Stevenson - Be Valiant in Courage, Strength, and Activity - October 2012

Elder Stevenson starts his talk telling the story of three young men who worked their entire lives to be accepted into a prestigious Japanese University.  The three attended a party one night where some drugs were being passed around.  One friend decided to stay and just pass the drugs when it was his turn to partake.  The other friend left with his other friend reluctantly.  The police soon raided the party and his friend that stayed ended up being kicked out of school and told to leave the country.  The other two are successful business men.

Elder Stevenson tells us that decision in our lives are not easy.  He says:

• Young men, there will be times when you will have to demonstrate your righteous courage in plain view of your peers, the consequence of which may be ridicule and embarrassment.
  

He says our character can be demonstrated in the little things that we do when no one else is watching.  Consider the type of person you are on the internet.

• The demonstration of righteous courage will often be as subtle as to click or not to click.
  

He says a good way to measure your character is taught to Missionaries:

• Missionaries are taught from Preach My Gospel, “What you choose to think and do when you are alone and you believe no one is watching is a strong measure of your virtue.”
  

He gives this advice:

• Be courageous! Be strong! “Stand ye in holy places, and be not moved.”

Elder Stevenson shared this quote from a previous General Conference:

• President N. Eldon Tanner stated: “One young boy on the school ground can wield a mighty influence for good. One young man on the football team, or the campus, or among his fellow workers can, by living the gospel, honoring his priesthood, and taking a stand for the right, do untold good. Often you will experience much criticism and ridicule even by those who believe as you do, even though they may respect you for doing right. But remember that the Savior himself was tormented, ridiculed, spat upon, and finally crucified because he would not waver in his conviction. Have you ever stopped to think what would have happened had he weakened and said, ‘Oh, what’s the use?’ and abandoned his mission? Do we want to be quitters, or do we want to be valiant servants in spite of all the opposition and evil in the world? Let us have the courage to stand up and be counted as true, devoted followers of Christ.”

I love that final line:

• Let us have the courage to stand up and be counted as true, devoted followers of Christ.

He reminds us:

• Remember, what you do, where you go, and what you see will shape who you become.

Building true character is helped as we live the gospel and set goals to make and keep covenants in the temple.  He challenges each of us to:

• Set a goal to be worthy to enter the temple.

He concludes with reminding us what President Monson has said:

• President Thomas S. Monson recently counseled: “To make [decisions] wisely, courage is needed—the courage to say no, the courage to say yes. … “I plead with you to make a determination … right now, not to deviate from the path which will
  lead to our goal: eternal life with our Father in Heaven.”

And the challenge to each of us is this:

• Just as the 2,000 soldiers responded to the battle cry of their leader, Helaman, and marshaled their valiant courage, you too can do the same by following your prophet-leader, President Thomas S. Monson.

What great advice.  I need to spend some time reflecting on who I am when no one is around.  I want to consider where my thoughts go, what my mind rests on, and what I do when those thoughts are not in line with the way I want to live my life.  My personal review of my mind and soul will help me figure out if I need to make changes in my life.