http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/

Come Unto Christ in the North Canyon Stake, Bountiful, UT (2026)

11/23/2025

There have been many times in my life when I know I received help from God; particularly when it was undeniably through His hand and through others working to help me in my life.

I was married civilly at a young age. There were some troubles in our marriage, and we had been struggling for months. His repeated infidelity really took a toll on me. I didn't have the strength or the courage to do what was best for myself in that situation.

I grew up believing that ideally, I should work out the problems with my spouse. However, multiple situations occurred that put my mental health and future well-being at risk.

Throughout our 2-year marriage, I continually prayed and kept my relationship with Heavenly Father strong - it was a priority to me to keep Him close.

Prayer provided clarity so I could see the situation more clearly. I was blessed to be surrounded by spiritual friends and loved ones.

During a girl's camp I attended, I felt Heavenly Father's love so strongly and that helped guide me forward. I had faith and courage to do what I knew was best.

Now, I have a family. I love the gospel and teach my children to pray and have a strong relationship with their Heavenly Father so they can have guidance each day; especially as trials come.

I know the gospel is true and the power of prayer is real. I continue to have faith and rely on God in my daily life. I strive to keep Him a priority. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.

-Anonymous

11/16/2025

In 2015, Elder Bednar gave a talk describing the tender mercies of Jesus Christ. I have felt these tender mercies my whole life and would like to share some from my college days.

I was 19 years old and wanted to study in Mexico for three months. I barely knew anyone else that was going, but was excited to meet new friends, travel independently of my family and fully learn Spanish in an immersive way.

My parents saved money by arranging for me to fly standby into Mexico City. I was nervous to go without my college group, but I prayed that I would be watched over and make it to my host family safely. I was able to fly first class which was very nice, but I was still uneasy. It must have shown on my face, because an older gentleman next me asked me why I was traveling to Mexico alone. I explained my plight and discovered that he was a diplomat from Mexico who was traveling home. He reminded me of my grandfather and offered to help me exchange my money and get me a taxi to my destination. I will be forever grateful for his kindness and felt that he was sent from the Lord to help me at that time.

During our months in Mexico, we were allowed to travel for two weeks in the middle of our studies. Again, I was a bit nervous, but found some other female friends to travel with me. Two were returned missionaries and the third had previously spent a year in Argentina as a student. Hence, they were all fluent in Spanish and had expertise traveling in foreign countries.

I recall one incident when we were being followed on a deserted street in Puerto Vallarta by two young men who were not speaking about us very politely. My companions started chattering loudly in Spanish and those young men turned around and fled.

At our hotel in another city, we met a nice family from Salt Lake who invited us to go to church and eat dinner with them the next day in their hotel suite. We gladly accepted and nothing tasted better than that homemade American meal.

A few weeks later, my roommate and I were invited to a night out with some of our new found friends from our school downtown. Our landlady was very skeptical and made the sign of the cross for each of us before we left. She spoke sternly to our cab driver about making sure we safely arrived at the restaurant in the heart of the city.

While we were chatting in limited English with our driver, we found out that he was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well. He drove us carefully and cautioned us not to stay out too late in the city.

Later that weekend, I attended church with some of the other college students in an unfamiliar part of the city. I saw my cabdriver there and he introduced me to his family. It was like I was with an extended part of my family and I felt very comfortable and safe.

This experience was the first time I was truly on my own and throughout my time there I felt that the Lord was right beside me, that He understood my anxiety and fears, and that He knew how to help me feel calm and confident in a new situation.

I have felt His presence ever since and am grateful for His guidance, companionship and help that have always been just a prayer away.

Katy Gledhill Wilson

10/19/2025

Lately, I’ve caught myself comparing my life to other people’s lives. It’s easy to feel like I’m falling short. Between school, work, family, goals, church, and friends, I sometimes feel so overwhelmed that I don’t even know where to start. And to be honest, there are times when I have questions about the gospel. Times when I wonder if I’m doing enough, or if I’m really even doing what I should.

I just started my first year of college, and I’m also preparing to serve a mission. It’s exciting, but it’s also been hard. Life feels busy, and sometimes it seems like everything is working against me trying to stay close to God. I want to put Him first, but I don’t always succeed. I get distracted. I make mistakes. I struggle to find the balance between everything I want to do and the person I want to become.

On top of that, it feels like everything around me has changed — my friends, my routines, even my perspective on life. Nothing feels the same anymore. And in the middle of all that uncertainty, it’s easy to feel like I’m the only one who doesn’t have it all figured out. But I’ve come to realize that one thing hasn’t changed: Heavenly Father. His love, His plan, and His intentions for me are always constant. And that truth has become something I always turn back to.

When I make the effort to put Him first, I feel more confident in what I’m doing and more sure that I’m on the right path. I’ve realized that a relationship with God doesn’t just happen over time. It takes effort. It takes choices. And sometimes it takes rereading first Nephi over and over again.

God has shown me that if I do my part, He will always do His. When I feel stressed, lost, or uncertain, it’s usually because I’ve let something else take His place. But when I turn back to Him, I can feel His guidance and peace again. I’ve learned that even when life is hard and confusing, He is constant. He is patient. He wants the best for me. And He loves me exactly where I am.

I’ve come to know that God puts opportunities and challenges in our lives for a reason. They are part of His plan to help us grow, even when it’s hard to understand. We came to this earth on purpose — to choose Him, even when it’s difficult, even when we struggle.

So my testimony is simple: I am not perfect. I still have questions. I still struggle. But when I put God first, everything else starts to fall into place. Life may change, people may change, but God never will. His plan for us is perfect, His timing is sure, and His love is constant. And because of that, I know I can trust Him — even when it’s hard — always.

Jaydee Hardy

10/12/2025

"Less is more" is something we often quote and feel is helpful.

A couple of years ago I was definitely in a stage of "more" when it came to life being busy. I had three little kids, ages 1, 3, and 5 years old. Our youngest was teething and not sleeping, our 3-year-old was going through the 3-year-old tantrum stage, and our oldest was diagnosed with Autism and ADHD shortly after starting kindergarten. Because of COVID, pregnancy, and new babies, we had missed a lot of church. Neither of my boys wanted to go nor would stay in primary. Church was (and still is) a struggle.

My husband and I felt exhausted and frustrated after attending church. We never got to hear anything in sacrament meeting between taking potty trips and trying to keep the kids from shouting, running through the chapel, and noisy meltdowns. I was feeling overwhelmed with trying to be a decent mom to my children and keep us all alive.

I was expecting a change in my calling around that time, but when the Bishop invited me into his office and extended the call of Primary President to me, I was shocked. Our Bishop is a good friend and knew of our family's situation and struggles. He told me of the struggle he had with the Lord about extending this calling to me since he knew of our difficult situation, but he received strong responses from the Lord that I was to be called. I had served in primary before, but never in a presidency.

I went home and cried about more being added to my already full plate. I didn't know how I could possibly serve the other children when I felt so inadequate in raising mine. But I trusted that the Lord knew what He was doing and there were reasons that I was called.

I did pray about it, but mostly I trusted in my leader's inspiration. I hadn't kept up on my personal gospel study and never had a quiet minute to think so I felt far from the Spirit. I had to lean on past experiences and faith that the Lord would make up for my weaknesses. I accepted and did receive inspiration in choosing counselors and a secretary and they have made all the difference. The Lord often helps us through other people.

Primary for me is often spent having my boys wanting to sit on my lap, trying to figure out ways to help them sit with their classes and negotiating sensory struggles.

Our family has attended more church since I’ve been called but it’s also been a shared responsibility with my husband staying home more often with sick or struggling kids. In our efforts to help our children and be at church more, many ward members have stepped in. Our children have people who love and support them which makes our church experience so much easier. Sacrament meeting is still pretty much a waste on us as parents, but in primary I get to hear the beautiful music. The songs play on repeat in my head. I have heard their words in moments of struggle and they all testify of Jesus in such beautiful ways.

'The Liahona' song says, "He will guide me when I'm in my wilderness, and walk beside me on stormy seas. I am learning how He speaks to me, and I will follow where He leads". I have often felt 'in my wilderness' and trying to figure out how He 'speaks to me'. Primary has helped me remember to focus on Christ.

Elder Carl B. Cook, in his October 2016 conference, said "Fulfilling callings requires faith...Blessings come as we persevere in our callings and responsibilities and hang on with all the faith we have." "Brothers and sisters, accepting and fulfilling a calling is an act of faith. We can trust in what our prophet President Thomas S. Monson, repeatedly teaches: 'Whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies' and 'When we are on the Lord's errand, we are entitled to the Lord's help.' Whether we are overwhelmed or underwhelmed...the Lord wants us to...serve."

The primary children often bring the Spirit so strongly when they pray or testify of Christ's power and influence in their lives. I have been blessed to hear of their simple and powerful testimonies of Heavenly Father's love and help. I can testify that serving in my calling has pulled me back toward Christ and has allowed people to be 'His hands' in lifting us up through our 'more' time of life.

Beth Davis

10/05/2025

Our oldest son was serving a mission in California before missionaries were allowed to call home every week. We were only allowed to talk to him on Mother's Day and Christmas.

One Mother's Day, we were enjoying a conversation with our son, but time ran out too fast and we had to say goodbye. After we talked, an unsettled feeling kept nagging me and lasted for a few days. During that time, we were busy getting ready for a family reunion in southern Utah, so life was a bit chaotic.

Because of our schedules, my wife left for the reunion first, and I followed a day later. The drive down was quiet, which allowed the nagging feeling to return. I went over in my mind the conversation we had with our missionary and the thought came to me that he was not telling us everything. I then had the impression that I needed to fast for him.

When I got to the reunion, I told my wife about my experience. Together, we started fasting, not knowing what he needed or exactly why we were fasting, except that our son needed the help that prayer and fasting can give.

Jump forward a year later and it was finally time for our missionary to come home. After all the excitement was over at the airport, we went home and had some time to talk. He shared an experience of a time where things got really difficult for him on his mission. He had felt completely alone and betrayed. We asked how he handled it and he said that one day he just determined that it didn't matter what others did or said or believed . All that mattered was that he should continue to be obedient and focus on the Savior. That shift helped him get through the trials he was experiencing.

After more discussion, we realized that the prompting to fast for our son aligned perfectly with the time he had been struggling.

This was a testimony to me that God is in the details of our lives and that Jesus Christ will not abandon us in our time of need. He loves and watches out for His missionaries.

David Rollins

09/28/2025

I was recently blessed to see the hand of the Lord in my life. One day, out of the blue, I felt a strong impression in my heart and mind that I was going to be asked to serve in a presidency. To say I was nervous when I first felt the impression would be a gross understatement; I was terrified. My immediate thought was "how I would say no to the call?" Suddenly, I found an interest in out-of-state homes and off-the-grid living. I felt completely inadequate.

Over the next few months, the Spirit continued to work on my fears. I found myself frequently in the scriptures and feeling peace. I also found myself with a few special opportunities to share my testimony of Christ during this time. I got to lead discussions/lessons on some Sundays. I received strength and courage that I would be supported and be able to fulfill that calling if asked. The Spirit led me to read my patriarchal blessing, where a line I previously hadn't given much thought to directly told me what I was to do.

When the phone call came to meet about a calling, I was still nervous and anxious, but accepted the appointment. The meeting began and the call to the presidency I was expecting was extended. This was a huge testimony boost that this call was definitely from God. How else could I have known this was going to happen? I heard myself accept the call as I had been prepared to do.

I also realized this preparation process was going on for even longer than I realized. A few months before that initial prompting, I changed jobs to one with better hours and no Sunday shifts. I did not expect that opportunity when it happened, and am thankful for that blessing.

I am so grateful for those months of preparation. Without the active work of the Holy Ghost and my efforts to better know Christ, I would have likely not accepted the calling. I would have missed out on incredible opportunities to strengthen my testimony and relationship with Christ. I would have missed out on faith building experiences that I need. I know God prepared the path and prepared me to serve. I know that the Holy Ghost testifies of truth and reveals truths to us.

Anonymous

09/21/2025

As I considered what helps me focus on Christ and as I struggled with what to share, I listed in my mind the big stories, the turning points, the extreme highs and lows, the rescues, and the miracles.

However, what really filled my thoughts were the small day-in and day-out quiet reminders that my Father is always aware of me, that my Savior is there for the small stuff, and that the Spirit isn’t just focused on bringing about only the grandest acts.

Often, it is just a simple nudge or poke that reminds me God is near.
So, I decided to share an entry from my personal journal – some in my ward family have already heard it.

Date:
March Something of 2025

Intro:
Many of us have that friend who can lovingly come up with the wittiest comments at the perfect time to let us know that we are being absolutely ridiculous.

Here’s what happened:

I can’t remember the exact day, but I remember the situation clearly. I woke up early and went downstairs as I do most mornings. This is my private time. It is intended for the study of scripture and to ponder the mysteries of life. It is intended to be a time of prayer and meditation.

Admittedly, sometimes I fall asleep. Sometimes I do nothing. On this particular morning, I was on a rant which was very poorly disguised as a prayer.
I was complaining about my terribly difficult life. I listed house issues, work problems, family problems, issues with my church calling, problems with my body, cars, money, time - I listed problems with just about everything.

My life was too complicated and I wanted to know what He was going to do about it!

Side note:
In our church, members are admonished to “Hear Him“, meaning learn how God communicates through the Holy Spirit directly to our spirit so that we can follow the promptings, follow instructions given, feel comfort, and learn truth.

Now, back to the story:
Looking back now, I, in my mind, can picture God patiently listening to my prayer/tantrum and finally summoning the Holy Spirit to listen in for a minute and then saying, “The whining has got to stop and I have the perfect idea to make it stop! Will you head down there and make it happen?”

Meanwhile, back here on Earth, I continued my rant, pacing back and forth for dramatic effect.

Out of nowhere and very quietly a song came to mind - a song I had not thought about in several decades; a song I listened to on a record player when I was a child.
The words penetrated my heart; they played clearly in my mind causing me to stop, re-think, reprioritize, and repent.

I flopped down on the couch in a fit of laughter! Reformed, revitalized and duly chastised. So, what is this hymn sent from my loving and apparently very witty Heavenly parent?

Here are some of the words:
(Please imagine a very strong New Jersey accent as you read them.)

Hello Mudder - Hello Fadder
Here I am at - Camp Granada
And it's very - entertaining
And they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining.

I went hiking - with Joe Spivey
He developed - Poison Ivy
You remember - Leonard Skinner
He got ptomaine pois'ning last night after dinner.

I don’t want that I should scare ya,
But my bunk mate has malaria
You remember Jeffery Hardy,
They’re about to organize a searching party!

--Then comes the desperate chorus --

Take me home, oh Mudder, Fadder
Take me home, I hate Granada
Don't leave me,
out in the forest where
I might
get eaten by a bear!

(By this point in the song I am already hearing His message loud and clear.)

--Then comes the final verse--
Wait a minute - it's stopped hailing
Guys are swimming - guys are sailing
Playing cricket - gee that's better
Mudder, Fadder kindly disregard this letter!

Talk about the ultimate “dad joke”!

After realizing what had just happened, I hit my knees. I thanked my Father in Heaven, not only for caring enough to intervene and remind me that life is good, but also for caring enough to find the right way to do it; the way that would allow me to “Hear Him”. And in a way that I would understand and respond to in that very moment!

I spent the next precious minutes of that morning on eBay trying to find a copy of that record. I never did, but on YouTube, I did find a 1963 video of Allen Sherman performing it.

I guess God could have used “Put your Shoulder to the Wheel”, “Let Us All Press On” or “Come, Come Ye Saints” instead, but I guarantee for me, on that particular morning, those songs would not have had the same effect!

Greg Pearson

09/14/2025

Throughout my life, I, as many others, have endured difficult trials.

Luckily, I learned at a very young age to always turn to my Heavenly Father for help and guidance. I know I was never alone during these difficult times of my life. Heavenly Father has been a big part of it and has always been there for me.

I remember one of those difficult times I was crying and I asked my Father in Heaven to please, if He could, just come and hold me. Instead of feeling His arms around me, He sent me what I can best describe as an image of a beautiful crystal rose. The rose sparkled so bright and it was so clear. I will always remember the feeling of love and comfort the rose provided me that day. It distracted me from my pain. He wasn't able to physically hold me, but He sent something beautiful instead to show me His love for me.

Years later, after being married for about a year, I was preparing to receive my garments. When I went to the temple for my initiatory, I was asked to put on my garments for the first time. As soon as my garments touched my body, I felt my Savior’s arms around me. How great is my Heavenly Father that He remembered me and showed me how much He loves me. I distinctly remember thinking that before, when I had wished for comfort, He wasn't able to wrap His arms around me, but now that I was in the temple, I was able to feel His embrace.

In 2002, my husband and I were sealed in the temple. When I went through the veil and into the Celestial Room, I glanced over to the side of where I was standing and saw an image of my Savior Jesus Christ standing by a round table smiling at me. It took my breath away and I immediately felt an overwhelming feeling of His love for me.

I hold these memories very dear to my heart. I only pray that one day I can be worthy to be in His presence alongside my beloved precious husband who has been on the other side of the veil for 2 years now.

I bear my testimony that my Savior has never left me alone in this mortal life. Every trial I have had to endure, I can connect with my Father in Heaven because of the atonement through my Lord Jesus Christ. I have learned, through experience, to let my Father in Heaven guide and direct me through my life. He is always there.

Lirian Lagos "Susi"

09/07/2025

In 2018, I started my last year of school at Weber State. When I moved in, I didn’t know any of my roommates. One Sunday while attending church, the church leaders told us that they were hosting a lunch after the services and to text our roommates and see if they would like to join.

I decided to send a text to my roommate and see what happened. His name was Shoto Kanemoto and he was from Okinawa, Japan. We hadn’t talked very much and didn’t know much about each other.

He sent me a simple response. “Do I need to dress up?” I quickly told him "no" and he ran over to the church to eat with us.

While eating lunch I introduced him to all of my friends. He was so happy to meet so many new people. As we wrapped up lunch, I asked him if he wanted to come to church with us the next week. He excitedly said "yes! I’ll be ready to go with you next week."

Shoto started going with me to activities and church from that time. He agreed to meet with the missionaries the following week.
He felt that God had lead him to this and decided to be baptized a month later.

Everything was great. Shoto had gotten baptized and quickly became one of my best friends. The ward fully embraced him and he was growing and learning in the gospel.

When we returned back from Winter break, Shoto got an email that changed everything - his eligibility of his student visa was being revoked and he had to return to Japan immediately or face serious consequences.

We were shocked. Due the language barrier, Shoto hadn’t realized that because he got a lower grade in one of his classes the semester before he was put on academic probation. He had taken difficult accounting and business classes that he had struggled in.

The next day, we went to visit with his academic advisor. She informed us that there was unfortunately nothing that she could do and that he was no longer welcome at Weber State as a student. She told us that we could try to get in to another university for a semester until he could get his grades up and then come back to Weber.

I started calling every university in the state. School had already started and every single one of them told me there was no chance.

We were defeated.

With only four days until he had to leave, I was sitting in my room and had a distinct impression that I needed to reach out to the president of LDS Business College. I had gone there two years previously and had met the President of the school in an elevator. I had had a good chat with him and was hoping he would remember me. I explained the situation to him and he told me he would see what he could do.

Four hours later, he connected me with the head of admissions at LDSBC. She reached out to me and told me all the things we needed to get and if we could get them by that Friday, we could get him admitted. We prayed and went to work. We got everything done with just a few hours to spare. He was able to start LDSBC the next week and stay in the United States.

I will never forget that impression. It was so clear and I felt that God was speaking directly to me through the Spirit. He provided us with a miracle and we are forever grateful.

Matthew Everett

08/31/2025

When I was younger, my brother, a friend, and I embarked yearly on a perilous hike in the primitive Uinta mountains, each time returning with a story of survival. Despite the dangers, we continued our tradition, having faith that our Heavenly Father would watch over us. On one occasion I recall prayer being an essential part of a safe return.

One year, we were 10-12 miles back into the Uintas. On the last night of our hiking/fishing trip as it was getting dark, we sat around a flashlight reminiscing about our day fishing. A ban on campfires meant that we had to make do with the light of a flashlight hung on a tree. As we were talking in the dim light, suddenly I noticed a figure in the shadows. It had been crouching about 30 feet from us and stood up and walked into our camp! I quickly grabbed the flashlight and shined it on the intruder, revealing a young boy. He was very out of place for being so far back in the Uintas. “Is this Moon Lake?” he asked.

I was very suspicious because we weren’t even close to Moon Lake. My suspicion grew as I questioned him, scanning the area for others who might be with him. After several minutes, we realized that he was alone and harmless. His name was Reuben and he was lost. He was 12 years old and was likely autistic. He told us that he and his friend had been walking around Moon Lake and his friend had turned back while he continued on alone.

He became lost when he came across a sign that said Moon Lake and pointed in the direction up the trail instead of towards the lake. We had noticed that same sign when we were hiking in and thought it was odd. It was obvious to us that the sign was wrong, so we didn’t pay any attention to it. Reuben on the other hand, trusted the sign and started to hike up the mountain the rest of the day thinking that it was leading him back to his father and friend at their Moon Lake campsite. He had been praying all day that he would find his dad.

I asked him why he was crouched down before he came into the camp. He said that he was sitting there for a while listening to our conversation to see if we were “good guys”. He listened to us talk about our day fishing and he could tell by our language and the way we were talking that we were members of the church. He was a member too. That’s when he felt that he could trust us and he approached us for help. Can you imagine what would have happened if we were using bad language? If he hadn’t approached our camp, he wouldn’t have run into anyone for many miles if he continued on that trail.

Reuben was very hungry, thirsty and tired. We fed him and got him some water to drink. He had gone without water all day because he knew the water there needed to be purified, or he could get sick. We then had a choice of keeping him with us in our tents for the night and waiting for Search and Rescue to arrive at our campsite or start hiking him out in the dark.

At this point we were at the end of our trip and we were going to hike out the next day. We only had one flashlight with batteries and one propane bottle left for the small backpacking lantern. The problem was that the batteries were on their way out and the bottle of propane was all but empty. We had used it and the other bottle to cook our meals. Both bottles were used simultaneously with two different burners throughout the hike. The other bottle had just run out, so we knew we didn’t have much left in the remaining bottle.

We decided that we needed to hike out with Reuben but we needed help from our Heavenly Father. It was already 10:30 pm and we packed up our gear and had a prayer together. We prayed that we would have enough propane for the small lantern and that the batteries for the flashlight would hold out long enough for us to reach safety. Then we headed down the mountain.

After nearly 5 hours of using the lantern and the flashlight, at about 4:00 am, we met up with the Search and Rescue team who was heading up the mountain looking for Reuben. There definitely wasn’t five hours of propane in that bottle when we bought it new, let alone using it during the hiking trip to cook our food and then using it for a lantern to hike down the mountain. And the flashlight, though used sparingly, couldn’t have stayed bright with those well-used batteries. I believe that Rueben received an answer to his prayers when he found our camp and we received answers to our prayers which helped us lead Rueben to safety.

I know that Heavenly Father answers prayers and that he gives us these tender mercies to bless our lives.

Marty Steckler

Come Unto Christ in the North Canyon Stake

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