"Now behold, Helaman and his brethren were no less serviceable unto the people than was Moroni; for they did preach the word of God, and they did baptize unto repentance all men whosoever would hearken unto their words."Specifically on being no less serviceable unto the people. There are two talks in particular that I'd like to focus on: Neal A. Maxwell's "Content with the Things Allotted unto Us" and Howard W. Hunter's "'No Less Serviceable.'"
Maxwell says, "Being content means acceptance without self-pity." Sometimes you just have to recognize your limitations, but don't feel sorry for yourself. Be content. Though it can be hard.
"Developing greater contentment within certain of our existing constraints and opportunities is one of our challenges." It can be difficult to accept that somethings you can't do. But Elder Maxwell reminds us,
"varied as our allotted circumstances may be, we can still keep the commandments of God!
". . . Most important is what we are and what we do within those varied allocations and in the particular 'work to which [we] have been called' (Alma 29:6). . . .
"Incremental improvement is, therefore, the order of the day, and it clearly requires the accompaniment of the Lord’s long-suffering as we struggle to learn the necessary lessons. . . .
"Life’s necessary defining moments come within our allotments, and we make 'on the record' choices within these allotments. Our responses are what matter. Sufficient unto each life are the tests thereof! (see Matt. 6:34)."There are so many opportunities within what has been allotted. In the article "How Far Is 49 Yards?" it reads:
It doesn’t seem very pertinent to him, and most fans don’t even know it, but Brad kicks with an artificial leg. He was born with a deformed right foot and stunted lower leg, so his foot was amputated when he was still a baby to make it possible for him to wear an artificial limb. But as opponents who let the Olympus team inside the 30-yard line can testify, it’s no handicap when it comes to kicking field goals.
It hasn’t stopped Brad from doing much else either. He says, “A handicap is in the mind first. I could tell myself, ‘I have an artificial leg; something’s wrong with me.’ I could really feel bad and go into my room and lock myself up or something, but what good would that do?
“I don’t feel I have a handicap,” he insists. “I think I’ve overcome it, and it’s no problem anymore. The handicap is in other people who don’t understand. It’s no handicap to me.”What an inspiration to us all! We admire those people who are content with what has been given them, and they go above and beyond expectations. They use what has been given to them. There are those people all over the world. President Hunter said:
"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 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."Isn't that fantastic? We, too, are part of God's army. We are 'no less serviceable' because of what we have been dealt. We are just as important in the world. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said, "The Lord uses a scale very different from the world’s to weigh the worth of a soul" ("You Matter to Him"). We matter. We count. We are 'no less serviceable.'
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