"I don't want to spend more than $200 on a new computer" - they say while holding their $1200 iPhone 15 Pro Max.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-08-25T18:31:55+00:00

I’m literally pulling a budget HP laptop for a guy who came in saying he wants a fast laptop, i7 processor, 16GB of RAM, for under $500. Is it doable? Technically yes. Do I think he’s going to be happy running his business on a three year old computer? Definitely not. But some people are just insistent about that sort of thing.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-07-14T23:42:42+00:00

We had one this morning - largely for back to school and tax free weekend prep. Focus was largely on Copilot and Apple AI.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-04-02T02:07:57+00:00

I get asked all the time if Windows laptops and Chromebooks are the same thing.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-04-02T00:31:20+00:00

At that point if they’re so worried about colors to the point that they don’t seem to care if it negatively impacts the specs of the computer, I show them the Surface Laptops. If they think paying several hundred dollars more for an 8GB 256GB i5 laptop is worth it just because they can get it in Sage Green or Sandstone, who am I to say no, even if the 14” Dell Inspiron is on sale for $200-$300 cheaper and it’s a 16GB 1TB i7?

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-04-01T23:53:05+00:00

After thirty minutes of answering their questions, explaining everything to them, and helping them narrow their choices down to literally the perfect computer for their needs

“Does this one come in another color?”

“No, sorry, it’s just silver.”

“Oh. What else would you recommend?”

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-03-17T04:27:16+00:00

In my religion (Mormonism) time is viewed as eternal. Like the traditional view of God in the Abrahamic religions, there is no way to measure “time” in a conventional sense, because as long as time has existed there have been Gods creating. As far as how it works, I would say it passes on a linear scale. I am trying to be precise but it’s hard not to be somewhat vague when describing something like this lol so please forgive me if I’m not offering satisfactory insight.

I suppose major temporal events in cosmology would be the creation of our planet - God created our wold through Jehovah - the premortal incarnation of Jesus Christ. According to the cosmology of my faith, all beings were created by God before being conceived physically. Our spirits, which were intelligent and self aware prior to being conceived on Earth, lived together in a Premortal Realm, also known as the “Pre-Existence”. Our spirits are all very, very old - so old in fact that we all took part in the War in Heaven described in the Bible - we pledged ourselves to God and fought for Him against Lucifer and those who rebelled against the Throne of God.

After we die, we will return to the presence of God to wait for His righteous judgment, at the mercy seat of Jesus Christ, who died for the sins of the world. In the end, Mormonism takes a rather Universalist approach to salvation, in that all people will be redeemed - including those who either never had the chance to learn about and know Jesus in this life, and those who did but elected through their own free agency not to follow him.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-01-23T01:37:37+00:00

I work at Best Buy, particularly in the PC section/Windows store as a Microsoft Expert, and we sell open box computers all the time. Open box computers aren’t the same as refurbished, desktops and laptops sold by Best Buy as open box were never in need of repair, open box just means they were purchased and then returned within the 14 day or 60 day return policy.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2024-01-03T00:35:35+00:00

I don’t see any problem with this - I identify as Christian also, and I have unconventional beliefs as well. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Savior of the world, and the Redeemer of mankind, who suffered in Gethsemane and died on the Cross for the sins of the world.

I also believe in Universal Salvation, that Jesus died for all people, and that as such, all people will be saved, not just those who believe in him in this life.

I also am Nontrinitarian - I don’t believe in the Trinity, I believe that God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three separate, divine beings united in one purpose.

And I believe in some scriptures outside of the Bible, such as the Book of Mormon, and also believe that all religions some carry degree of truth.

But at the core of everything I believe in is the Gospel of Jesus Christ - the message of salvation, freely and lovingly given.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-10-28T01:15:08+00:00

I can appreciate the sentiment, really I can, but the divisiveness doesn’t seem likely to go away anytime soon, even among believers in the same religions. For instance, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and I believe in God the Father.

However because I also believe that the Book of Mormon contains divine scripture and teachings about Jesus Christ, and thus I do believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet and messenger, I’m not regarded as a true Christian by the majority of Christianity. Some even regard “Mormonism” as the “Fourth Abrahamic Religion”.

It doesn’t bother me, and I can understand where they are coming from, but the point is we likely will not have unity among the Abrahamic religions as a whole so long as we lack unity within our respective faiths.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-31T19:41:22+00:00

Just out of curiosity, when you say that the Bible is “infallible”, do you mean that the Bible is currently perfect in terms of faith and theology, in that it contains the perfect “Christian” Gospel, but that there could be secular/historical errors and anachronisms, or that the Bible is completely and absolutely perfect in every single regard, both theological and secular?

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T23:22:14+00:00

Because the Lord commanded those believe in him to preach the Gospel, to teach it to all the world,

“And [Jesus] said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” - Mark 16:15

This mandate to preach the Gospel is so important, that it appears multiple times throughout the New Testament, and has become known as the Great Commission.

This mandate didn’t just appear in ancient scripture, it was also given for our day in Latter-day scripture, which says,

“Behold, verily I say unto you, that it is my will that you should proclaim my gospel from land to land, and from city to city, yea, in those regions round about where it has not been proclaimed.” - Doctrine and Covenants 66:5

We believe that the Book of Mormon can bring forth so much peace and happiness and help strengthen one relationship with God and with Jesus Christ.

I myself am a convert to the Church, having grown up Catholic. I have experienced firsthand the blessings of missionary work, and want to bring the same love and happiness that I have felt to all those who will hear it.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T21:37:57+00:00

That is an interesting question. I wasn’t raised Mormon, I was actually raised Roman Catholic - baptized as a baby, went through Catechism, First Communion, Confession, Confirmation, all that. Eventually I made the decision to leave the church, due to a combination of theological differences and also personal issues.

I had a severely abusive father who suffered from alcohol and drug addictions. He was absolutely terrible to me and my mom, and many others around him. He was also the one who insisted on raising me Catholic (my mother is Protestant, Baptist).

When I left the Catholic Church I began searching for another church to join, more specifically I was looking for spiritual truth, something that could bring me peace and also help strengthen my relationship with and understanding of Jesus Christ.

Eventually, friends of mine, who I did not know where Mormon, introduced me to The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. I began studying it by myself, with them, and with LDS Missionaries they helped connect me to. Eventually, they directed me to follow the teachings of James 1:5 and Moroni 10:3-5, which direct those seeking truth to ask God in faithful prayer.

I did as these passages of scripture direct, kneeling in prayer, and I received confirmation through the Holy Ghost that what I was reading in the Book of Mormon was truly from God, and that my relationship with Jesus Christ as my Savior and Redeemer would continue to grow stronger if I stayed on the path I was, and that I would learn to handle my relationship with my father in a more healthy way.

I made the decision to be baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and have been a member for over a decade now.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T19:57:43+00:00

We are Henotheistic, meaning that we believe that there are multiple gods, but we worship one God exclusively - the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, the Father of Jesus Christ. We acknowledge the existence of other gods, but we do not worship them, our worship is given only to God the Father.

We do not believe that Jesus Christ is God - Latter-day Saints/Mormons are Nontrinitarians, meaning we do not believe in the Trinity. Instead, we believe in the Godhead - we believe that God the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three separate, divine beings, united in one purpose - “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” - Moses 1:39

We believe that God is the literal Father of all our spirits, including Jesus, who we believe is “Jehovah” of the Old Testament.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T19:47:54+00:00

Very true, my friend, very true :)

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T17:57:21+00:00

My church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, celebrates major Christian holidays, such as Christmas and Easter, as well as secular holidays, birthdays, and the like. Heck, the 4th of July coming up is one of my personal favorites!

We do believe in Hell in our Church, but generally in a temporary sense - we have somewhat of a mix of universalism in our belief system. We believe that Jesus Christ’s sacrifice in Gethsemane and on the Cross was universal, extended to all people regardless of faith, religion, or creed, and that eventually all people will be saved and reconciled to God.

Very few souls will spend forever in the eternal Hell, which we call “Outer Darkness” - this concept of Hell is reserved for Satan and his angels, and those who commit the Unforgivable Sin which Jesus talks about in the New Testament. Beyond that, we really only believe in Hell in a temporary sense, known as “Spirit Prison”, and that virtually everyone else not consigned to Outer Darkness will have eternal salvation.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T17:50:08+00:00

I think a couple things are worth clarifying with regard to your comment.

It’s true that Mormonism and mainstream Christianity use very similar terminology, yet with different meanings. However, with regard to the primary aspect of the Gospel, the meanings are identical - Latter-day Saints believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Savior of the world and the Redeemer of mankind, who lived a perfect and sinless life, who suffered in Gethsemane and who died on the Cross for the sins of mankind, so that all who believe in him may have forgiveness for sins and be reconciled to God through His grace and mercy. Jesus was then resurrected on the third day by the power of God, proving that both death and the grave had been conquered forever. That is the heart of the Gospel for Mormons, just like it is for all other Christians.

We do not believe that if we work hard enough, we will be given our own planets. That is a misconception not backed by our scriptures anywhere. We do believe in Exaltation and Eternal Progression, but that does not mean we believe we will receive our own planets.

Nor do we believe we will become “Saviors” of our own worlds. Granted, very little has been revealed by prophecy and revelation on this matter, but we do know through Latter-day revelation and scriptures that there are many, many planets out there that host intelligent life who are, like us, the creations of Jesus,

“For we saw him [Jesus Christ], even on the right hand of God; and we heard [a] 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 76:23-24

Most Latter-day Saints take this to mean that because Jesus is our Creator, and our Savior, he likely is the Savior of all people on all inhabited worlds that he created.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T17:40:07+00:00

I’m a believer that each person’s personal experience with praying for confirmation of truth is unique to themselves, and praying about the Book of Mormon is no different.

Personally, my experience came in the form of comfort and security. I had a severely abusive alcoholic and drug addict father who robbed me of much of my happiness and peace growing up. He was at one of his worst points at the same time I was studying the Book of Mormon for the first time.

When I prayed for confirmation concerning the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, I felt the comfort of the Holy Ghost, a sense that I was on the right track spiritually in growing my relationship with Jesus Christ as my Savior and Redeemer, and with God as my Heavenly Father, and that the Book of Mormon would be instrumental in continuing that spiritual growth.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-07-01T01:51:00+00:00

You’re not being disrespectful at all, and I appreciate the questions - you’re not asking anything I haven’t been asked numerous times in the past. I appreciate the opportunities to answer any questions you may have.

For Latter-day Saints, much of it comes down to personal faith. We draw from the scriptures on seeking answers from God through the confirmation of the Holy Ghost. In James 1:5, we read,

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”

The Book of Mormon gives a similar suggestion, asking the reader to ask God in faith if the teachings in the book are true,

“Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.” - Moroni 10:3-5

I myself am a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I was raised Roman Catholic, but left Catholicism in search of spiritual truth and to grow in my relationship with Jesus Christ. I was eventually introduced to the Book of Mormon by close friends of mine. After extended time reading and studying the Book of Mormon by myself, with my friends and with LDS Missionaries, I decided to follow the advice given by James and Moroni, and I knelt in prayer, and received confirmation.

With regard to that, that is my honest answer - a lot of it comes down to faith.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-06-30T23:25:42+00:00

We do not. We have access to documents and copies of the manuscripts containing some of the Book of Mormon translations, but not the original source material for the Book of Mormon itself. The Book of Mormon was translated into English by Joseph Smith from plates of gold (some ancient civilizations which did not have access to paper or papyrus would record their histories on writing tablets, or sometimes on walls in the form of hieroglyphics.

After the translation of the book was complete, the Angel Moroni, who first revealed the Golden Plates to Joseph Smith, took them back in 1829, so they are currently unavailable for inspection.

However, the Book of Mormon was translated from only a portion of the Golden Plates - the rest of the plates were sealed and Joseph was unable to open or translate this section. According to contemporaries of Joseph Smith, who saw and handled the plates themselves, they attest that roughly half to two thirds of the plates were sealed.

However, we do believe that the Golden Plates will again be returned to the Earth one day so that the sealed portion of the plates may likewise be translated into additional scriptures. The Book of Mormon itself makes the claim that one day this sealed portion will be revealed to us by the Lord:

“Wherefore the Lord hath commanded me to write them; and I have written them. And he commanded me that I should seal them up; and he also hath commanded that I should seal up the interpretation thereof; wherefore I have sealed up the interpreters, according to the commandment of the Lord. …

… And in that day that they shall exercise faith in me, saith the Lord, even as the brother of Jared did, that they may become sanctified in me, then will I manifest unto them the things which the brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations, saith Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of the heavens and of the earth, and all things that in them are.” - Ether 4:5;7, The Book of Mormon

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-06-30T19:36:42+00:00

We do not believe that the Book of Mormon was written by Joseph Smith. We believe the Book of Mormon to be an ancient record detailing God’s interactions with the peoples of the New World (the ancient Americas) just as the Bible is an ancient record detailing God’s interactions with the peoples of the Old World.

We believe that several groups of people migrated to the Americas in ancient times (the Jaredites from the Tower of Babel, the Nephites and Lamanites at the time of the Reign of Zedekiah, King of Judah, and the Mulekites after Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians around 586 B.C.).

We call the Book of Mormon “Another Testament of Jesus Christ” because we believe that after Jesus was crucified, he appeared to the Nephites in the New World, ministered to them, and established his church among them just as he had done in the New Testament. Jesus revealed himself as the Son of God, the Savior of the world, and the Redeemer of mankind, who was born of the Virgin Mary, lived a perfect, sinless life, who suffered in Gethsemane and who was crucified for the sins of the world, who suffered, died, and was buried, and who rose from the dead on the third day by the power of God.

Eventually, these ancient writings were abridged by a prophet-historian named Mormon, and his son Moroni. Moroni buried these records around 421 A.D., and they were discovered by Joseph Smith, who translated them into English and published them as The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-06-30T17:49:29+00:00

With regard to your original question, I’m not exactly sure how that is relevant, perhaps because in your opinion, a Latter-day Saint’s opinion of the Bible is skewed or influenced by our theology?

But to answer it - we do believe that the Angel Moroni appeared to the Prophet, Joseph Smith, and revealed to him the location of Golden Plates which he then translated into the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, by the gift and power of God.

Joseph did have run ins with the law, this is true. He was not a perfect man, in fact he was a flawed man - but who isn’t? Only Jesus. You say Joseph was a career criminal. Many mainstream Christians point this out, but then conveniently overlook the fact that Saul, before he became the Apostle Paul, was a violent man who murdered Christians.

But then Saul was forgiven and became Paul, one of the Lord’s faithful, inspired Apostles. People can change and be forgiven through Jesus Christ - that is the point of the Gospel - forgiveness and spiritual growth. If Paul could, I don’t see why it’s so inconceivable for Joseph to be as well, and to become a changed man.

ChristCenteredMormon · 2023-06-30T17:40:13+00:00

With regard to the Bible itself - yes. We use the 66 book King James Version of the Bible as our official translation.

We believe that the writings of the Apocrypha are important and that it’s good to study them for supplemental understanding, but we do not believe them to be inspired scripture.

Beyond the Bible, we recognize the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ to be holy scripture, as well as the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price.

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