark alley or drugged at a party, and the only visible injuries were a few bruises. But the emotional trauma that followed nearly shattered me. I felt my entire world had crumbled, and there were days I wondered if I would ever feel peace. I felt betrayed by God and I wondered if I could trust him again. This post is not meant to be a how-to on rape recover ..read more

“What do you remember most about President Hinckley?” Our teacher asked today in Relief Society, and my mind went immediately to his optimism. I thought of his smile and the twinkle in his eye. I remembered when interviewer Mike Wallace commented that the church’s leadership was a “gerontocracy” and he responded, in that signature crackly voice, “Isn’t it wonderful?” His optimism was disarming. He was a Prophet who was unafraid of showing us his humanity. He motivated those he led by encouragement rather than discipline. He found hope in the face of recurring illness, the Great Depression, a ..read more

By: Shawn Gleason //  In our fallen state, our minds are relentlessly bombarded with negativity and adversity. This can be annoying at best, aggressive and debilitating at worst. But it is part of our earthly realities and unfortunately, it shapes the way we interpret the nature of things. As Elder Charles W. Penrose declared in 1884, “We are here to learn the laws that govern this lower world; to learn to grapple with evil and to understand what darkness is” (Journals of Discourses 26:3). This grappling of course, can be extraordinarily difficult. One man who experienced substantial darkness ..read more