Ward Mission Leaders Unite!

Members are more likely to love, share, and invite effectively when there is a personal event pending such as an assignment to give a talk or an upcoming baby blessing.

Currently, many missionaries show up at members' homes and invite them to talk to their friends and neighbors about the Church. This is one of missionaries' most effective finding methods. But these member visits are so much more effective if the missionaries are in weekly contact with their ward mission leader or ward executive secretary to find out the schedule of sacrament meeting speakers at least ten days in advance. Those who are assigned to give talks, both the adult members and the youth members, are experiencing unique feelings and emotions. Giving a talk is an important and stressful part of membership. For most it only happens every few years. The result is that these members are typically in a heightened state of humility and spirituality the two weeks before their scheduled talk. Full time missionaries and ward mission leaders can take advantage of this!

Either the full time missionaries or the ward mission leader can visit these members’ homes about ten days before their talk. Tell them you know they have been assigned to speak in church and ask them what their topic is. Ask them what they are planning to share and express confidence in them and in their preparation. Then, look them in the eye and say, “we are here today to humbly invite you by the spirit to invite as your friends, neighbors, and co-workers to come to church to hear you give your talk in two weeks.” Their jaws might just hit the floor, but don’t lose heart! Keep going, “we understand that giving a talk is stressful enough just in front of our fellow members, but we believe that many of your friends, neighbors, co-workers, and even acquaintances, will be moved and flattered by your invitation to come hear your talk. We believe that inviting someone to come hear a talk is a much easier and natural invitation than a sudden invitation to meet with the missionaries or just come to church out of the blue. You are a wonderful person, and we are confident many people would be very happy to come and show their support for you on this special day.”

Now, their jaw will slowly return to its place, and you will see the wheels turning in the member's head. They will immediately see the logic behind such an invite, and may even be shocked it never occurred to them before.

One of the awesome and unique aspects to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the sheer quantity of service and teaching opportunities it gives to its members. We do not have a paid pastor or reverend who preaches weekly sermons to a silent crowd of people. We do it all ourselves! We give the sermons, we teach the lessons, it's all us. This Church provides the best opportunity to truly progress and grow because it gives us the most opportunities to serve as Jesus Christ would. Pastors and reverends and priests in other churches have wonderful experiences teaching and counseling their congregations, and they grow and improve and learn tremendously as a result of this service. But all these opportunities should not be consolidated into one person or even a handful of people. Here, in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we all share the burdens, the blessings, and the opportunities of service.

While you are sitting in that member’s home, remind them of this. Remind them of this very unique difference between our church and other churches. An invitation to come hear your talk is the perfect chance to highlight these blessings of membership to a friend or co-worker. That friend, neighbor or co-worker will find it very interesting, and learning about these differences will be in context because they will be curious to know why the member is preaching on an upcoming Sunday instead of a pastor. What an absolutely, phenomenally-natural gospel conversation! And all these members could be having this conversation with all their friends and neighbors if only we went to their homes and encouraged them to make these invitations!

So why meet with the member at least ten days before their scheduled talk? So you can follow up the next week! During the first meeting you will ask them to make a list of people to invite, and then together brainstorm ways they could invite them. At the end of the visit you make an appointment to come back the next week to FOLLOW UP!

FOLLOW UP! FOLLOW UP! FOLLOW UP! FOLLOW UP! FOLLOW UP!

We must go back the next week and check on their progress and continue to brainstorm. Look, this two-week process can get as elaborate and detailed as your member feels comfortable with. They can make personal invitations in person or over the phone, and then they can follow it up with mailed invitations, or emailed invitations, or texts, or social media messages, or all of it combined! Make sure the member provides the time and address, what the friend can expect as far as how people will be dressed, and how the Sacrament works at our church, that it is for baptized members to take the Sacrament. All of these things will lead to more questions and more gospel sharing and conversation! It will be incredible.

Once again, I remind you of the peculiar spiritual and emotional state your member will be in as a result of his or her impending talk. They will be more humble because of their desire to do well and be a blessing to others.  That humility will shine through their conversations with their friends during the invitation process, showing a vulnerability that probably hasn’t been present in their prior interactions. This vulnerability and openness on the part of the members will disarm their friends and neighbors, causing them also to become more vulnerable and open to THE SPIRIT!

Now, some members will be very freaked out about all of this, especially some youth speakers. Do not give up on them! Do not let them take the easy way out! Youth speakers have the opportunity to invite friends from school, sports teams, theater groups, and even tutors, coaches, and teachers. You can make yourself available to both youth and adult members alike to be a practice audience for their talk, if they wish, or to otherwise assist with their preparation. Do not be pushy about this, but some will jump at the chance to receive some feedback beforehand, especially some youth. This can be an amazing missionary preparation experience for these youths.

Giving a talk in church is an important and powerful experience for all members, but if that talk is given with several friends and neighbors sitting in the congregation, it becomes something so much bigger. It becomes a testimony-defining experience. Watch and see how the quality of talks improves in your ward when every week there are a handful of investigators sitting there who know the speakers personally. These meetings will become nothing short of incredible. The lingering that often takes place after sacrament meeting also becomes more powerful, as the whole ward reaches out to introduce themselves to these new friends.

You may be wondering, “well, what about Fast Sundays? No one is assigned to speak then, so I guess we can’t encourage members to invite friends on Fast Sundays?”  My friends, sacrament talks are paltry, meaningless affairs compared to baby blessings!  It is no accident that baby blessings are always done on Fast Sundays. If you think friends and neighbors are flattered to be invited to hear a member speak, you can’t imagine how wonderful it feels for them to be invited to the baby blessing of a family they know! This is the easiest invitation ever!

So, how do you do it? The key is the Relief Society presidency. The full-time missionaries or the ward mission leader needs to reach out to someone in the Relief Society presidency and ask for a list of all the expectant mothers in your ward who are due in approximately two to three months. I highly recommend you not first approach these mothers and fathers just two weeks before their baby is due! Expectant mothers are often so uncomfortable the last few weeks of their pregnancy that that they may not be very open to adding something to their already very-full plates. And, the invitation process for baby blessings can be quite a bit more elaborate than for talks. I don’t mean “expensive” I mean “expansive." They should start much earlier than 10-14 days. Families who are about to bless their baby should invite every friend, neighbor, and co-worker who lives within 100 miles, and can also be used to invite family members who may have distanced themselves from the Church, and others who may live further away.

Baby blessing attendance is especially effective because they happen on fast Sundays. Immediately following the baby blessing, the invited guests then sit though thirty minutes of powerful testimonies about Jesus Christ and his restored gospel.

Coming to a baby blessing is the easiest commitment for anyone to make. Babies are what we call an "open category," meaning that people are more willing and open to talk to and about babies than almost anything else. It can be difficult to help people to attend church the first time because doing so means admitting to themselves and the whole world that they are interested in the Church. But baby blessing guests do not carry that same concern. No, they waltz into church like a warm summer breeze, with a big smile on their face that says, “all y’all are crazy, I’m just here for my friend’s baby blessing!” They walk in without a care in the world, with no idea they are about to witness not only a beautiful baby blessing, but thirty minutes of pure testimony of Jesus Christ. Their minds are about to be blown!

Now, let's ratchet it up a level and talk about working with the entire ward council to combine these two invitations to create maximum missionary impact. First, work with the bishopric to extend speaking invitations to parents who are due to have a baby in approximately two to three months. Think of it as a 1-2 punch. You could schedule the mother to speak two or three months before her due date and the father to speak two or three months after the baby blessing, or vice versa. This would create three invitation opportunities within a six-month period for that family’s friends, family, co-workers, and acquaintances. If that family has youth, even better, they can also be thrown into that mix.

Importantly, this is not a new program and does not require any additional time on the missionaries' or ward mission leader's part. Missionaries and ward mission leaders are already meeting with members, but now they would merely be organizing their member visits around the ward speaking calendar and forthcoming baby blessings. This makes the time you are already spending with members more meaningful, more purposeful, more powerful, and more productive. Eight-year-old baptisms and confirmations are also great opportunities for invitations, and can be utilized in a fashion similar to baby blessings. Even Aaronic priesthood ordinations in January could be used this way. Imagine all the young men in your ward inviting friends, coaches, teachers, and mentors to their ordinations, to be held just before sacrament meeting on fast Sunday.

Missionaries and ward mission leaders who work within the regularly scheduled activities of their wards can fill the chapel with investigators every week for talks, baby blessings, baptisms, and even youth activities. Christmas programs and Primary programs are other great opportunities for invitations. Firesides are chances for youth to invite friends, and even youth conferences. Youth presidencies, male and female, can discuss designing activities that they think their non-member friends would want to attend. This question is not brought up often enough in these activity scheduling meetings with the youth. These invitations can culminate in invitations not just to meet with the missionaries, but to attend Trek, FSY, or Youth Conference. If the nonmember friend’s parents sign the permission slip, the youth’s friend can come along on Trek, FSY, etc.

I know these ideas work. I was in law school when our second son was due. My wife and I worked together, made a list, and in the month before the baby blessing we invited over 200 people. Twenty of these people came to our son's baby blessing.  Eric Bednar, the son of Elder Bednar, was a member of the bishopric of our North Carolina ward at that time. I'll never forget walking into the building and seeing him smiling and laughing and talking with all those investigators waiting to see us, our new baby, and the blessing. Eric conducted that day as well, and he adroitly used his time on the stand to not just bear powerful testimony, but to share a mini discussion that briefly covered the Plan of Salvation, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the restoration of the Church through Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. It was so awesome!

We invited 200 people to the baby blessing and 20 came. My wife and I learned that this "10% rule" was fairly consistent. We had two more sons in Houston, Texas, and our continued efforts to invite people to those baby blessings, as well as whenever we were assigned to give talks, consistently yielded about 10% attendance. This means, about 10% of the people we invited, came. The number of investigators, or new friends, that attend Church each Sunday in our wards will rise astronomically if we take advantage of the spiritual feast that is happening on a weekly basis in our sacrament meetings, during our baby blessings, and at our children's baptisms, and invite our members to love, share, and invite around these personal events.

Now, it's time for us to go and do!

Charlemagne, King Josiah, and Lehi?

Charlemagne was buried with an open copy of the bible placed upon his lap.  Unfortunately, few remember his role in preserving religious writings and also paving the way for the Renaissance.  Although Charlemagne died in 814 A.D., he was perhaps the greatest “signal repeater” between ancient greco-roman thought and the Renaissance.  A signal repeater is a box on the ocean floor that receives the fading ones and zeros through fiber optic cables, strengthens them, and resends them along.  Just as data could not make the trans-oceanic journey without signal repeaters, the Renaissance would have been set back centuries without Charlemagne. 

Charlemagne

What Charlemagne did was copy and preserve almost every written document he could find throughout his realm.  “​​Most of the surviving works of classical Latin were copied and preserved by Carolingian scholars. Indeed, the earliest manuscripts available for many ancient texts are Carolingian. It is almost certain that a text which survived to the Carolingian age survives still.”  (Wikipedia: Charlemagne).  Without Charlemagne’s education reforms during what we call the “Carolingian Renaissance,” there would have been very little greco-roman thought for the great thinkers of the European Renaissance to build upon.  For the religious, it is not inaccurate to consider Charlemagne as having been wrought upon by God to preserve as many secular and religious writings as he could.  This is especially true because it was not the first time a restoration like this had happened.

Approximately 1400 years before Charlemagne, Josiah became King of Judah at the age of eight years old.  Although Josiah’s great-grandfather Hezekiah had been a notable reformer who ruled during the time of the prophet Isaiah, neither Josiah’s grandfather nor his father sought to follow the law or the prophets.  A key difference maker in Josiah’s life was the presence of the high priest Hilkiah.  The record is unclear how Josiah and Hilkiah connected, or who was more of an influence on whom, but the record is very clear on the results.  Josiah and Hilkiah were a tremendous force for good.  Josiah ordered the temple to be cleaned both physically and spiritually (his grandfather had altered it for idol worship), and in that process Hilkiah found the book of the law.  Most commentators believe they found Deuteronomy, one of the Pentateuch.  2 Kings 22:11 says, “[a]nd it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes.”  Apparently, a lot that needed doing that wasn’t getting done, and an awful lot was getting done that never needed doing.  In verse 13 Josiah turned to Hilkiah and the other priests and said, “Go ye, inquire of the Lord for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened to the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.”  One of those consulted was the prophetess Huldah, who confirmed the truthfulness of the words of scripture.   

Josiah and Hilkiah began making changes to bring the kingdom in line with the law.  A lot of changes.  They tore down idols, restored temple worship, and even held the first passover celebrated in a long time.  2 Chronicles 35:18 says, “[a]nd there was no passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” 2 Kings 23:25 reads, “[a]nd like unto [Josiah] was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.”  

Josiah attempted to lead his people in righteousness and encourage the people to repent.  Josiah and Hilkiah’s efforts are uniquely relevant to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who accept the Book of Mormon as an additional witness of Jesus Christ, equal to the Old and New Testaments.  The Book of Mormon begins with a man named Lehi living in Jerusalem during the first year of the reign of King Zedekiah.  Since Zedekiah was the third son of Josiah, this means Josiah was the king of Lehi’s youth.  Lehi grew up watching Josiah’s reforms and also seeing the effects the discovery of the book of the law of God had on all of Israel.  This context is very important to understanding the inception of the Book of Mormon.  

In chapter one, Lehi hears prophesying of the imminent destruction of Jerusalem unless the people repent.  He likely heard it from the prophet Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah.  Lehi takes these prophecies seriously, prays about them, and receives an answer from God that the prophets' words are true.  As a result, Lehi begins to prophesy as well.  Soon, his life is in danger much like Jeremiah’s.  God warns Lehi in a dream to flee Jerusalem with his family, telling him he will be led to a land of promise.  Soon after they leave, Lehi is commanded to send his sons back to Jerusalem to obtain a copy of the scriptures.  Lehi’s two oldest sons dragged their feet, but Nephi, Lehi’s third son, received his own witness from God that the scriptures were necessary.  1 Nephi 4:14-15 reads, “. . . I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise.  Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses save they should have the law.”  

Lehi and Nephi’s understanding of the importance of the scriptures in preserving and promoting righteousness was a direct result of Josiah and Hilkiah.  But it goes beyond that.  Without Josiah and Hilkiah, there would have been no righteousness as Lehi understood it, and no set of scriptures for Nephi and Lehi to bring along.  It is unlikely Nephi and Lehi would have ever left Jerusalem or even understood the ways of the Lord at all if not for the efforts of Josiah and Hilkiah.

Leaving Jerusalem

But Lehi and his family did leave Jerusalem, and they did bring a copy of the scriptures.  After Nephi returned to Lehi with the scriptures,  Lehi “beheld that they did contain the five books of Moses, which gave an account of the creation of the world, and also of Adam and Eve, who were our first parents; [a]nd also a record of the Jews from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah; [a]nd also the prophecies of the holy prophets, from the beginning . . . and also many prophecies which have been spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah.”  1 Nephi 5:11-13.  

After obtaining the scriptures, Lehi was commanded to invite another family to join them, and the two families left on an eight year journey to the ocean, where they were commanded to build a boat.  This boat landed somewhere in the Americas in approximately 592 years BC.  The Book of Mormon is simply the record of God’s dealings with Lehi and his descendants from 600 BC to approximately 530 AD.  The last prophet, named  Moroni, was the son of Mormon.  Mormon was a warrior/prophet who was commanded to write a summary of the history of the descendants of Lehi taken from the writings of their prophets.  That’s why it is called “The Book of Mormon.”  

Just as Charlemagne preserved religious and secular writings during the Carolingian Renaissance, 1400 years earlier Josiah preserved jewish law, life, and scripture.  Charlemagne’s efforts made the Renaissance of the 15th and 16th centuries possible.  Josiah didn’t just protect and preserve Jerusalem and their righteousness, he also laid the groundwork for a tribe of Israel to live in righteousness for over 1000 years in ancient America, and paved the way for what members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints call the Restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ.  Consistent with the litmus test for all prophets found in Matthew 7, the Book of Mormon is the chief fruit of Joseph Smith.  The Book of Mormon supports the divinity of Jesus Christ, his miraculous birth, his atoning sacrifice, and his resurrection.  The apex of the Book of Mormon is a record of the visit of Jesus Christ to the Americas following his resurrection in Jerusalem, consistent with John 10:16 in the New Testament, which reads, “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.” 

Christ in the Americas

The story of Josiah in relation to the timing of Lehi’s life and works is one of the reasons I know the Book of Mormon is true, just as I know the Bible is true.  Sadly, most members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do not know how Josiah’s story relates to the commencement of the Book of Mormon, or understand how Nephi’s actions to recover the scriptures were informed by the events of his era.  I love King Josiah, I love Hilkiah, I love Lehi and Nephi, and I love the prophet Joseph Smith, because they are all signal repeaters who all point us to Christ.  Joseph Smith said “[t]he fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”  The Book of Mormon states:

“Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.  And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end, Amen.”  2 Nephi 31:20-21.  

I believe that at times we can see the hand of God moving across the sweep of history.  I believe Charlemagne was inspired to create the reforms he did to both preserve and protect religion as well as future scientific progress.  I believe Josiah was sent, in part, to pave the way for the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.  I believe Lehi and Nephi were real people whose lives and actions were actually influenced and blessed by Josiah’s reforms.  I believe Josiah doesn’t get as much credit as he deserves for the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and the Restoration of the The Church of Jesus Christ.  The Book of Mormon shows that God wants to give His word to all who are willing to

receive it.  I highly recommend reading it. 

Did Trump say to Kill all the Lawyers?!

I am a registered Republican and a former Republican precinct chair here in Utah. I'm also a Never-Trumper. After graduating from Duke Law School, my first job was at Bracewell & Giuliani LLP in 2007. Yes, that Giuliani. The firm was previously known as Bracewell & Patterson. In 2005, the managing partner of Bracewell & Patterson, Pat Oxford, was a major player in the Texas Republican party and a close confidant of George W. Bush. Bracewell & Patterson wanted to open a New York City office, and Giuliani wanted access to the Texas Republican elite. So that year Bracewell & Patterson became Bracewell & Giuliani.

During my first week at Bracewell, Senior partner Kelly Frels met with all the new associates. Mr. Frels had recently been the President of the Texas Bar Association. He spoke to us about a line from Shakespeare’s Henry VI, which reads “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” The speaker, a killer named Dick the Butcher, was planning to overthrow the King of England. Mr. Frels explained that many commentators have noted that for good or ill, lawyers protect the government. Bad lawyers protect bad government and good lawyers protect good government. He went on to teach us of the importance of the judicial branch of our government and of the role of attorneys and judges to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law. He explained that judges are an important check on both the executive and legislative branches and implored us as new attorneys to commit to truth and justice. He said that justice begins with attorneys, and is not only the responsibility of judges. Frankly, his words were inspiring, and also completely at odds with the behavior exhibited by Rudy Giuliani in the last several months. Incidentally, Giuliani and the firm parted ways in 2016.

It has been almost fourteen years since my early days at Bracewell, and over eight since I have run my own practice. But the lesson I learned from Kelly Frels has stuck with me. It is why I have watched with great sadness as Trump has defied the entire judicial branch in the past few weeks. Trump is not just defying random judges, but the very judges he himself appointed. No president has appointed more federal judges since Jimmy Carter. According to Wikipedia, “As of January 3, 2021, the United States Senate has confirmed 234 Article III judges nominated by Trump: three associate justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, 54 judges for the United States courts of appeals, 174 judges for the United States district courts, and three judges for the United States Court of International Trade.”

Among those 54 appellate judges is a friend of mine from law school, Allison Jones Rushing. Allison was an exemplary student and wonderful, Christian friend. I should not have to mention she is Christian, but it is wrong that "Christian" should equate "Trump supporter" and indeed it does not and must not. If Allison's goodness and legal acumen is representative of the judges appointed by Trump, we have no reason to doubt that the Trump appointed judges are both honest and knowledgeable defenders of democracy, no matter their religion. Yet Trump has ignored not just his own appointed judges, but the entire judicial branch of government. Repeatedly, these judges have found no evidence of widespread fraud in the election.

Many argue the judges turned away these cases on procedural grounds, but that is inaccurate. As a friend of mine wrote, “It is false to say that dismissals for lack of evidence or failure to state a cognizable claim are not tried on the merits. It means that Trump’s legal counsel was unable or unwilling (perjury is a felony) to meet the bare minimum evidentiary burden [necessary to obtain] relief in the court system.” All of these legal challenges were filed seeking emergency relief, time is of the essence when challenging an election and courts move such challenges to the front of the line. All the evidence is made available right from the start, as shown by the now famous C-Span footage of Giuliani sitting next to the aspiring adult actress. That case was not thrown out on procedural grounds, the witnesses were heard. As in the vast majority of the cases brought by Trump, all the evidence was submitted, and members of the judicial branch found it unpersuasive. Frequently, they found the evidence baseless and even frivolous. These same judges take election fraud as seriously as you and I. They know that fair elections are one of America’s greatest inventions and exports. They also know there is nothing more American than a peaceful transfer of power.

So who are we to believe? Trump or the judges he appointed? Trump or the conservative majority of the Supreme Court, half of whom he nominated himself? A choice to respect our judicial branch is not a rejection of conservative principles or an endorsement of Biden. Instead, it is a choice for democracy and a commitment to live and fight another day. Just as Trump won a fair election after eight years of President Obama, I am confident that another Republican can win a fair election after Biden. The purpose of this post is to persuade others not to place all their trust in one man, but rather to trust the hundreds in our judicial branch. I encourage all of us to vote for Republicans who will not ignore the rule of law, who will not ignore his or her own judges, who will not ignore an entire branch of our government.

The day may come that the entire judicial branch of our government cannot be trusted, but today is not that day. So, no, Trump didn't say to kill all the lawyers, only to ignore them.

How China Hijacks U.S. Comment Boards

Early in his 2020 campaign, Michael Bloomberg took heat for paying 500 "deputy digital organizers" $2,500 a month to promote him through social media posts and texts to friends and family.  Hillary Clinton was accused of something similar four years ago, and when Bernie Sanders cried foul, it soon became clear he had engaged in similar activity.  This kind of social media manipulation has been standard operating procedure for quite some time among political campaigns.

When I started at Duke Law in 2004, several of my classmates were recently departed employees of different presidential campaigns.  I learned from them that it was common for campaigns to hire college students to post comments on online news articles that spun the bad press of their candidate/employer while highlighting the good.  It's not hard to detect these comments if you know what to look for.  They always come across as eminently reasonable, and completely emotionless.  There is a cut-copy-paste feel to these comments, which is understandable considering their authors are adapting their candidate's talking points across as many articles as they can.  

While teaching college writing for five years, I used to train my students in the art of writing letters to the editor.  Just as there is a formula to effective letters to the editor, there is a formula to comment-board spin.  Political campaigns are expert in training their young acolytes in this language, for the purpose of protecting and promoting their candidate.

Frankly, I'm not entirely sure how damaging such comments are.  I don't think there's much evidence Trump ever employed hired guns to soften his critics with calm, reasonable talking points.  That's not really his style.  On the whole, my experience is that most of these paid commenters use actual data and arguments to back up their candidates, leaving the readers to grapple with different versions of the facts on their own.  Usually (but not always), these paid commenters are not lying, pretending, or inventing, they are just making sure no article against their candidate is allowed an uncontested slam dunk.  Insidiousness level: Moderate.

A much bigger problem is China's government hijacking of our comment boards for their own propaganda and purposes.  Let me be clear, China's people are wonderful, their government is not.  Using thousands of fake online handles that lead back to no one and nowhere, the Chinese government's army of English-trained writers scour the news around the world for articles on China, and then inject the comment boards with thinly-veiled Chinese propaganda under the guise of sympathetic westerners.

China's government has been engaging in cross-border propaganda on a more official level for years.  In 2018, the Chinese government paid for a 4 page insert in the Des Moines Register intended to turn Iowan farmers against Trump's tariffs.  In calling out China's actions, an article in The Diplomat noted, "In trying to influence Iowans, the Chinese government has shown that it lacks any meaningful understanding of the deepest of American traditions, those of independent thought, action, and allegiance."  The Chinese government's formal efforts to spread its propaganda in America and abroad are also discussed here and here.  This article doesn't address those issues, but rather their hidden army of spin doctors.  I have been studying China and North Korea for the past two years, and I was shocked to discover that most, if not all, online articles related to China have several commenters who appear to be paid Chinese government employees.  Unfortunately, they make the political campaign part-timers seem like  naive novices.  Insidiousness level: Extreme.

These Chinese government manipulators always pretend to be westerners sympathetic to China, and always hit the same talking points.  They talk about the U.S. murder rate, drug use, and homelessness.  They talk about U.S. incarceration levels, and they talk about imperialism.  Again and again, these points are drilled into their comments.  They manipulate data and spin everything China's direction.  They often attempt to seem reasonable, but even their concessions typically end up being backhanded compliments to Communist China.  The Chinese government has used paid hacks to do this inside of China for years, where they are referred to as "Wumao."  One of their biggest tells is that these commenters mistakenly conflate U.S. support for socialist policies with support for China.    

Many conservatives often make the same mistake as these Chinese commenters.  The vast majority of Millennials who support Bernie Sanders and other democratic socialists look only to the model of northern Europe.  They support democracy and free markets, they just think the government should cover things like health care and education, as in some northern European countries.  Anyone using China and Venezuela to argue against these Millennials is sure to encounter glazed eyes and dismissiveness.  Few Sanders supporters admire China's iron-fisted policies.  Now, whether more socialist policies are a slippery slope to an authoritarian regime, or whether Denmark's lack of a minimum wage should be adopted along with its universal healthcare, are discussions for another day.  The point here is that Chinese spin doctors make the same mistake as many right wing conservatives: assuming that someone who wants universal health care is also willing to give up their freedom of speech and religion to an authoritarian regime.

So, what do we do about this onslaught from the Chinese government's hired guns?  First, call them out.  My experience is that whenever I cheerfully call them out, rather than defend themselves or provide proof of a real western existence, they just disappear.  Next, take advantage of an opportunity to educate the individuals behind the masks about how we really feel about China.  

Tell them that we love China's people, we just don't trust their government. We believe China's government should trust its wonderful people, and until their government does, we can't possibly trust China's government.  Remind these hired commenters that since China claims to be earth's oldest civilization, that means no civilization has distrusted its own citizens longer than Chinese rulers.  Ask them to free Chen Qiushi, a citizen journalist and lawyer who was recently put on house arrest for trying to report truthfully on the Coronavirus.  Remind them that no country on earth ever trusted its own citizens faster than America.  When they talk about western imperialism, remind them of all the free, democratic nations spun off by the UK and the U.S., and ask them to encourage their government to do the same for its own citizens.
   

We Americans may be imperfect, but at least here we get to try and fail and try again and do our best and improve and be ourselves, without the constant threat of house arrest.  Here, people don't go to jail just for speaking their mind.  Remind them that one of America's greatest innovations and exports is the ability to vehemently disagree with the leader of your own country without the threat of being punished.  The Chinese government considers such ideas "western indoctrination," which is like saying the west brainwashes everyone to think for themselves.  I'm pretty sure that is the exact opposite of "indoctrination."  Invite these Chinese apparatchiks to imagine a world where they are free to think for themselves.  How amazing would China be if its government empowered its wonderful people with free speech and free religion?!

A China like that would be incredible.  And I for one am rooting for the Chinese people, and against Chinese president-for-life Xi Jinping.  #WeAreAllRockets

Should we Fast on Thanksgiving?

Before you start a riot the week of Thanksgiving, the answer is “No,” we should NOT fast on Thanksgiving! However, we can and should fast IN thanksgiving. This means periodically dedicating a fast to show gratitude for the blessings we or others close to us have received. While fasting in gratitude is less common today, it was very common in the Book of Mormon.

After Captain Moroni’s first battle, where he defeated Zerahemnah on the banks of the river Sidon, he and his men returned to the capital city as heroes. While the Nephites were accustomed to defeating the Lamanites in battle, they were shocked at the lopsidedness of this victory. Captain Moroni’s use of armor had worked better than anyone hoped, and everyone was even more impressed that the Lamanites had entered into a covenant of peace. The record states, “Behold, now it came to pass that the people of Nephi were exceedingly rejoiced, because the Lord had again delivered them out of the hands of their enemies; therefore they gave thanks unto the Lord their God; yea, and they did fast much and pray much, and they did worship God with exceedingly great joy.” (Alma 45:1).

Did you know we can fast in gratitude? Usually, we fast for special blessings on behalf of ourselves or others, but if you think about it, a fast is like a day-long prayer. According to the Bible Dictionary, prayer is a form of work, an exercise in faith. The whole time we are not eating, we are essentially exercising faith that God can and will provide the blessings we seek as part of a meaningful fast. Because of the additional sacrifice of food and drink, fasting can make available blessings that may not come by prayer alone. (Matthew 17:21). When we pray, we give thanks for our blessings, and request blessings. In a way, fasting is like a supercharged prayer. God has commanded us to “seek” and “ask” and “knock,” we are supposed to pray for blessings and fast for blessings. Nevertheless, occasional prayers expressing only gratitude are both appropriate and meaningful. Fasting is no different. We can give thanks as well as ask for blessings in our fasts, but too often we only ask for blessings as part of our fast. In our defense, it may not have occurred to many of us that we can also fast in gratitude—not because we are bad people, but because we didn’t realize it was an option.

So, I’m not suggesting we fast on Thanksgiving, that beautiful, delicious holiday we get to enjoy every November, I’m just saying that, like the Nephites, sometimes when we fast we can begin with a prayer as usual and tell Heavenly Father that we are so thankful for a particular blessing or blessings we or others close to us have received, that we aren’t even asking for anything during our fast, but only fasting in thanksgiving.

In addition to fasting for blessings and in gratitude, we can also fast in mourning. The Nephites often fasted when their loved ones had been killed in battle. (Alma 30:2). Fasting brings us closer to the Spirit, and nothing is better than the Spirit at comforting those who are mourning.

Learning about the power and importance of the fast is one of the great blessings of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Most of us have already seen the blessings that come into our lives through fasting. In accordance with the Book of Mormon, these blessings become even richer if we also fast in thanksgiving and in mourning. So, no, don’t skip Thanksgiving dinner this week. But, as you consider the richness of your blessings during this holiday of thankfulness, you just may decide to skip a couple of meals in gratitude this next Fast Sunday. Because sometimes, after some blessings, even sincere, heartfelt prayers of gratitude don't feel like enough to show God how thankful we truly are.

The above is adapted from an excerpt in my recently published book, Shake the Powers of Evil with Captain Moroni, published by Cedar Fort, and now available at Deseret Book.

On Helping Children Love to Read

My four sons would readily agree that I am no paragon of parenthood. However, some of those same sons might actually know what the word “paragon” means, because each of them loves to read. My goal here is not to explain a process for teaching children HOW to read, but rather describe one way that has helped our children learn to LOVE reading. You see, I am a firm believer that anyone who doesn’t love to read has simply not yet read the right books yet.

My wife worked very hard to teach our sons how to read, I can’t take any credit for that. However, she and I together have done our best to help each of our four sons learn to love reading, and the key was to follow a simple progression of particular books at particular times, as outlined below:

1. First, lay the foundation by reading out loud to your children long before they learn to read. Using the many wonderful picture books that are available, help your young children learn to associate books with happiness and family and time. Learning how to sit, quietly absorbed in a book, is as important as learning to run through the neighborhood playing with friends. Great picture books such as Who Will Tuck Me In Tonight?, When Dinosaurs Came With Everything, Counting Crocodiles, Pout Pout Fish, Click Clack Moo, Weslandia, and so many more, are as fun for parents as they are for children. Take the time to find your own family favorites.

2. Once your child learns to read well enough to struggle through very simple sentences, give them the first Calvin & Hobbes treasury. Calvin & Hobbes has been key to helping our sons learn to love reading. Young children are fascinated by Calvin’s antics and with Hobbes’ constant transition between reality and fantasy. Many of the jokes initially go over their heads, but many more land in the most delightful way. Your children will work and struggle to understand Calvin & Hobbes to a degree that will surprise you. They will not realize that they are “reading” in that process, only that they want to know so badly what crazy thing Calvin is up to today. Bill Watterson’s humor hits on so many levels, and he scatters vocabulary that will push your children not just from one level of reading to the next, but along and through and around multiple levels of reading at the same time.  My four sons range from ages 8-16, and they all circle back to Calvin & Hobbes at least two or three times a year.  Calvin & Hobbes is what they read when they want a break from reading—how awesome is that?  They treat it like an old friend they can visit anytime, who demands nothing of them but a smile. And, they find new things to laugh about at each new age.

3. After your child is fully ensconced in Calvin’s world, you should begin reading low level chapter books to them, such as the Magic Tree House series. My wife discovered this wonderful series and has read them to our children for many years. They follow a very predictable format, are written for young children, and can be read out loud quickly. Once you have read a handful of them out loud, you can confidently hand the next Magic Tree House book to your child and watch them take off from there. You may also use the Elephant & Piggy books by Mo Willems during this phase (which are incredible) and the always-awesome Berenstain Bears series.

4. After Magic Tree House, the next step is Beverly Cleary and Roald Dahl. These books are not gender specific, and are just a blast. You can start them with Fantastic Mr. Fox or Ramona & Beezus. Both authors have between 10-15 books and there isn’t a bad apple in the bunch. Also, each author has a very different style, so it exposes your child to a broad range of writing. Beverly Cleary is real and insightful about the most common daily occurrences, her writing is timeless. Roald Dahl is real in a very different way, and also so fantastical and crazy that he keeps your child guessing on every page. Frankly, if you haven't read these yourself, you're missing out.

5. Depending on how quickly your child moves through Roald Dahl and Beverly Cleary, you can move on to the next step, or just linger here for awhile. There are many wonderful authors in this same category as Cleary and Dahl, such as Edward Eager, Jean Craighead George, Scott O’Dell, Lynne Reid Banks, Betty MacDonald, John D. Fitzgerald, Gary Paulsen, E.B. White, Brian Jacques, and many more.

6. The series that will seal the deal on your child’s love for reading is nothing less than Harry Potter. There will be no going back. Fourth or Fifth grade is typically a good time to start the series, but you may decide to make them wait until they are a bit older before reading the later books. These are individual, parent/child decisions. If you do decide to delay them for a time in the middle of the series, there are plenty of other books to fill the gap, such as Narnia, Michael Vey, Rangers Apprentice, anything by Madeleine L’Engle, and many more.

One of the reasons my wife and I worked so hard to help each child develop a love for reading is faith-based. We both felt that it is difficult to obtain a love for the scriptures without first developing a love for reading. We felt that children who are accustomed to spending hours with a beloved book may be more willing and able to spend meaningful time in the scriptures. My wife and I both love the scriptures, and in addition to regular family scripture study, we make sure our children often see us reading the Bible and the Book of Mormon.  

In addition to the process described above, there are some religious books that can help you reinforce scripture study and a love for reading at the same time. The Who’s Your Hero? series by David Bowman is a great resource to help your elementary-school aged children relate to the scriptures. For teenagers, there is the Work and the Glory series by Gerald N. Lund. Give your teenager the first book in the Work and the Glory series and watch them go off on their own and have beautiful, personal, and powerful spiritual experiences centered around the Restoration of the Gospel that have nothing to do with you.

I cannot emphasize enough the powerful boost to your child’s testimony learning church history through The Work and the Glory can be. By placing your child “in” the story, they are able to "see" early church history figures as regular human beings who did their best to follow Christ, but were not perfect.  As a result, your children will be much less susceptible to concerns about the fallibility of leaders, because they will feel like they know them, and their weaknesses, personally. The Work and the Glory will help your children become more like Lorenzo Snow, who remarked in his journal, “I saw the imperfections in [Joseph Smith].  I thanked God that He would put upon a man who had those imperfections the power and authority He placed upon him ... for I knew that I myself had weaknesses, and I thought there was a chance for me. ... I thanked God that I saw these imperfections.”  The new Saints series is also a great follow up. I believe that scripture study and significant time spent reading about church history go hand in hand.  And such exposure is much easier if you have first helped your children to gain a love of reading.

Great books fill in the gaps of life to overflowing. A love of reading will help your children emotionally, academically, religiously, and on and on. Children who read for pleasure are often better able to finish their reading assignments in school, but if a child doesn’t already have a love for reading before their academic reading requirements increase significantly, they will associate reading with negative thoughts and feelings.  This negative association is hard to undo.

I don’t pretend the above process will work with every child, but I do believe it will help many more children learn to love to read than otherwise.  Now, if I could only figure out how to help my sons make the jump to reading literature like Dickens, Austen, Hugo, Dostoyevsky, Twain, Jewett and so many others.  I even tried meaningfully targeted incentivization with my oldest, but to no avail.  

There are so many wonderful books out there, I would love to hear about the titles and authors that have helped your kids learn to love reading.

A favorite bookshelf I built