TESTIMONIALS

"Dear Marvin,

You and Darius have changed my life. When I first learned of the DVDs I had an expectation. When I received the set it raised my expectation. When I watched the DVDs, they exceeded my expectations. The scriptural scholarship was amazing! I am forever changed and indebted to the two of you for this great work."

~ Richard H – Missionary Training Center

"Dear Darius & Marvin,

Thank you so very much for your incredibly inspirational DVD 'Blacks in the Scriptures'. It really is fantastic! You both are such humble servants of God. It truly was an eye-opening seminar. One which I feel every member should experience. Wish that the entire church could hear the truths you both proclaim so humbly and sincerely. Congratulations on your hard work!!!! It really paid off! It moved me and changed my thoughts in positive ways. I know you two have been inspired and guided by the Holy Ghost to do this work. May you and your families be blessed for your commitment and dedication to such a noble cause in the Restored Gospel."

~ All my brother love, J Udall

"Thank you Marvin & Darius,

I want to make my comments brief I want to thank you for presenting such an awesome and spiritual DVD! It was presented with such a wonderful and peaceful spirit. I have learned so much and am intrigued to pull out my scriptures and study more in depth the gospel which is the whole point of the DVD. I loved the remarks you made as you answered questions on the spot- and did so-so eloquently and bold yet with love for the Savior!

Well, I can go on and on- but lastly I want to thank you for the non contentious spirit that was felt in the DVD and to thank you for your tireless efforts of sharing the gospel and uplifting others around you. Has pensado en trasladar el video en espanol y tambien en otros idiomas? (have you thought of a translation of the DVD in other languages?)"

~ With love, Milagros A.

"Dear Marvin & Darius,

We just received the DVD's yesterday and watch them last night. The spirit that was felt is indescribable. The message was so clear and it answered so many questions that lingered for many years in our lives. We have been in search for understanding on this issue for a long time. My husband began to distant himself from the church because he felt that nobody cared about this issue. In fact, most people really don't because it doesn't apply to them personally. Although I am of the "white" race, it frustrated me as well because when this issue came up in conversation it felt as if they only cared to the extent that they felt sorry for me that I had to deal with these issues. I almost wonder if they were saying to themselves..."Man I so glad that I don't have to deal with that." What they don't realize is that the church is suffering because of this attitude amongst many members. Instead of seeking for answers, they just remain comfortable maintaining either false assumptions of the reasoning or they simply use the famous answer "The Lord has his reasons." If you use this reasoning in every aspect of the gospel then knowledge would be pointless. Why do we take the sacrament?--ummm...because Jesus said so...the Lord has his reasons. If we don't understand why we do it than we really don't understand the importance of it. Some answers are hard to come by and that's when we have to exercise our faith. Exercising faith doesn't mean just to do it...it means to show diligence and trust in the Lord as you "search" to obtain knowledge and answers. We found out about the Genesis group about 6-9 months ago and felt the need to attend the annual picnic this last June. We traveled all the way from Washington State. Although my husband found comfort in knowing that he was not the only one struggling with this issue, he was still somewhat confused and still had many unanswered questions. These DVD's are amazing. They don't offer "ideas" or "theories", they offer facts...they are the answers the Lord provided us with for understanding. Many of us--especially converts prior to 1978--have had to exercise a tremendous amount of faith. In doing so, they have shown their diligence and trust in the Lord and "OH MY GOODNESS" the answers began to present themselves. I admire these individuals and the tremendous faith they had through the countless years of unanswered questions. I have been in search of these answers for a long time and it's so awesome to know that the Lord has had these answers available to us the whole time. We can't just expect the answer to come to us. We have to search. And I did just that....I searched and searched and searched....through this I have acquired a countless amount of resources in my research in which I either purchased or printed and kept them all readily available in binders for reference. "Ask and it shall be received." This is the Lords promise to all of us. I came across many discouraging information but I REFUSED to give up!! If the church was true (which I knew it was) their had to be explanations. I slowly gathered information trying to make sense of all of it. The answer didn't come right away, but as I continued to search for clearer explanations it started to peek itself around the corner. That day I purchased the DVD's...I don't know why I felt intrigued to visit the Genesis website. I was simply doing some college homework and wanted to see what was new down in Utah. I know that it was the Lord that inspired me to visit the website. He knew that my husband and I were ready for this information. He knew that it would all make sense because of the knowledge acquired in the deep research that we conducted amongst ourselves pertaining to this specific issue. We had the privilege to meet Mr. Darius at the picnic and feel his sweet spirit. I just wanted to thank you all for obtaining this information that is greatly needed for many and making it available to us. Thank you so much!!! You are admirable servants of the Lord and your work has touched and will touch many individuals to come. "

~ Sincerely, Amanda J

"Brother Gray:

I am really excited about the new "Blacks in the Scriptures" dvds that you
and Brother Perkins have done.  I really feel that these could be a *HUGE* tool and watershed event to be able to help people and give them some solid answers.  I watched a few clips on the website and it looks amazing.  When I watched the clips with you and Brother Perkins as well, I felt the Spirit very strongly, and was overjoyed that this wonderful product is available."

~ James, TX

"Dear Bro. Perkins,

This morning I was reviewing some of my notes, which I couldn’t write nearly fast enough, from the fireside on Sunday, August 19th. 2007.

I am presently serving with my wife as the Director of the California Oakland Temple Visitors’ Center.  When I was invited to the fireside by Sterling Stevenson, a strong force for good in this area, I thought it was going to be about the Church and our positions relative to our black brothers and sisters.  I wasn’t disappointed.  I was immediately more than intrigued, as the Oakland area is preparing for the visit of Sister Gladys Knight, directing the Saints Unified Choir in four firesides on September 22nd and 23rd.

We are surrounded in this area by a fairly large population of various ethnic groups of wonderful people.  African Americans are certainly one of the more significant concentrations of these brothers and sisters.

In the prologue I have just shared with you, perhaps the most significant is that my wife and I are the proud grandparents of three beautiful, precocious and amazing African American children.  I have had a deep, sensitive interest in the relationship of the Church and the doctrines over the years relating to African Americans.  I played basketball in Stockton High School where the basketball team was predominantly black.  I served a mission in Australia where blacks and aborigines are fundamental cultures; and I have had many friends over the years from these cultures.  I have always been grateful that visually and emotionally I basically have been not only color-blind, but “color’less” in my love and feelings of brotherhood for all nations.

I know e-mails are designed to be brief, but my enthusiasm this morning is not brief – it is large and full of gratitude for the clarity and power of the message you shared.  I was so positively inspired by the humility and kindness of your approach.  I know that with the unfolding of each scripture, together with references to Elder McConkie, President McKay and others, this is a message whose time has finally come.  The Church is in such a unique position today, where its doors, windows and gates are open to accept all worthy people into the Church and the Kingdom of God, that it is an understatement to say it is a time to give and feel some understanding of the pain, labels and misunderstandings of the past that have caused so much anguish among brothers and sisters of color. 

I am grateful beyond words for your efforts and those of your associates who I am sure have labored long and hard to produce the DVD that will address the subject of universal brotherhood, and I can only pray for your continued good health, that the vibrancy of your spirit will never diminish as many struggle to come up to speed in this important day and age.  I believe you and your associates are a gift to the Kingdom.

From one who has little experience in being in inspired settings like last Sunday, my prayers that night were, “…and Heavenly Father, please continue to bless Bro. Marvin Perkins.”  Thank you, my new, dear friend.

Warmest regards, your brother in the Gospel of Christ,"

~ Elder Pedersen

"Thank you so much for coming and speaking at our Fireside. The message was inspiring. It felt like a wave of truth and the spirit testified to me of the simple truthfulness of your message. It was so refreshing to finally have the answers to the questions that seemed so daunting before. To know that the answers were there all the time was amazing. I would love to have a copy of the message so I can study it for myself and be able to share it with others."

~ M Roberson, CA

"Thanks for the powerful presentation last night."

~ Elder Veach, Senior Missionary, San Diego, CA

"Thank you!.  I'm so glad that this is something that I can use when I'm talking with Blacks investigators.  My missionary work has been hard because of the problems and misunderstandings that others of different cultures have towards Blacks.  Fictions are now replaced with Truth."

          ~ R Johnson, Whittier, CA

"Before another week goes by I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed the fireside and your diligent research!  Isn't it amazing how it is "all there" if we just look with the correct perspective in mind?  Having been raised in the church during the period when blacks did not hold the Priesthood, I just assumed --- and isn't that just the problem?  Until we search something out and diligently study about a question or principle, we won't have a testimony of what the Lord is trying to tell us.

I was so excited about your presentation, it was part of my Visiting Teaching lesson the next day when I did my last couple visits.

Well anyway, I just wanted to thank you so much for helping to open my eyes.  If you would please forward a copy of your presentation as you promised, I would be so appreciative so I can go through scripture by scripture as you suggested."

         ~ Annette, Chula Vista, CA

"This is awesome!  I look forward to learning more about the truths presented.  This will do a lot of good in many communities."

           ~ Greg, Orange County, CA

"I wanted to write to thank you for that powerful, inspired presentation last night.  You gave me back 20 years of my life.  I have struggled to both explain and understand these issues over those years and have never felt comfortable with anything I’d heard or read until last night.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

           ~ Jackie, San Diego, CA

"The missionaries in my ward are teaching a Black fellow. I told them about the DVD and they were excited. The one missionary is from Utah and has heard Darius speak.  Congrats! What a wonderful thing!"

            ~ Marilyn, Corona, CA

"Just want to say THANK YOU for such a spiritual evening At The Oakland Interstake Center."

            ~ Gussie Rowe

"Thank you again for your fireside talk this evening. I feel liberated by what I’ve learned. I’m looking forward to sharing it with others."

~ Peter, Los Angeles, CA

"WOW !  Intense, but necessary.  There is so much to learn, and we have it all before us.  I am looking forward to sitting down and learn more.  With this DVD you can reach more, do more, and touch more.  I can hardly wait until everyone knows about it."

George, Clearwater, FL

"Thank you for your Fireside talk on Sunday.  I learned so much, especially about studying the scriptures for myself.  I served a mission in North Carolina where most of the people I taught the gospel to were African American.  I wish I'd learned all this back then."

~ Mindy, Los Angeles, CA

"My English teacher did not agree with my beliefs.  She did not like the Mormons because supposedly we were racist and I defended our Church ignorantly, not knowing the history behind anything that had to do with it at all.  But despite our differences, she and I loved each other dearly like no other.  I wish I would have known these things before, so I could have taught her.  Thank you so much for that awesome fireside/lesson!  It is much appreciated! "

~ Mele, CA