Example Quotes

"You never can tell when you do an act just what the result will be; for with every deed, you are sowing a seed--though its harvest you may never see."

  Author Unknown

"Keep your light shining.  God will put it where it can be seen."

Sancho Panza, the rotund traveling companion of Don Quixote, had just listened to him make a long preachment on the divinity of man.  He yawned and said, "Bien predica quien bien vive, y yo no se otras teologias," or "He teaches well who lives well; that is all the theology I understand."

(Miguel de Cervantes, Segunda Parte del Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha, ed. Martin de Riquer [Barcelona: Editorial Juventud, 1968], pp. 686-87.)

"We cannot hide what we are, try as we will.  It shines from within us.  We are transparent.  When we attempt to deceive, we deceive only ourselves."

Elder James E. Faust - "Stand Up and Be Counted" - Ensign, February 1982

"Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means. "

Albert Einstein

"To be blessed is not an end in itself; we must be a blessing to others.  All people have a talent in one way or another to touch and inspire other people's lives.  Let us not only look inward and proudly say 'all is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth'  (2 Ne. 28:21),  but let us be a light unto a chaotic world."

Hans B. Ringger - "What Shall We Do" General Conference, April 1994

"You can be a good example or you can be a bad example, but you are always an example."

Hartman Rector, Jr.

"Be such a man and live such a life that if every man were such as you, and every life a life like yours, this earth would be God's paradise."

"In this kind of an environment, we must take time to teach the children about the important things of life—about Heavenly Father, the Savior, and the Holy Ghost. We must teach them about repentance, baptism, honesty, and doing good to others. Now, you might say, 'I'm not a parent; I don't teach children.'

Actually, we are all teachers of children—parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, priesthood leaders, ward members, neighbors. Children are always watching and learning. We teach them through our behavior as well as by what we say.

They watch how we treat each other. They listen to the voices of their parents and to the voices at church. Unfortunately, they also listen to voices on television and elsewhere which sometimes teach values contrary to gospel principles. We must teach them at an early age to listen to the right voices...."

Dwan J. Young "Teach Children the Gospel" - Ensign, May 1988, p. 78

"A good example has twice the value of good advice."

"A word to adults and parents.  Elder Bruce R. McConkie's father counseled that when we violate any commandment, however small, our youth may choose to violate a commandment later on in life perhaps 10 times or 100 times worse and justify it on the basis of the small commandment we broke."

"One Link Still Holds" - Oct. 1999 Gen. Conf.

"In my high school there were only two boys who were members of the Church: myself and another boy who was inactive. On a whim I decided that on Fridays, for a few weeks, I would wear a white shirt and tie to school.

Surprisingly, after the first week, many followed my lead and came dressed in white shirts and ties. One day the principal called me into his office. I had been there before for reasons that I would not care to mention today, but on that occasion he thanked me for setting a standard of dress for the rest of the boys, which he felt improved the spirit of the school.

I felt good to know that I had led my friends to do a simple but uplifting thing and that it had been recognized by the school administration."

F. Melvin Hammond, "The Vision of Eternity"  -  BYU Dev.  -  Feb. 11, 2003

"I challenge you to stand up to your peers as an example of righteous living."

Elder L. Tom Perry Ensign, Nov. 1996, 38,  "Run and Not Be Weary"

"I know it is sometimes hard to stand for truth and right. Yet we need to be positive examples if we are to help others find a better way. "

Elder M. Russell Ballard - "Standing for Truth and Right" - 1997 Gen. Conf.

"I hope that every day of my life I might be able to do some good and to encourage somebody to live a better life."