Liking You: A General Conference Thought or Two

I love scholastic book orders.  I love children's books. This one came just in time to tie in some thoughts I had from General Conference (words from this sweet story will be intertwined throughout this post).  All of this results in a bit of a spin on the thoughts given in conference, a twist that ends in liking you. 

President Monson said in the Relief Society Session, "My dear sisters, each of you is unique. You are different from each other in many ways. There are those of you who are married. Some of you stay at home with your children, while others of you work outside your homes. Some of you are empty nesters. There are those of you who are married but do not have children. There are those who are divorced, those who are widowed. Many of you are single women. Some of you have college degrees; some of you do not. There are those who can afford the latest fashions and those who are lucky to have one appropriate Sunday outfit. Such differences are almost endless. Do these differences tempt us to judge one another?"

And I add, do these differences tempt us to judge ourselves?  Isn't that truly where our judging begins, with ourselves.  We judge ourselves, our appearances, our talents, and our personalities, and we do so by comparing them to or judging others.  We judge our appearance based on our judgements of other's appearances.  We judge our talents based on other's talents.  We judge our personalities based on our comparisons with other's personalities.  We are a comparing bunch.  But listen to the words from this little girl so happy to be who God made her and no one else:

I like myself! I'm glad I'm me.

There's no one else I'd rather be.

I like my eyes, my ears, my nose.

I like my fingers and my toes.

Inside, outside, upside down,

from head to toe and all around.

I like it all! It all is me!

And me is all I want to be.

But how do we do this?  How do we stop the comparing and the judging?  How do we learn to love ourselves through and through?  Two thoughts come from President Uchtdorf, in two different sessions:

1. We get to know ourselves...

President Uchtdorf said, "It may seem odd to think of having a relationship with ourselves, but we do. Some people can’t get along with themselves. They criticize and belittle themselves all day long until they begin to hate themselves. May I suggest that you reduce the rush and take a little extra time to get to know yourself better. Walk in nature, watch a sunrise, enjoy God’s creations, ponder the truths of the restored gospel, and find out what they mean for you personally. Learn to see yourself as Heavenly Father sees you—as His precious daughter or son with divine potential."

Even when I look a mess,

I still don't like me any less,

'cause nothing in this world , you know,

can change what's deep inside, and so...

No matter if they stop and stare,

no person

ever

anywhere

can make me feel that what they see

is all there really is to me.

     2.  We think less about ourselves...

In the Priesthood Session President Uchtdorf said, "Some suppose that humility is about beating ourselves up. Humility does not mean convincing ourselves that we are worthless, meaningless, or of little value. Nor does it mean denying or withholding the talents God has given us. We don’t discover humility by thinking less of ourselves; we discover humility by thinking less about ourselves. It comes as we go about our work with an attitude of serving God and our fellowman."

We are all unique and must get to know ourselves and our unique qualities. We must learn to see ourselves as Heavenly Father sees us. Only then will we be able to stop thinking less of ourselves and truly like ourselves.  Only then will be able to start thinking less about ourselves and more about others.  Only then will our comparing and judging cease because we will be happy being who we are and be able to focus on growing into who we want to become. 

Just as this little girl who said, "I like me different and the same", we need to embrace our similarities and applaud our differences.  We need not compare or judge. 

We need to be able to say,

I like you and I like me.

There's no one else I'd rather be.

A Must Read...

True to the Faith

If you haven't read True to the Faith yet, it is a must read - to read it online click HERE, to buy it click HERE.

I have not personally read it all the way through yet but the sections that I have read are wonderful. The book is filled with simple explainations and applications for almost all gospel topics, principles, and doctrines. I have decided to use it during my personal scripture study. Each night I select a topic that I feel like reading, or a topic that has been on my mind, or sometimes I just flip to a random page and read. I read from the book and then read the scripture references that it has listed under it. I think that with this topical way of reading I will come to understand specific principles so much more clearly.

Last night I read the section titled "Judging Others" and it was a great reminder. I loved that it talked about both righteous and unrighteous judgements. I have added the entire entry on Judging Others below:

"Sometimes people feel that it is wrong to judge others in any way. While it is true that you should not condemn others or judge them unrighteously, you will need to make judgments of ideas, situations, and people throughout your life. The Lord has given many commandments that you cannot keep without making judgments. For example, He has said: “Beware of false prophets. . . . Ye shall know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:15–16) and “Go ye out from among the wicked” (D&C 38:42). You need to make judgments of people in many of your important decisions, such as choosing friends, voting for government leaders, and choosing an eternal companion.

Judgment is an important use of your agency and requires great care, especially when you make judgments about other people. All your judgments must be guided by righteous standards. Remember that only God, who knows each individual’s heart, can make final judgments of individuals (see Revelation 20:12; 3 Nephi 27:14; D&C 137:9).

The Lord gave a warning to guide us in our judgment of others: “With what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother: Let me pull the
mote out of thine eye—and behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast the mote out of thy
brother’s eye” (3 Nephi 14:2–5).

In this scripture passage the Lord teaches that a fault we see in another is often like a tiny speck in that person’s eye, compared to our own faults, which are like an enormous beam in our eyes. Sometimes we focus on others’ faults when we should instead be working to improve ourselves.

Your righteous judgments about others can provide needed guidance for them and, in some cases, protection for you and your family. Approach any such judgment with care
and compassion. As much as you can, judge people’s situations rather than judging the people themselves. Whenever possible, refrain from making judgments until you have an
adequate knowledge of the facts. Always be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, who can guide your decisions. Remember Alma’s counsel to his son Corianton: “See that you are merciful unto your brethren; deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually” (Alma 41:14).

Additional references: 1 Samuel 16:7; Moroni 7:14–19; D&C 11:12
See also Charity; Forgiveness; Love; Mercy"

Let us all continue to gain knowledge. Let us all strive to learn more about the principles of the Gospel. Let us all "deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually".

I challenge you to read True to the Faith. The First Presidency said, "This book is designed as a companion to your study of the scriptures...We encourage you to refer to it as you study and apply gospel principles...May this book strengthen you in your efforts to draw near to the Savior and follow His example."