That’s pretty easy to answer: because my parents were.
The better question: Why do I STAY a Mormon?
I stay a Mormon because I need the power of Jesus Christ to change my nature. That enabling power, which most Christians call “grace”, is best accessed in the Church of Jesus Christ. In my experience, Grace or power from God is the only thing that can really change what a person is. Not willpower or good intentions or anything else devised by men.
I stay because I feel uplifted and happier by my association with others as fellow disciples of Christ in my local congregation. Whether serving youth, or whatever I am asked to do, I always feel good about it. Staying a Mormon gives me a network in which to serve and be served by others. Boh are things I need.
I stay a Mormon because it helps me find the good in myself and avoid more of the bad. I need that help keeping the bad elements pushed back. On my own I would wear down and crumble and devolve into darkness. But the gospel of Christ that I get in my church keeps me pointed the right direction.
I stay a Mormon because I know that God spoke to me via his Spirit and told me that He really did appear to Joseph Smith in 1820. I don’t just believe; I know it to be a verity. When I feel like I don’t want to make the efforts I do make, I cannot deny that I know Joseph Smith saw God. And I also know that I am responsible for my actions because of the knowledge I possess. So I go on.
So that is why I stay a Mormon.
-Mark Robins
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