Integrity and love

I don’t know why this scripture had me almost in tears.

“Blessed is my servant Hyrum Smith; for I, the Lord, love him because of the integrity of his heart, and because he loveth that which is right before me, saith the Lord.” D&C 124:15

(Besides pregnancy hormones, I’m crying at everything right now to be honest.)

It is just so tender and personal.

God really knows our heart.

Like, He REALLY knows.

Deep down, He knows what we love most and what we want.

He knows the good intentions and the selfish intentions.

He knows the true weaknesses, and He knows the continued excuses.

He sees us as we really are.

That is… a vulnerable realization, right?

Like, there isn’t hiding a thing from Him.

(Just a reminder that He sees all this and still loves you completely and isn’t expecting a perfect heart right now.)

But I think that’s what makes the Lord’s comment about Hyrum Smith so beautiful.

He could see that Hyrum wanted to do what was right.

He had good intentions, he had integrity.

And he loved, truly truly loved, righteous things.

Yet, I haven’t heard any reports that Hyrum was a perfect man.

The Lord isn’t saying that everything that Hyrum DID is good. Or that everything he SAID is good.

His intentions and his heart were always good.

Good and perfect are very different.

So how can I become focused on turning my heart to be a little more righteous today?

How can I get rid of the things in my heart that I know aren’t the best for me?

What do I truly love?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black