D&C 88:124

"Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated." D&C 88:124
      Wow, that scripture pretty much describes a few of my worst traits; cease to be idle, cease to find fault with another, do not sleep longer than needful, be in bed early, and arise early. Those are a few of the things that I really need to work on.
Let's start by first examining the word, 'idle'.
–adjective

1.

not working or active; unemployed; doing nothing: idleworkers.

2.

not spent or filled with activity: idle hours.

3.

not in use or operation; not kept busy: idle machinery.

Idle describes doing nothing, wasting time. Time is a precious thing on this earth, and though it seems long, it is so very short. Every minute should be used for spiritual and physical growth, not wasted in excess sleep or laziness.

Cease to be unclean. Simply refers to following all the commandments and staying as free as possible from sin.

Finding fault one with another. Now what does that mean? There are several different things that this could mean. First would be finding physical traits that are unattractive on a person and faulting them for things that are not under their control. Second would be blaming others for things that they may not have done, that you've just assumed or that you were told through gossip. Third would be finding fault with someone's  personality. Fourth, someone who might not be on the same level as you, either in spirituality, personality, physical beauty, or physical possessions, and thinking yourself higher than they.

Cease to sleep longer than is needful. That's a hard one, everyone loves to sleep, and it feels so good! Sleeping is an important part of life, keeping your body healthy and rested is a commandment, but too much sleep isn't good for you. All that is required per night is 6-8 hours, unless there is injury or illness, that's really all you need.


Be in bed early, that you may not be weary and arise early that your body and mind may be invigorated. That one is simple, if you are in bed early, you will arise early. It's just actually getting in bed early that's the hard part.

I think that this is a really important scripture to keep in mind. It offers many guidelines to help us stay healthy and be happy. Whenever your body is healthy, you feel better. When your body is sick, weak or in pain, you will automatically feel miserable. So, I challenge everyone to try and work on whichever of these traits that you struggle with. I'll be trying        right along with you. :)