FAQ Fridays: The Word of Wisdom

I LOVE '80s music.  Love it.  My mom thought it was funny because the songs I was listening to when I graduated high school were the same songs she was listening to when she graduated high school.  One of the songs I love most is "Goody Two Shoes" by Adam Ant.  As we drove up to my college, my mom and I were talking about the social scene back in 1983 when this song was actually popular. She remarked to me that she and her friends would get asked something similar to a line in the song that says, "don't drink, don't smoke--what do you do?".  I thought it was interesting that not only our musical tastes paralleled, but also our obtrusive aversion to harmful substances upon which most of our classmates were avidly experimenting (though 25 years spanned us).  What is it about Mormon kids that make them different in that regard?  Why don't we engage in those habits and vices? Are we just a bunch of "goody two shoes"?  We don't drink, we don't smoke--what do we do?




Are Mormons just a bunch of "Goody Two Shoes"?


You may have wondered why your Mormon friends pass up the cocktails at business parties, the coffee in the break room, and never seem to have a light.  It isn't just because we're the designated drivers; our feelings regarding the use of certain things are rooted much more deeply than that. 

We believe that our bodies are sacred gifts from God.  Paul says our bodies are "temples of God", where the Holy Ghost can dwell if we don't defile them. Heavenly Father wants us to take good care of them by not using substances that damage them or rob us of our ability to choose.  That ability to choose is one of the most precious tools He has granted for us to keep His commandments and be happy.  Kind of hard to do that if you're a slave to a bottle or a little white stick.  Through the Prophet Joseph Smith, God has revealed what we should and should not put into our bodies--we should avoid coffee, tea, tobacco, alcohol, and harmful drugs because they damage us and take away that ability to choose; on the other hand, we should eat nutritiously, choosing grains, fruits, vegetables, and meat sparingly.  (**Note: nowhere in the Word of Wisdom are we forbidden to drink sodas or caffeinated beverages.  We are counseled by the prophets to abstain from things to which we may become addicted--caffeine is an easy one for many people.  Myth Busted)  We are promised incredible blessings of health, strength, knowledge, and above all, spiritual safety
if we remember to keep this "principle with a promise". 

I'm thankful for these guidelines because I have been able to enjoy a happy, healthy youth, free from a lot of the problems that early smoking, drinking, and use of drugs bring.  I am also thankful because it is evidence to me that God cares so much that it even matters to Him what I eat and drink!  That's so cool to me.  So I (and my totally hip mom--she's even on facebook, I'll have you know!) don't drink and I don't smoke.  What do I do?  I live a productive, active life, and I get to share these blessings with others.  If you are involved with these addictive substances, the Atonement of Jesus Christ can help you.  He knows what it feels like and He wants to help you out!  Here's a site that may help if you're trying to quit.

Much Love,

Elder Spendlove

FAQ Fridays: Do Mormons Worship Joseph Smith?

As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we gratefully sing the hymn, "Praise to the Man", which goes, in part:

Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah!

Jesus anointed that Prophet and Seer.

Blessed to open the last dispensation [or period of time when the gospel is upon the earth]

Kings shall extol him, and nations revere.



Joseph Smith: Prophet of God



Obviously there is no lack of gratitude among the latter-day Saints for this wonderful, selfless man.  But to many not of our faith, he is a mysterious figure, whose life and name have been "had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds,...tongues,...and people" (Joseph Smith--History 1:33).  Many believe we worship him, or that he is some kind of savior to us.  Others believe we follow blindly the account of his communion with God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.  Who is Joseph Smith, and why is he so important to us?

Joseph Smith was, and is, the prophet through whom God restored the priesthood (the authority to act in God's name--see Matthew 16:19 and Acts 8:14-24) and the Church of Jesus Christ in these last days before Jesus Christ comes again.  He was a man with a special mission from God to restore and share plain and precious truths about Jesus Christ's teachings.  He was led to an ancient record of scripture written by believers in Christ, prophets even, who lived in the ancient Americas--we now have this precious record as The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.  He was called upon to bear incredible sorrow and eventually give his life as a martyr.  He is no savior to us--that title alone belongs to Him whose church Joseph was called to restore, Jesus Christ.  He is no fanatical or insurrectionist--truly he lived a Christlike and Christ-devoted life.

I know, by the power of the Holy Ghost, that Joseph Smith was in fact a prophet, called like any prophet has ever been called--by God Himself.  Read the Book of Mormon, which is the "good fruit" (Matthew 7) of the Prophet.  Ask God if it is true and if Joseph really was His prophet.  I know God will tell you too!  I add my voice of gratitude as I sing: "praise to the man!" 

Much Love,

Elder Spendlove

Here's the mormon.org page that also answers this question. 

FAQ Fridays: Are Mormons Christians?

Have you ever wondered if your Mormon friends are Christians? Well, here's a really cool video by a Church leader describing how he came to know that Mormons are Christians.
Much Love,
Elder Spendlove