The Ultimate Service; Church Basketball Referee!

December 1st, 2023

Scott

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TheDiscipleMD

A few years ago I asked another man in the ward if he would help me referee in church basketball leagues. He looked at his calendar for a few moments and said he was unavailable some of the dates, but that he could help me out on a number of occasions. I graciously thanked him. He ended up helping me referee for the entire season. As we stood on the basketball court the first week of games, I discussed with him the practical nature of paying for referees by the church. He is a high school teacher and I thought he might have an idea of the cost. We discussed it for a few moments, came up with a price, and then he said this, “You know, if you have offered to pay me $150 to come and referee these games tonight, I wouldn’t have done it. But since you asked me to do it for free, I agreed”. It struck me so funny that I laughed out loud, as did he. But as we separated and took our position on the court, I couldn’t help but ponder for a quick moment the meaning of what he had just said. If I had offered to pay him, he wouldn’t have done it, but for free, he would. There couldn’t be any greater lesson on “service” than that. I mean, anyone who has ever refereed a church basketball game understands that the abuse you take is beyond belief. You can lose your faith in God when serving as a church basketball referee! So, my friend’s sacrifice bordered on potentially losing his faith over the service he was rendering.

When I analyzed his willingness to serve, I recognized that I too, wouldn’t be teaching an early morning religious class if they paid me. But because I was asked to give “service,” I was willing to do it for nothing! How unusual is that in this world of ours!

Churches and service-oriented organizations offer opportunities for all of us to give true ‘service’ without payment. I am impressed by those who give monetarily to charity, but I marvel more at those who give something more precious and valuable: their time! Let’s carve out some of our time and serve our fellowman. In so doing we will be paid handsomely by He who sees all!

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ROOTS OF INSPIRATION

In 2007 I began writing a daily inspirational thought to my children, now grown, with the intent to draw them closer to Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. The influence of the gospel of Jesus Christ is found in all aspects of our lives. The Savior was a great teacher because he taught parables that resonated with the common man. He could relate simple stories that could be understood by all. I have found the more simple the story, the more profound the message.All of our testimonies can have a powerful impact for good for centuries if we take the time to write them down. After all, the scriptures are simply the inspired thoughts and interaction of men with deity that have been written down for all to read. There is no reason that our influence for good has to go with us to the grave. I have hopes, as did Jacob whose final words were, “…to the reader I bid farewell, hoping that many of my brethren may read my words. Brethren, adieu”