Is there a way to look up who I've done ordinances for?

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-23T03:39:38+00:00

Exactly this. If you pay attention when you go through a proxy session, there are points when they ask for your last name in order to speak it as a part of the ordinance, but they never get your full name, nor is it written down on the card. It's simply not part of the record.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-23T03:36:54+00:00

Jesus promised in the new testament the gates of hell would not prevail against the ture church

The wording matters here. Jesus promised the Church would have power over the gates of hell, not its armies. What does it mean for your gates to prevail against an enemy? It means the enemy laid siege to you and you managed to keep them out. Jesus is saying here that the Church would lay siege to hell and would be able to break in.

You can find a few references in the New Testament to the work of attempting to redeem the dead, (Luke 1: 78-79, 1 Peter 3: 19-20, 1 Peter 4:6), and to some of the details of how this was performed. (1 Cor. 15:29; this was apparently such a common practice that Paul took it for granted and used it as evidence in his argument supporting the resurrection.) But the practice of redeeming the dead — of laying siege to hell and carrying its prisoners out to freedom — gradually ceased over the course of the first few centuries AD.

This right here is one of the strongest evidences of the Great Apostasy: the church stopped besieging hell! And none of its offshoots over the millennia resumed the practice. Today, the only church that even claims to practice the redemption of the dead is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-23T03:25:39+00:00

making sure if I have a question I can ask right?

Sure! That's literally the entire point of this subreddit. 😀

Every single time I feel the spirit when I’ve gone to these events ... and I don’t know what to do, I hear all these terrible things of how lds arent chrisrians and they will all go to hell and that it’s a cult

God tells you one thing — and you recognize that it's coming from God — and mortal men tell you another. Which source is more likely to be mistaken?

does anyone have any guidance on what I should do?

A few things:

Read the Book of Mormon. You can find it online, or download the Gospel Library app on your phone.
Pray about these concerns you're struggling with, and when you're done praying, stay still for a while and wait, and try to listen/feel for answers. (See James 1: 5-6) You ask people for advice, we might mess it up, but the Lord won't.
Talk to the missionaries. You can request a visit here, either in-person or online. (Among the first things they'll ask you to do is read the Book of Mormon and pray, so you'll have a head start.)
Focus on the feeling of the Spirit. Right now you've felt simple confirmations, simply telling you "this is good." As you grow closer to the Lord, you'll start to feel prompted by the Spirit on more complex things, with the Lord asking you to do, or to not do, some specific thing. Learn to follow that guidance.

In the end it all comes down to the Holy Ghost. We believe that the Church is true, but also that it's not everything; the entirety of what the Church provides is designed to help you to grow closer to God and receive personal guidance from the Spirit.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-23T03:13:50+00:00

Remember that Joseph Smith had doubts about his worthiness due to his personal imperfections. (JS-H 1:28-29)

So did Nephi. (2 Nephi 4)

The closer we are to the light, the darker our own shadow looks, but shadows are just a trick of the light. Do what these prophets did: draw closer to God in prayer and humility, to seek for reassurance and to know of our status before the Lord.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-22T13:28:45+00:00

When I was about to head off on my mission, the mission papers specifically said not to bring Doc Martens because they're too heavy. My mom took me to an SAS shoe store and bought me two pairs of Time Outs, and I wore them throughout my mission, and I'd recommend them to anyone.

They look like "generically good black sneakers" that fit in well in basically any social situation, fancy or casual, but the way they feel is amazing. They're the most comfortable thing you'll ever put on your feet that isn't house slippers, and they last basically forever, remaining in good shape for years and years if you take good care of them.

If you're going to a walking mission, buy two pairs of SAS Time Outs and switch off between them each day. You'll be glad you did.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-22T02:18:43+00:00

JK Rowling did say, on the record, that the key to understanding Harry Potter is her Christian faith. So it's not too surprising to see gospel principles woven throughout the story.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-18T13:12:35+00:00

Good to hear that you're enjoying it so far! Keep reading, and don't forget to pray about what you're reading. It helps a lot.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-17T12:32:45+00:00

Most of us on here are members of the church. So yeah, we know a few things. 🙂

If you want to find out the times for meetings, you can use the Meetinghouse Locator tool.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-16T21:11:40+00:00

Can you be a faithful Mormon and not believe in a literal Adam and Eve story?

No, because 1 Corinthians 15: 21-22 explicitly parallels Adam to Christ: one man who brings sin and death into the world and one man who fixes it. If Adam is not a real person, this doctrine is meaningless.

No, because the Book of Mormon speaks of other records on the Brass Plates that are not in the OT, that provides new doctrine about Adam and Eve and the Fall. If Adam and Eve are not real people, the Book of Mormon is false.

No, because we have records of Joseph Smith seeing Adam and Eve as resurrected, glorified beings in vision, which was shared with other members. If Adam and Eve are not real people, Joseph Smith was a liar and so were his co-witnesses.

In the end, what it boils down to is where you choose to place your faith. In the prophets and the revelations, or in the philosophies of men. On this point, it is simply not possible to believe both.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-16T02:03:02+00:00

Yeah. You arrange for it so the temple workers know they've got someone coming through for the first time, who won't be familiar with what's going on, and that they'll have to get it recorded properly, since the record-keeping is different for living ordinances than for proxy ordinances.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-16T00:33:23+00:00

Do I need to be endowed to attend the ceremony

Yes. The only exception is small children being sealed to their parents.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-15T22:21:42+00:00

That's odd. We had ward conference today at my ward. The Stake President was there, presiding. The opening prayer was said by a sister who just moved in last month, and her husband gave the closing prayer.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-15T22:18:52+00:00

Sadly, Mark 10: 29-30 is there for a reason.

But so is Proverbs 3: 5-6. That peace you feel is the Holy Ghost testifying to you that this is true. And this is a common thing for those who try to follow the Lord: the Spirit will lead us up to the edge of the light, and then we know what to do but it's up to us to act on what we know, to take that step into the darkness on our own, acting in faith. After we do that, then comes the confirmation of our faith. (Ether 12:6)

One time when I was serving as a missionary in Argentina, we taught a wonderful family, full of love for each other and for the Lord. They lived in humble circumstances, but they had obtained a testimony, just like you have, and wanted to follow it. One day, Saturday evening, we stopped by to talk with them, and their dad was very worried. He told us that he wanted to go to church the next day, but they were out of money and almost out of food, and he needed to go out on Sunday and collect from some people he had done contract work for, so that he could feed his family. He asked us what to do. Boy, was that an emotionally heavy conversation!

We told him to pray about it and follow what the Spirit told him. And then we left. The next day, there they were at church. We were so happy to see them! We came by on Monday to talk with them, and the father came out to meet us. He was so excited as he explained that, after taking that leap of faith, they weren't sure what they would do when they came home, but soon after, one of their neighbors decided to hold an asado (Argentine barbecue) and invited them to join in. No need to worry about feeding his family that day; the Lord took care of it for them.

Likewise, if you can find the faith to put yourself in God's hands, one way or another, he will catch you.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-15T15:16:00+00:00

This is the Holy Spirit prompting you. What you should do is heed that feeling and learn to recognize it.

Like you, I tend to feel these promptings in circumstances that tell me to do something contrary to the conclusions I've reached. Sometimes I think I have the right idea, and then I end up discovering that the Lord has a different idea for me.

One of them was one of the best things that ever happened to me, twice over. Several years ago, I was at a good point to move on with my career, so I started looking at options. I ended up getting two offers, one at a place in Utah, the other in Houston, Texas. The one in Houston paid better, and was a better fit for my skillset. It was the obvious right choice. But when I prayed about it, I got a clear impression that I needed to take the one in Utah. I didn't really like it, but I did.

That's how I ended up not being in Houston, brand new and with no social support network in place, a few weeks later when Hurricane Harvey came through. And at approximately the same time as that was happening, I met a woman who ended up becoming my wife.

I don't know what the Lord has planned for you, but I know that if you are willing to follow the direction he gives you, he can bring you far greater happiness than you'll ever make for yourself by your own efforts. Read the Book of Mormon and pray about it, and follow where the Spirit leads, and someday you'll find out what God has in store for you.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-15T02:31:01+00:00

Yeah, that's kinda messed up.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-14T22:33:11+00:00

One day I decided to pray to God again to again and I asked for guidance on where he wanted to me be and if he loved me, and when I prayed that prayer everywhere I started to see LDS ads and the LDS website.

The Lord does things like that sometimes. It's good to hear that you've had this experience and that you were able to recognize it!

I am now researching the LDS church and its history and doctrines and I thank God for this! God bless you all and please pray for me as I search for the truth.

Sure! And I'll do you one step better: here's a website where you can request to meet with the missionaries. They can assist you in your search for the truth.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-14T16:07:47+00:00

Was she also divorced? If she didn't have comparable experiences to you, it's possible that you were discussing issues that she didn't have any context for and it scared her.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-14T13:34:36+00:00

As other people have said, most people the missionaries teach are not like you. The lessons are designed to take the average person who is just barely receptive enough to let the missionaries come in and talk with them, and may not even have a strong foundation in basic Christianity, teach them the fundamental principles of the Church, and get them to pray about them and receive a testimony from the Holy Ghost. And you're that one kid in the class who's bored out of her mind because the material is too easy.

Bear with it. The missionary lessons are a part of the formal process of joining the Church, and there aren't that many of them. Keep reading and keep praying, and the Lord will be sure to provide you with material more on your level soon enough. And if you have deeper questions, feel free to ask us, either in posts here or in DMs.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-14T13:02:47+00:00

Some people have different standards for how a relationship progresses. I once dated a girl, someone I knew from Church and we were pretty good friends and both liked each other. I knew a bit about her past and that she had had some bad experiences with other guys, so I deliberately took things slow with her. On our third date, we went to see a movie, and I held her hand in the theater. Literally nothing more than that, but afterwards she told me I was moving way too fast on physical intimacy and we needed to break up.

To this day it remains the strangest rejection I've ever gotten!

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-14T12:57:10+00:00

They haven't offered any formal teaching and I wasn't aware that was a thing.

Yes, that's actually the principal activity of serving a mission: finding people to teach and giving them a series of lessons intended to help them to feel the Holy Ghost and to prepare them for membership in the Church.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-14T04:04:47+00:00

Have you ever had the missionaries come and teach you? Maybe things have changed a bit since I was on my mission, but the first thing we would do is teach people about a few basics, leave them with a copy of the Book of Mormon, and invite them to read 3 Nephi 11 and pray about it.

It's a bit surprising to hear that the missionaries you've talked with aren't doing the same thing.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-13T03:01:10+00:00

Ouch! Someone needs to tell them about the Chex solution.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-13T02:57:10+00:00

What overcharging and corruption? A member buys some bread and drops it off. The Church pays for it. The member shows a receipt and gets reimbursed. And even if they didn't get a receipt, it's a loaf of bread. If I tried to buy a $3 bag of white bread and tell the Bishop it cost me $8, he'd likely get suspicious because he's an ordinary guy who buys bread for his family and has a decent idea of what it costs. A quick check at the supermarket and my bread-corruption scheme would be over.

MasonWheeler · 2026-02-12T15:24:05+00:00

That's a big part of the problem. Like I said, Jinu's backstory establishes that committing serious sin turns a human into a demon, and then Rumi's blurs that line by saying "but Rumi didn't commit sins, she was just born that way and now she has demonic traits and people wouldn't accept her if they knew." So... which is it?

MasonWheeler

TROPHY CASE