29 …and they did walk uprightly before God, imparting to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants.
How can I serve the people around me more effectively?
When Alma taught the people at the waters of Mormon about the covenant of baptism, he told them that they needed to be willing to “bear one another’s burdens,” to share one another’s grief, and to comfort each other as needed (Mosiah 18:8-9). The passage above indicates how they served one another after they were baptized. They “impart[ed] to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants.”
Some of the ways we serve others spiritually are to teach and testify of the gospel, support them in their righteous endeavors, and invite them to act on true principles. We serve them temporally when we help them work through material difficulties and achieve physical and financial well-being. I think it’s significant that these people served one another not just according to their needs but also according to their wants. They cared about one another’s well being and happiness.
It is important to distinguish between necessities and luxuries and to encourage self-reliance. Nevertheless, as we serve other people, we can and should be mindful of their desires. We can and should give good gifts–things they others will enjoy even if they are not essential.
Today, I will find ways to serve the people around me both spiritually and temporally. I will think about what I can do to help meet both their needs and their wants.
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