The Choice Generation

Right in the middle of the Priesthood Session of Conference, Elder Randall L. Ridd gave a terrific talk about technology and how we choose to use it. He said that "with the click of a button, you can access whatever your heart desires. That’s the key—what does your heart desire? What do you gravitate toward? Where will your desires lead?"

In the age of the internet, we can access nearly any information or entertainment we want. You can pick from dozens of news sites to get up-to-date information and social and political commentary. Online dictionaries and encyclopedias give free access to information on any subject you could want to study. On youtube alone, your options are virtually limitless. There are funny animal clips, science videos, how-to videos, Let's-Play videos, music videos by both professional and amateur artists, and even some TV show episodes. I recently watched a youtube video of a man "carving" pumpkins with a machete (by chopping them to pieces). On the internet, you can find almost anything you want. So what do you want?

That's a question you need to answer for yourself, because if you don't answer it, the world, and more especially Satan, will try to answer that question for you. For all of the good things there are on the internet, there are also a lot of bad things, including things that have some positive aspects, but that take up too much of our time.

There is more to life, and this message, than the internet. The internet is a great vehicle for delivering us whatever we want to read or watch, but there are other things we spend our time on. There are things that we buy and things that we do. I think Elder Ridd was on the right track when he said that "never before in history have individuals been blessed with so many choices." If you want a fresh banana, you can go to the store and get yourself a fresh banana. That's not an option many people had one or two centuries ago. Many people today still don't have that option. We are very richly blessed.

But with those blessings come responsibilities - namely the responsibility to make good choices. Elder Ridd asked us to consider where our desires will lead us. "Remember that God 'granteth unto men according to their desire' and that He 'will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.' " God has given us the ability to get virtually whatever we want, but we will be held accountable for what we do with our many choices. 

More choices mean more opportunities; more opportunities mean more potential to do good and, unfortunately, evil. I believe that God sent you here at this time because He trusts you to successfully discern among the mind-boggling choices available.

It's a lot of responsibility. A lot of trust. We must frequently evaluate ourselves to make sure that we remain worthy of that trust and that we use our time, our talents, and our blessings, including the internet, wisely. There is a lot at stake here, including each of our own souls. Let us be careful to make sure that we are making wise choices, as we certainly have many choices to make and many options from which to choose.