Neal A. Maxwell wrote. . . “There are other times when one of the greatest acts of service we can perform is to stop something. The emotional chain of reaction and overreaction can come at us like electric voltage; it is very tempting to simply pass along. But we must say, “Let it stop with me.” Brave but battered soldiers in World War I finally held against an invading enemy in a place called Verdun, where the solemn password was “They shall not pass.” At times we too should be stern, sweet sentries willing to expose ourselves to misunderstanding and pain in order to keep undesirable things from spreading any farther.
We can serve by enduring well, for our steadiness will steady others who are on the verge of giving up.
We can serve by giving deserved, specific praise. The militarily brilliant and much decorated Duke of Wellington was asked late in his years what he could have done differently. He said quite simply, “I should have given more praise.” (Elizabeth Longford, Wellington: The years of the Sword [Panther Press], p. 506.)
Jonathan Swift wisely wished for others, “May you live every day of your lives.” Let us so live that we can be said to have really lived, remembering that only the righteous really and fully live.
Evil people exist. The in-betweeners merely survive. But those who have really lived will be those who have lived righteously, because they will have lived righteously and served selflessly in a time of stunning contrasts. They will have managed to keep clean in a dirty world. And being free, they will be happy in otherwise sad times, and all their experiences will be for their good.~ Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1980)p. 64-5 (continued. . .
