---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Crocheron, George W.
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 7
number: 4
published: 1904-02
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: 'George W. Crocheron, "The Sacred Duty to Do Good," *Improvement Era* 7, no. 4 (February 1904): 301.'
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0704unse
  transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers.
  identifier: improvementera0704unse
start_page: 301
end_page: 301
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1904-02)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0704unse
  publication_year: 1904
  note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1904, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# The Sacred Duty to Do Good

<!-- page:301 -->

ARE 
        WE 
        HONEST? 
        301
and 
        evil. 
        One 
        encourages 
        us 
        in 
        our 
        efforts 
        to 
        build 
        a 
        strong 
        and
noble 
        character; 
        the 
        other 
        strives 
        to 
        destroy 
        our 
        power 
        and 
        in-
influence 
        for 
        good, 
        weakening 
        every 
        effort 
        we 
        set 
        forth 
        to 
        gain 
        a
knowledge 
        of 
        true 
        and 
        noble 
        principles.
Pleasures 
        that 
        momentarily 
        gratify, 
        are 
        dangerous 
        in 
        the 
        ex-
treme, dangerous 
        because 
        they 
        blind 
        our 
        eyes 
        and 
        dull 
        our 
        mental
faculties 
        to 
        the 
        nobler, 
        grander, 
        and 
        more 
        lasting 
        things 
        that 
        are
within 
        our 
        reach. 
        It 
        remains, 
        then, 
        for 
        each 
        individual 
        to 
        so 
        con-
duct his 
        life 
        that 
        he 
        will 
        merit 
        the 
        guiding 
        influence 
        of 
        the 
        Spirit
of 
        God, 
        which, 
        coupled 
        with 
        his 
        own 
        efforts, 
        will 
        make 
        him 
        wise
unto 
        salvation. 
        The 
        hidden 
        mysteries 
        of 
        heaven 
        will 
        be 
        gradually
unfolded 
        to 
        the 
        truly 
        "Honest" 
        soul
        —
        one 
        who 
        is 
        striving, 
        and 
        thirst-
ing for 
        true 
        knowledge.
The 
        Savior 
        said: 
        "Blessed 
        are 
        they 
        which 
        do 
        hunger 
        and
thirst 
        after 
        righteousness, 
        for 
        they 
        shall 
        be 
        filled."
Our 
        time 
        is 
        valuable, 
        and 
        I 
        believe 
        we 
        must 
        give 
        an 
        account
for 
        the 
        time 
        we 
        spend 
        in 
        this 
        probation, 
        so 
        let 
        us 
        be 
        honest 
        with
ourselves, 
        and 
        cease 
        to 
        play 
        the 
        roll 
        of 
        a 
        thief.
THE 
        SACRED 
        WILL 
        TO 
        DO 
        GOOD.
The 
        will 
        to 
        accomplish 
        good 
        is 
        a 
        divine 
        attribute 
        of 
        the 
        soul,
and 
        is 
        the 
        basic 
        principle 
        which 
        governs 
        all 
        good 
        actions. 
        Asso-
ciated with 
        the 
        will 
        to 
        do 
        good 
        is 
        that 
        heaven-born 
        and 
        noble
quality
        —
        with 
        its 
        sphere 
        of 
        action 
        as 
        boundless 
        as 
        eternity
        —
        love.
The 
        will 
        to 
        do 
        good 
        evinces 
        a 
        broad, 
        philanthropic 
        spirit 
        of 
        devo-
tion to 
        high 
        ideals, 
        the 
        manifestation 
        of 
        practical 
        acts 
        which 
        con-
tribute to 
        the 
        general 
        happiness 
        of 
        humxanity. 
        Inclining 
        to 
        do
good 
        continually 
        is 
        to 
        possess 
        a 
        heart 
        void 
        of 
        guile, 
        tender 
        and
compassionate 
        to 
        the 
        repentant 
        erring 
        one, 
        charitable 
        to 
        the 
        un-
fortunate, and 
        embodying 
        the 
        unlimited 
        and 
        divine 
        graces 
        of 
        ster-
ling virtue. 
        "When 
        the 
        human 
        will 
        is 
        controlled 
        hy 
        power 
        divine,
the 
        mind 
        is 
        enriched 
        with 
        gems 
        of 
        rarest 
        thought, 
        and 
        every 
        im-
pulse of 
        our 
        being 
        is 
        quickened 
        with 
        intelligence 
        from 
        on 
        high.
To 
        do 
        good 
        while 
        tabernacled 
        within 
        the 
        narrow 
        confines 
        of 
        earth-