The snow was starting to fall more heavily across northern Utah in the afternoon of Friday, Jan. 12, when my father called me with a question.
“How would you like to go on a rescue mission?” he said, a hint of adventure in his voice.
He informed me of a neighbor sliding off the road on his drive home from work. The neighbor contacted my parents with an urgent request to come pull him out.
My initial response was not valiant — couldn’t someone else help this man? The last thing I wanted to do was leave our warm home and drive out into the oncoming snowstorm. But I knew my 70-year-old father was committed to going no matter what, and my mother would not be happy if I let him go alone, so off we went.
Despite high winds, low visibility and icy roads, we located the neighbor, and with the assistance of a Utah Highway Patrol trooper who arrived on the scene, we successfully pulled the man’s vehicle back onto the road.
I came away from the experience with a repentant heart and grateful for my father’s stalwart example. Most important, the experience taught me about the Savior.
“Service opens a window by which we understand the life and ministry of Christ,” taught President M. Russell Ballard, then acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in April 2018.
Jesus Christ came to serve, as the scriptures teach, “even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
An opportunity to do better came two days later as more snow dumped on northern Utah. The decision was made in our stake to cancel Sunday worship services so members could help each other dig out. This time my heart was prepared.

Armed with shovels and snowblowers, my oldest son and I teamed up with others in the neighborhood to clear out several driveways of neighbors and the elderly in our ward. The gratitude we saw in their faces made all the aches and soreness worthwhile.
We may have lost some feeling in our hands and feet from the cold, but our hearts were warm with the happy, peaceful feeling that comes with serving others. We also had fun in the process, and I appreciated the chance to bond with my son and other brothers in the ward.
I’m grateful for good people like my father who without hesitation are always willing to sacrifice comfort, time and resources to go to the rescue of others.
When we are willing to serve others for the right reasons — chiefly “the pure love of Christ” (Moroni 7:47) — the reward is sweet and we feel true joy, as Church President Russell M. Nelson has taught:
“Our greatest joy comes as we help our brothers and sisters,” the Prophet said in his October 2019 general conference talk “The Second Great Commandment.”
“Giving help to others — making a conscientious effort to care about others as much as or more than we care about ourselves — is our joy. Especially, I might add, when it is not convenient and when it takes us out of our comfort zone. Living that second great commandment is the key to becoming a true disciple of Jesus Christ.”