Kimball said, “Every young man should fill a mission”. Hinckley had suggested that a mission is not to be a rite of passage, this cultural aspect remains. Young men between the ages of 18 and 25 who meet standards of worthiness are strongly encouraged to consider a two-year, full-time proselytizing mission.

Mormon teenagers and youth leaders are provided with a booklet called “For the Strength of Youth”, in two formats. The first is purse size, and the second is wallet size. They are encouraged in a variety of ways to master its contents.

You can view a copy of the original post from five years ago here. A copy was made because the original post was causing a lot of strain on the server. Nothing has been edited or changed, just copied over. Five-and-a-half years ago my wife, Lolly, and I sat together at a hotel in Las Vegas, nervously composing a coming out post that would, unbeknownst to us, change our lives in nearly every way imaginable.

We were so, so nervous. But we were sweet and earnest, and we had been feeling the cosmic drive to do this for months. Our post went massively viral, and we were featured on shows and newspapers around the globe. That act of authenticity brought many of you who will read this into our lives.