Leading Saints Podcast

In this episode we meet again with member of North Star, a non-profit organization that is a faith-affirming resource for Latter-day Saints addressing sexual orientation or gender identity, and who desire to live in harmony with the teachings of Jesus Christ and the doctrines and values of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On March 17-19, North Star is having a conference in Provo,...

This is a review of an episode recorded last April 2015. I am posting this here so that it can be reviewed by the podcast audience prior to the release of Part 2 and Part 3 which will be posted in a few days. To read and review the original see here: http://leadinglds.com/how-to-support-gay-members-in-your-lds-ward/

Bishop Brandon Leavitt was called as bishop 8 months ago, and has grown greatly. He is from Logandale, Nevada (close to Las Vegas) and works in the road construction industry.

One of the first questions Bishop Allan Reay was asked when he was ordained a bishop was, "How old ARE you?" He was 31 at the time and has two young counselors to match. In this interview we discuss their unique approach to managing a ward with unique ideas that are increasing the unity and culture of the ward. They share how they put on a "Come & See Sunday" that encouraged members of their ward...

You may recognize Chris Allen's name because he was the author of the previous post called Encouraging Young Men to Lead. Again, Chris Allen is a Young Men President in Sandy, Utah. He works for a local blood laboratory and enjoys being with his family when he isn’t mountain biking. He has years of experience in the Young Men program and shares a fascinating approach to helping young men become le...

I was sitting in one of those 7:00-am-and-I'm-way-too-tired-to-be-here priesthood training meetings, listening to the stake president teach. I was struggling to pay attention until a single phrase focused my thoughts and brought the promptings of the spirit on me like floodwater bursting over a levee. The stake president said, "If a young man has to come to you at the start of Priesthood meeting t...

In 2013 the bishop and ward missionaries of the College Station Ward in Texas had an inspiration. They wanted to infuse the internet with positive messages of Jesus Christ that would help the world understand the Mormon Church better. That led to the creation of Aggieland Mormons and now they have created hundreds of posts that is spreading the good word and making it easier for LDS members to sha...

Glenn Wright is a Sunday School president in Saratoga Springs, UT. In this interview we discuss his focused approach to really making an impact in his ward Sunday School program. His ward is also participating in a Church pilot program to test out adjustments to the ward teaching that should be rolled out next year. Every Sunday School presidency and bishopric should listen to this episode. It's i...

Recently I was reminded of Elder Holland's April 1998 General Conference talk titled "A Teacher Come From God". It is a talk that was given soon after President Hinckley expressed that each member of the Church needs a friend, a responsibility, and nourishment by the good word of God. I took the time to listen to the talk, which led to me reading the talk, which led to me reading the talk again. I...

Being a ward mission leader (WML) can be an exhilarating experience. If you desire, you can learn how the Lord wants missionary work to go forward in your ward and you can become an instrument in His hands. Being a participant on the front lines of the Atonement with all the highs and lows that go along with this great work...now that is really living!

Cindy Burt is a counselor in her ward young women's program in Kirkland, Washington. She has also served as a Relief Society president, stake Young Women's President, and seminary teacher. She joined the LDS Church at 26 soon after she married her husband.

We have all done it, said to ourselves, I’m just going to go ahead and do this task because it's easier for me to just handle it. Or we might say, Oh, Brother Smith is so busy. Let me do that task for him. I think it's a natural feeling for those in leadership roles to want to take the best care of their people. We often feel like asking someone to take a task or assignment is in some way unkind....

In the LDS church, leadership sometimes comes with formal responsibility through a calling or assignment. Someone newly called to positions like, bishop, Relief Society president, or ward mission leader, might find themselves subject to a life of limited time. The reality is, most callings in the church will take as much time as you are willing to give—even more if you aren't careful. Every minute...

In this How I Lead interview we talk with Tommy Haws who is a stake president in the Gallup, New Mexico area. His stake covers 10,000 square miles! He presides over 5 wards and 7 branches that meet in 11 buildings. President Haws has years of leadership experience, serving as elders quorum president 3 times, a councilor in a stake presidency, and then a bishop before he was asked to serve as the s...

Jacob Khalil is a student at Brigham Young majoring in Vocal Performance. He grew up in a home with a Mormon mother and a Muslim father. In order to respect his father's request, Jacob didn't get baptized until he was 18 years old and could make the decision as a legal adult. In this interview we discuss how Jacob's parents, youth leaders, and other members of his ward influenced him during his yo...

In this episode we head all the way over to El Puerto de Santa Maria and interview Bishop Tony Batanero. You will find this interview inspiring as we discuss his conversion to the gospel, his service as a full time missionary in Missouri and Canada. He shares his experience of losing his mother during his mission and how that impacted his testimony. He claims that the best calling in the Church is...

Shawn Hammond is a bishop in Colorado Spring, Colorado. He's also had the opportunity to serve as a Young Men's president, elders quorum president, and was also blessed to serve in the California Sacramento Mission in the early 2000's.

We hear it all the time in sacrament meeting; the invitation, coming from the lectern, to "stand after your name is read." This means members of your ward are getting a calling. Most callings that are extended to us require no leadership responsibilities.

Adam Barrow is a BYU graduate, accountant, father, past elders quorum president, elders quorum counselor, executive secretary, and currently serves as the secretary in his elders quorum. These are various callings he has received while living in San Francisco, California, Raleigh, North Carolina, and Salt Lake City, Utah.

There is a considerable amount of loneliness in leadership. Some days, as a leader, feel like loneliness is all that exists. The rough days of leadership send my mind to the words of President Hinckley in 1969. The speech was later titled The Loneliness of Leadership. It has become one of my favorite talks he gave because it talks so directly to the weight of leadership. So much so, that I play a...

Let's face it! The only people that are qualified to be bishop are those that have a PhD in human psychology, with a masters in Family Relations, and an MBA from Stanford for good measure. The type of problems and crises church leaders face are sometimes staggering. Thankfully, each bishop holds the priesthood, is blessed with keys, and has awesome support (counselors, ward council, etc.).

Kevin Hallstrom lives in Honolulu, Hawaii and is a school teacher by day while serving in his local ward as the bishop. In this episode we discuss how he leads and what leadership principles have become pillars in his service. He has a great command of the scriptures and relates all his leadership suggestions to scriptural experiences. We also spend some time talking about his professional teachin...

Recently I had lunch with a friend. This wasn't just a friend but also a past bishopric counselor of mine. At the time of our lunch I had recently been released as bishop and he had recently been called as bishop in a different ward. These scenarios led to a discussion about leadership vacuums.

Imagine if you sat on the board of directors for a large Fortune 500 company that needed to find a new CEO to improve the dismal progress of the company. You are not allowed to conduct any formal interviews. You can only choose from people that live in a specific geographical neighborhood (about 350 people). To top it off, you have to make your decision in only 2 weeks.

Paul Barker is currently serving as 1st counselor in a Young Single Adult (YSA) Stake in the Phoenix, Arizona area. He has also served in a few bishoprics, and as a bishop. In this episode we focus on the unique characteristics of being a leader in a YSA stake and how these stakes are more elite compared to conventional family wards. We also discuss the unique approaches to home teaching, how acti...