“No Less Serviceable”
So Moroni was a pretty awesome guy (Alma 48:11-13). He is a
stalwart example of many things and I think we discuss the example he can be
for us frequently. But a verse I really like is found in verse 19
“Now behold, Helaman and his brethren were no less serviceable unto the people than
was Moroni…”
Of course, we could learn a lot by studying the life of
Captain Moroni. He is an example of faith, service, dedication, commitment, and
many other wonderful attributes. But rather than focus on him, we are going to
look at those who are not seen in the limelight, who do not receive the same
attention, yet who are “no less serviceable.”
The manual says, “Not all of us are going to be like Moroni,
catching the acclaim of our colleagues all day every day. Most of us will be
quiet, relatively unknown folks who come and go and do our work without
fanfare. To those of you who may find that thought lonely or frightening or
just unspectacular, I say, you are “no less serviceable” than the most
spectacular of your associates. You, too, are part of God’s army.”
What do you think President Hunter is trying to help us
understand by emphasizing that Helaman and his brethren were no less
serviceable than Moroni?
How can that understanding help us?
In the scriptures, many people who made great contributions
served in the shadow of others.
What can these scriptural examples teach us?
How can these examples influence our own feelings as we
serve?
Even though we may not be well known, we can render great
service in God’s kingdom.
Mary: Mark 14:8
“She hath done what she could”
I love this statement so much, and the more I thought about
it the more I loved it. First, I love that this is a simple formula of how we
can do our part – we simply do what we can do, we do what we are able to do. We
can’t cure all the hunger, saddened hearts, or solve all the problems in the
world, but we can lift where we are and help to uplift others as well.
The other thing I love about this scripture is that no one
else thought of serving the Savior in that way. She did what she could. I think so many times we have
unique opportunities to serve others and whether it is our relationship to that
person, our unique attributes, or just our specific placement in that moment
when someone needs us – there are times when doing what we can means doing what
we can. Our individual efforts are
needed in order to help lighten the burdens of others.
In a very startling moment of Christ’s ministry, Jesus stood
up in a synagogue in Nazareth and read a scripture prophesied by Isaiah.
Luke 4:18
About this story Jeffrey R. Holland said, “Thus the Savior
made the first public announcement of His messianic ministry. But this verse
also made clear that on the way to His ultimate atoning sacrifice and
Resurrection, Jesus’s first and foremost messianic duty would be to bless the
poor, including the poor in spirit.”
I love this and I think the choice Christ made to announce
His ministry in this way speaks volumes about the kind of person He is and the
kind of people we should be.
During this time as we think about Christ’s birth and life,
thinking about His service is an important part of that. The service we offer
may not change the world, but it will certainly help some people – and it will definitely
change us. We become more Christ-like as we follow Him and try to do as He did.
So just as He announced His ministry as a life of service, I would hope that if
we were able to announce the goal of our lives it would be similar as well. We
all have a divine nature to become like our Heavenly Parents and I believe that
more than anything else we can do on this earth, the service we render to
others helps us to understand our divine nature and further develop those
attributes we have as children of divine Parents.
