Why I Decided to Become a Mormon - Part One: Introduction

Throughout the time I have spent as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, this question has been posed to me on countless occasions: Why did you decide to become a Mormon?

While it seems like something I should be able to answer quickly and without any hesitation, whenever the question arises, I find myself asking myself the very same thing. Why DID I decide to become a Mormon? It isn’t that I find myself lacking confidence in that decision, simply that I feel I lack the proper vocabulary to provide an answer which truly does the question justice.

That fateful decision that would forever alter the very course of my life wasn’t one I made suddenly, nor was it a decision I made lightly. The decision didn’t arise out of some singular and transformative spiritual experience, though admittedly, some such experiences did indeed play a role in the conversion process.

The truth of the matter is, there is only one way I can think to answer that question. It’s about as simple of an answer as I can give. That decision was made merely because it felt like the right thing to do. In the years that have passed, I have renewed that decision over and over again, all the while gradually and consistently feeling assured and reassured that it was indeed the right thing for me to do.

The prospect of me converting to Mormonism, when compared with the ways in which I used to think and view the world, seems quite unlikely. Sometimes I still wonder how it even occurred. Yet at the same time, I can scarcely imagine who I would be, had not this life-altering decision been made.

Despite the implausible idea of me actually becoming a Mormon, I believe that one key element that made conversion possible was my tendency to think deeply and consider life and the world around me on many levels. As a youth, predominantly during the teenage years, this tendency was particularly pronounced. For as long as I can remember, a unique and resounding question has seemed echoed continuously in my mind: Who am I?

Attached to this simple yet infinitely complex query is the follow up question: For what purpose do I exist? As far as recollection can take me into the past, it seems as if nearly every waking moment of life has been spent pondering these questions. They have become as much a definition of me as anything else.

Some may ask if I feel I have discovered the answer to these questions. The only appropriate one word response I can think of is somewhat. Yes, I feel that I have, without a doubt, uncovered a number of necessary sub-answers which help build the foundation upon which these larger questions are built. But as every new revelation and answer has come, they have contributed to the constant evolution of how I see perceive the world.

Despite this habit of pondering unceasingly, I am prone to keep such thoughts inside of me. Therefore, when the question – Why did you decide to become a Mormon? – is offered, I often revert back to thought, trying to articulate the substance of the reason. Rather than sit back and meditate life away, I have decided to offer this written account as an attempt to express the knowledge and understanding I have discovered.

The following are true life stories and experiences. Some serve the purpose of providing necessary background and context. Others share significant turning points which, while at times subtle in the moment, compounded to alter the very path of life.

I attempt to offer these excerpts in a manner that expresses my recollection of these experiences as well as I am able. At the same time, I seek to be frank and open about many of the challenges and struggles that one often faces as they seek to nurture and grow individual testimony.

While everybody follows a distinct path of spiritual development, I do believe that one can find similarities in learning of the path of another. Everybody who has ever traversed the roads of life knows that even the most seemingly insignificant events can change a life completely.

Therefore, as you read the experiences I share, I hope that you will reflect upon those experiences and events which have shaped who you are. Perhaps you have asked the very questions which I posed above. Who am I? For what purpose do I exist? Maybe, we can discover some answers to these questions together.