November Thoughts on the Experience

It's been a long minute since my last post. Time easily slips away when you are engaged in demanding activities, so let me post a few thoughts as they flow today. 

It has been surprising how much energy is required to simply support individuals as they navigate their own lives. Trying to help someone improve the way they budget, providing a bit of senior care to ensure they get to their doctor's appointments, or simply visiting with and listening to people of any age because everyone needs to be seen and heard, require both physical and emotional energy. Stephanie and I have time for those things right now and the results of such service to others are days with tired bodies but joyful souls.   

Proselyting itself is a young man's sport, however. That's not to say that we don't get to speak with people about the Church and the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, but putting in a day's work to find people who may be interested in learning more and are courageous enough to listen and explore requires a bit more physicality than this man in his seventh decade is able to muster on a regular basis. So, much of our focus is helping church members in need - it is the essence of ministering, following as directly as possible the example of Jesus - and it can put us into situations that are far different than one might expect when planning to come out on a senior mission. Yet the situations are not really surprising when considering the location that we find ourselves in. In the Melbourne Ward we see a broad cross-section of the city. The neighborhoods near our apartment are quite comfortable with newer apartment complexes designed for young urban professionals, quaint houses and townhomes, beautiful tree lined streets and active community schools. Many people clearly have sufficient income and skills for their lifestyles. 

        

Yet, just blocks away we see the other side of this inner-city area. The homeless walk the streets, panhandlers - many clearly in need and others that you're just never quite sure about - are on many corners. Sometimes tents are erected under highway overpasses. 

Many lower rent apartment complexes, or senior / handicap care facilities - some of which the city needs to take a closer look at - are spread among shopping areas, vacant lots, and neighborhoods filled smaller houses. Some have windows that are boarded instead of paned, are in need of a good paint job and of a mow. These can be deceiving, though. Some houses with cluttered yards are a sign of a hard-working family with sufficient income but because they work long hours every day, they have little time or energy to tend to their own domicile. 

Nearly everything is fenced and gated, suggesting security requirements that may or may not be as extensive as the iron bars suggest. But for me, this adds to the "weight" of the area - the spirit of the place that presses on the psyche of residents and visitors alike. I'm sure the denizens grow accustomed to it, but it surely must affect them at some level. When one drives a few miles out, the houses become larger, are spaced farther apart with yards that are more expansive and well kempt, and one feels able to breathe a little deeper and a little more freely. 

Through all of the effort, the joy, the tiredness, the illness that inevitably comes in our labors, we try to keep in mind that everything that anybody does to bring good into the world also brings them closer to Jesus Christ and helps them understand him better. It helps them to learn of his character and the way that he operates in the world. It was said of him that he "... went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him." (Acts 10:38). An ancient prophet-king who once lived in the Americas taught in a magnificent sermon on Jesus Christ that "... when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God" (Mosiah 2:17). That is the lesson pressed upon my heart, mind and soul these last couple of months. Serving others, extending and expending yourself to help, to make life a little easier, a little better, a little happier or more joyful, lifting spirits and making sure that people realize that they are seen, heard, and loved by someone somewhere, is a worthy pursuit on its own merit. I learned this in the past with other responsibilities that I have had in the Church from Sunday school teacher to bishop, but it is a lesson that always bears repeating because we are slow learners in this area. Yes, serving and loving can be exhausting so personal mental, physical, emotional and spiritual care is necessary (after all the second great commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself) but it is ultimately worthwhile. The rewards of giving, of sacrifice, of effort don't always come immediately, but they do come. The heartbreak can be real, and tears can flow, "... weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (Psalm 30:5) and the feeling of approbation from a Heavenly Father who is concerned for all of his children will distill upon the soul.  

Think of the mortal ministry of Jesus Christ. He went among the poor, the lame, the halt, the blind, and the leprous to heal, lift, encourage and show a better way of living and of viewing one's circumstances. In doing so, he often changed the physical circumstances by physically healing them, but that was not the guaranteed event or outcome. The guarantee was hope in his power to redeem, to change their hearts, to provide an improved state of mind and an uplifted spirit through him and his promised blessings. Those promises were made sure and steadfast in a garden and on a hill through nails in a cross and an empty tomb for all who are willing to keep his commandments, apply to their lives the principles that he taught, and follow the path that he laid out. And since we all are in some way "... lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or ... withered, or ... deaf, or ... afflicted in [some] manner" (see 3 Ne 17:7), we can all come to him and rely on that reconciliation with God that he offers. His atoning sacrifice opens the door and he becomes our advocate with the Father, our friend, and our counselor, our savior, redeemer and king to show us the way and strengthen us in our journey.