Most Americans are Religious, Study Shows
A new Gallop poll shows seven in ten Americans consider themselves very or moderately religious. Mormons are the most religious of any other religion, which has been backed up by a myriad of other studies. Forty percent of those people consider themselves very religious, attending church regularly and considering religion an important part of their lives. More people are choosing not to identify with a specific religion.
The study notes that older Americans are more religious than younger Americans, with eighty-year-olds being the most religious and twenty-three-year-olds the least religious. Women are the most religious at any age, and this is true in most other countries as well. There are also differences in race (blacks are the most religious race), geographical location (southerners are more religious than northerners), and income levels (the wealthy are less religious, but attend church as often as those with less money).
As Christmas approaches, this statistic becomes particularly meaningful. Although many get caught up in the rush of Christmas shopping, parties, and other secular aspects of the holiday, those who have faith in Jesus Christ also take time out to remember the Savior’s birth, which is the actual reason for the holiday. (more…)
Ezekiel Ansah, the son of Edward and Elizabeth Ansah, was born in Accra, Ghana. His favorite food is fufu and peanut butter soup. He excels at FIFA soccer. He speaks Twi and Fante, two local Ghanaian dialects and surprisingly enough his favorite athlete is LeBron James, the one to whom Jabari Parker is compared with as for his basketball skills and talents. He is majoring in actuarial science with a minor in mathematics. He enrolled at BYU in 2008 and participated on the track team in 2009 before joining the football team in 2010. 
Each child or youth is like a seed. Hidden within is divine potential, divine gifts and divine destiny. We, as teachers, leaders and parents must help our children and youth to develop their divine potential, divine gifts, and to fulfill their divine destiny. But these are not easy tasks.
I was at a book store and I saw a small pocket-sized book with a seal and a key. I did not want my parents or my pesky brothers or sisters reading my record. I also fancied myself as a secret agent. I was intrigued at making my own secret ink and made a pen with a quill from a crow’s feather. I even carved a stylus with my pocket knife and made plates of clay, but it did not work out so well, because they broke, and besides it was hard work. The “key idea” resonated with me, because it was so easy. I did not know the process was called journaling. For me it was just something fun to do. In those days only girls kept diaries, the idea of a “diary” seemed effeminate, but record keeping (journaling) was fascinating and manly. 