Kirt Saville, director of the School of Music, spoke about serving others at Tuesday’s BYU Devotional.
Saville grew up watching his father serve many strangers. His father was always looking for ways to serve others. His motto was “what goes around comes around,” said Saville. Saville’s father always stopped to help those whose vehicles were stranded. Saville learned a few things about service from his dad:
- Service should be given with a smile and with no expectation of a return.
- Too often we pass by opportunities to serve because we simply can’t see them.
- Service is seldom convenient
- Service most often happens when you’re on the way to do something else
- Service will eventually “come back around”
Saville said Jesus Christ served the best because Christ allowed himself to be interrupted by those who sought his help and healing.
The kind of life you live will be restored to you, Saville said he learned from his father. Those who want mercy, kindness or friendship should be merciful, kind and friendly themselves.
“We are all flawed beings,” Saville said. "We have our ample share of problems, insecurities, weaknesses and failures. But I have learned that one way to overcome them is to share whatever modest strengths and attributes that we do possess with others.”
Though blessings of serving others may not be immediate, God promises that goodness will come back around.
“Don’t despair when life is not fair,” said Saville.
Saville encouraged those at BYU to smile at and express confidence in friends and strangers.
“We don’t have to do something gigantic or impressive to build the Kingdom of God. ... We just need to work at being a little better each day by reaching beyond ourselves to serve in even the smallest ways,” said Saville.
To serve others, we need to see them when they are crying out in distress. At times people can feel invisible in their moment of need, said Saville.
By being kind to others, especially strangers, we can each share God’s love and thereby bring others to Christ, said Saville.
- First, we must see. See those who are invisible. See those that need to be encouraged, lifted and healed.
- Second, we must be willing to interrupt our business, even for only a moment, while we are on our way to do something else.
- Third, we must act through love. The more we love — the greater our capacity to love becomes. The more love we share — the more love we will have to give.
Next Devotional: Gayla Sorenson, dean of admissions of the J. Reuben Clark Law School
Gayla Sorenson, dean of admissions at BYU’s Law School, will deliver the Devotional address on Tuesday, August 8 at 11:05 a.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall.
Sorenson’s remarks will be broadcast live on BYUtv, BYUtv.org (and archived for on-demand streaming), KBYU-TV 11, Classical 89 FM, BYU Radio, and will be archived on speeches.byu.edu.
