Knowledge

     The next Attribute of Christ is Knowledge. I feel like all people in the world have a desire to obtain more knowledge. The reason may not always be the same though. Some people seek knowledge to impress people, some seek knowledge to better understand their world, some seek it simply to be "smarter". Knowledge, however, is a gift from God that allows us to learn and progress in this life, which in turn allows us to be happier in the life to come. We should seek knowledge in order to understand God and our purpose of life. Knowledge is the light that guides us through our dark path of life. Would you rather have a candle or a flashlight? A spotlight? A sun? The amount of knowledge that we gain determines our ability to find our way. It is good to attain a knowledge of the things of the world, but our first priority should be to learn about our great God and His glorious plan for us. We can do this by studying our scriptures daily. "Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do." (2 Nephi 32:3.)

     How did Christ give the greatest example of one who has knowledge? Knowledge is what gave Christ the ability to confound the hypocritical Pharisees and Scribes of His day. How else would we get priceless teachings, such as the Sermon on the Mount, if it were not for the extraordinary amount of knowledge that the Savior had? The Savior Himself even quotes the scriptures of the Old Testament (the scripture available to the common man in His time) several times in the New Testament as well as the Book of Mormon. Let us always be striving to follow His great example in our own pursuit of spiritual and temporal knowledge.

Virtue

     "The mind is like a stage. Except when we are asleep the curtain is always up. There is always some act being performed on that stage. It may be a comedy, a tragedy, interesting or dull, good or bad; but always there is some act playing on the stage of the mind.
     Have you noticed that without any real intent on your part, in the middle of almost any performance, a shady little thought may creep in from the wings and attract your attention? These delinquent thoughts will try to upstage everybody.
     If you permit them to go on, all thoughts of any virtue will leave the stage. You will be left, because you consented to it, to the influence of unrighteous thoughts.
     If you yield to them, they will enact for you on the stage of your mind anything to the limits of your toleration. They may enact a theme of bitterness, jealousy, or hatred. It may be vulgar, immoral, even depraved.
     When they have the stage, if you let them, they will devise the most clever persuasions to hold your attention. They can make it interesting all right, even convince you that it is innocent—for they are but thoughts.
     What do you do at a time like that, when the stage of your mind is commandeered by the imps of unclean thinking?—whether they be the gray ones that seem almost clean or the filthy ones which leave no room for doubt.
     If you can control your thoughts, you can overcome habits, even degrading personal habits. If you can learn to master them you will have a happy life." -Boyd K Packer (January 1974 Ensign, Inspiring Music—Worthy Thoughts.)

     What is Virtue? Virtue begins in our innermost thoughts and desires. "Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God." (D&C 121:45.) To me, virtue is equivalent to righteousness. Someone who has virtue focuses on wholesome, uplifting thoughts and drives wicked thoughts from their mind. Virtuous people obey all of God's commandments. They watch themselves and avoid sin at all costs. They keep themselves clean and pure spiritually; unspotted from the world. If a virtuous person commits sin, they repent of it quickly. What you choose to think and do when you are alone and you believe no one is watching is a strong measure of your virtue.

     Living a virtuous life brings a multitude of blessings. You will find yourself receiving guidance from the Holy Ghost on a daily, even hourly basis because you will always be worthy to receive such inspiration. You will have peace of mind and a better standing with God. Your relationship with your Heavenly Father will become. intimately close. Other people will be inspired by your righteous example as a disciple of Christ. 

Charity and Love

     The next Attribute is Charity and Love. With the passing of Valentines day I only see it fitting. Charity is the pure love of Christ. I look at that two different ways. First, that we should love Christ as much as ourselves. Second, that we should love others as much as Christ loves them. It is the love that Christ has for the children of men and that the children of men should have for one another. It is the highest, noblest, and strongest kind of love and the most joyous to the soul. We are to seek to develop that kind of love. When you are filled with charity, you obey God’s commandments and do all you can to serve others and help them receive the restored gospel. As it says in the scriptures, "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." (Mosiah 2:17.) If we could just lose ourselves in the service of others we would find it a lot easier to show love towards one another.
     A man once asked Jesus, “Which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus replied: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Matthew 22:36–39.) I find it interesting that the second greatest commandment is to love others when you see very little of that in the world today. It seems as though with all these "Christians" in the world there should be very little hate towards one another and a lot more peace and kindness. However, that is not the case so something must be askew.
     In the Book of Mormon it tells us that Charity is a gift from God and that we must ask for it. If we will just humble ourselves to come to God and have him help us we will all be able to feel a special love for each individual on the earth. You will come to feel a sincere concern for the eternal welfare and happiness of other people. You will see them as children of God with the potential of becoming like our Heavenly Father. I challenge all to seek the help from God in having charity in our hearts and loving all of those around us.

Hope

     The next Christlike Attribute is Hope. Hope is an abiding trust that the Lord will fulfill His promises to you. It is manifest in confidence, optimism, enthusiasm, and patient perseverance. It is believing and expecting that something will occur. When you have hope, you work through trials and difficulties with the confidence and assurance that all things will work together for your good. Hope helps you conquer discouragement or despair.

     The adversary uses despair to bind hearts and minds in suffocating darkness. Despair drains from us all that is vibrant and joyful and leaves behind the empty remnants of what life was meant to be. Despair kills ambition, advances sickness, pollutes the soul, and deadens the heart. Despair can seem like a staircase that leads only and forever downward. 

     Hope, on the other hand, is like the beam of sunlight rising up and above the horizon of our present circumstances. It pierces the darkness with a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father, who has prepared a way for those who seek for eternal truth in a world of relativism, confusion, and of fear.

     There are many times in my life where I have felt that all is lost. In these times of need, I often turn to my Father in Heaven in prayer and ask for that comforting guidance and reassurance that all will be well. I was once told that everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, then it's not the end. When I think of those few simple words I always seem to get the boost I need to get me to the end.