Liberation in Serving

One of the best things you can do for your own mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being is to find ways to serve other people.

I think it’s fair to say nobody would want the trials you have in life. The reverse is equally true—you wouldn’t want anyone else’s (unless, of course, that trial took the form of having an endless supply of money, then I, for one, would be happy to unburden anybody who volunteers). Serving others makes it easier to be grateful for your own challenges. It also gives you the opportunity to develop emotional connections you might not otherwise have.

There are an infinite number of ways you can help others. For instance, you can provide service:

➢    To people at your church,
➢    To people in your community,
➢    By performing random acts of kindness—that’s doing something nice for someone without a reason,
➢    By reaching out to others in need of friendship and support,
➢    By volunteering your time to a good cause.

These are only a few ideas as to how you can become involved and offer your time for service.

In addition to everything I’ve discussed above, service can help combat depression. Filling your time and thoughts with charitable acts means you have less time to think about your hardships. Helping people not only feels good, but it also allows you to feel good about yourself. Service can help boost your self-worth. If you’re struggling with depression, finding ways to serve others may be the best treatment for that as well.

One final thought about service. Like all things, the attitude you have about the task at hand makes all the difference in the world. If you have sourpuss feelings when helping others, neither you nor the people you aid are going to benefit from your alleged kindness. However, if your service is offered cheerfully and with love, the reward can be great; both for you and those you’re serving.