By Lauren Bluth
Small choices in life mold character and determine who people really are, said Dana Griffen, associate dean in the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences at Devotional.
?Each day our literal and figurative feet take us places where the roads diverge and we must choose,? Griffen said, referring to Robert Frost?s famous poem, ?The Road Not Taken.?
Griffen encouraged all attending Tuesday?s Devotional to think more about the consequences of their choices.
?The sobering reality is that too many, in and out of the church, think about some choices too little, and fail to connect the road they choose with the place it leads,? he said.
Thirty years ago he overheard two young men talking in a priesthood meeting, he said. Both passed by a woman with a flat tire on the side of the road in order to be on time to the church meeting.
Although their desire to be on time was honorable, their choice to be on time to a meeting rather than help someone in need may have not been the best choice, he said.
?If we are to emulate the Savior, our choices must repeatedly lead us to Christ-like behavior,? he said.
The war in heaven determined our ability to make choices. Because of that agency, people must make choices and deal with the consequences of those choices, he said.
?We?re still fighting a war of agency,? he said. ?But it?s no longer a question of whether we will be allowed to choose. The battle of the second estate is all about how we use our agency.?
Griffen said to ask one question before making a decision: ?Will this choice lead me toward what I want to be, not just what I want to do??
Not only do choices lead to action and consequences, but they also determine a person?s character, he said. But it?s not too late to choose the right road, Griffen said.
?The good news is there is almost no poor choice that cannot be corrected by timely action,? he said. ?All roads are not created equal and you can turn around.?
Instead of letting agency lead us down the wrong road, people should make agency their ally, he said.