Service

Service is what my life is about.

Service has always been important to me personally and is something that I have tried very hard to enjoy since it is a big part of life. Service can be good for the one doing it as well as the one receiving it, if done with the right motivations and in the right way.

My job is also about service. I am a public servant. My job exists by and for the citizens and taxpayers. This is one reason that wherever I work, it will be to the needs of the service and not necesarily my own needs.

Whenever we serve with the proper spirit and motivation it is like that. Often our service for others involves a degree of sacrifice of our own self interest. When King Benjamin served his people he supported himself while sacrificing his own time and interests for the public good. He was able to do amazing things because he understood that service also means sacrifice of self for the common good.

When we serve in the Church we also can learn this lesson of service and sacrifice. A call to serve is a call to give up our own selfish interests for the good of others and a cause we believe in. It is not quite as important what we are called to do at church, or where I am called to serve at work, but it is important to do my best and understand what it means to serve.

Service is not about me. It's about something greater than me and for others who deserve to be served as my equals. If I have been blessed with skills or resources I should use them.

I have been thinking about these things today because today I was called to serve with my wife as a member of the "Temple Committee" and this week I turned in the list indicating my preferences on where I am sent to serve and doing what in my job, with the understanding that I can go anywhere AND I played tennis yesterday for the first time in years, which also includes a lot of "service!" :)

I will try to remember that I am a servant and to work my best while keeping a positive attitude to make a difference for good in the world and for the people I serve.