When I look back on my high school years, I cringe a bit when I reflect on some of the things that I did.
And let me preface this by saying I was a good kid!
I had a super strong testimony and was active in church.
But I also realize that maybe I shouldn’t have participated in that prank, or I wonder why I felt I was justified in being rude to someone.
I’m not saying I was a bad kid, but I can totally see now that there was a disconnect in my integrity—
My actions did not always line up with my beliefs.
When I read about Noah, he is spoken of so highly in the scriptures:
“Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations”. (Genesis 6:9)
Perfect?!
Well, I’m a big fan of footnotes, and when I looked at the footnote attached to “perfect”, I noticed something:
The Hebrew meaning could also translate to, “complete, whole, having integrity”.
Now THAT makes sense to me.
Noah must have been a man of great integrity.
When he said that he loved God, his actions aligned with making God a priority in his life.
When he said he would be obedient, he didn’t purposefully cut any corners.
When he said he would love and care for those around him, he didn’t make exceptions for anyone.
He was consistent in every area of his life.
This is what makes Noah such a great example and disciple of God.
And it makes me want to consider: How does my integrity measure up?
Happy Studying!
-Cali Black
4 Responses
If it makes you feel any better, I am reading a book by President Hinckley entitled: Standing For Something: 10 neglected Virtues that will Heal our Hearts and Homes. In the book he shares a story about some of his friends and him who decided to do a ‘strike’ over something they were not happy with. In the end they had to get a note from their parents to return to school. Lesson learned.
And Remember when Thomas S Monson caught the field on fire next to their vacation cabin? Even Prophets are not perfect ! 🙂
I love hearing these stories. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I love that the Hebrew definition for perfect can be translated to whole or complete. We are not perfect, but through Christ we can be whole or complete, or in a sense perfect through Christ. He makes up the difference. I am not a perfect parent, but my husband definitely balances my parenting. He is strong in my weak areas and I help balance out his weak areas. Together we are whole or complete. I love thinking that we don’t have to be perfect, but are able to lean on Christ and others to help us become whole and complete together.
I love this! Thank you for sharing your thoughts!