No, I’m not making an LDS version of I am Legend (though I’m curious what that would even be… Any thoughts?), but I want to do a better at being a bit more vocal about who I am and what I believe. One of my friends did a pretty good job, and other than posting my testimony of The Book of Mormon on here, I haven’t done a lot myself to stand up for my faith… No worries, I’m not going to be doing any preaching to try and convert everyone I see, but there are plenty of people out there that have misconceptions about what I believe and so I guess I’m responding to that more than anything else.

What surprises me is that there is such animosity toward members of the LDS Church and that it is OK in the public sector to say whatever you want about us. I thought this article was particularly interesting (and yes, it’s written by someone who is LDS). I was shocked at the attacks people made on Mitt Romney throughout the Republican primaries, and I’m really sad to see him out of the race - he is by far the best republican candidate on paper. Honestly, he’s one of only a couple people I would feel comfortable voting for (McCain and Obama are NOT on that short list by the way).

I’m not trying to talk about politics, but rather my feeling that the United States is full of hypocrites. We love to pontificate about the importance of being open minded to homosexuality, different races, foreign religions, etc…; but the nation refuses to respect a group of over 6 million American people who live by their faith in what many scholars proclaim to be a truly American Religion. This doesn’t even seem like a stretch, to be perfectly honest - we’re talking about American people who live clean cut lives, that are general good members of the community, and that are some of the first to respond with humanitarian aid in an emergency. What’s the problem?

Well, people don’t like to be bugged by LDS missionaries, and some member of the LDS Church are pretty obnoxious when it comes to sharing their faith - but aren’t a lot of other religions like that as well? I’m OK with LDS missionary jokes on occasion, because I can see how that is obnoxious to some people, but what’s with the straight hatred?

OK, so you don’t agree with our beliefs, but who cares? Just because Mormons believe that God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three distinct and separate beings that are one in purpose rather than one in physical form does not mean that we are less Christian than the next person. In fact, the LDS Church is only one of many Christian groups that believe in that same doctrine!

Again, I’m not trying to argue specific points of doctrine, rather I hope to point out how ridiculous the prejudice is when you consider that we are pretty much your prototypical Americans. Yeah, we do some things differently (e.g. we don’t drink alcohol or smoke), and we certainly are cheesy when it comes to family time, but does that make us ripe for ridicule in the public square? Does that make us un-American?

If we are so concerned about being an open and accepting society, why are most Americans playing the role of hypocrite when it comes to LDS folks? Going back to the election (and I’m totally stealing this from the article I referenced above), we have a black man, a woman, a baptist, and a Mormon that were all running in the primaries… Do we hear much criticism of the black man? Goodness no! Have I been called sexist for suggesting Hillary would be a bad chose because I disagree with her politics? Oh yeah! Do we make fun of the former baptist minister who says his religion defines him? No, no, no!

What about the Mormon? Well, he’s weird…

On this past Fourth of July I stood up and proclaimed myself to be proud to be an American - but that doesn’t mean I don’t think we have a lot of room for improvement.

A friend of mine, Chris Haleua,  put up a website/blog at http://www.bookofmormontruth.com/, and I thought I would contribute by sharing my feelings on the Book of Mormon…  I’ve copied below what I sent to him to post on his new page.  As a side note, I think it’s important to put good information out there when you see a lot of falsehoods taking up the bandwidth - this goes for anything religious, social, whatever!  Use the internet for sharing good rather than for spewing hate…  That’s my goal!

I guess I should start by saying that I didn’t always believe the Book of Mormon to be true…  My Father is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) and my Mother is a Presbyterian.  I grew up going to church with my Dad, but I spent a fair amount of time once I really began thinking about my faith wondering whether or not any of the stuff I was being told was true.  It’s a little fantastic to think, isn’t it?  A boy named Joseph Smith seeing God the Father and Jesus Christ, then being instructed some years later to translate a story of people here in the Americas and their religious experiences…  You have to admit, it’s kind of hard at first glance to believe that a story like that could be true.

My testimony is that it IS true.  When I was in high school I decided that it was time for me to figure out whether or not this book really was what everyone told me it was.  I grew up in the Chicago-land area, so I had my church friends telling me it was true and my school friends telling me it was written by Satan.  The only way I could think of to prove it one way or another was to read it and to pray about it-trusting that God would never lead me astray if I were to pray in full faith, asking for enlightenment.  (Remember John 11:22 - “But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.”)

When I read the Book of Mormon, I felt a great peace and sense of faith come over me.  Knowing my Bible pretty decently, I thought of the scripture Galatians 5:22-23 - “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”  At that point I knew something was right.

After reading I would pray and ask if the book and its words are true, and I would always feel at peace, filled with love, and with a desire to continue reading more.  After consistently feeling that way for an extended period of time, I knew I was doing something right.  I continued in the Book of Mormon until I had completed it.  In the final chapter, the prophet Moroni promises the following (Moroni 10:3-5):

    3 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.   

4 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.   

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

I had been praying all along, but at this point I knelt down and asked one more time if the Book of Mormon is true, and I can testify that it is!

The Book of Mormon has been a strength to me throughout my life.  At times I struggle with the complexities of life, and I realized a long time ago that the teachings in Ecclesiastes are true, and that a life filled with good things is still empty and futile if it is without God.  When I read in the Book of Mormon (and the Bible for that matter), I feel the Spirit of God in my life and I can make it through the hardest trials and feel the greatest joys when things seem to be going my way.  One of my favorite Book of Mormon scriptures is found in Helaman chapter 5, when the prophet Helaman spoke to his sons, saying in verse 12:

 “And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”

As an LDS Missionary I saw the Book of Mormon change people’s lives.  These weren’t simply non-believers that finally found Christ, but devout Catholics, Baptists and Jehovah’s Witnesses that began reading the Book of Mormon and discovering the truth of it for themselves.  The teachings in the Book of Mormon drive us to become better disciples of Jesus Christ, and that was the challenge that each of these converts took upon themselves. 

 I know that the Book of Mormon is true, and it has changed my life and made me a better man.  Alongside the Bible, the Book of Mormon helps us understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ more clearly.  If you’re curious for yourself, take the time to validate the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon for yourself! 

 As always, communication on anything I write about it appreciated and welcome.  Just post a comment, and if you ask a question I will respond. 

So, I’m contemplating turning this into a family blog. I’ve been using it for personal purposes and to write about new thoughts on technology and such, but I feel it may be of better use as a personal family blog where each member of my family can post things.

Just a thought.

I know it will kill my readership, but since I barely write at this point, will anyone really care? If my family actually uses it then it could become pretty helpful and fun for all of us. If my family rejects the idea, then it’s a completely wasted experiment. I suppose taking a straw poll would be the best way to see what the interest level will be.

In all honesty, my major hang up is that I feel like it’s an all or nothing switch. Perhaps I should put up a separate blog somewhere? I feel like since this is www.rosenbaugh.com that it shouldn’t just be Jeff’s Personal Writing space… But then again, I’m the one who is going to use it most, right?

Perhaps I should wait until I have a family of my own… So many things to contemplate on how I should use this space.

This probably doesn’t come to a huge surprise to those who know me super well, but I have a pretty insatiable love of video games… It’s not like I really spend very much time playing them, but for some reason the really play to my imagination. I’m not talking about Grand Theft Auto or World of Warcraft (don’t get me started on the ridiculousness of both of those games), but when I talk of video games I’m talking about the Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, Smash Bros., and Guitar Hero - games that are FUN and generally have a good story (come on, who doesn’t want to lead a quest to become a Guitar Hero?!).

Anyway, not only do I like games, but I am constantly humored by video game comics (see Penny Arcade), stunts (see Mega64), and random odes to formal gaming glory:

Come on, who doesn’t find that awesome?But seriously, the more I get to know myself the more I realize that I really am a kid at heart and I don’t want that to change. I find simple humor humorous, I find simple pleasures pleasing, and I find great story telling fascinating (you didn’t think I was going to pull a poem out on you, did you?).I think that’s really what gets me - the great story telling. I’ve been spending a lot of time reading this summer, and I honestly have been all over the young adult fiction. Those authors REALLY know how to create complete worlds of intrigue and excitement. I should probably read the Lord of the Rings books to get a more adult example of that, but the point is that the great story telling really keeps me engaged.

Say what you will about gaming and gamers, but I officially accept my nerd-dom when it comes to gaming. I can’t WAIT for Mario Galaxy or Smash Bros. Brawl!!!