16 Behold, I say unto you that because I said unto you that I had spent my days in your service, I do not desire to boast, for I have only been in the service of God.
17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
18 Behold, ye have called me your king; and if I, whom ye call your king, do labor to serve you, then ought not ye to labor to serve one another?
In these scriptures he teaches that by serving others, you are directly serving God. He continues by challenging his people to service one another, as he has served them. He tells them not to thank him for that service, but to thank their Heavenly Father and if they give thanks, with their whole soul, they will leave in peace with one another.
That promise of peace is why I've chosen to devote more of my time to serving others. Heavenly Father lived his entire life serving all of us and serving GOD. He gave everything for us, knowing the outcome, so I choose to repay him by making service a priority in my life.
I've always gone out of my way to try and help others when needed, but in the last few years, I've dedicated the majority of my extra time to doing service and my heart has changed from that. President Henry B. Eyring wrote a Presidency Message in the March 2014 Liohona magazine titled "Service and Eternal Life". In that letter he talks about how "James the Apostle taught us how the desire to serve others springs from gratitude for what the Lord has done for us." I have a personal testimony of this desire I'd like to now share.
3 years ago in Dallas, I attended a Glenn Beck rally called Restoring Love. One of the planned days was called a "Day of Service". Mercury One had planned an entire day of service for thousands of people, at various locations around the city. When we all gathered at the Dallas Stadium, the shear site of all those people and the buses it required to transport all of us, was an life changing moment for me.
My daughter and I were able to serve at a local church facility that provided assistance to the needy in the community. I served in the foot pantry and my daughter served in the nursery, where the kids could hang out, while the parents shopped in the clothing area for things they needed. The heat made it miserable that day, but when we left our hearts were filled with that desire to do more.
That weekend I was blessed with meeting a group of people who had this same desire. The story behind Labor of Love is to long to share in this post today, but I've now found comfort serving with a group of people, from all over the United States, that has made their primary goal to service others as Heavenly Father has commanded.
President Eyring also wrote "The Savior teaches us how we can learn to serve others. He served perfectly, and we must learn to serve as He learned—line upon line (see D&C 93:12–13). Through the service we give, we can become more like Him. We will pray with all the energy of our hearts to love our enemies as He loves them (see Matthew 5:43–44; Moroni 7:48). Then we may at last become fitted for eternal life with Him and our Heavenly Father."
We use that example and choose to service those who others might now feel are worthy. We teach our children to with us side by side. We aren't always the most efficient group, because the people we are serving are the priority and not the project. In following these guiding principles, we often come broken, but leave with our souls healed.
Nashville-2015
Birmingham-2015
If you do not have service in your life or have not made it a priority, I challenge you to do so. The opportunities are right in your backyard and if you can't find the right opportunity, MAKE the opportunity. I have a testimony that our loving Heavenly Father will reward you for your service, with blessings in this life and in the eternal life.
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