Grace for Grace

This morning I was reading an excellent talk given by John H Groberg a few years back called “The Power of God’s Love.”  If you saw the movie “The Other Side of Heaven,” you will remember many stories he shares in this excellent talk.  I encourage you to read through it.

What impressed me today were the following phrases:

Since all love emanates from God, we are born with the capacity and the desire to love and to be loved.

Only as we feel God’s love and fill our hearts with His love can we be truly happy.

 

The more we obey God, the more we desire to help others. The more we help others, the more we love God and on and on. Conversely, the more we disobey God and the more selfish we are, the less love we feel.

 

…trying to find love without helping and sacrificing for others is like trying to live without eating—it is against the laws of nature and cannot succeed.

 

When we understand who God is, who we are, how He loves us, and what His plan is for us, fear evaporates. When we get the tiniest glimpse of these truths, our concern over worldly things vanishes.

 

I learned that just as rockets must overcome the pull of gravity to roar into space, so we must overcome the pull of the world to soar into the eternal realms of understanding and love. I realized my mortal life might end there, but there was no panic. I knew life would continue, and whether here or there didn’t really matter. What did matter was how much love I had in my heart.

 

 

 

…when we are ready, His pure love instantly moves across time and space, reaches down, and pulls us up from the depths of any tumultuous sea of darkness, sin, sorrow, death, or despair we may find ourselves in and brings us into the light and life and love of eternity.

As I read this, my mind went back to various times throughout my life that I’ve felt the Love of God so much that I knew without a doubt that there was a God and He loved me.  I remembered times in my life when all I wanted to do was help other people and had no worldly cares because of the love of God that was in me.  It’s a truly amazing experience.  But, as Groberg states, the pull of the world comes and it is easy to forget that love sometimes.

How does one bring God’s love back into life then?  Personally, I think an answer is found in the Book of Mosiah chapter 4 verses 11-12.  In verse 11, King Benjamin says (paraphrased) that if we have tasted of God’s love and want to retain it we have to do the following:

1. Remember God
2. Acknowledge our “nothingness” before him in humility
3. Praise Him for his goodness
4. Pray to Him
5. Stand strong in the faith.

In my life I’ve found that the best way to remember God is to read the scriptures daily and start with a sincere prayer.  I pray to God (well, try to anyways) as I would another person and thank Him for his love and patience He’s had towards me throughout my life.  I pray about my family, friends, my heart to be softened so I will love all people and see them as He does.  I pray for spiritual discernement and understanding.  I try to obey His commandments as best I know how as well.  Many times I feel the love of God in my heart very strongly.  Other times I don’t.  I believe that standing strong in the faith comes into play when we aren’t feeling the love as strongly, but we continue to try to develop a relationship with God.  And conversly, when everything is going well it is important to remember to thank God and be grateful and continue on in study, prayer, and obedience.

These are a few thoughts experiences that have helped me.  What are some things that you do to retain and/or bring back the love of God into your life?

In the book “How Wide the Divide,” Craig Blomberg from a Denver seminary and Stephen Robinson, from BYU (both have PhD’s in religion) attempt to “bridge the gap” between Evangelicals and Mormons.  The first step is to have a correct understanding of what the other believes.  The following is an excerpt from their book:

Since very few Latter-day Saints and Evangelicals are theologically bilingual, the same misunderstandings tend to be compounded over and over, which is grist for the mills of prejudice on both sides…(How Wide the Divide, page 14)

In an attempt for both Evangelicals and LDS people to learn about each other’s beliefs, both Blomberg and Robinson share a modern-day translation of “Articles of Faith” for both religions.  I will now share their thoughts.  Feel free to share yours in your comments.

LDS Articles of Faith Translated for Christians of other Faiths

1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in God’s Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.  We accept the biblical doctrine that God is three and that God is also one, but we reject the post-New Testament attempts to explain how these two truths are to be reconciled
2. We believe that humankind fell through the transgression of Adam and Eve and that humans in their present state are subject to sin, death and corruption.  However, we believe that individuals are accountable for thier own sins, not for guilt inherited from Adam and Eve.  We accept both divine justice and human accountability, but we do not believe in original sin.
3. We believe that through the atonement of Christ, fallen humanity may be saved by accepting and obeying the gospel of Jesus Christ.  No one is predestined either to salvation or to damnation; anyone may be saved who responds appropriately to the good news of Christ.
4. We believe that we respond appropirately to Christ and we accept his gospel by having faith in and being faithful to Christ as Son of God and Savior, that is, by accepting him as Lord and Savior and making him Lord of and in our lives.  We cannot merit salvation of ourselves, nor is it possible to “earn” the grace by which we are saved, but the obedience of faith, a godly walk and conversation, is a necessary component of faith in Christ.  Jesus will save us from our sins but not with our sins.  Beyond having faith in Christ, we must also repent of sin, consent to baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, and receive the regenerating and sanctifying gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands.
5. We believe that the Christianity of the first century, New Testament Christianity, is true Christianity.  As such, it is the only standard by which to define Chrisitanity, as opposed to defining it by post-New Testament councils and creeds.  We believe that the priesthood authority, church organization, spiritual gifts, sacraments (i.e. ordinances) and doctrines of the modern church must be as they were in the New Testament church.  This obviously includes the presence of apostles and prophets who receive direct, continuing revelation for the church in the world.
6. We accept the Bible (the King James Version) as the inspired word of God–every book, every chapter, every verse of it–as revealed to the apostles and prophets who wrote it.  We also hold the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price to be the word of God.
7. We believe in the divine conception, subsitutionary atonement, sacrificial death, bodily resurrection and present glory of Jesus Christ and that he will return to this earth in judgment and in his glory to cleanse it from all wickedness and to establish his personal millennial reign.  Both the saved and the lost will be resurrected, the former at Christ’s coming or during his reign, the latter at the end of th millennium.
8. We believe that the church established by Christ in the New Testament was changed by later Chrisitan intellectuals who believed the simple New Testament proclamation to be inadequate.  Feeling the language of Scripture to be unsophisticated, incomplete, vague, ambiguous or imprecise, the second, thrud and fourth-century church sougt to “improve” the New Testament gospel by the standards of Hellenistic philosophy, but compromised it instead.
9. We believe that the Lord in preparation for his imminent second coming has “restored” New Testament Chrisitanity in the latter days through the prophet Joseph Smith.  Nevertheless, all honest Christians of whatever deonmination, not just LDS Christians, will be among the saved at the last day…(How Wide the Divide, pgs 16-17)

Evangelical “Article of Faith” or “Confession Statement”

1. We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God.
2. We believe that there is one God eternally existent in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
3. We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and His personal return in power and glory.
4. We believe that for the salvation of lost and sinful man regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential.
5. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
6. We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost; they that are saved unto the resurrection of life and they that are lost unto the resurrection of damnation.
7. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. (How Wide the Divide pgs 29-30)

Today in church our bishop and some of his family members shared experiences they had while visiting Uganda, Africa.  It impressed me how he shared his testimony of how the love of God is shown in all people throughout the world and how he was so grateful for his relationship with God and Jesus Christ.

His experiences and testimony reminded me of a scripture in the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi 26:33, which reads:

…for he (the Lord) doeth that which is good among the children of men; and he doeth nothing save it be plain unto the children of men; and he ^ainviteth them ^ball to ^ccome unto him and partake of his goodness; and he ^ddenieth none that come unto him, black and white, ^ebond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the ^fheathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.

This scripture reminded me of another statement made by the Baptist Preacher who believes in the Book of Mormon, John Ridenour.  In this statement, he submits that God is non-denomonational and that God doesn’t really care about doctrine as much as he cares about how we treat each other.  A part of his statement is included below:

How does God think?

When He looks down over my city, Kansas City, Missouri, He doesn’t see Baptist churches or Lutheran churches or Catholic churches or Pentecostal churches or Mormon churches. He sees His children. That’s it. God is not “denominational.” We have over 100 denominations in our city but I submit-the Lord recognizes none of them. That is, His Church is built upon the rock of revelation that He is the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt 13). I submit-when the Lord looks down upon any city, He sees His Church-and all who have had a personal revelation that He is the Christ, the Son of the living God, are members of His Church. I’m saying–I want to view His church as the Lord sees His church–based upon a revelation of His Lordship, not doctrinal agreement. Why wait ‘till we all get to heaven to think like God thinks?

I’m also saying-too often we’re divided by doctrine. That ought not be. He who has confessed Jesus Christ as Lord & Savior is my brother in the faith. Fellowship is centered around His Lordship, not doctrine. Again–all who confess Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives, regardless of creed, color, or class, are my brothers and sisters. I like the way C.S. Lewis said it in his classic book “Mere Christianity.” Lewis says, “…it’s not that we Christians disagree; it’s that we disagree on the importance of our disagreements…” How true! Example…

For some of the brethren, it’s very important that we believe in baptismal regeneration before we will fellowship; for others it’s very important that we believe in irresistible grace (the Calvinist point of view of Salvation) before we can fellowship; with others, the will of man (Armenian point of view) plays a crucial role in one’s salvation. With some of us, we embrace the “second blessing” typically known as “the deeper life experience.” Methodists call it sanctification. Others of us do not believe in the second blessing experience. Some of us believe in the “baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit” with the evidence of glossalalia; others of us don’t. Some of us are pre-millennial regarding our views on the Second Coming; some of us are post-millennial; a few of us are amillennial. A few of us think esoteric temple rites have a role to play in the afterlife.

See what I mean? Fellowship too often is based upon doctrine.

We as mortals will never come close to seeing things the way that God does, but I think that the Book of Mormon scripture along with this statement by John Ridenour are very positive steps in starting to see things the way God does.  One of the beauties and magnificence of God is that he sees all people the same whether they believe or not.  He loves unconditionally in a way that we will never comprehend and His arms are always stretched out ready to receive us.  I believe that God blesses all people, and those who take steps of faith towards Him come to know and love Him.  As a result, we come to love and appreciate all people and see them as God sees them.

Now, I’m sure most people will agree that God loves everyone and is not partial towards one group of people, as the Bible teaches, but it leaves the questions: which doctrines and religions are recognized by God? Which ones are not?  Does it even matter?

All I can speak from is personal experience, and I firmly believe the path I’m on is the correct path.  I believe that God appeared to Joseph Smith and re-established the Church of Jesus Christ.  I believe this as a result of personal study and sincere prayer and many experiences.   However, I do not believe that the LDS church has a monopoly on truth and there are many things which haven’t been revealed to us as to how heaven works. 

I know many people in other faiths who say they’ve had just as personal of experiences and a witness from God that their path is the correct path.  I don’t doubt that God has just as close of a relationship with them as He does with me.  But if we believe there is one faith, one Lord, one baptism, etc. how can we say that God is not denominational?

I’m sure most people have heard the news by now about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints encouraging it’s nearly 1million members in California to do “all they can do” to support the initiative in November to over-turn the ruling supporting bay marriage. 

If you haven’t heard about this, you can read the following blogs:

“California Saints To Get The Call“

“Envisioning a Politically Thoughtful Church Culture“

“California Mormons Won’t Be Cool With Acts of Protest At Their Chapels“

“Mormons in California Called to Defend Marriage by Top LDS Leaders“

The letter from the LDS Prophet and his counselors encourages saints to do “all they can do” to support traditional marriages, especially in California during the upcoming vote in November. 

Someone told me of a friend of theirs who lives in California that contacted them and asked if they were supporting the Church’s call to “do all you can do” to support the ban on gay marriages.  When my friend told the person they were not supporting it, the individual got upset and self-righteously said “aren’t you going to support the Prophet?”  This in my mind is going too far and I feel that “doing all you can do” is objective and depends on the individual.  If certain circumstances cause someone to believe in gay marriage, yet they still are believing Latter-day Saints, maybe doing “all they can do” is different than someone on the opposite end of the spectrum. 

In addition, last December Elder Ballard said in an address to BYU students that the LDS Church takes a politically neutral stance.  Yet, of all the issues the LDS Church decided to go back on that statement and get politically involved with the ban on gay marriage.  Personally, I think it is fine if the Church encourages members to take a stand on what the Church feels is a moral issue, including gay marriage.  Whether or not I decided to vote for or against it is a personal choice and if it’s a moral issue I can take it to the Lord in prayer and see what I feel. 

Obviously, the two questions are:

1. What is your take on what it means to “do all you can do” to support the ban on gay marriage?

2. Should the church get politically involved?  If it gets involved with this, do you think the Church should get involved with other issues?  Why or why not?

What would you do if you heard of someone taking their son up into the mountains and tying him to a pile of rocks to sacrifice him to God?  That probably wouldn’t fly over too well, yet Christians, Muslims, and Jews all revere Abraham as a prophet.

What about a man that killed a high-ranking official and then stole valuable records from him and fled into the wilderness, claiming that God told him to do all of these things?  That’s Nephi’s story in the Book of Mormon.

How about a more recent one? A man who claimed authority from God to translate additional scripture, build temples, and practice poligamy.  That’s part of Joseph Smith’s story.

These are a few examples.  Kaimi over at By Common Consent wrote more examples from the Old Testament as well.

So why is it that some people believe in Abraham, but not the New Testament and Jesus, yet others believe in the Bible, but reject the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith?  I believe it comes down to what people want to believe, along with what they are willing to allow the Spirit to teach them.

I believe strongly in the power of the Holy Spirit to tell you the truth of all things.  Although specifically referring to the Apocropha, Doctrine and Covenants, Section 91 gives a good example of using the Spirit to decipher and determine which scriptures to follow.  Below is part of the section:

  4 Therefore, whoso readeth it, let him ^aunderstand, for the Spirit manifesteth truth;

  5 And whoso is enlightened by the ^aSpirit shall obtain benefit therefrom;

  6 And whoso receiveth not by the Spirit, cannot be benefited….

This morning I was reading in the Bible and the following verse caused me to ponder about life.  This verse is in James 4:14:

…For what is your life?  It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

As I read this verse in the Bible, I thought about Jacob in the Book of Mormon when he wrote at the end of his life in Jacob 7:26:

…the time passed away with us and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream…

As I reflected on life and the meaning of life, I also thought about a recent professor from Carnegie Melon who has been giving lectures recently called “The Last Lecture.”  He has been diagnosed with cancer and has 3 - 6 months to live.  He was recently interviewed on Good Morning America.  The interview is included below:

For his full presentation that he gives, you can watch it here:

As he states and as James and Jacob state in the scriptures, life goes by quickly.  As seen in the video, he talks a lot about achieving our dreams and our goals.  If you notice, he focuses a lot on helping others.  Let’s take some time today and reflect on our dreams and how we would treat those around us and act as if today is the last day. 

One excersize I’ve seen before is to write down the things that you would want to be known for after you are gone and strive each day to reach that goal.  Here’s an example:

I want to be known for loving God, loving and respecting others including my family, friends, and all people.  I want to be known as someone who was honest in business and respectful towards people of all races, religion, and nationalities.  I would like to be known as someone who didn’t give up on a good cause and who perservered through adversity.  Someone who smiled and laughed often and who made others feel comfortable and at ease.  I would like to be known as someone who inspired others through the things I read, talked about, and did.  At the end of my days, I’d like to enter in the kingdom of the Lord as he says “well done, thou good and faithful servant….”

Try writing one for yourself.  It’s a good experience.  After you write it, take time to think about it often.

So I was over at Rusty’s Blog and they have a cool website with a timeline of all the youtube videos.  I checked out the “Mormon” timeline and the very first one was Mormon Rap.  I remember when I was a kid and this first came out.  I haven’t heard it for 20 years but it brought back good memories and a smile listening to it again.  There are quite a few YouTube versions, but here’s a good one if you’re up for some reminiscing.  If you’ve never heard it before, be warned…it’s cheesy, but fun if you know the Mormon “lingo.”

Have fun!

06-24-08

I posted this just for fun the other day and who’d of thought it would be mentioned in an article by the Deseret News’ “Mormon Times” online.  If you read at the very end she links my “Mormon Rap” post to her article.

President Gordon B Hinckley once said:

As each man or woman walks the way of life there come dark seasons of doubt, of discouragement, of disillusionment…(April 2002 General Conference)

It was a dark day for me when I found out I was suffering from depression.  I had heard of depression and heard of others in my family suffering from depression, but I had always considered it a sign of weakness and proudly thought I would never have to deal with it.  But dealing with it was the only option in this dark season of my life.

After I found out I was suffering, I attacked it like I would a research paper.  I studied about various ways to overcome depression and asked doctors, others who had depression and listened to tons of self help CDs and read many books as well.  As I peeled the layers back to discover why I had depression and anxiety (I was suffering from panic attacks as well) I found out the type of issues I had happen fairly often with people who as young children came from broken homes.  I started dealing with overcoming those issues. 

To make a long story short, it was about a 2 year qwest before I figured out how to control my anxiety and depression.  There are way more details to this story, but the main purpose for this post was to offer some tips to those who may be suffering from anxiety and depression that have helped me be able to overcome anxiety and depression either as a supplement to medication or without using medication at all.

Steps to Overcoming Anxiety and Depression

1. Desire to Overcome

I had an intense desire to overcome anxiety and depression.  I wanted my normal life back and held an image of that in my mind.  This desire led me to complete the other steps.

2. Faith in God

Alma Chapter 34: 32-34 was what kept me moving ahead.  It reads:

32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.

33 And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed.

34 Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.

3. Midwest Center for Stress and Anxiety

A friend of mine told me about this program and how they had been able to overcome anxiety and depression without medication.  I had tried taking medication, but it didn’t feel right to me so I quit.  This program was a very useful tool for me and I still refer to it often.  I highly recommend it to anyone dealing with anxiety and/or depression.

4. Talking with a coach or mentor.

Many people who deal with certain issues from their childhood such as I did with abandonment develop negative addictions.  For me, talking with clergy was somewhat helpful, but bishops aren’t usually trained to handle these issues.  I was referred to a different program that helped me overcome my addictions and also train my thoughts.  Bishops know where these resources are.  If you are not a member of the LDS church, you can also look up various agencies such as: Alchoholics Anonomous, sex addicts annonomous, etc.  I think they have organizations for people who use drugs, have eating addictions, etc.  I believe that most of these programs will have a 12-step approach.  I found these to be very, very helpful.

5. Prayer

Again in Alma 34, it talks about praying for everything important in one’s life.  This links back to step #2, but I can’t emphasize enough how important faith in God and prayer are.  Through this experience I learned how God cares about me personally…especially when I’m at my “worst”.  I say this in quotes because we are never bad in God’s sight, no matter how good or bad our behaviors are he views us and loves us the same. 

In addition, I found that through prayer, God led me to other steps to overcome anxiety and depression.

I am very grateful to God for the gift of prayer and know that miracles happen as a resulf of sincere, humble, faithful prayers and patience.

6. Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP)

NLP is another tool I used to clear my subconcious mind.  I worked with two coaches who used NLP on me to clear negative experiences I had seared into my subconcious mind that were affecting my behaviors.  This is another highly recommended tool.  To find an NLP specialist, you can do a google search in your area.  That’s how I found mine.  I worked with Tony Husted, a Christian Coach from a non-denominational church and his biblical approach was very helpful. 

7. Learning to control thoughts

 Proverbs 23:7 says: “as he (or she) thinks in his (or her) heart, so is he (or she)”.  This is very true.  I think this is something all of us will be working on throughout our lives.  However, learning to control our thoughts is essential.  I wrote another post a couple months ago on how to overcome negative thoughts and provided a few techniques I use.  The post is called “The Gifts of the Spirit: Overcoming Negative Thoughts and Speaking with the Tongue of Angels”

8. Have a daily routine

Having a daily routine helps me a lot.  I notice that I do much better when in a familiar environment surrounded with postive things.  For me, this is my daily routine: Wake up, pray, excersize, read scriptures, make breakfast for my wife, think about daily goals, work, come home and either relax or do house chores, etc., read scriptures with wife, pray, go to bed.  Sticking to this schedule keeps me focused and my attitude stays much more positive.

8. Eat Right

Eating a lot of healthy breads, fruits, protein, and some meat has helped me a lot.  Staying away from sugar and caffeine is essential as well.  I’ve found that the promise in the Word of Wisdom is true in that I receive more health by following it’s counsel.

9. Keep a Gratitude Journal

I keep track of all the positive things that happened to me and at the end of the day I write them down.  This keeps me in a positive state and away from dwelling on the negative.

10. Listen to Relaxing Music

I have a lot of relaxation music and when I find myself getting anxious I listen to it, even if it’s in the middle of the day.  Taking 10-20 minutes to pause and unwind is very helpful.  Going to sleep with it also helps me completely relax and I’ve found I sleep much more soundly.

In conclusion, I know that if you are struggling with anxiety and/or depression how hard it can be.  Some of you may be on medication and that might be necessary or even mandatory for you, which is fine.  My main purpose is to share some things that have helped me and I encourage you to incorporate any of these things, if you haven’t already.  Also, please feel free to share any additional things that have helped you so other readers can benefit from it. 

I also want my readers to know that I know that God hears your prayers and will answer them in due time.  I’ve learned to be grateful for my experiences with anxiety and depression because I’ve learned how dependant I truly am on God and have see how great His hand can be in my life if I stay close to Him.  I pray that we can all stay close to our Father in Heaven and know that if we do, he’ll lead us through the dark and discouraging times on our lives.

In my last post I shared how Mormons and Evangelicals can get along.  I read on another blog somewhere about a Baptist preacher a few months ago and thought this was interesting to share.  This Baptist Preacher seems to have found a way to still believe in the Evangelical Jesus and the Book of Mormon Jesus.  The following links are very interesting:

 ”The Baptist Version of the Book of Mormon“

 Prophesies about the LDS church:

More about his ministry:

Staunch members of the Church of Jesus Christ may wonder how he can have a witness of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and not become one. On the other hand, Christians may wonder why he could believe in the Book of Mormon and still claim to be a Christian.

I can personally understand how he can opt not to become a member of the LDS church because there are many revelations that came after the Book of Mormon that are not included in the Book of Mormon.  Many of the truths found in the Book of Mormon are found in the Bible as well.

This is yet another example of how one can bridge the gap between Mormons and Evangelical Christians.

There are probably thousands of different definitions of the word “Christian.” We have chosen the same inclusive definition as is used by public opinion pollsters and government census offices: A “Christian“  includes any group or individual who seriously, devoutly, prayerfully describes themselves as Christian. Under this definition, Christianity includes: Roman Catholics, Southern Baptists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, United Church members, even a small minority of Unitarian Universalists, etc. (www.religioustolerance.org) 

According to this definition there shouldn’t be a divide between the various Christian faiths and Mormonism (LDS).  However, those who follow the LDS faith know they are not included and perhaps do not want to be included in the mainstream Christian faiths.  Recently there has been a push from the LDS leaders to emphasize their belief in Jesus Christ and embrace Christianity and Christians (from my experience) are not eager to welcome Mormonism to their fold.  This is due to some major theological differences and attitudes that I have observed, some of which I will address.

Theological Differences and Attitudes

• Christians believe in Creeds (that include the Trinity theology and more) Mormons do not believe in Creeds, rather they believe in revelation from modern Prophets and apostles.
• Christians may or may not believe in baptism as being necessary for salvation.  Mormons believe in ordinances such as baptism, the sacrament, marriage, etc.
• Christians believe the “church of Christ” or the body of Christ are all the Christian sects who believe in Jesus.  Mormons believe the “one true Church of Christ” is the LDS faith.
• Christians do not believe in a pre-existance and Jesus being our elder brother.  Mormons do.
• Both Christians and Mormons are passionate about their belief in Jesus and try to help others “see the light.” However, the Mormon Jesus and the Christian Jesus are not the same person if you ask a Christian. 
• Mormons believe in universal salvation to a certain extent.  Christians believe those who confess Jesus are going to heaven.  Those who don’t are going to hell.
• Mormons believe God has revealed scripture and will continue to reveal scripture through his prophets.  Christians believe the Bible to be the only word of God.

Through the years and during the past few months I’ve been reading blogs online, these differences along with other differences tend to be what Christians and Mormons alike tend to focus on.  Focusing on differences, however, causes a big riff between both Christians and Mormons (and any other people who have differences for that matter).  Is there a way to find common ground?  Is there a way to join forces for common good?  I believe there is.  I’ll outline ways I’ve found that we can bridge the Mormon/Evangelical Divide.

Bridging the Divide

• Build on Common Beliefs

Regardless of who we believe Jesus is one can not argue that whether or not He’s the same Jesus that following His teachings will result in blessings.  Personally I’ve seen miracles happen in the name of Jesus in both Mormon and Evangelical circles.  In addition, I’ve seen God bless the lives of people who follow Jesus’ teachings in both circles.  Love, faith, kindness, service, patience, prayer, etc.  These are all common things both Mormons and Evangelicals can find common ground on. 

• Don’t debate points of Doctrine

Mormons especially should be the last to argue with their fellow Christian friends about points of Doctrine.  In the Book of Mormon, Jesus clearly states that disputing points of doctrine should be done away with.  Trying to prove a point through scriptural debate will not lead to conversion and personally I’ve found that when I try to prove my point as being right and the other’s as being wrong, the Holy Spirit leaves and then I’m left to my own devises.  Building ourselves up to put others down leads to nowhere fast.

• Don’t criticize others’ beliefs and religious practices

This ones a huge one.  I’ve heard Mormons criticize other Christians and put themselves on a pedastal by saying they’re in the “one true church,” that their baptism is the only baptism, that miracles can only happen through the priesthood, and much more.  Similarly, I’ve heard Christians mock Mormons for their “boring” religious practices in church and also scoff at their temple practices.  There are many more beliefs I’ve heard both sides criticize, but regardless of what one believes, we need to make sure we don’t condemn another for their belief.

• Look for the good in every conversation

It is evident that there will be differences in belief, but even if we believe differently, it is very helpful to look for the good in every conversation we engage in.  There will usually be something both parties agree on and can build on.

• Know when not to talk, or to walk away

I’ve seen both Mormons and Christians who simply do not want to stop arguing and want to prove their point as being right.  This is when it is time to be silent as Jesus was many times when people mocked him.  Sometimes it’s better to simply not respond to an argumentative blog post, or discussion.  Sometimes it’s best to be silent and walk away.

I’ve found personally that when I follow these guidelines I have much more in common with not only other Christians, but people from all faiths and beliefs as well.   I hope this post helps both Evangelical Christians and LDS to engage in uplifting discussions and bridge the divide. 

For some other great posts on this topic I recommend the following blogs:

http://summatheologica.wordpress.com/2008/05/04/the-temptation-to-debate/#comment-358

and

http://mormonmatters.org/2008/05/03/the-nature-of-god-and-bible-bashing-sharing/