I was blessed this last weekend to hear many plain and precious truths from the men and women who are leaders in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, spoke about choices and I will relay some of his thoughts as well as my own.
It has been said that the door of history turns on small hinges and so do people’s lives. The choices we make determine our destiny. I am always amazed how in retrospect, we can see this so clearly. We can each think of seemingly small choices in our lives that ended up being pivotal to where we are today. However, as each day is upon us, do we treat the choices we make that day as small steps that will change the very direction of our lives?
In “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” Alice comes upon the Cheshire Cat. She asks him, “Which path shall I follow?” He answers, “That depends where you want to go. If you do not know where you want to go, it doesn’t matter which path you take.” How true this statement is. We must have principles that we adhere to that help us govern our choices, if not we are adrift with no purpose.
Next, we must know our own self-worth. Self-worth is very different than self-esteem, although the two are often confused. Self-worth is your inherent value, regardless of exterior circumstances. Self-esteem, though it can be good, is based on shifting variables and will not root us in ways that help us make good choices. Self-esteem says if you are at your goal weight, then you can feel good about yourself or if you are liked by the “cool kids” (those with status, wealth or attractiveness). But what if your views are opposed to those of the crowd? If how you feel about yourself is intrinsically tied to their opinions, how can you speak out when you feel they are wrong? Therefore, we must know our own self-worth. You are a child of a Heavenly Father who loves and cares about you. You are of infinite value and unlimited potential. Regardless of any mistakes or poor choices you have made, you are always of great worth. With that knowledge firmly in place, you can stand for what you believe to be right, no matter who or what puts you down for it.
We often talk to our children about making good choices, avoiding peer pressure and choosing the right regardless of the circumstances. In our day, these conversations and dialogues can be just as applicable to ourselves. As we contemplate the decisions we make in our daily lives, may we be thoughtful in how we use our time and have our daily choices show our true priorities. If family is our priority, is that reflected in the way we spend our time daily? If we value spending time in service to our fellow man, is that shown through our choices?
As President Monson has said, “May we maintain the courage to defy the consensus. May we ever choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong.”
• Jacqueline F. Tupou is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
