On Immunity from the Troubles of Others – Sunday, February 24, 1946
One of the rare gifts among men is the gift of imagining ourselves in the place of others—and acting accordingly. We are so very much ourselves, and sometimes live so very much within ourselves, that our outlook tends to be the outlook of one who views the world from precisely where we are sitting. The inclination to see everything in terms of our own present situation is demonstrated in many ways.
When we are warm, it is relatively difficult to remember the bitter penetration of cold. When we are sumptuously fed, it is difficult to keep alive the acute sensation of hunger. When we are prosperous and comfortable, when we are in the sheltered circle of our families or in the congenial company of our friends, when Providence smiles upon us, we are sometimes lulled into the falsely comforting thought that we shall never be as other men, that we shall never know their sorrows or their loneliness or their want. We are aware of our own troubles, of course, which we all have; but it is so easy to feel an immunity to the troubles of others. But “the mills of the gods grind slowly and exceedingly fine.” Fortune and circumstances change.
By events which we never could have foreseen, we sometimes find that we ourselves are the ones who are in need of comfort or of help or of sustenance, and except for the ministrations of others, perhaps we would never survive—perhaps, at least, our faith in men would not survive. And so, partly in anticipation of a possible time when we might be the ones who have some urgent need, but more especially out of consideration for our obligations to all men whether we shall ever be in need or not, we would do well to keep before our thoughts that “pure religion and undefiled of which James spoke, for always there are many widows and fatherless. Always there are many sons away from home. Always there are crying needs on every hand for comfort, for kindliness, for understanding and encouragement, as well as for material aid. And the pattern of action for all such times has been given us by Him who told of a certain Samaritan for whom it was enough to know only that here was a man in need.
“The Spoken Word,” heard over Radio Station K S L and the nationwide Columbia Broadcasting System, from the Tabernacle, Temple Square, Salt Lake City, Sunday, Feb. 24, 1946. Copyright 1946.
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February 24, 1946
Broadcast Number 0,862