Looking Outward

I read a talk yesterday that was given by one of our church leaders, Dieter F. Uchtdorf. I thought it was really important especially during this Christmas season.

"As we lose ourselves in the service of others, we discover our own lives and our own happiness. President Lorenzo Snow expressed a similar thought: 'When you find yourselves a little gloomy, look around you and find somebody that is in a worse plight than yourself; go to him and find out what the trouble is, then try to remove it with the wisdom which the Lord bestows upon you; and the first thing you know, your gloom is gone, you feel light, the Spirit of the Lord is upon you, and everything seems illuminated.' In today’s world of pop psychology, junk TV, and feel-good self-help manuals, this advice may seem counterintuitive. We are sometimes told that the answer to our ills is to look inward, to indulge ourselves, to spend first and pay later, and to satisfy our own desires even at the expense of those around us. While there are times when it is prudent to look first to our own needs, in the long run it doesn’t lead to lasting happiness."

I loved this! It's very important to remember. Many of us are feeling (or will feel) the pinch of the economy, which may lead us to look inward and forget about those around us. I love what he said about finding someone in a worse plight than us (and there's always someone) and helping them out. This will help dispel our own troubles and help us be happier. It is counterintuitive, like he said, but I've experienced the happiness that comes from serving others and I know it really does work. Service and Love and Giving really does make us happier.