Gathering Families

06/16/2025

"Imagine that you are an explorer in uncharted territory. To overcome the obstacles ahead, you need a source of light. Your faithfulness to God and your constant interactions with Him are the fuel for your lantern. So when you encounter dark and perilous situations, instead of walking toward them blindly, you will turn on your lamp filled with the oil of faith in Christ to shed glimmers of hope on the uncertain path. Your past experiences will increase your hope that the Lord will sustain you on your journey."
~Elder Sandino Roman

Faith: A Bond of Trust and Loyalty

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2025/04/24roman?lang=eng


Art by Mike Malm Fine Art

12/06/2024

Absolutely!

08/07/2023

"By the time Paul wrote his epistle to Roman Church members, who were a diverse group of Jews and Gentiles, the Church of Jesus Christ had grown far beyond a small band of believers from Galilee. About 20 years after the Savior’s Resurrection, there were congregations of Christians almost everywhere the Apostles could reasonably travel—including Rome, the capital of a powerful empire. Still, compared to the vastness of the Roman empire, the Church was small and often the object of persecution. In such conditions, some might feel “ashamed of the gospel of Christ”—but, of course, not Paul. He knew and testified that true power, “the power of God unto salvation,” is found in the gospel of Jesus Christ" (Romans 1:16).
--Come Follow Me, New Testament Study


August 7–13. Romans 1–6: “The Power of God unto Salvation”

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/come-follow-me-for-individuals-and-families-new-testament-2023/33?lang=eng

08/02/2023

"Women have remarkable influence. You sisters have been divinely endowed with a unique kind of discernment and strength that differs in some ways from the gifts our Heavenly Father gave His sons. These differences are intentional and eternal. They don’t make you better than a man, nor do they make you inferior to him. They just make you different—wonderfully, deliberately, everlastingly so.

Each of you must come to know what the Lord wants for you individually, given the choices before you. Once you know the Lord's will, you can then move forward in faith to fulfill your individual purpose. One sister may be inspired to continue her education and attend medical school. For another sister, inspiration may lead her to forego a scholarship to a prestigious institution and instead begin a family much earlier than has become common in this generation.

Is it possible for two similarly faithful women to receive such different responses to the same basic questions? Absolutely! What’s right for one woman may not be right for another. That’s why it is so important that we should not question each other’s choices or the inspiration behind them. And we should refrain from asking hurtful and unsupportive questions. We can all be kinder and more thoughtful of the situations in which our sisters throughout the world find themselves as they seek to follow the will of our Heavenly Father in their individual lives."
- M Russell Ballard, July 11, 2019 Instagram Post


Art by Debbie Clark Art

07/24/2023

"Among the Lord’s final words to His Apostles was the commandment “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20). While the Apostles didn’t quite make it to all nations, Acts 16–21 does show that Paul and his companions did make remarkable progress in establishing the Church. They taught, baptized, and conferred the gift of the Holy Ghost. They performed miracles, even raising a man from the dead, and foretold the Great Apostasy (Acts 20:7–12, 28–31). And the work they started continues with living Apostles today, along with devoted disciples like you, who are helping fulfill the Savior’s commission in ways Paul never could have imagined. Perhaps you are aware of people who do not know their Heavenly Father or His gospel. Perhaps you have felt that your “spirit was stirred in [you]” to share with them what you know about Him (Acts 17:16). If you follow Paul’s example of humility and boldness in sharing the gospel, you may find someone “whose heart the Lord [has] opened” (Acts 16:14).
--Come Follow Me, New Testament Study


July 24–30. Acts 16–21: “The Lord Had Called Us for to Preach the Gospel”

https://ow.ly/GZqW50Pj7jV

07/22/2023

07/19/2023

And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.
--Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-24

07/17/2023

"During His mortal ministry, Jesus Christ often challenged people’s long-held traditions and beliefs. This didn’t stop after He ascended into heaven, as He continued to guide His Church by revelation. For example, during Jesus’s life His disciples preached the gospel only to fellow Jews. But soon after the Savior died and Peter became the leader of the Church on earth, Jesus Christ revealed to Peter that the time was right for the gospel to be preached to non-Jews. The idea of sharing the gospel with Gentiles doesn’t seem surprising today, so what’s the lesson in this account for us? Perhaps one lesson is that in both the ancient and modern Church, a loving Savior guides His chosen leaders (see Amos 3:7; Doctrine and Covenants 1:38). Continuing revelation is a vital sign of the true and living Church of Jesus Christ. Like Peter, we must be willing to accept continuing revelation and live “by every word of God” (Luke 4:4), including “all that [He] has revealed, all that He does now reveal,” and the “many great and important things” He will yet reveal “pertaining to the Kingdom of God” (Articles of Faith 1:9).
--Come Follow Me, New Testament Study


July 17–23. Acts 10–15: “The Word of God Grew and Multiplied”

https://ow.ly/TMkK50PcwzE

07/13/2023

"What we do at home is the true crucible of enduring and joyful discipleship. The sweetest blessings of the restored gospel that my wife, Gladys, and I have enjoyed in our household have come from learning to know and to honor God at home and to share His love with our posterity."
--Joseph W. Sitati


https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2022/10/44sitati?lang=eng

Art by Mikko Yoshida

07/11/2023

"If anyone seemed like an unlikely candidate for conversion, it was probably Saul—a Pharisee who had a reputation for persecuting Christians. So when the Lord told a disciple named Ananias to seek out Saul and offer him a blessing, Ananias was understandably hesitant. “Lord,” he said, “I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints” (Acts 9:13). But the Lord knew Saul’s heart and his potential, and He had a mission in mind for Saul: “He is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15). So Ananias obeyed, and when he found this former persecutor, he called him “Brother Saul” (Acts 9:17). If Saul could change so completely and Ananias could welcome him so freely, then should we ever consider anyone an unlikely candidate for change—including ourselves?"
--Come Follow Me, New Testament Study


https://ow.ly/gHNE50P2425

07/08/2023

"All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose."
--The Family, A Proclamation to the World


The Family Proclamation

https://ow.ly/ztTL50P241x

Art by Caitlin Connolly

07/05/2023

“The special language of prayer follows different forms in different languages, but the principle is always the same. We should address prayers to our Heavenly Father in words which speakers of that language associate with love and respect and reverence and closeness. … “Men and women who wish to show respect will take the time to learn the special language of prayer. … “The Prophet Joseph Smith said, ‘It is a great thing to inquire at the hands of God, or to come into His presence.’ [History of the Church, 1:339.] The special language of prayer reminds us of the greatness of that privilege.”
--Dallin H Oaks


https://ow.ly/Fkco50P241o

Art by Yongsung Kim