For Derek, the development of a testimony was a challenge both intellectually and emotionally. As an academic who teaches philosophy, Derek describes learning how to defend and appreciate his own rational and aesthetic experiences with faith.

Lauren W. grew up in a home where religious questions were welcomed, so she was surprised when her questions as a young adult led to a faith crisis. Lauren talks about the slow and steady process that led her to appreciate her faith as well as the questions themselves in a more mature, nuanced way.

Using scientific discovery as a metaphor for our spiritual growth, Jason recounts what has helped him continue to nurture his faith when he found contradictions in models of how he’d seen the Gospel practiced.

Natalie's marriage taught her to see how pain and shame can cause people we love to make hurtful decisions. Hers is a narrative full of astounding maturity and forgiveness.

Janae questions about her faith as a young adult were as surprising to her as the answers that came. She learned that doubt is not only developmental, but something that could help her faith thrive. Janae gives an honest, refreshing look at the beauty of having a “desire to believe.”

Mark had always assumed that the light from his early encounters with faith would carry him through his adult years. But the shock of a terminal cancer diagnosis caused a severe paradigm shift that caused him to completely reevaluate his view of his place in God’s kingdom. Mark speaks with both candor and cheer about learning that his world view needed to be completely revised and his story invites us to think about the importance of allowing our paradigm to continually to be informed and reformed.

This extraordinary three-part podcast series shares the real story of parents who learned how to love their gay daughter unconditionally. They share both the painful and healing parts of their journey and give us a glimpse into how they manage to cling to both their faith and their daughter. Both Connie and Stan’s stories can be shared with those searching for the most effective ways to show love to their LGBTQ children.

For Leif Mattsson, building the kingdom has meant not only appreciating his heritage of faith and walking three miles to church when he was a child, but also finding out for himself that what his ”grandfather and father and mother knew and felt was true.” His father counseled him and his three brothers: “You have to get your own testimony” so he did. As a young college student in the 60’s, he took the initiative to ask his religion professors at BYU about church history and Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. Appreciating the legacy of faith in his family has also meant learning to offer more empathy to those in his family who have struggled or who have left the church. He has sensed how much pain they have experienced as they have “felt like we have turned our backs on them.” Leif says he now, “gives less advice and listens more” in order to preserve the relationships and help them feel that he loves them.

Harry Marby has been a member of the Church since 1962, and his faith was built on the spiritual experiences he had in his home as a child. Harry says these experiences made him feel that “Christ is real and I am one of His.” These deep spiritual roots helped Harry when he was what he calls an “imperfect Bishop” in the 1990’s when he had members come and ask him questions about the church they had found on the internet. Harry explains that just like the history of any country, the history of the Church is multi-faceted and based on multiple perspectives. Harry says it helps him to remember that he belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ, but that the Church is also the Church of the Latter-day Saints—Saints who are imperfect, but who are striving to be like Christ.

Margaret’s life has not been the way she expected or prayed it would be when she first became a convert to the Church. Time and time again she encountered staggering loss and grief, but she didn’t always receive the help she needed from other Church members. In this episode, Margaret shares how she learned not to let the behavior of others affect her personal faith.