I'm hoping this one will be short. First my mind is drawn to a passage in Alma by Alma the Younger given to his son Shiblon. He states in Chapter 38, a method of teaching the Gospel which I think is a good reminder to me. I get the privilege of teaching sometimes, and here I post my thoughts as though I were presenting ideas that I hope one might learn from. In verse 10, Alma states that he hopes his son will continue to teach the Gospel, being diligent and temperate in all things. In verse 11 and the proceeding verses he warns against pride, that Shiblon be careful that he not boast in his own wisdom or strength, being bold but not overbearing. He advocates personal worthiness, that Shiblon "bridle his passions", filled with love and work hard (refrain from idleness). He advocates humility, unlike the Zoramite religion's claim to be better than others, Alma suggests that his son plead to God for forgiveness for unworthiness. He concludes with, "Be sober".

Here's a list of virtues in summary:

• diligence

Persistence, patience, tenacity, keep with it, despite all odds...



• temperance

Be tolerant and warm. So what if there are a few strange notions out there, you don't have to get all sanctimonious and call down the fires of heavens on the heathens. Just take all things in stride.



• beware of pride - Humility/Repentance

- Classic warning, goes for all people and in so many cases. In the case of teaching, it's a valuable thing to avoid taking things too personally, getting into wars over being right, and losing oneself to distractions. Heh, many of my college professors could've benefited from this advice. I don't know how many were involved in petty power struggles that didn't mean anything outside the university, but to them it was the world. Happens all over the place, I suppose.



• boast not in one's own wisdom

- There's a proverb that goes something like, "Lean not unto thy own understanding, but in all things take counsel with the Lord." In teaching this is crucial. Much of teaching isn't dispensing what you know to others, but the process of learning to others. If you can teach people to find out what you know and beyond, you become a much better teacher than one who dispenses disposable trivia. Of course there's always this danger in teaching that comes when an instructor starts thinking, "I'm the teacher, you're the student." If a teacher is unwilling to learn, then he loses the ability to teach by example, which is one of the most effective ways of teaching.



• Bridle passions

- I like this terminology. It doesn't say deny your passions, or amputate your feelings. It says, "Bridle". Meaning that one controls one's passions and makes them work for you. Great advice because we are entitled to feel passion about the things we care about, but we must not let them overwhelm our sense of right and wrong.



• Love

- Love is the key connecting force in any meaningful exchange of intelligence. Through trust and love we come to appreciate the minds of others, to empathize and listen to them. We want to hear what others have to offer, because we recognize their value. Love makes it okay to try and fail. Love takes away the sting of failure and inspire the courage to keep trying until it's mastered.



• Work

- The exact wording was "Refrain from Idleness," which is probably a whole huge lecture to myself, but I'll refrain. Teaching is work. It is hard to do right, and much of it may be viewed as mindless repetition of facts if there is no willingess to love and work.



• Be Sober

A fool may amuse others, but ultimately is despised by all, and is never taken seriously. That's not helpful if one has something worthwhile to say, because people have a hard time distinguishing what is truth and what is just the fool being a fool. I don't think this means one must be morose or humorless. Humor can be an effective teacher, but it must be done intelligently. Sometimes I think our society resorts to humor too quickly. It makes fun of things before it understands it. I know that in my own life I have often stumbled in this regard. I want to crack the atmosphere, calm nerves, and in so doing, I fear that sometimes I come across as cruel. Definitely something to think about, be sober. Take the Gospel seriously.

All in all, I think Alma gave his son some pretty good advice! --Ray