November Theme: Love & Service

Happy November!

Welcome to month three of the Lengthening Your Stride program.  We hope that you each found meaningful ways to lengthen your stride in the area of citizenship during October.  This month's theme is love & service.  Be sure to check out the goal suggestions tab for goals that fit this theme.     

President Thomas S. Monson shared the following thought about loving and serving those around us:

'We become so caught up in the busyness of our lives. Were we to step back, however, and take a good look at what we’re doing, we may find that we have immersed ourselves in the “thick of thin things.” In other words, too often we spend most of our time taking care of the things which do not really matter much at all in the grand scheme of things, neglecting those more important causes.

Many years ago I heard a poem which has stayed with me, by which I have tried to guide my life. It’s one of my favorites:

 

I have wept in the night

For the shortness of sight

That to somebody’s need made me blind;

But I never have yet

Felt a tinge of regret

For being a little too kind.

  

My brothers and sisters, we are surrounded by those in need of our attention, our encouragement, our support, our comfort, our kindness—be they family members, friends, acquaintances, or strangers. We are the Lord’s hands here upon the earth, with the mandate to serve and to lift His children. He is dependent upon each of us.'

We hope that this month you can gain a deeper understanding of the blessings that come through lengthening your stride in the area of love & service.

Please feel free to share your insights and thoughts with us throughout the month.

With Love,

The Literacy Committee