"Do not say: O God, I thank thee that we are better than our brethren; but rather say: O Lord, forgive my unworthiness, and remember my brethren in mercy--yea, acknowledge your unworthiness before God at all times."
Alma 38:14
This is tough. It is easy in our lives to compare... we want to see how we're doing, so we start comparing ourselves to others. In one area we might think, hey, we're not doing very well, and we need to do better, and in another we might think... wow. I am SO much better it isn't even funny. And maybe that's natural, but we could be missing the mark.
We aren't commanded to be better than the people around us... we're asked to be perfect: to emulate God. And by that measure, we're just not going to measure up... no matter how great we're doing. That is the point... and it isn't so that we can feel bad about ourselves at all. It is so that we can keep growing and progressing and not alienating other people that we could be helping, and that could be helping us. Even if we're ten times better than someone else in one area or in obeying one commandment, the likelihood is that the other person is at least 10 times better than we are in a different area or at obeying a different commandment.
We're in this together, and we're asked to become a Zion people, which isn't about competition, but about cooperation, and helping each other reach perfection. Together, we can work on becoming more like God when sometimes, individually, we're just not going to overcome that glaring flaw alone.
Today, let's work on not thinking that we're better than others, but on remembering how much work we have to do to become like God. ... And let's pray for others, and ask for their help, and help each other become better and reach farther than we can alone.
Alma 38:14
This is tough. It is easy in our lives to compare... we want to see how we're doing, so we start comparing ourselves to others. In one area we might think, hey, we're not doing very well, and we need to do better, and in another we might think... wow. I am SO much better it isn't even funny. And maybe that's natural, but we could be missing the mark.
We aren't commanded to be better than the people around us... we're asked to be perfect: to emulate God. And by that measure, we're just not going to measure up... no matter how great we're doing. That is the point... and it isn't so that we can feel bad about ourselves at all. It is so that we can keep growing and progressing and not alienating other people that we could be helping, and that could be helping us. Even if we're ten times better than someone else in one area or in obeying one commandment, the likelihood is that the other person is at least 10 times better than we are in a different area or at obeying a different commandment.
We're in this together, and we're asked to become a Zion people, which isn't about competition, but about cooperation, and helping each other reach perfection. Together, we can work on becoming more like God when sometimes, individually, we're just not going to overcome that glaring flaw alone.
Today, let's work on not thinking that we're better than others, but on remembering how much work we have to do to become like God. ... And let's pray for others, and ask for their help, and help each other become better and reach farther than we can alone.
Well said, Suzanne. Appreciate your thoughts on this, especially the concluding sentence. God bless you and your family.
ReplyDeleteThanks. :)
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