Listicles became popular about five years ago and quickly began being consumed by people all over the internet. They are defined as being "an article on the Internet presented in the form of a numbered or bullet-pointed list." A combination of a list and an article. The idea has gained popularity because it is so quick and easy to get all of your desired information in just a few short bullet points.
Listing tips and helps isn't something new. Even the Lord likes to makes lists--to help us. Below are a list of five lists common used and read in church that I love. Their teachings reach further and deeper than the few short words used.
Here are my favorite lists used within the LDS Church...
13th Article of Faith
I was terribly intimidated to memorize the 13th Article of Faith as a Primary kid. It was SO long and I thought I could never remember it all. Today, it is one of the articles I know the best, and I love the guiding doctrine it gives us. I try to remember the ending section of the verse when deciding things to do, media to consume, and online activities to take part in. Its simple guidance has been a great blessing in my life.
I must say I am not very familiar with these values, but recently I read over them and could feel a fraction of the power contained behind each one of these values and principles. Every week, many young women throughout the church recite the Young Women theme in which these values are listed. We could do an article about each individual value, but we will save that for another time.
President Gordon B. Hinckley's Six Be's
I was sitting in the congregation at the Conference Center when President Hinckley gave this talk and shared these guiding and encouraging truths. Recently, I gave a Family Home Evening lessons to my twin three year-old girls about these Be's. Once we got past their fascination with using bees as a prop, I found that Pres. Hinckley's Be's are simple enough to be understood at a young age yet they can maintain their importance throughout our lives. This is one of my favorite lists and always will be.
Doctrine & Convenants Section 4
The virtues listed near the end of D&C 4 are the formula for missionary success. Reciting this as a missionary became second nature to me, and I probably lost some of its meaning by allowing it to become commonplace. However, each virtue listed gives great guidance and direction for missionaries in our day.
Boy Scout Law
This is another list that took me a while to memorize but now reflecting upon the meaning of each word and principle, I understand why each point is included in the Scout Law.
