Service is a gift

This week was good. I got back on my feet and learned some good things. I am so grateful for the gift of service. Yes, doing service is a gift. 

I remember on my mission I sometimes really really wished to be in a leadership position so that I would not focus so much on myself and my stuff. I wanted to be there for others. I wanted to serve. Why? Because I understood the blessings that came from serving others and thinking about them. About half way through my mission though I never really got another chance at a leadership position. 

Or at least that is what I thought. Just because I wasn't in what I thought was a leadership position, didn't mean that I wasn't a leader to those around me. My example, my tag, and my experience automatically labelled me as a leader. People looked up to me just because I was a missionary. I was a leader.

As a leader, I prayed for those I had potential to influence. I prayed for those under my care. I prayed for those around me. I prayed for the members. I prayed to receive inspiration of how to help those I interacted with. I was so focused on others that I truly lost myself in the work. I truly loved. I truly cared. And as a result, I was happy and I was taken care of. I didn't have to worry about my own life. I saw how blessed I was every day as I served others. I forgot my troubles and I trusted that God would take of them either by helping me overcome them, or helping me to realize that they weren't really troubles in the first place.

Those are some of the many blessings that come from service. Service is a gift. And I am so grateful for it.