Witnesses of the Book of Mormon

In matters legal, historical, scientific, and religious, we recognize the significance and the importance of first-hand accounts, also known as testimonies or witnesses.  The scriptures frequently tell us that "in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established" (see 2 Corinthians 13:1 for example), and the Lord's Church and His Gospel are full of instances in which this pattern is followed.  Among these are the testimonies of the witnesses of the truthfulness and divine origin of the Book of Mormon.

The Question:
Were there witnesses who saw the Gold Plates that the Book of Mormon was translated from, and are their testimonies dependable?

Candle Status

Remember the scripture mastery Matthew 5:14-16?  In it, Jesus says, "Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."  In a recent BYU devotional, the speaker identified four conditions that our "candle" could be in, where our candle represents our testimony.

This is real!

I went on the ward temple trip today.  As always, it was a wonderfully peaceful experience.  Something else happened today though.  It was only for a moment, but I remember just getting an interesting feeling... it wasn't super strong, and it's kind of hard to describe...  In the Church we frequently talk about life after mortality, but I think we don't very often think about what that life is going to be like.  What will it be like to live for an eternity surrounded by our loved ones and in the presence of our Heavenly Father and Savior, Jesus Christ?  The brief feeling I had was almost like comprehending for the first time in a long time that it really is going to happen one day.  We live our lives, constantly thinking about what we should or shouldn't do, but I realized that I don't think nearly as often about how my choices are going to affect my life after mortality as I do about how they will affect my mortal life.  But the temple, the commandments, and the entire Gospel are not just for our benefit during this life, but also the hereafter!

Getting the answer again!

Recently I was feeling a bit discouraged and frustrated; I've been looking for a part-time job for a while now but still haven't had much luck.  The other day I spent a while feeling sorry for myself, but soon realized that I wasn't being very productive that way.  Later on I received a phone call.  It was someone from the MTC.  For a second my heart almost stopped, because I thought they were offering me a job - one that I've wanted for a while!  But it turns out they were just asking if I'd like to volunteer to help the missionaries with their Spanish and teaching skills.  I told him I'd love to, figuring that not only would it be a good opportunity to give service, but it could also help me get my foot in the door.