Throughout my life, my parents, siblings, and teachers have taught me the importance of always remaining righteous in all that I do. They explained to me the blessings you can receive by being righteous and the consequences that can follow from being unrighteous. The most effective way they taught this to me was through their examples to me. The first experience of righteousness that comes to mind occurred when I was eleven years old. I was going through some very challenging times and I was doubting whether or not I would be able to make it. My parents recognized my struggle and took me aside. They explained to me that as long as I stay righteous and my faith doesn't waver, that everything would turn out to be just fine. I was a little skeptical at first but I took their advice and before I knew it my challenging times had passed. If i would have wandered off and become unrighteous, I may have been stuck in that situation for much longer. I am very grateful for my parents wise advice they had for me.
Since the Biblical days, parents have been teaching their children the importance of righteousness. 2 Nephi 1: 23 states "Awake my sons; put on the armor of righteousness." This verse is Lehi speaking to his sons to join their brother Nephi in work of the Lord. Lehi is so worried about his other sons because he knows that if they are not being righteous, then they are being wicked. In Alma 41: 10, the Lord says "Behold, I say unto you, wickedness never was happiness." Lehi understands that his wayward children will never find true happiness and will have an eternity of misery unless they become righteous. Our parents have the same concerns for us today. They want us to be as happy as possible and they know that we will be the most happy while we are being righteous.
We can show God our righteousness by being faithful and obedient to Him. Although staying righteous may not always be the easiest task, it is always worth it. In 1 Nephi 17: 35, it says "He that is righteous is favored of God." In D & C 76: 5, it also says that "The Lord honors those who serve him in righteousness." If this doesn't encourage us to be righteous I don't know what will! When we are righteous, God will return to us everything we could ever want or desire. All we have to do is remain righteous unto Him.
In order to be righteous, we need to have faith. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is “the foundation of all righteousness.” Faith and righteousness go hand in hand. I know that as we are faithful, we become more righteous. And as we become more righteous, are faith also increases.
In the dictionary, righteousness is defined as being morally upright and without guilt or sin. None of us are perfect, but if we strive to be a righteous person then we will be eternally blessed. James E. Faust once said "A righteous person is one who makes and keeps gospel covenants." I know that as I remain righteous, I will be blessed constantly. If you are going through a hard time in your life, I promise you that staying faithful and righteous is the best way to overcome your obstacle. As I have lived my life, I have noticed how much smoother it goes and how much more blessed I am when I am being righteous. Righteousness is the only right way!!!!
Works Cited
1. 1 Nephi 17: 35
2. 2 Nephi 1: 23
3. Doctrine and Covenants 76: 5
4. Alma 41: 10
5. LDS.org
6. Dictionary.com
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
Tanner, good work! Maybe in a future blog you could concentrate on one aspect of a gospel principle instead of trying to treat it generally. For example, with this blog, I think it would be cool to talk about the importance of parents for the righteousness of children.
I enjoyed your blog a lot. I like the part about parents teaching children to be righteous and think that it is important as future parents to strive to be righteous so that we are good examples to our kids.
nice work, I liked your insights. I liked the personal experience right at the beginning to start things off.
The role of parents teaching their Children is sweet. You are right, Righteousness is the Only Right Way!
You did a very nice job of relating scriptures to now. It is so important that children are taught in righteousness.
Good insight on righteousness and how important it is to follow righteous examples. Even at times when we don't understand, like when you were 11 yrs old, it takes faith and courage to follow examples. Great job!!
I like how you talk about parents teaching their children how to be righteous and then go straight to us proving our righteousness to the Lord. While it doesn't directly intimate that God is our Father, it reaffirms it in my mind.
Tanner, I loved how right away you talked about how example is the best teacher. I couldn't agree more. How blessed we are to have such wonderful examples in our lives, especially in the lives of those in the scriptures. I also liked your use of sources.
Post a Comment