Believe it or not, the idea of being humble is just as applicable now as it was in the times that the Book of Mormon (a religious text for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, inadvertently called the “Mormon Church”) was written. The Book of Mormon is a compilation of records from Prophets that lived in the Americas about two-thousand years ago. This record was not revealed to mankind until the time of Joseph Smith in the early 1800’s. He translated the work by the hand of God for the benefit of the individuals who would read. In the first book of the Book of Mormon, 1st Nephi, a family is commanded by God to enter the “wilderness” outside of Jerusalem. Nephi’s family had to become very humble very quickly due to the large change of circumstances. It says that they were blessed due to their humility. Everyone on earth can learn from a lesson of humility.
Everything in life can be seen as a positive or a negative occurrence. Some events like an unfortunate death are inherently possibly a negative occurrence; however, to be happy, one must keep a positive attitude or else the winds and storms of life will always overcome you. One the most paramount lessons in the Book of Mormon is that you get what you make out of life. The Book of Mormon promotes hard work, integrity, and humility. All of these qualities will necessarily make one’s life better due to the perspective that the individual uses to view one’s life.
As a student at a university such as BYU, it is sometimes hard to remain humble. I am among wonderful people and in a great location. However, whenever I get a whiff of this realization, I immediately feel worse about myself. It is not until I humble myself that I begin to feel good about myself again.
All over the Holy Bible, and the Book of Mormon, there have been similar stories like this where a group of individuals were “proud” and then they had to humble themselves. This cycle can be applied to many things. It can be applied to even a broader scale than “pride” and humility. As humans, we recognize that there are cycles for everything. There are times in my life in which I feel happier than other times. Then, undoubtedly, I feel not as good a little later. It is how we deal with these cycles and these differences in life that define ourselves. I strive every day to be a person that I would want to associate myself with. I am nowhere near perfect, however, I feel as if this is one of the best goals to have. One of my favorite thoughts is the idea that character is what you do when no one is looking. When I was 10, I found a $100 bill on the ground at my school. Instead of using it to buy many baseball cards (which I was tempted to do), I turned it into the school office. Looking back, that was one of the biggest defining moments of my life. It was then that I had acted on the teachings of my parents to live a life that I wanted to live.
By Alex W.
Additional Resources:
The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. Request your free copy today.
What Do Mormons Believe about Life, Happiness, and Jesus Christ?
Learn about Thomas S. Monson, the prophet of the LDS Church.