A few years ago a close friend was over at my house visiting with my wife (we will call her Ashley). As I entered the room Ashley said she wanted to tell us about a conversation she had with one of her longtime friends. Ashley’s friend called the day before to let her know she experiences same-sex attraction. They had a good talk about the gospel and what this means for her spiritual journey going forward. Ashley was touched that this person felt comfortable enough to share this information with her. Ashley said it was remarkable how much compassion she felt towards her friend because she cared about her so much.
Adult leaders probably feel pretty hip now that they have their own Facebook account. Sorry to tell you this, but that was totally last decade! Facebook has a problem, and they know it. The youth are bored with Facebook and many don’t even bother to check their feed regularly. Apps like Snapchat provide a more dynamic experience that appeals to the youth. So if you only have a Facebook account to stay in touch with your youth, it might be time to join the world of 2016.
Like any Mormon boy who was raised going to a church with an indoor gymnasium, I love playing basketball. It was one of the focuses of my teenage years and it taught me many life lessons. One of the great things about basketball is you can learn so much about the character and personality of individuals that are on the court. A manager would have an easier decision about whom to hire by watching them play a pick-up basketball game compared to a sit-down interview. The only problem is, this would require each person you interview to have fundamental basketball skills. Many would look like confused rodeo clowns if you pushed them onto the hardwood.
Sesily Lee is an inspiring Relief Society president in Las Vegas, Nevada. If you are an avid listener to this podcast you might remember her husband, Trent Lee, when I interview him prior. It was a fantastic episode and this one might be a little better. 🙂
In this interview we hear Sesily’s engaging story of conversion as she grew up in a less-active home and had many influential people in her life that guided her to the gospel. She married in the temple and currently has a beautiful family as she serves as Relief Society president.
Links:
Her husband’s How I Lead interview
Elder Holland’s talk, “An High Priest of Good Things to Come”
Jeff Case is a clinical psychologist, former elders quorum president, return missionary, and gay Mormon. In this interview we primarily focus on the basics a ward leader need to understand about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, personality disorders, suicide, and other mental illnesses. It’s a fascinating discussion with best practices of how to help these individuals find a place in the walls of the church and really feel apart of the ward.
We take a few minutes at the end of the episode to discuss what life is like being a gay, married (to a woman), active Mormon.
Listed below is a collection of ideas wards have used for their Father’s Day gift. If you have an idea that should be added to the list, comment on this post and it will be added to the list. Be sure to check back because this list will definitely grow....
Dan Clark is an award winning motivational speaker and best selling author. He has traveled to 59 countries in the world motivating the masses to create a life of significance. He has also served as a Young Single Adult (YSA) bishop (twice). I first came across Dan’s speaking ability when I listened to his BYU Devotional. It inspired me to be a better leader in the Church and it inspired me to get him on the podcast as soon as possible. After a few miraculous encounters, I was able to meet Dan and he willingly agreed to sit down with me for an interview.
This is definitely one of the top 3 interviews I have done on Leading Saints and I am excited to share it with you. We discuss his young football career at the University of Utah, how he became a motivational speaker, his time teaching public speaking at BYU, how he was called as a YSA bishop, what he learned from that calling, how to run a linger-longer, how to increase the rate of marriage in a YSA ward, how to increase the quality of teaching in a ward, the power of stories and how to record them, and other basic guidance for public speaking in church.
In 2016 Leading Saints conducted a survey about ward mother’s day gifts. We got a response from 172 females and 51 males. The good news is, most sisters want chocolate from their ward family and most sisters usually get chocolate. If you take one thing away from...
Neylan McBaine was born and raised in New York, New York. She is the founder of the Mormon Women Project and the author of the book Women at Church: Magnifying LDS Women’s Local Impact.
In this episode we discuss the ways local leaders in the Church can consider ways to bring more purpose to women in their wards and branches. It’s a fascinating discussion and it will bless the lives of all leaders that listen.
