The Real McCoy: Authentic People

Authentic People Quotes Collection

Real integrity calls us TO BE and not To SEEM.

No man, for any considerable period, can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be the true.  Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter

A lie is any communication given to another with the intent to deceive.  ~Marvin J. Ashton,
(Ensign 5/80)

Who are you without your stuff?

Truth has a certain ring to it. ~Earnest Hemmingway

The Lord knows us for what we are, and eventually, everyone else does, too. ~Lorraine Henroid

...Never do in secret, what [you] would not do in the presence of millions.  ~Lucy Mack Smith

We never know when people have values until they are challenged.

I live on good soup and not fine words. ~Moliere

An honest man is the noblest work of God ~Byrne

Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all. ~O.W. Holmes

Honesty about our own weaknesses leads to a more compassionate view of others. ("A Change of Heart: Key to Harmonious Relationships," Ensign 2/84)

The chains of habit are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken. ~Samuel Johnson

Help me, O Lord, to be free not only of personal deceit, but grant me also the wisdom to avoid those who would damage me or mine through devious means.

Stand with anybody that stands right.  Stand with him while he is right and part with him when he goes wrong. ~Abraham Lincoln

No virtues in the perfection we strive for are more important than integrity and honesty.  Let us then be complete, unbroken, pure, and sincere, to develop in ourselves that quality of soul we prize so highly in others.  ~Spencer W. Kimball, (Faith Precedes the Miracle, pp. 247-48)

The matter of trust is the principle taught in the Savior's parable of the talents.  You will recall that, in this story, an honorable effort, given to the full by the two honest servants, brought the same reward from the Master, even though the product of their efforts was not the same.  Deep within our own hearts we generally know when we have paid the price, when we have done the best our personal resources and abilities would have allowed us to do at the moment, regardless of the outcome of our effort or the way it may be viewed by others.  It is at these times that we know real peace, even though the product of our effort may not be all that we would have hoped it to be.  The full return on this kind of investment cannot always be determined at the next audit period.  When Jesus was crucified by his detractors, it appeared to all observers--even to his disciples--that his efforts had accounted for nothing.  But the Savior knew he had paid the price.  History has borne record to the quality of his investment.  ~Thomas S. Monson

He who lies is the servant of the lie.  He who tells the lie must live with the results.  Deacons and Beehive girls should be taught the evils of deceit.  Teachers and Mia Maids should be taught the importance of truth.  Priests and Laurels should be taught the pitfalls that accompany dishonesty.  Missionaries, to be successful and happy, must live by correct principles.  Primary children can learn that telling lies is not good.  Children in the home are entitled to see honesty taught by example.  Unfortunate is the individual or family who is taught that honesty is a policy rather than the proper way of life...We live in a world of law.  We may be able to avoid or skirt laws of the land, but the laws of heaven have an irrevocable effect on us today, tomorrow, and forever..."Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:32)  No man will ever be totally free who is living a lie...We should ever bear in mind that a wrong isn't right just because many people do it.  A wrong deed isn't right just because it hasn't become visible.  (Marvin J. Ashton, "This Is No Harm," Ensign, May 1982)