The Golden Rule

Do unto others as you would have done unto you. For a large part of my life, I interpreted the Golden Rule in an opposite way than it was meant to be. I thought of it as “Don’t do unto others as you wouldn’t have done unto you.” Therefore, I wouldn’t hit my brother because I wouldn’t want him to hit me, and I wouldn’t steal things because I wouldn’t want people to steal from me. However, in my last years of high school I began to understand the rule in the way that it was meant to be understood.

One day, a super random thought popped in my head. I thought “Man… I would just love it if someone randomly showed up right now and gave me an ice-cream shake.” Then I began to put away that thought as I knew that it was not going to happen. However, the Golden Rule popped into my head “Do unto others as you would have done unto you” and I finally understood it in its proper context. It was a principle of action, not of inaction. Therefore, I got in my car, went to Arctic Circle, and bought an ice-cream shake to take to a friend of mine. When I got to her house, her mom opened the door and said “Awe, how did you know that Jessica (name changed) was having a bad day?”. I had no clue. I guess I got lucky in that the spirit inspired me to take it to her, but otherwise I was just trying to follow the golden rule. When Jessica came to the door, the smile on her face was incredible to behold. I felt ten times better than if I had received the ice-cream shake myself as my original desire had made manifest.

Now here in college, I have realized an interesting truth. Marjorie Pay Hinckley has a quote about tithing that says something along the lines of people saying that they can’t afford to pay tithing. She can’t afford not to pay tithing because she can’t live without the blessings that come from it. I feel the same way about serving others. Many people do not serve because they do not have the time to do so. I feel like I cannot function properly without the blessings that come from service. Beyond just not doing to others what I wouldn’t have done to me, I seek ways to do to others as I would like to have done. It brings the spirit in my life. As Christ said, he who loses his life for His sake shall find it.

It comes down to the difference between being an agent and an object. An agent will act and change his circumstances while an object will be acted on upon and get his circumstances changed. Agents feel empowered and in control of their lives while objects feel powerless and dependent. God desires us to be agents. That is why He gave us our agency. He desires us to use it in a way to bless others and therefore help ourselves in the greatest way possible. I am going to continue building and lifting others in the way I would like to be lifted up because it makes me feel good to do so, and it helps to make the world a better place.