Character

In Michelle D. Craig’s 2018 devotional, “This Is My Day of Opportunity,” she reminds listeners that character is one of the few things we can take with us when we leave this life. If we spend our life coveting material possessions, we probably will not find much joy in the next life. If we use our time to develop our character for the better, we can better serve God and find joy in this life and the next.

Many people wonder how to develop their character. God has provided all of us with opportunities to develop and strengthen our character through trials. No one lives a perfectly happy life during their time on earth; each person is plagued by their own challenges and disappointments. When we learn how to rely on God during troubling times and choose to look forward with faith, we know our character is developing. Through serving others in need, we can exercise our spiritual gifts and do our part to build our character.

Building character is one of the aims of a BYU education. Faculty and administrators hope that by being present and involved on campus, students will develop character early in life and stay strong when their good habits are opposed by others. Former BYU President Cecil O. Samuelson declared that James E. Talmage’s impeccable character was developed because “he decided to do what he considered was really important and deflected those things of lesser or no priority” (Character, 2012). Elder Jeffrey R. Holland admonished students to “be your best self and let your character shine” (Banishing All Shadows, 2018).

The character of Jesus Christ was perfect and we should look to emulate His example as we do our best to develop our own character. During His ministry on earth, He taught charity and love, honesty and truth, empathy and understanding. As we build our character, we will feel more confident about the life to come. This collection of talks offers counsel on how to best develop character through life experiences.