Selfish Service

That might sound like an oxymoron. Perhaps you're thinking it's a typo (did she really mean self"LESS"?). Don't worry. I know what I'm doing as long as my thoughts come together effectively.

I've had the opportunity lately to participate in a lot of service. Mostly just making dinners and watching kids. Both things I am getting pretty good at. I'm glad to offer these services. I've been looking for more ways to help others recently. It's a little restricting with a toddler at my knees and a baby on my hip though. The carefree days of digging pipelines at the cemetery, clearing empty lots of weeds and debris, raking the elderly widows leaves across the street, and washing cars have kind of been put on hold. sigh... the good old days of youth service projects. So it feels like I have not been as much of service as I used to be. I guess because hard labor is what I associate with service.

But I can still do what I can.

And it feels good.

This is where the word Selfish comes to play. Phoebe talks about it on a "Friends" episode. It's impossible to do something good for someone else without feeling good in the process. As hard as Phoebe tries to do something that she doesn't like doing for another, she discovers this principle is still true. I think it is this selfishness in us that makes us do things for others. And I think Heavenly Father is brilliant for wiring us that way. The natural man in us can actually be a good thing.

I've thought a lot about this over the years. Humans by nature are a very selfish species. Those who "eat, drink, and be merry" are being selfish to gain temporal satisfaction. But, in stark contrast, even those who live their earthly lives in constant service by performing selfless acts, are ultimately being selfish in an eternal perspective. They know of the rewards that will accompany such renderings. Not only will they receive temporal gratification with a good feeling, but eternal joy as rooms are added to their mansions in heaven. I'm sure the Lord was very aware of our drive for selfishness and so created a plan that would satisfy these hungers. Thus, the negative connotation so often associated with the world "selfish", should have a polar connotation as well. It is our innate desire to selfishly be happy that will aide in our striving for the celestial kingdom. Isn't that interesting? It's just a matter of what kind of selfish happiness we want in the end - temporal or eternal. Just a thought.

I went to a Visiting Teaching Workshop tonight. What a great way to show love. Visiting Teaching is truly inspired. I've regretted never taking full advantage of the program though. Never made dear friends or cultivated lasting relationships. Don't get me wrong. I've done my visiting teaching faithfully. And I always invite my visiting teachers into my home. But I need to do better at letting them into my life. I just realized something - I suppose my hesitation is that it's a little odd to be "assigned" a friend. But isn't it great too?! No matter where I move I will have an assigned friend and I will be an assigned friend. And then if I allow it, that title can change to FRIEND.

My act of love today?
A friend performed an act of service for me by watching my toddler - I, in turn, was able to perform an act of service for my husband by deep cleaning our master bathroom (hallelujah!) [something he had said he would do for me a month ago, but now I beat him to it] - while my husband, in turn, was able to perform an act of service for me by going to work. What a great day of loving service! And what a wonderful feeling it is to be selfishly performing it!