chocolate cake

Say your best friend has some chocolate cake. It's the best chocolate cake in the entire universe. Your approaching the end of your life and you are finally told about this bomb cake, even though your friend has had it all along. Wouldn't you be ticked if they had never shared that cake with you?

Well, I have a cake. It's pretty much the sweetest cake there is, and I've not really been the best at sharing it. Not because I don't want to, but because I'm never totally sure how. So I'm going to try to now. We're talking about some dope Mormon cake. The cake of the gospel. Jesus cake? Is that sacrilegious? Anyway...

I was born into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I've been to a couple other churches throughout my life and I've had friends of all kinds of religions. Honestly, I haven't done much exploring outside of Mormonism, but I've also never felt the need to. I like the taste of my Mormon cake. I know it's the right cake for me. And I love it with all my heart. And when you love something, you share it with the people you love.

I know that most of my readers are Mormon as well, so I'll spare the details of the establishment of the church, but if you are interested, you can look here for information on the people, values, and beliefs of the church. And if you have any questions ever about our beliefs, my inbox is just a click away!

I think the one of most comforting thing about being a Mormon is the belief system and community that ensures that you never have to feel alone. In the church there is a strong focus on family. In fact, the older I get the more I recognize that while on this earth, our family, by blood, by community, and eternally, is the most important aspect of our lives. Due to this focus on the family unit, there is a very strong sense of family beyond the bonds of marriage or birth. We refer to each other as brother and sister just as naturally as we would call someone by their first name. We talk about our ward family or in single's wards, our family home evening brothers, sisters, and parents. The family is the basic unit, and not just by name, but by connection. Even when you may not know the people in your congregation as best as you could, it is easy to love them and feel connected with them.

And the most important aspects of these familial connections are our Father in Heaven and our brother, Jesus Christ. Though many people aren't aware, the Mormon church is first and foremost, a Christian church. Christ is the very center of our beliefs. The Atonement is at the forefront of our teachings. I know that it is through the Atonement that I can be forgiven and cleansed of my sins. And that's the next great thing about my church that I want to discuss. You never run out of chances.

Each week that you attend church and take of the sacrament, you get to start over. Each time you pray and truly repent of your sins, you get to start over. And you never run out of those chances. It's not like a video game; you can't run out of repentance lives. And it's fantastic. Because we all make mistakes, a lot of them. But with my knowledge of the gospel, I know that I can repent of those things and commit to improving my life. An unlimited amount of times. And all of this is possible through Christ's sacrifice. A sacrifice he was willing to make for the whole world, but also for everyone personally.

And that's the next thing that I love about the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is so personal. We often get overwhelmed by the number of people in this world and this causes us to question our own individual worth. We wonder whether or not God truly knows who we are. We wonder if we are significant. But the LDS church makes dealing with those doubts and questions much easier. God does know us and loves us personally. We each have a role in His divine plan.

The final thing I want to share about the church I love so much is the role of prophets. Many people believe that prophets are a thing of the past, a key aspect of the ancient church, but no longer necessary in our time. Others believe that God has left our world without prophets because He no longer loves us or desires to communicate with us. I know that latter reasoning is false, because I have felt God's love and I know he would not leave His children on earth without guidance. And the first reasoning just does not sit right with me. If Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8), why would the organization of His church change?

The LDS church is one of the only churches that believes that prophets and their communication with God are still present today. The blessing that comes with this is that we are still privileged to hear revelations that are specific to our time. We do believe in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, however they are ancient documents. These books or scripture are essential, but modern revelation gives us guidance for our day. Twice a year, we are able to listen to the words of these prophets and apostles in their General Conference addresses. This October marks the 185th Semiannual General Conference of the Church* (the 185th Annual General Conference being held in April of this year). I am so grateful for the opportunity to hear the words of God specific to my time and my life.

So that's my chocolate cake. You can choose what you do with it. But know that I love this cake. I love it with all my might, mind, heart, and strength. And because of that love, I want others to know about it too.


*This can be watched here on October 3rd and 4th at 10am and 2pm MST. If you are at all interested in the church or what I have written in this post, I HIGHLY recommend tuning in for a bit!

reform: immigration and attitude

If there's one thing to know about my opinions of the upcoming presidential election it's that I am strongly opposed to Donald Trump and I am terrified by the idea of him running this country. He's running his campaign on the slogan "Make America Great Again." How does he plan to do so? By getting rid of people he considers lesser Americans. In fact, if you go to his campaign website, the only thing under his positions tab is his stance on immigration reform. It's central to his campaign and it would be central to his presidency (and let's just hope it doesn't go that far).

His immigration policy relies on several things: making Mexicans build the wall keeping them out of our country, increasing security and the processing of documentation, and deporting all illegal immigrants, including the discontinuation of birthright citizenship.

Let's ignore the fact that this would most likely cause more strain on our economy than it would benefit it and focus on the social issues it would cause domestically. It will cause unnecessary conflict between the US and Mexico. And of course, in this situation, the US will make itself the bigger, scary superior and force Mexico into compliance. It would increase segregation and discrimination in our communities and it would revert us even further into civil rights issues.

In America, we are so surrounded by freedoms and rights that we cannot comprehend life without them. We fail to understand that other countries are far behind us when it comes to political advancement. (We also fail to see how other countries are surpassing us, but that's another topic). Essentially, we have it good here (though there is always room for improvement). And other people recognize that too.

Here's something to understand about immigration, whether legal or illegal. These individuals are choosing to leave their home country for a country that widely disapproves of them because they believe living here will be better for their future. They are leaving everything they know and risking the chance of being sent back to it in order to pursue potential opportunity for a brighter future. I think that says something about the state they are in. That decision deserves compassion from our side.

We also have to note how difficult and time-consuming it can be to enter the US and gain citizenship on a legal basis. There are policies in document retrieval that cause people to be stuck in the process. When it takes years in order for spouses to be reunited because getting a visa is too difficult, it is clear there are problems to be solved.

We do need immigration reform, in the sense that we need to show compassion to individuals fleeing their home land to find better lives for themselves and their families. We need to provide means for individuals to gain citizenship so they can attain jobs to support their families. We need to speed up the process of documentation so people can reside with their loved ones legally.

Take for example, the refugee situation in Syria. As Americans, we are encouraging Europe to take in these Syrian refugees so they may escape their distressed and war-torn country. Over one-third of Syria has left or is attempting to leave. Their situation is so dire, that a large portion of the population is attempting to leave their homes. And we are in strong support of them doing so. We are telling European countries to open their borders to those less fortunate than themselves. However, we sit here in our homeland telling people that they cannot reside here because they are somehow a strain on our economy and resources. They are in similar situations. They are trying to escape danger and empty futures, yet we turn them away for our own benefit. It's selfish and hypocritical.

Despite your religious beliefs or views of creationism, we are all occupants of this world. Despite who you believe created the world, or how we ended up here, it is dangerous to assume that our occupancy dictates a right to regulate the existence of others on this land.

According to my own personal beliefs, God gave us this world for our mortal existence. He created the mountains and oceans and skies. He provided them as a location for us to live, experience mortal life, gain physical bodies, and grow closer to Him spiritually. It is such a blessing that we get to occupy this earth at the same time as billions of other people. We get the pleasure of interacting with thousands of people throughout our lives. However, we are self-righteous enough to believe that we have some right to decide where they fit with us on a social scale. We feel like we have the power to decide where they are allowed or not allowed to exist. We have taken this world that was given to us and made it into a power system. We attribute ourselves power over others, while ignoring the highest power of all.

Would God stop illegal immigrants from pursuing a brighter future because they don't reside in the country according to the laws of man? Of course, it is essential that we respect these laws, but nothing is said about changing them.

No matter what your current stance on immigration is, please take a moment to have compassion on these people who are leaving their comfort zone because they no longer feel comfortable there. Take time to love people who have the same goals as you, to find success and strength for themselves and their families. Take time to recognize the needs and desires of others, even if it does impede on your own personal or community ease. We are making the mistake of thinking that our personal gain is always the most important.

Throughout adolescence and early adulthood, I have come to recognize that the best way to view politics is not to reflect on our personal beliefs, but to look outwardly. What is best for us is not always best for the whole.