Strive to Be Honest

To my daughter, 

              Today I want to write to you about honesty. When Moses was on Mount Sinai he received the ten commandments from Jehovah. These are still important for us today. Two of them related to honesty: “Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor” (Exodus 20:15-16). To steal is obviously a form of dishonesty, and to bear false witness means to tell a lie. In the Book of Mormon, Abinadi confirmed the importance of these commandments as he repeated them to the wicked priests of King Noah. Jacob didn’t mince words when he spoke of the consequence of dishonesty: “Wo unto the liar, for he shall be thrust down to hell” (2 Nephi 9:34). That’s some very strong language! In the Doctrine and Covenants in the great vision on the three degrees of glory given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, he revealed that those who would inherit the lowest (telestial) kingdom would be “they who are liars” (Doctrine and Covenants 76:103). All these scriptures affirm the paramount importance of honesty.

               Modern prophets have also taught us how important honesty and integrity are for our spiritual well-being. In the For the Strength of Youth pamphlet, the prophet and apostles said this: “Be honest with yourself, others, and God at all times. Being honest means choosing not to lie, steal, cheat, or deceive in any way. When you are honest, you build strength of character that will allow you to be of great service to God and others. You will be blessed with peace of mind and self-respect. You will be trusted by the Lord and will be worthy to enter into His holy temples.” I know that this is true: honesty brings peace of mind and dishonesty brings anguish and regret. One of the questions that the Bishop asks to make sure that we are prepared to enter the temple is this: “Do you strive to be honest in all that you do?” This is so important for you as you prepare to enter the temple to perform baptisms for those who have died. Make sure you live each day so that you can answer yes to that question. And if you make a mistake, repentant and recommit to always be honest to your friends, your teachers, your siblings, and your parents.

               I want to tell you a story from my youth about honesty. When I was in 8^th grade I took a test as part of an academic competition that was very important to me. During one part of the test they had us answer questions on paper at a table and they had a timer going. As soon as the bell rang, we were supposed to stop writing immediately and turn in our papers. I had answered a question and was reviewing it, and right when the bell rang I realized I made a mistake and just needed to change a negative sign. I could have done it in less than a second and no one would have noticed. I really wanted to because I didn’t want to miss that problem, but I resisted the urge and let myself get the problem wrong. On another problem on that same test I had guessed a number, knowing that my chance of getting it right was about 10%. Well, I got that guess right, and I was convinced that the Lord had blessed me with the right answer because I had been honest on the other question and allowed myself to get it wrong. Ultimately I won a trip to Washington, D.C. with a few other students because of that competition, and I was so grateful afterwards that I had not been just a little dishonest on the question. I never would have been able to live with myself if I had won that trip without being totally honest. I was able to go with peace of mind knowing that I still had my integrity. I urge you to be honest in all that you do and I promise that the Spirit of the Lord will be more fully with you. 

Love,

Dad