Elder James J. Hamula, General Authority Seventy, Released and Excommunicated

Hello, all! Sad news today from the LDS Church. Our leaders announced that Elder James J. Hamula, a General Authority Seventy, had been released and excommunicated from the LDS Church. The Church rarely provides public explanations for this course of action, and this instance is no different. For details of what is known about this matter, click here and here. I appreciate that this issue was handled with sensitivity, respect, and in accordance with Church policy. As more becomes known about this in the coming days, I will pass that information along. For now, thanks to you all for the privilege of your time, and may the Lord bless you all.

Continuing the report of the Fair Mormon Conference: Address given about role of religious faith

As the above title implies, I am focusing this post on another address given during the FairMormon Conference. That address, given by Daniel C. Peterson, highlighted the importance of faith (particularly in the gospel and the various aspects thereof) as a grounding force against doubt, discouragement, and a whole host of worldly ills. While I do not feel I could do a better job of summarizing Brother Peterson's remarks, I do want to testify that I know for myself what a grounding force my faith has been as I continue an ongoing battle with depression, anxiety, and a whole host of other challenges. Some have criticized me for spending so much time on blogging about such trivial things when my time could be better spent elsewhere (such as taking care of my family through employment). However, at times when I have felt overwhelmed by my health and the associated conditions thereof, getting lost in Church news and passing it along to loyal readers has indeed kept me from becoming too overwhelmed by the enormity of what I am feeling. So I know that Brother Peterson knows what he's talking about. I have always used study of the gospel (and developments related to that) to help me cope with things, and while I cannot do much with my days right now (by the standards of others who may not have so much to deal with), my blogging about subjects close to my heart, like this one, definitely has helped and improved my perspective on things. So again, thanks to you all for the ongoing interest and support, including the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish you all the best.

Sister missionary dies in Guatemala

The Church News reported this tragic story about how a sister missionary serving in Guatemala was electrocuted to death. It is always hard to hear of such deaths, but I hope the family takes comfort in knowing that their missionary passed away while serving the Lord as she always desired to, and that she is surely carrying on that sacred missionary work beyond the veil, and that they will be reunited with her again someday. In the meantime, this is a great opportuinity for us to be reminded of the importance of praying for the safety and success of all who serve the Lord in such capacities. May the Lord bless this family and continue to bless all those who serve as his emissaries in any capacity is my humble prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.