Simple acts are valuable service
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As disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we have a responsibility to care for and serve our brothers and sisters, said Elder Michael John U. Teh of the Seventy.
"Our service to others should be independent of race, color, standing or relationships," he said, in addressing the Saturday afternoon session of conference.
"Much of the service needed in the world today relates to our day-to-day associations with each other. Often we find these opportunities within the confines of our own home, neighborhood and ward."
Further, he said, "Our Heavenly Father places loving individuals on important crossroads to help us so that we are not left alone to grope in the dark. These men and women help by example and with patience and love.
He said that when he was a young man, he struggled to decide if he should serve a full-time mission. "My family, friends and priesthood leaders came forward to take my hand. They encouraged, challenged and offered countless prayers on my behalf....Even today, I am still carried on the shoulders of good men and women. I suspect that we all are. To some degree, we all depend on each other to be able to make it back to our heavenly home."
Rendering service to others includes sharing the gospel, he said. He told of a young man he called "Uncle Fred" who "was always drunk," threw rocks at the Teh's house and terrified the 6-year-old Michael Teh. When his mother and other Church members befriended Uncle Fred and persuaded him to listen to the missionaries, he joined the Church, served a full-time mission, pursued further education, married in the temple and is now a righteous husband, father and priesthood leader.
"May we always be perceptive to opportunities to share the gospel," Elder Teh said. He added that his mother was also exemplary in helping others with food, clothing and even money, though they often went without.
"Much later in life, I finally realized what my mother was teaching," he said. "Even as she struggled with the effects of a crippling disease, she could not stop giving to those in need....Serving others need not come from spectacular events. Often, it is the simple, daily act that gives comfort, uplifts, encourages, sustains and brings a smile to others."
