Good Intentions

Last night I attended a fireside. One of the comments that was made by one of the people in the audience struck me as profound. He said that good intentions were the opposite of courage.

The context was a discussion was how it takes courage to reach out to a spouse who may be critical. It is so much easier to substitute our good intentions that things be better than to actually have the courage to do anything about the problem. We can talk all we want about how we want things to be better, and how it is our intention to be kind and loving, we can even make some half-hearted efforts in that direction, but if we never have the courage to actually do something to demonstrate that, then our good intentions and empty words do not do anything.

Of course having the courage to demonstrate love can be taken as being offensive (and often is), and it is thus safer to retreat to the cowardice of good intentions.

In this context the old saying about how the road to hell is paved with good intentions takes on some interesting nuances.

A Thought From President Monson

I really liked President Monson's April 2015 First Presidency Message that appeared in the Ensign. Unfortunately, I do not have it at hand and it has not appeared on the Church website yet. So here are some similar quotes of his from President Monson's talk in the Priesthood Session of General Conference last April:

In order for us to make the correct decisions, courage is needed—the courage to say no when we should, the courage to say yes when that is appropriate, the courage to do the right thing because it is right.

Inasmuch as the trend in society today is rapidly moving away from the values and principles the Lord has given us, we will almost certainly be called upon to defend that which we believe. Will we have the courage to do so?

There is also this:

Courage comes in many forms. Wrote the Christian author Charles Swindoll: “Courage is not limited to the battlefield … or bravely catching a thief in your house. The real tests of courage are much quieter. They are inner tests, like remaining faithful when no one’s looking, … like standing alone when you’re misunderstood.” I would add that this inner courage also includes doing the right thing even though we may be afraid, defending our beliefs at the risk of being ridiculed, and maintaining those beliefs even when threatened with a loss of friends or of social status. He who stands steadfastly for that which is right must risk becoming at times disapproved and unpopular.

As a friend reminded me yesterday, "Your actions do have real consequences with real people." Yes, they do. When we need it the most, courage is not an abstract virtue. The prices paid are sadly very real as those who actually pay them know best.

President Monson also said this:

Not all acts of courage bring . . . spectacular or immediate results, and yet all of them do bring peace of mind and a knowledge that right and truth have been defended.

It is impossible to stand upright when one plants his roots in the shifting sands of popular opinion and approval. Needed is the courage of a Daniel, an Abinadi, a Moroni, or a Joseph Smith in order for us to hold strong and fast to that which we know is right. They had the courage to do not that which was easy but that which was right.

We will all face fear, experience ridicule, and meet opposition. Let us—all of us—have the courage to defy the consensus, the courage to stand for principle. Courage, not compromise, brings the smile of God’s approval.

He concluded his message with this exhortation:

May each one leave here tonight with the determination and the courage to say, with Job of old, “While my breath is in me, … I will not remove mine integrity from me.”

If the prophet says it in General Conference and repeats it in the First Presidency Message to go out to every home as the home teaching message a year later, perhaps we might be so bold as to conclude that it is important and perhaps even relevant.

A Salute to Courage

In days when it is popular to hide behind masks of anonymity, it is worth pointing out examples of those who show the courage of their convictions and salute them. Having the courage to stand up for what is right when it is not popular or when you are the only one is not just important; it is crucial for society.

One example is retold here. A more recent example came to my attention from two different sources. The secular side, retold here, emphasizes the tyrannical actions of instructor, Deandre Poole, who, wanting to "push students over the ethical line," asked all the students in her class "to cooperate in a blasphemy." Poole was following an exercise in the book written by Jim Neuliep. A number of missing and important points of the story are given here.

Hats of to Ryan Rotela for having the courage to stand by his convictions. Rotela, perhaps not so incidentally, is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We need more people to have the courage to stand for their faith, even when they are alone.