Out of the Best Books

We might have all at one point asked ourselves, "Why do we have prophets? Why should we listen to them?" In the restored gospel, we believe that the counsel we receive from prophets prepares us for all that lies ahead. The revelation they receive is for us today—revelation that takes into account the unique circumstances in the world now. In Prophets See Around Corners , Sheri Dew shares from her...

As Latter-day Saints, we're connectors. We care about creating and maintaining relationships both on earth and after death. And we want to better understand our unique doctrine of eternal relationships so we can better love and appreciate our relationships now, across the veil, and in the eternities.  Which is something Professor Amy Harris has a passion for. She's a historian and genealogist who...

Forgiveness is a principle of the gospel that serves as a salve to any and all of our relationships. We hope to receive it from the Savior, and we are promised that through His divine atonement, it is possible. Elder Anderson writes, "As surely as the sun will rise tomorrow, the Savior's divine gifts of repentance and of forgiveness, offered in the beauty of His encompassing love, are certain for...

In the Church, we often colloquially refer to a trial as something we're "going through." As if there is a finish line, or even a moment in time that we just need to get by. But perhaps the real need is to slow down in our hard times and find out what it is we can learn when we simply sit with them. Author Rachel Cope invites us to this very thing in her book The Slow Work of God. In it, she makes...

As we self-examine our own process of conversion, there may be big, miraculous moments that we can point to, but lasting conversion is generally a slower process. That process builds up over time and brings us a continued conversion. And learning to embrace this process, despite the hard, will bring us as much joy as the miraculous big moments. Author Rachel Cope is personally familiar with that f...

This episode explores a topic that is going to answer a crucial question of faith many of us have asked before: why does this church matter? And with our study of the Doctrine & Covenants for the Come, Follow Me year, this chapter from Steven Harper's Wrestling with the Restoration: Why this Church Matters will add to your knowledge of prophetic revelation. It will change the way you respond the n...

This episode jumps into something that is right the Out of the Best Books alley. It's all about asking this crucial question of our faith: why does this church matter? We'll explore how we can encourage the wrestle of that. Hopefully we can see our study of the Doctrine and Covenants this year in a new light, and it may enlighten the conversations we have around the Sunday dinner table. The perfec...

In time for Valentine's Day this year we have an audio excerpt with a focus on love–real Christlike love. Steve Young's book The Law of Love in Action holds stories and commentary about letting love lead out in all relationships. Heard is a piece from chapter 10: No Expectations, No Transaction. Steve Young is a first ballot NFL Hall of Famer, author, and public speaker. He has written QB: My Life...

My Lord He Calls Me: Stories of Faith by Black American Latter-day Saints edited by Alice Faulkner Burch celebrates the stories of Black Latter-day Saints. It's an essay compilation by active Black American members of the Church whose ancestors were brought to the United States from Africa and enslaved. Because it's Black History month, we wanted to hear about their conversion stories, what life i...

Revelation is crucial to the restored gospel and crucial to our lives today. As Latter-day Saints, we know the heavens are open, but perhaps we all want to know how to hear God better and understand what revelation looks like in our own lives.   This podcast episodes features Janiece Johnson who will help us see that revelation is indispensable. She is a church historian and acquisition director a...

Today we're talking all about how to slow down and commune with God. It's a topic that we hope will help remind us how to draw closer to God without doing more.   With so much going on in the world, so much to do and be, why would anyone want to focus on stillness? Because that's what Jesus Christ did.  In this episode, authors of The Practice of Stillness Carrie Skarda and Jacob Hess share their...

In this episode, we're sharing audio from chapter five of Rosalynde Welch and Adam Miller's new book Seven Visions: Images of Christ in the Doctrine and Covenants called, "Christ in the Bosom of the Father." Adam and Rosalynde put President Nelson's call to seek Christ intentionally at the forefront of this effort. Chapter five focuses on Doctrine and Covenants Section 110, providing perspective a...

Deseret Book authors Rosalynde Welch and Adam Miller join this episode to discuss their book Seven Visions: Images of Christ in the Doctrine and Covenants .   Learning to hear God's voice is the goal of a lifetime, and in this episode, Welch and Miller explore the themes of light in the Doctrine and Covenants and how that leads to knowing God. They share an interesting insight that we want to dive...

In this episode, we're sharing audio from chapter 2 of Tad R. Callister's book A Case for the Book of Mormon called, "Man-Made or God-Given?" A common criticism of the Book of Mormon is that it's man-made. Brother Callister addresses this common argument and addresses many of the critics theories. Plus he shares a testimony of Emma Smith that you'll be thinking about for days.  In this book, autho...

In this episode, we're sharing audio from chapter four of Gerald Lund's To Always Have His Spirit: A Divine Promise for the Latter Days . This is a fresh look at the covenants we take part in every Sunday and how we can strive to take the sacrament from routine to remarkable.  Chapter Four is aptly titled, "The Voice of the Lord: Key concepts about personal revelation," and in this excerpt, you'll...

Deseret Book author and artist Kate Lee joins this episode and opens up about how her artwork has helped her connect with the Savior. Her book, Connecting with Christ , features her artwork as well as some contemplative questions for the reader to ponder about how these images of the Savior bring you peace and draw you closer to Him. Lee's artwork is a staple of Latter-day Saint art, and you can f...

In this episode, we're sharing audio from chapter two of Elder David A. Bednar's book The Rock of Our Redeemer: Facing the Future with Faith, Hope, and Power . This chapter, "The Blessings of Direction and Strength" is less than 10 minutes of audio read by Elder Bednar himself. But in that short time, you'll hear a promise that every covenant making and keeping member of the Church of Jesus Christ...

Deseret Book author Adam Miller joins this episode to explore the question, "Why did Christ come to the earth as a baby?" which is a theme in his new book The Christ Child . Miller explores the attributes of a child that we should aspire to because they are also attributes of the Savior: awe, imagination, and love. This conversation also explores tapping into a new perspective of the scriptural in...

In this episode, we're sharing audio from chapter three of Tyler Johnson's When Church Is Hard. The title of this chapter, "What does it mean to believe?" Is a question that many young adults grapple with in the Church. This excerpt puts some compassionate understanding behind the common need to have absolute answers right now. And then it turns to a truly compelling idea: that doubt doesn't have...

In this episode, we're sharing a sneak peak into chapter six from Steven Collis's Habits of a Peacemaker: 10 Habits to Change our Potentially Toxic Conversations into Healthy Dialogues . This chapter is called "Be open to change" and it's one key habit that takes very little effort. It's an important handbook for anyone wanting to build bridges of understanding, be more Christlike in conversations...

Deseret Book author Steven T. Collis joins this episode to share the formula for getting along in contentious times from his book  Habits of a Peacemaker. After listening, you'll have the confidence to engage in dialogue about hard topics while building and strengthening relationships. Collis encourages personal responsibility in a pursuit of peace through ten habits including "assume you know not...