Join John and Margi as they interview spiritual director, Celeste Davis. Celeste was born and raised in the church, went to BYU, served a mission in Slovenia, and married in the temple. For many years Celeste wrote for the Church’s official blog and, as of today, those articles can still be found there. During the church’s involvement with Prop 8 and the 2015 Exclusion Policy, Celeste’s husband began to lose hope in the church. Celeste grappled with the burden of holding her family in Mormonism but began to question even God himself. Who is God and how can we have a relationship with him? Part 2: https://youtu.be/QLi8WZrTasE Marriage Laboratory: http://www.marriagelaboratory.com/blog/author/celeste-davis/ Celeste on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celestemdavis/ "Why I don't talk about Jesus anymore" https://www.instagram.com/p/CXP6D1zL7E0/ Episode Show Notes: https://www.mormonstories.org/podcast/deconstructing-mormon-god-celeste-davis Chapters 00:00:00 Intro & intentions 00:02:35 Childhood & Relationship with God 00:07:25 Early Experience with Repentance 00:10:40 Sacrament Meeting & self-trust 00:14:20 Teen Years & High School Experience 00:19:50 Mission or Marriage? 00:36:15 Mission scrupulosity & shame 00:55:34 Life after mission - BYU, marriage 01:03:50 Husband's Faith Transition & Conversations 01:15:50 Starting a Blog: Marriage Laboratory 01:34:50 Exploring Problematic Church History 01:39:24 Wrestling with the Mormon God 02:00:45 Trying to Change the Church from Within 02:13:00 Exploring Church History & God's Nature 02:24:15 Shift in Understanding God & Mormon God's Breakdown 02:38:00 Coping with the Loss of Mormon God 02:41:50 Spirituality Everywhere ___________________ At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals. Our overall mission is to: 1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology 2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis 3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions 🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories Our Platforms: 🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories ✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF Contact us: 📧 MormonStories@gmail.com 📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117 #MormonStories #Mormon #lds