On the whole, Latter-day Saints are good people. Most of us do our best to try to live the
gospel. Most of us try to be Christ-like and obedient to the Lord. Unfortunately, even the best of us tend to
fall into traps of bad thinking without even being aware of it. This flawed thinking can interfere with our
ability to fully live the gospel. These mistakes can keep us from experiencing
the full blessings and joy that come with gospel discipleship. More often than not making these mistakes can
actively make us miserable. On my blog I
answer gospel questions, and in real life I talk to people of all walks of life
about religion, and I have noticed a few common problems that even the best of
us may have to overcome in order to progress in the gospel.
I.
Riding
the Line
When I was a young man, I was taught a parable in my Aaronic
priesthood Sunday classes about truck drivers and staying away from the line:
“A man was interviewing new drivers for his transportation
company. The route was very dangerous and went along several steep cliffs
through a mountain pass. The interviewer asked each man how close he could
safely drive near the edge of the cliff. The first man responded, “I could
drive within six inches of the edge.” The second man responded, “I could drive
within two inches of the edge.” The third man responded, “I would stay as far
away from the edge of the cliff as I possibly could.” (Aaronic Priesthood Manual, lds.org).