Latter-day Saint Life

The Incredible Thing That Happened When a Church Teacher Had to Teach a Room of Religious Experts About the Book of Mormon

39155.jpg

Admitting our weaknesses is not the easiest thing to do, but we should strive to follow the counsel given in D&C 1:28, "And inasmuch as they were humble they might be made strong, and blessed from on high, and receive knowledge from time to time." As we become humble, we will learn how to fulfill the Lord's calling despite those weaknesses and be able to bless others.

The following is an excerpt fromWeakness Is Not Sin: The Liberating Distinction That Awakens Our Strengths:

My husband, Dave, has long remembered a high priests class he once attended while visiting Jerusalem. The lesson was on the importance of the scriptures. The teacher, a convert from a humble background, asked if anyone had succeeded in reading the Book of Mormon all the way through. In the class were a number of visiting professors from Brigham Young University who had spent their entire professional lives studying holy writ.

My husband felt a little embarrassed for the teacher, who didn’t seem to realize who his students were. Dave could almost read the minds of the class members as they settled into the assumption that they were probably not going to learn a lot in high priests class that day. There may have even been a little smugness in the group at having so excelled in their reading duties.

The teacher was wide-eyed as all the hands in the room went up in answer to his question. He could hardly comprehend that everyone in the room had read and reread a book that he found too difficult to finish at all. But then he began to share how he tried, nevertheless, to live the principles the scriptures teach.

He humbly enumerated many ways he spent time with his family—hours spent helping his children, attending their events, playing with them, counseling with them, teaching them, and showing interest in their lives. He shared many personal examples of his involvement with each child. He expressed his love and deep commitment to them. The esteemed professors got quiet. They realized humbly that there are many ways to bring the scriptures to life in our lives. Their teacher, in his humility about his weakness, taught them from great strengths.


 In Weakness Is Not Sin: The Liberating Distinction That Awakens Our Strengths,Dr. Wendy Ulrich asks the question: How often do we respond to weaknesses with impatience and guilt, mistaking human fallibility for sin? Ulrich makes the important distinction between sin and weakness and explains how we can use those weaknesses to benefit others when we recognize those differences.

39139.jpg

Share
Stay in the loop!
Enter your email to receive updates on our LDS Living content