“Without service, we would not have a strong quality of life. It’s important to the person who serves as well as the recipient. It’s the way in which we ourselves grow and develop.” – Dorothy Height
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“Help others and give something back,” urged Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. “I guarantee you will discover that while public service improves the lives and the world around you, its greatest reward is the enrichment and new meaning it will bring to your own life.”
Kallam Anji Reddy also points out: “Everyone has a purpose in life and a unique talent to give to others. And when we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our spirit, which is the ultimate goal of all goals.”
“The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others,” said Albert Schweitzer. British actress Audrey Hepburn agreed. “You have two hands,” she said, “One to help yourself, and the second to help others.”
In 1908, Eugene V. Debs delivered one of the most eloquent speeches ever written. “Now, my friends,” he said, “I am opposed to the system of society in which we live today, not because I lack the natural equipment to do for myself but because I am not satisfied to make myself comfortable knowing that there are thousands of my fellow men who suffer for the barest necessities of life.
“We were taught under the old ethic that man’s business on this earth was to look out for himself,” he continued. “That was the ethic of the jungle, the ethic of the wild beast. Take care of yourself, no matter what may become of your fellow men.
“Thousands of years ago the question was asked: ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ That question has never yet been answered in a way that is satisfactory to civilized society.”
The American union leader, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World, continued his speech: “Yes, I am my brother’s keeper. I am under a moral obligation to him that is inspired, not by any maudlin sentimentality but by the higher duty I owe myself. What would you think me if I were capable of seating myself at a table and gorging myself with food and aw abut me the children of my bellow beings starving to death.”
“Giving kids clothes and food is one thing but it’s much more important to teach them that other people besides themselves are important, and that the best thing they can do with their lives is to use them in the service of other people,” said Dolore Huerta, another labor leader and civil rights activist.
No matter how small your service to others is, it matters. As Howard Zinn puts it: “Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.” Desmond Tutu also said, “Do your little bit of good where you are: it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.”
“I am only one, but I am one,” Edward Everett Hale contends. “I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.”
When it comes to serving others, it doesn’t matter what your status in life is. “As far as service goes, it can take the form of a million things,” said Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. “To do service, you don’t have to be a doctor working in the slums for free or become a social worker. Your position in life and what you do doesn’t matter as much as you do what you do.”
So many people have said about serving others. “Being of service to others is what brings true happiness,” said Marie Osmond. “Always render more and better service than is expected of you, no matter what your task may be,” wrote Og Mandino, author of The Greatest Salesman in the World.
“Some of our finest work comes through service to others,” said Gordon Hinckley. “There is incredible value in being of service to others,” Elizabeth Berg penned.
“If you really want to receive joy and happiness, then serve others with all your heart. Lift their burden, and your own burden will be lighter,” assured Ezra Taft Benson.
Jim Rohn said it succinctly: “Whoever renders service to many puts himself in life for greatness – great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.”
When you serve others, do it with open heart and gladness. At one time, a businesswoman stopped at a coffee shop and ordered a cup of coffee. The waitress grudgingly delivered it and asked, “Anything else?”
“Yes,” the businesswoman replied. “I’d like some sugar, cream, a spoon, a napkin, and a saucer for the cup.”
“Well, aren’t you demanding?” the waitress snapped.
“Look at it from my point of view,” the businesswoman said. “You served a cup of coffee and made five mistakes.”
Nathan C. Scheaffer asks: “At the close of life, the question will be not how much have you got but how much have you given? Not how much have you won but how much have you done? Not how much have you saved but how much have you sacrificed? It will be how much have you loved and served; not how much were you honored?”
