Gaining More Than Losing

On Wednesday night, I was asked to participate the following night in what my ward calls "shepherding."  It mostly consists of visiting less active members and letting them know that we miss them, but we have the advantage of having the appointments made for us ahead of time.

When I was asked, I hesitated.  I've been under a lot of stress with the divorce and working out has been an important relief that I've come to rely upon and Thursday was a day I had scheduled for gym time.  After some ruminating, I reluctantly agreed, with the caveat that I might be late since I'd need to make it home in time to eat dinner and then make it to the church.

At work yesterday, there was a luncheon meeting, with lunch provided.  I was not part of this meeting, so I ate my regular lunch, but there were leftovers that were up for grabs.  That meant that I didn't have to worry about dinner, which certainly made things easier.

Once I got to church, I was teamed up with one of the full-time missionaries.  I had had a tiring day at work, so I wasn't in the best of moods to go out with some bright-eyed kid.  Surprisingly, it was exactly what I needed.  He asked a lot of questions about me, which gave me a chance to let off some steam, and neither of the appointments we had answered their doors, so I didn't have to awkwardly introduce myself to someone that wasn't really interested in meeting me.

While I still take my gym time seriously as an important way to manage my stress, I don't mind that I gave up one day to serve the Lord and His children.