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Former Baptist Church Member
Mormons Are Truly Christians
By Ray Redden
I grew up in a small Baptist school. The school
was very challenging academically and would require students to
memorize bible verses and study from the Bible. In the eighth grade
I can remember watching the movie God Makers I didn’t pay to close
attention during the movie but can recall some points that gave me
the overall idea that Mormons were wrong.
Starting in the ninth grade I went to a public
school and began to hang out with kids who claimed to be Baptists. I
went to parties with these kids and started to turn away from
Baptists’ teachings. I became heavily involved with pornography,
immoral actions, drinking, and cussing. My senior year I became
friends with a member of the church named David. David and I became
closer and closer friends.
I remember the first night that he asked me about
my religion and told me about his. I knew he was a Mormon so
instantly from learning that Mormons are wrong, I told him was that
I knew he was wrong. Later on that week I felt bad for telling him
that he was wrong when I did not follow my own religion.
The next week at my Baptist church the preacher
gave a talk talking about being lukewarm for Christ. I went home and
prayed that I would not be this person and that I would change into
the Christian that God wanted me to be. I begin to study the Mormon
religion and just find out what where the differences in the two.
Hopefully proving to others that Mormons are Christians.
The answers of the questions I would ask Baptist
preachers would indicate that Mormons are truly Christians also. But
at the same time I was told that Mormons are going to hell. I was
troubled with this because I knew that they were great people and
had the plan of salvation almost identical with that of the Baptist
Church.
Well I had plenty of talks with my friend and we
both thought of each other to be good Christians The summer after my
first year of college my friend (David) invited me to move up to
North Carolina with him and sell security systems.
I took the job and moved up there with him. When I
got there, there were 20 or so guys and 18 of them were members of
the church. Considering I had done a lot of research on the church I
knew I was going to have to stay true to my faith of southern
Baptist. The other guys in North Carolina would make jokes with me
about religion and would ask what mission I served when they first
meet me. I just laughed and told them I was not a member.
I continued to go to church at other Baptist
churches to find one that I enjoyed. David asked me to go to church
with him and the other guys one Sunday and I agreed because I wanted
to spend some time with the guys. I went and tried to pay attention
so that when one of the speakers spoke something I didn’t agree with
I could tell the guys I worked with that that’s not right.
Time went by in North Carolina and as I did my
studying from the Bible I begin to fill like I was missing
something. I asked one of the guys if I may borrow his book of
Mormon. I read over it and read the Moroni prayer to ask if this
book was true. I asked God for a sign that would give me an idea
that these things were true, because I am too stubborn just for a
feeling.
The next day I was told to sell in an area that
had an LDS church in the middle of it. I took this as an accident
not a sign. So I continued to walk around and sell the security
system till I knocked the door of a member’s house. We had a long
talk and I would eventually ask for her to call the missionaries for
me. (This was a strong sign allowing me to fill the spirit.) I went
back to the apartments later that day and told my friend about what
I felt.
I would eventually be baptized into the church on
September 30th 2006. My friend that introduced me to the church
moved out to Utah not allowing him to baptize me or come. I have
hard times with my parents’ acceptance of the church but I believe
if I just continue to stay true to the faith. I will receive the
blessings of the church the same way David received the blessings of
seeing one of his best friends join the true church of Jesus Christ
Latter-day Saints.
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