Habit

HAB'IT, n. [L. habitus, from habeo,to have to hold. See Have.]

1. Garb; dress; clothes or garments in general.

The scenes are old, the habits are the same,

We wore last year.

There are among the statues, several of Venus,

in different habits.

2. A coat worn by ladies over other garments.

3. State of any thing; implying some continuance or permanence; temperament or particular state of a body, formed by nature or induced by extraneous circumstances; as a costive or lax habit of body; a sanguine habit.

4. A disposition or condition of the mind or body acquired by custom or a frequent repetition of the same act. Habit is that which is held or retained, the effect of custom or frequent repetition. Hence we speak of good habits and bad habits. 

Frequent drinking of spirits leads to a habit of intemperance. We should endeavor to correct evil habits by a change of practice. A great point in the education of children, is to prevent the formation of bad habits.

Habit of plants, the general form or appearance, or the conformity of plants of the same kind in structure and growth.

HAB'IT, v.t. To dress; to clothe; to array.

They habited themselves like rural deities.

HAB'IT, v.t. To dwell; to inhabit.

SCRIPTURES/QUOTES:

 “We sow our thoughts, and we reap our actions; we sow our actions, and we reap our habits; we sow our habits, and we reap our characters; we sow our characters, and we reap our destiny.” (C. A. Hall, The Home Book of Quotations,New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1935, p. 845.)

We are not born into this world with fixed habits. Neither do we inherit a noble character. Instead, as children of God, we are given the privilege and opportunity of choosing which way of life we will follow—which habits we will form.

Someone has observed, “When a man boasts of his bad habits, you may rest assured they are the best he has.”

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1974/10/good-habits-develop-good-character?lang=eng

"Man's destined purpose is to conquer all habits, overcome the evil in him and to restore good to its rightful place."

Mahatama Ghandi

"The nature of men is always the same. It is their habits that separate them."

Confucius 

PERSONAL DEFINITION:

To define habit, I would probably say it is a thought condition repetitively put into action. 

Outward habits originate from our thought habits. 

If we think about something more often then not, it is likely that it will become habitual. 

We have control of our thoughts and actions. Doing things that will help us have the right thoughts, and thinking thoughts that will help us have the right actions, is formula for forming good habits.

Through the Lord and the atonement we break bad habits and replace them with good ones. This is a recipe for becoming your very best self, for our habits make us who we are, and determine what our destiny is. 

Faithful

Faithful

FA'ITHFUL, adjective
1. Firm in adherence to the truth and to the duties of religion.
Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. Revelation 2:10.
2. Firmly adhering to duty; of true fidelity; loyal; true to allegiance; as a faithful subject.
3. constant in the performance of duties or services; exact in attending to commands; as a faithful servant.
4. Observant of compact, treaties, contracts, vows or other engagements; true to one's word. A government should be faithful to its treaties; individuals, to their word.
5. True; exact; in conformity to the letter and spirit; as a faithful execution of a will.
6. True to the marriage covenant; as a faithful wife or husband.
7. Conformable to truth; as a faithful narrative or representation.
8. Constant; not fickle; as a faithful lover or friend.
9. True; worthy of belief. 2 Timothy 2:2.


SCRIPTURES:

Matthew 25:23

• New Testament

His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 

Luke 16:10

• New Testament

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. 

Hebrews 3:2

• New Testament

Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. 

Matthew 25:21

• New Testament

His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 

Psalms 119:86

• Old Testament

All thy commandments are faithful: they persecute me wrongfully; help thou me. 

Psalms 119:138

• Old Testament

Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded are righteous and very faithful. 

JST, Revelation 1:5

• Joseph Smith Translation

Therefore, I, John, the faithful witness, bear record of the things which were delivered me of the angel, and from Jesus Christ the first begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth. 

Proverbs 25:13

• Old Testament

As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him: for he refresheth the soul of his masters. 

JST, Luke 12:50

• Joseph Smith Translation

And they said, Who then is that faithful and wise servant? 

Psalms 101:6

• Old Testament

Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. 

D&C 62:6

• Doctrine and Covenants

Behold, I, the Lord, have brought you together that the promise might be fulfilled, that the faithful among you should be preserved and rejoice together in the land of Missouri. I, the Lord, promise the faithful and cannot lie. 

Titus 3:8

• New Testament

This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men. 

1 Corinthians 7:25

• New Testament

Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful. 

1 Thessalonians 5:24

• New Testament

Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it. 

Proverbs 27:6

• Old Testament

Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. 


“A revelation I give unto you concerning my will; and if thou art faithful and walk in the paths of virtue before me, I will preserve thy life, and thou shalt receive an inheritance in Zion.” (D&C 25:2.)


QUOTES:

In very large measure each of us holds the key to the blessings of the Almighty upon us. If we wish the blessing, we must pay the price. A part of that price lies in being faithful. Faithful to what? Faithful to ourselves, to the very best that is within us. No woman can afford to demean herself, to belittle herself, to downgrade her abilities or her capacities. Let each be faithful to the great, divine attributes that are within her. Be faithful to the gospel. Be faithful to the Church. We have all about us those who are seeking to undermine it, to look for weaknesses in its early leaders, to find fault with its programs, to speak critically of it. I give you my testimony that it is the work of God, and those who speak against it are speaking against him.

Be faithful to him. He is the one true source of your strength. He is your Father in Heaven. He lives. He hears and answers prayers. Be faithful to God.

-Gordon B. Hinckley


The promised blessings of God to the faithful are glorious and inspiring. Among them are “thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, dominions, all heights and depths.”² And it takes more than a spiritual birth certificate or a “Child of God Membership Card” to qualify for these incomprehensible blessings.
-Dieter F. Uchtdorf

---

The fire of the covenant will burn in the heart of every faithful member of this Church who shall worship and honorably hold a name and standing in the Lord’s holy house.

-David A. Bednar

To faithful souls who labor in His service, in whatever calling, Jesus gives the blessing of acting as His undershepherds, charged with nourishing the sheep of His pasture and the lambs of His fold. How do wise undershepherds fulfill that sacred responsibility with honor and energy, striving always to be true and faithful to the trust reposed in them? The scriptures provide the guidelines within which faithful servants carry out sacred tasks.

Faithful undershepherds nourish with the good word of God, as occurred in the “Zion Society” phase of Nephite history. Moroni wrote: “And after they had been received unto baptism, … they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God.” (Moro. 6:4.)

Faithful servants of the master use the scriptures to learn and teach the grand and glorious principles of salvation and exaltation.

-Alexander B. Morrison


PERSONAL DEFINITION:
To be faithful I believe means to be loyal, to follow your leader. Obedience and humility as well as being submissive fall into that category. If we accept Christ as our leader, and be faithful unto Him, we are promised eternal life. Faithfulness and competence go hand in hand. We need to be adequately equipped with the tools necessary to follow Him faithfully. We can see the Lord's path for us more clearly by seeking and applying knowledge, thus becoming more competent. We can't really follow someone if we don't know how!
As we diligently apply our acquired knowledge, it opens our view and we realize how following the Savior is a privilege. We earnestly desire to be His disciple, and as we become faithful we find fulfillment.

Competent

Competent

COMPETENT, adjective
1. Suitable; fit; convenient; hence, sufficient, that is, fit for the purpose; adequate; followed by to; as, competent supplies of food and clothing; a competent force; an army competent to the preservation of the kingdom or state; a competent knowledge of the world. This word usually implies a moderate supply, a sufficiency without superfluity.
2. Qualified; fit; having legal capacity or power; as a competent judge or court; a competent witness. In a judge or court, it implies right or authority to hear and determine; in a witness, it implies a legal right or capacity to testify.
3. Incident; belonging; having adequate power or right.
That is the privilege of the infinite author of things, who never slumbers nor sleeps, but is not competent to any finite being.
It is not competent to the defendant to alledge fraud in the plaintiff.




SCRIPTURES/QUOTES:


“The older generation has been raised without them, but there is another generation growing up. The revelations will be opened to them as to no other in the history of the world. Into their hands now are placed the sticks of Joseph and of Judah. They will develop a gospel scholarship beyond that which their forebears could achieve. They will have the testimony that Jesus is the Christ and be competent to proclaim Him and to defend Him.”
-Boyd K. Packer




 "It is good to be faithful, but it is better to be faithful and competent."
-President Lee

Competence, like truth, beauty, and contact lenses, is in the eye of the beholder.

Laurence J. Peter

The single most exciting thing you encounter in government is competence, because it's so rare.

Daniel Patrick Moynihan

No human being will work hard at anything unless they believe that they are working for competence.

William Glasser

To many a man, and sometimes to a youth, there comes the opportunity to choose between honorable competence and tainted wealth. The young man who starts out to be poor and honorable, holds in his hand one of the strongest elements of success.

Orison Swett Marden

Fathers and mothers have lost the idea that the highest aspiration they might have for their children is for them to be wise... specialized competence and success are all that they can imagine.

Allan Bloom

The most powerful men were those who most effectively used the power of adult competence to enforce childish agreements.

George W. S. Trow

The man who is gloomy, taciturn and lives in a world of doubt seldom achieves more than a bare living. There have been a few who have groaned their way through to a competence, but in proportion to that overwhelming number of souls who carry cheer through life, they are as nothing - mere drops in the bucket.

Douglas Fairbanks

PERSONAL DEFINITION:
Words that come to mind: Able, eligible, fit for the cause, sufficient, good, enough, equipped, ready.
I think that to be competent means to do what you do with quality, thoroughly, well.
If you do something with competence, you are not doing it half-heartedly, it is a diligent effort.
I want to be more competent in my life by getting a deeper education, and applying and living what I know to be right. Just thinking about my goals minor effort, but actually accomplishing them, and accomplishing them well, that's competence!