Moral Obligations

For I, Nephi, was constrained to speak unto them... (2 Nephi 4:14)

constrained = forced, compelled, or obliged; to compel by physical, moral, or circumstancial force.

constraint = a moral obligation.

Nephi was constrained, morally and spiritually obliged, to speak to his brothers, to remind them of the words of Lehi, the ways of the Lord. He was constrained to lead his people, to be a prophet.

What am I constrained to do?

The first thing that comes to mind is to love and support and encourage and teach my family, my children.

A very close second is to make the world a better place through words—to write, to edit, to publish, to create. I don't just want to write, I must write. It is not just a vocation, it is an avocation; it is a moral and spiritual obligation. For me to deny it, is to deny God.