Doing service for others

[MikeWaters]

Sometimes we Mormons get criticized for only helping our own. I'm not sure if the criticism is really all that fair, but I'm also sure we can generally improve in our community involvement.

For example, the stake I am in has a stake service day that involved numerous non-LDS groups and charities.

However we had the idea that maybe we too in our quorum could do something to help others outside of our ward. Habitat for Humanity was suggested as an easy plug-and-play service opportunity that would also benefit us by teaching us skills. So Habitat was contacted and we informed them of our goal to provide five adults. Not terribly ambitious.

Saturday is coming up and the three guys who seemed like locks backed out. I decided I would go no matter what, even though I wasn't physically feeling completely great. So I showed up, and sure enough, I was the only one. But I didn't have a bad attitude about it--I guess my lack of disappointment says something about my general expectations.

Let's face it, people are busy. And the reason that we don't help more is because we're so damn tired and exhausted a lot of the time. But that goes for Mormons and non-Mormons alike. I advertised to my friends on FB and got one "maybe" from a non-member. No doubt, most people I know have never voluteered for Habitat and never will. Most have never volunteered for Salvation Army either (something I did more than once in my last ward).

But anyway, the Habitat activity did little to dispel the notion that we only help our own. And based on the participation in the most recent moves, it's questionable whether we do in fact always step up to help our own.

I had a great time at the Habitat build. The time went fast, got things done, and learned a lot.

Afterwards, talking to my wife who joked about the turnout, related the following: "The organizers at Habitat said there were two churches that said they were going to show and didn't: the Mormons and the LDS."

We should be lauded for what we do. No problem with that. However we should not be in the business of raising our own efforts above the efforts of other churches. Cause I see little truth or accuracy in that, not to mention, even if it were true, it should not be articulated as such.

I tell you, it's really tough sometimes, figuring out what to do. Finding balance in all this.

I'm certainly not trying to raise myself up as some kind of example. I have weasled out of so many church volunteer opportunities, it ain't funny. But damn, if I don't remember the ones who never did. The guy in the Elders Quorum, 60 years old and in frail health, who volunteered for everything. Raised his hand like he was afraid someone might steal the opportunity from him. And dirt poor too. He didn't actually live too much longer. He died. But that man wore himself out in service. And he did it like it was the best thing he could possibly do with the time he had left. I think about him a lot more than I think about most.

I don't go to many funerals. But I went to his. Because I respected the man.

Wouldn't it be great, if when we died, the same could be said of us?