Defend your beliefs with courtesy and with compassion, but defend them.

Let people repent. Let people grow. Believe that people can change and improve.

Rich or poor, we are to “do what we can” when others are in need.

God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face.

There is no convenient Messiah. Salvation comes only through discipline and sacrifice.

Coveting, pouting, or tearing others down does not elevate your standing, nor does demeaning someone else improve your self-image.

Try not to compare your children, even if you think you are skillful at it. You may say most positively that "Susan is pretty and Sandra is bright," but all Susan will remember is that she isn't bright and Sandra that she isn't pretty. Praise each child individually for what that child is and help him or her escape our culture's obsession with comparing, competing, and never feeling we are "enough.