By Steve Dragon

I recently listened to a BYU devotional talk by C. Terry Warner, a former professor of philosophy at BYU, entitled “Honest, Simple, Solid, True” (link here). In it, he shares a moment from his youth, sitting in a BYU classroom as a teacher discussed the life of Joseph Smith. He recalls being filled with agonizing questions he couldn’t answer: “Can I become like that man? … Can the being I am be transformed to that extent? Can I ever become so honest, simple, solid, and true as he?”

He describes the façade many of us live behind—the mask we wear to keep others from seeing who we really are—and how lonely and exhausting that mask becomes. (As I listened, I ached inside, recognizing myself all too clearly in his description.)

He speaks of a time when he desperately wanted all his pretenses to collapse, leaving only what was authentically him. He knew his inner conflict was rooted in selfishness. He wanted to silence the inner voice that accused: “You’re not honest, simple, solid, and true. You’re still in it for yourself. It’s your own agenda that you care most about.”

And then came the insight that changed everything: “In a very subtle way my quest continued the preoccupation with myself I was trying to overcome.”

He realized he had it backward. The answer wasn’t found in striving harder to fix himself—but in abandoning the self-focus entirely and instead, finding “Jesus’ way.” In Brother Warner’s words:
“Perfect honesty and simplicity consists not in devoting attention to oneself, even when one’s aims are lofty, but in forgetting oneself and responding to others in love, according to their needs.”

After listening to that talk several times, I recognized a serious disconnect between who I was and who I needed to become to succeed in the Rare Faith Facilitator Track. Like Brother Warner, I saw that I, too, had often been more focused on my own goals than on sincerely meeting the needs of others. That realization stung.

Years earlier, I had read Brother Warner’s book Bonds That Make Us Free: Healing Our Relationships, Coming to Ourselves. I remembered it being powerful, but after reengaging with his talk and reading the Facilitator Track materials, I realized I hadn’t yet gleaned everything I needed from Bonds. So, I committed to reading it again—with new eyes.

Early in the book, a particular quote stopped me in my tracks. It’s from Dostoyevsky’s The Devils, first published in 1871–72. A character named Stavrogin says:

“All my life I have been lying. Even when I told the truth. For I never told the truth for its own sake, but only for my own sake.”

There it was.
The façade.
The self-interest.
The hidden agenda.

For a week, I was quietly wrecked. Every time I thought about that quote, it stirred a deep sob within me. I don’t think I’d ever read something that so precisely and painfully exposed the way I’d lived my life—My. Entire. Life.—from my earliest memories to that very moment.

But even in the pain, I felt tremendous gratitude for the awakening.

Since rereading Bonds, continuing with the Facilitator Track, and engaging in weekly Mindset Mastery Forum calls, things are finally clicking into place. I can now see progress—slow, steady, but real—in my desire and ability to serve others “according to their needs.” It’s no longer about what I get out of it. It’s about love. It’s about growth. It’s about purpose.

And for the first time in a long while, I feel genuinely excited and confident about becoming what I’ve prayed for, over and over again for more than a decade: to be a profitable servant in building the kingdom of God on this earth.

Building relationships.
Serving others.
Becoming honest, simple, solid, and true—not by focusing on myself, but by living Jesus’ way.

These are the pursuits that bring the deepest joy and richest rewards. Yes, our mortal weakness may tempt us to hide behind old masks. But I’m learning that when I let those masks fall—when I embrace my weakness, own it, and keep moving forward anyway—I remain “good enough” for every blessing God has in store for me.

That truth fills me with gratitude. Daily.

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