Tribe of Testimonies

Humility seems like an attribute Al Frank has, whether he agrees or not. It could be circumstantial, or it might be because he's worked on it. Or both. Maybe there are other reasons as well. He wasn't raised as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But when he was shown the blessings that he could have by joining, he knew it was what he had been looking for. And it...

The Ten Commandments are foundational to our society, whether or not people recognize it. Geneva Garner's grandmother certainly knew the value of teaching her family about living by those rules. She knew that her children and grandchildren would find strength, satisfaction, and safety living that way. Geneva realizes now how much she funnels those teachings from her grandmother. As a convert,...

When I first talked with Gary John, we were in a noisy room celebrating a wedding. But he was just as excited to talk to me as I was to meet him. He loves to share his testimony. He loves to help the youth. He loves to spread the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He loves to teach people about the basics because he has seen how the basics (faith, prayer, testimony, church attendance, scriptur...

As I sat and listened to Mary Kaquitts about her history, I was so thankful that the Gospel found her. I can't imagine being plagued with demons--and for years! But I am thankful that gospel music and natural healing has brought her peace.  I love how she talks about just finding revelation after revelation while studying the scriptures and living the Gospel. I love her story about taking her...

There are some people that are really good at seeing the good in others. Patt Iron Cloud is like that--she sees people as angels sent from God and it's up to us to learn to love them and treat them with respect. Wow. Sometimes I forget that. Patt has raised so many children and has taught them to be close to the Savior. She taught her children and teaches anyone in her influence how to ask He...

Most of this interview is Becki Young. She shares how she met her husband, Brian Young. Becki tells of how depression has been an invasive and permanent part of her life. But she also talks about how the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and those blessing that can be found in the Church, have helped her cope with this. Blessings like the Holy Ghost and the Book of Mormon. She talks about dreams and about h...

I love it when I learn new things in unexpected ways. I always plan on learning things from my guests, but sometimes I'm surprised at what I learn. This time I learned more about silence. Seriously--silence. Listen. And then be still after you hear what I heard. I also learned about  remembering to take care of our promises with the Lord because He will then take care of us. I learned that th...

As I visited with Flora Shorten, I couldn't help but notice how much power she has, how much power she uses, and how much power she shares. She uses power for herself to keep her safe and on the strait and narrow. She uses bless and protect her family.  And she shares the power of the Gospel with everyone around her who is willing to accept it. What power? The enabling power of Christ. She kn...

Sometimes I stumble over the questions that I'm trying to get out. That's pretty common for me. But I really feel like the questions that I asked were inspired this episode. "As you prepared a talk for high council, what talk or preparation really stood out to you?" And then Goldlin Wall tells this story that is personal for one person--but relatable for every single one of us...

This conversation with Kevin Simmons was so beautiful to me. In fact, we talk about beauty a few times, but especially at the end when we talk about the Tribe of Israel. Kevin shares how he didn't always have an easy-go with the melding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and his heritage--until he saw it! When it all came together for him, he knew it was true. And now he shares that with friends,...

Think about how cool circles are. Now think about applying those to your life. We read in the scriptures that this life is one eternal round. What does that mean exactly? I don't know. But for a minute, Cherry Menard and I talk about what it might mean. It might mean being able to see across time to those before who are holding onto us here and now, and maybe being able to see across time and...

I have this book called  The Zookeeper's Secret . It talks about how most of us will look back on our lives and find that our "final" destination is almost  never  a straight line from point A to point B. Tianna Bettinson's life, even though she's still in a YSA ward, is already starting to look like an unexpected mess. She's learned that trusting in God means that He...

This episode is shorter than most. But you will find that since Leslie Curtis lives her life with the Savior in mind that all the short vignettes she shares are powerful. It's amazing how she has remembered the names of so many people who directly influenced her life for the better. Did you know that your actions can be part of someone's life story? Let's hope our actions and words...

While I didn't say much in this conversation, Jason Boni just made me feel so good. He brought me into his family and into his life. He taught me about how to handle hard things and how not to handle hard things. And he taught me how to return to the Savior because the Savior is  always  there for us. Jason found humor in moments of high intensity. And he looked for the good people who were a...

This episode is so fun! Why? Because we get to talk about flying!!!!!! Ok, I really enjoy flying. But Norman Brown L.O.V.E.S flying! It isn't just a passion, it's a soul thing for him. He's learned so many things from his time as an airman in the Naval Air Force. He has learned patterns that help him remember the patterns we're taught by our church leaders. He has learned how t...

Curtis Walker starts our conversation by telling about the four "Hills of Life." I really saw meaning in those "hills." In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the top leaders are all old. They have all reached an ultimate hill of life and so can give us more perspective and are closer to God. Curtis also tells about how his own parents had summited those hills and...

During our conversation, Dwight Witherspoon was pretty honest about how being human is hard sometimes. (Dang "natural man.") But I loved how he learned to give those challenges to the Savior. He's learned to look for the small miracles and the big gifts. He knows the blessing of the Holy Ghost because he has been guided by Him--and even given pure knowledge of situations through Him...

He came back. That's Jarom Harlan's story. He came back to the Gospel of Jesus Christ because it changed him from the inside out.  He's tested the waters both out of the Church and tested the promises in the Church. He's found safety and strength and family and purpose by living the Gospel. My favorite part of his story is when a Navajo man stopped by his apartment and invited...

Something that Cheryl Curry emphasizes over and over is that we need to connect with our Creator, our Father. That is something that I, too, have been worrying about. Cheryl talks about how when we eliminate God from our lives, we lose connection with all the things that make us whole: our divine heritage, why we're here, how we can become better, and how to love purely. Cheryl has learned by...

Who better than someone who loves their heritage, loves people, and doesn't mind getting their hands dirty to serve and stand for and with her people as an emissary of the White Mountain Apache Tribe than Shasta Hampton? Possibly no one. I loved so deeply how Shasta sought advice from the missionaries on how to talk to people. They encouraged her to pray. Of course! I loved that she talks abo...

Something that Janell Murphy told me is that she's a healer. I think she's come from broken places enough and that she's sought out healers and healing enough that she has learned that gift of the spirit. She seems to walk in harmony with the world around her. She's learned that doing so brings her closer to our Savior. And by becoming closer to the Savior, she is more in harmo...

There's this great little clip that the Church has put out called "The Music of the Gospel (https://youtu.be/ju8S2vswhjY). Shania Benally and I talk a little bit about this video and about the analogy that it represents. Shania explains how as she dances in powwows, she always does better when she just feels the drum. And then we talked about how just feeling the Spirit and the Savior le...

Come meet my dear friend, Krystle Seschillie! She is such a beautiful person. Some people are "converts" because they didn't have any association with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But Krystle is a convert because she wanted to know the Gospel. She wanted to know the Plan of Salvation for herself. She wanted to know about the gift of the Holy Ghost. She wanted to know if Priesthood bl...

I am definitely not as physically motivated as Denten Robinson is. Let's be honest, most of us aren't. But we can all choose to be as spiritually motivated as he is. How? By simply doing what we've been asked to do for all our lives: read our scriptures, go to church, take the sacrament, work on our testimonies, study General Conference. If you look at it as a whole, it might seem d...