Rebuilding the Foundation

After the response to my previous article, I want to share some resources that have been helpful to me in rebuilding my faith. This is not an exhaustive list of resources, as my experience has spanned a few years and a lot of factors have contributed to my progress, including personal experiences both past and current through prayer, worship, and soul searching. But the following is a list of some of the resources that stand out in my mind, and which I have shared with a few of you already:

Epistemology and Reframing the "Faith Crisis"

These are resources that explore the fundamental building blocks of belief, as well as the significance of a so-called "faith crisis" and what to do with it.

Thoughtful Faith - Jacob Hansen
Feel free to explore his full YouTube channel and blog, as he refers to many resources that get at the root of Theistic vs Atheistic world views. I've enjoyed learning from the content he has put out. But here is some immediately relevant stuff of his that was helpful to me and might be for you:
My Story Pt 1
My Story Pt 2
My Story Pt 3
Faith Unto Knowledge

Cwic Media - Greg Matsen
Again, explore his full YouTube channel and website. He has quite a bit of content about Come, Follow Me, as well as discussions on academics and current ideologies. It’s been interesting for me to learn more about the philosophies of men that are popular right now. The more I learn about where many of today’s philosophies come from, the more clearly the gospel and our church stand out as a light in the darkness. Aside from all of that, here's the discussion I listened to that really started to change the game for me in terms of reframing the "Faith Crisis" and recognizing it for what it is:
It's a Natural Development Process

Mere Christianity - C.S. Lewis

A classic, but I had actually never read it until I started wondering about my own faith. In fact, I haven't finished it yet, but if you need to deal with the God and Jesus part of your testimony before dealing with the LDS-specific things, this is a great place to start. Listen to it for free on YouTube here.

LDS Truth Claims & Responses to Criticisms (such as the CES Letter)
Have you heard that there's no "evidence" for what we believe? I recognize the importance of a faith-based approach to spiritual knowledge, but it's been helpful to me to discover that there are actually mountains of evidence, and that many of the critics' claims have been debunked for years and years (and it's only looking better as time and research move forward). The fact that many of these claims continue to circulate on the internet doesn't mean they haven't been debunked. Here is a quick list of resources that go through every major critical claim against our church and faith tradition:

• YouTube Channel LDS Truth Claims - IF YOU DON'T LOOK UP ANYTHING ELSE I PRESENT IN THIS ARTICLE, AT LEAST LOOK UP THIS ONE. It's 35 hrs of lecture-style information, but it is the most clear and compelling presentation of evidence for LDS Truth Claims that I have ever seen. Watch it on 2x speed if you have to, but start at the beginning and go all the way through. I promise it is worth every second.
• YouTube Channel Latter-day Saints’ Q&A
• YouTube Channel Book of Mormon Central
• YouTube Channel Saints Unscripted
• YouTube Channel Midnight Mormons (Be prepared for a rollercoaster on this channel - they cover a lot of interesting and sometimes wacky and off-the-wall topics, but it is helpful to see real-life, everyday members who aren’t afraid to talk about anything. Their best video so far for me has been their collaboration with Thoughtful Faith, which you can find here: A Faith Crisis is Overrated)
• Book By the Hand of Mormon by Terryl Givens (this book is amazing. I can't say enough good about it. This came to me at a time of intense doubt and difficulty, and I couldn't put it down. God bless Terryl Givens for his work here.)
• Book Faith Crisis Volume 1: We Were Not Betrayed by L. Hannah Stoddard and James F. Stoddard III. (this was a late find for me, after I had read half of Rough Stone Rolling by Richard Bushman, which this book addresses and refutes in many aspects)
• Anything from church historians Steven C. Harper and Don Bradley (I haven’t read their books but I’ve listened to interviews and talks by them on YouTube). Look them up! Steven C. Harper spoke at a stake conference in our last stake, about Joseph Smith's first vision, and it really opened my mind. His talk was my first real taste of LDS apologetics, which don't simply explain everything, but open the door to faith and belief. After binging some of his interviews, I came across Don Bradley, who has a pretty compelling personal story that's intertwined with his church history research. For polygamy-specific concerns, check out Brian Hales.
• FAIR (formerly known as FAIR Mormon) - this is kind of a catch-all. The LDS historians and theologians mentioned above all have content on this site, as well as many, many other LDS thinkers. FAIR is an amazing resource for any question you might have, with a huge database of articles and videos. In many cases, talks given at FAIR conferences and published to YouTube have helped open my mind to different ways of thinking about things.

Miscellaneous

• YouTube Channel Christian Homestead - I'll throw this one in there, even though it is unrelated at surface level. What this channel has done for me is remind me that there are believers all over the world who are watching for the second coming of Jesus Christ. Some channels get very speculative and I don't enjoy that, but Jared at Christian Homestead just radiates faith, curiosity, and enthusiasm. He is a down to earth believer, and I like that about his content. It's just a refreshing reminder that you aren't completely surrounded by doubters.

There are SO MANY more resources than this!! I've just scratched the surface. People who are serious about digging deep go a LOT deeper than this. But we have lives that are full of kids, work, activities, and so on, and we don't always have the time to dig as deep as we would like. Hopefully this short list of resources can help you get on the right rack, heading in the direction you want to be going.

Finally, I'll reiterate that none of these things have singlehandedly restored my faith and testimony; that's work that I am having to do as I try to walk with God in my life. But these have all been incredibly helpful and faith affirming supplements to my efforts. There are quite simply too many voices on the other side of this aisle - the side that says that you are just outgrowing your childish faith, and that regardless of what's on the other side of the Exit door, it's better to just walk through it. We need more voices publishing the good news of Jesus Christ and His restored gospel, and helping people cut through the mists of darkness to see the truth and stay for it.