D&C 137 and the Intents of Our Hearts

There is nothing worse than reading a scripture that makes you feel guilty. D&C 137 is one of those sections of scripture. And why is this the case? Because D&C 137 says that we will be judged in the last day based on the intents of our hearts, and not necessarily based on our actions.

As a student at BYU, I have worked hard to make an image for myself. I join the right clubs, I get the right grades, and I spend my time doing the coolest activities. The only reason I do this is to make my facebook page and journal entries look cooler. I'm not the only person who does this, however. These days, people believe that happiness comes through popularity, and that popularity comes through having the right image. We advertise ourselves every day to the people around us, and we go the extra mile to gain new supporters and friends. While we get caught up in self-aggrandizing media, we become experts in the popularity game.

And then, of course, we forget ourselves. The person we know when nobody is around remains unpolished and unfocused, and we eventually crumble from the inside-out. I know that this sounds horrible. However, as a public health major and a student of D&C 137, it is my duty to warn myself as well as others of the dangers of self-aggrandizement.

Now, it is absolutely possible to prevent losing oneself in vanity. There is nothing more do-able than working on the inner vessel before the outer vessel. I'm not suggesting here that we don't forget about our public image. I'm suggesting that we recognize our inner strengths, polish and refine them, and use them to benefit others. Our actions speak louder than our image, and these are the foundations of true happiness and of popularity.

Right now, Audrey Hepburn comes to mind. It's controversial whether this quote can be attributed to her, but I like it anyway: "For Attractive lips, speak words of kindness, For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people, For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry, For Beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day, For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone." We don't live our lives to build an image. We live our lives to learn how to love. As we do this, we will become prized in the eyes of the Lord and prized in the eyes of those who need us the most.

That's what life is about, isn't it? Love?