President Hinckley Passes

I was sad to learn that President Hinckley died last night at the age of 97. He was the Prophet of the Church for all of my adult life. I remember reading his words when I was deciding to go on a mission and as I struggled to deal with the challenges of being a missionary. I can remember going to watch him speak at BYU and listening to his talks at general conferences. Through the wonders of technology, even though President Hinckley was the leader of a church of 13 million I felt like he was my prophet because I have received his counsel and guidance at nearly every important turn in my lifetime. He was a grandfatherly figure that I went to at least twice a year to learn from. He was a constant part of my life and will surely be missed. I marvel not only at his amazing spiritual legacy as Prophet of the Church but also at his example of living a life dedicated to helping others and serving the world.

Just yesterday morning I was reading one of his talks as I prepared for a lesson and felt like he was talking directly to me. Lately I have been feeling a little worn down by the day to day demands of working in Corporate America, finishing assignments for Business School, and serving my family and my Church. President Hinckley counseled:

Virtuous, in this case, I believe, means having strength—the strength to do whatever needs doing. Great virtue comes in doing well and consistently the everyday, often rather tedious tasks of life. Blaise Pascal said that “the strength of a man’s virtue should not be measured by his special exertions, but by his habitual acts” (Pensée [1670]).

Your virtue will be attained through deliberate practice of those things that bring strength and purity to your life—such things as prayer; consistent study of the scriptures; timely payment of your financial obligations, especially an honest tithe; careful adherence to the law of health, which we call the Word of Wisdom; and faithful observance of all the commandments of God. These and other goodly practices performed on a habitual basis will yield great virtue.

I will miss President Hinckley, but he lived an amazing and inspirational life and even in his passing motivates me to stand a little taller.

Matt

With President Hinckley's legacy as a great communicator, I feel it is fitting tribute that those whose lives he has touched post their thoughts about President Hinckley throughout the blogosphere. If you do, let me know so I can read your post. Or feel free to post in the comments.