If the Devil can only make you think that you are abused or ill treated, and you begin to fret about it, and you give the Devil power over you - in the end, it is as bad as though you had done wrong yourself.
Brigham YoungRead
I don't care whether the people believe me to be a prophet, seer, or revelator or not - I have been very profitable to this people, and I have seen a good many things, and I have revealed many things.
Interpretation
The speaker values the impact of their contributions over the titles or labels others assign to them.
Brigham Young emphasizes that the significance of one's actions and contributions outweighs the perception others may have of them. He expresses that whether or not people see him as a prophet or visionary is irrelevant to his sense of purpose, as he believes he has positively influenced many lives and shared valuable insights with others.
In practice
In a speech about community service, one might use this quote to emphasize the importance of actions over recognition.
If the Devil can only make you think that you are abused or ill treated, and you begin to fret about it, and you give the Devil power over you - in the end, it is as bad as though you had done wrong yourself.
Produce what you consume; draw from the native element the necessaries of life. Permit no vitiated taste to lead you into the indulgence of expensive luxuries, which can only be obtained by involving yourselves in debt.
Any young man who is unmarried at the age of twenty one is a menace to the community.
Never let a day pass that you will have cause to say, I will do better tomorrow.
I am more afraid that this people have so much confidence in their leaders that they will not inquire for themselves of God whether they are led by Him. I am fearful they settle down in a state of blind self-security... Let every man and woman know, by the whispering of the Spirit of God to themselves, whether their leaders are walking in the path the Lord dictates, or not.
It is for us to do those things which the Lord requires at our hands, and leave the result with him.
Whoever will cultivate their own mind will find full employment. Every virtue does not only require great care in the planting, but as much daily solicitude in cherishing as exotic fruits and flowers; the vices and passions (which I am afraid are the natural product of the soil) demand perpetual weeding. Add to this the search after knowledge. . . and the longest life is too short.
Some ideas are so stupid that only intellectuals believe them.
I do not know what 'moss' stands for in the proverb , but if it stood for useful knowledge... I gathered more moss by rolling than I ever did at school.
You must not for one instant give up the effort to build new lives for yourselves. Creativity means to push open the heavy, groaning doorway to life. This is not an easy struggle. Indeed, it may be the most difficult task in the world, for opening the door to your own life is, in the end, more difficult than opening the doors to the mysteries of the universe.
Emotions get in the way but they don't pay me to start crying at the loss of 269 lives. They pay me to put some perspective on the situation.
The quality of any advice anybody has to offer has to be judged against the quality of life they actually lead.
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