It Isn't About Me Anyways

I am so grateful for each opportunity that I have to serve others. This weekend I have had the opportunity to serve many in unique ways. For the most part it has come in the form of listening but in others it has been in the form of humbling myself enough to focus on others more then me (and yes that is a form of service because it sometimes takes concentrated effort). For example. I am going to teach the Relief Society lesson today. Through out the week I would remember that I needed to teach and prepare but I kept on remembering and forgetting because it was easier for me to put it off because the topic overwhelmed me. Well I put it off until Saturday and my heart was crushed because on Saturday morning I found out that someone that is very near and dear to my heart had gotten a divorce.I was a lot more devastated over it then I expected to be. As a result preparing the lesson for relief society and the topic of eternal marriage hurt my heart because this couple was married and sealed in the temple. Throughout the day and the preparations I kept being blessed with tender mercies along the way. The right people would visit or call to help me get perspective. Then today before church I was able to do my visiting teaching with my visiting teaching companion. As I prayed in preparation for the lesson a very specific scripture and thought came to my mind. I didn't think much of it but I was grateful and went on with my preparations. At the lesson my companion started out and then I tied in what I had gained and felt I should share. I wrapped the lesson up and hadn't payed much attention to what was going on around me. I went to let my companion say something at the end and she couldn't speak. I looked at her and through her tears all she could say is "thank you, that is what I needed to hear". Those are the types of moments we live for. When we try to do what is right and do what the Lord would have us do, it is then that we are able to speak his words and touch peoples hearts.

This is a lot of detail for me to get to the end result of what I learned. I learned while preparing this relief society lesson that the Lord is aware of the needs of these sisters that I will have the opportunity to teach as much as he is aware of mine. This lesson isn't about what I need to learn and gain it is what I have to give. I truly know the Lord is strengthening me and blessing me in the process but I have had experiences that have strengthened me on the path to eternal marriage that I need to share because these sisters can be strengthen by them and find their own path of hope that I have so graciously found through the atonement of our Savoir. Thus in the end sometimes I think I get lost in thinking of how services can be challenging for me but in the end it isn't about me anyways. It is what the Lord has given me to share with others and in the process he will heal and strengthen me in the ways that he needs me to grow. Wow, what a miracle and blessing the gospel is! He truly does work in mysterious ways and I know with all my heart that it is the path that leads to true happiness in this life and in the life to come! Mosiah 24:14