1589: What to Offer Your Children After a Faith Shift - Jon Ogden’s THRIVE Story

Parenting After Faith Transition: Rebuilding What the Church Once Provided

Parenting after a faith transition often feels like flying a plane while trying to repair the engine. Jon Ogden, founder of Uplift Kids and recent guest on Mormon Stories Podcast, learned this firsthand when his orthodox Mormon foundation cracked during his mission, leaving him to raise children without the scaffolding he had assumed would last forever. His story illuminates a problem many former Latter-day Saints face when they discover that the Church provided more than theology. It supplied a complete parenting strategy complete with identity formation, community belonging, moral instruction, and rites of passage. When belief collapses, parents find themselves scrambling to replace systems they did not realize they were outsourcing.

The Infrastructure of Checklist Mormonism

Ogden grew up in what he describes as a strict orthodox household where spirituality meant daily morning scripture study and weekly family home evenings. His childhood operated on a clear trajectory: Eagle Scout, Duty to God award, faithful service in Aaronic Priesthood quorums, then a mission immediately after high school. He admits with dry humor that he was "really excited" when the Church changed the Duty to God award requirements because it meant he could earn the new version too. The checklist provided structure, approval, and identity. He was Mormon first, Ogden second, and his individual priorities came third.

This system worked until Ogden served his mission. There, he encountered evangelical critics with specific talking points against Mormonism. He defended the faith confidently, assuming the narrative was "100% solid." Then he researched the Book of Abraham and Joseph Smith's polygamy using Church-approved sources. The records confirmed the criticisms. His first adult breath outside the protective bubble revealed a reality that did not match his training. The trauma of that discovery would later shape his parenting decisions, making him hesitate to push his own children toward the same missionary experience that had shattered his worldview.

What the Church Actually Provides Parents