I recently re-read Elder M. Russell Ballard’s talk “Let Us Think Straight” that he gave at the Campus Education Week Devotional, August 20, 2013.

“From the beginning of time there have been articulate men and women who have had unusual powers of persuasion. Those with gifts of communication have always had great influence, but the influence of persuasive communicators has never been greater than it is today. Because of the Internet, and particularly the popularity and proliferation of social media—Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and heaven only knows what else has become popular that I’m not aware of yet—anyone can talk to anyone about anything. Today anyone who is clever, articulate, and glib can find an audience and develop a following. Unfortunately, not everyone who has cultivated the ability to communicate uses their powers of expression to spread or teach truth. And not everyone has the help of the Holy Ghost to think straight.”

He then explained how to “think straight” about the basic doctrines of Christ and concluded with the admonition: “May God bless you to have the courage to study and to know the simple truths of the gospel and then to share them every chance you get.”

You can read the full text at BYU Speeches or watch the video on the BYU Speeches channel.

The image is the Mormonad: Called to Share from the New Era, November 2013, p. 41.