To Live is to Serve Others by Caleb

To Live is to Serve Others by Caleb - November 2016 Scholarship Essay

Growing up, I have began to explore what it actually means to be a leader. As a senior in high school, I have a natural leadership position, both in the classroom and in various extra and co-curricular activities. From this position, I have found that the most effective way to lead is by serving others. I believe that a leader must make sacrifices for his or her followers, and must put their well being before his or her own. I am very thankful for the opportunities I have had to serve others in my community, and I look forward to the increased amount of opportunities to serve others that lie ahead of me in life. In college, I will be given many opportunities to serve others around me, and these opportunities will be the part of college that I will be most thankful for.
A quote from a leader in my life, “You are going to get out of it what you put into it,” resonates in my mind and drives me to give full effort in all I do. I think that this applies to all aspects of life, even serving others. I believe that, although all service should be done with no expectation of reward, I gain from giving to others. Through different volunteering opportunities or small acts of kindness each day, I have found that I have become more confident, more happy, and more love filled. I believe that when I give, I gain. This is something to be very thankful for. In college I hope to give as much as I can, and in turn, gain as much as I can.
I have learned that serving others only fuels a flame in my heart to take my actions even further in order to serve others. After being exposed to service already, my heart has began to long to serve others, like a dog longs for its owner when left home alone. I have a desire to, while in college, travel to another country and serve people there with the degree that I am receiving. However, I know that I do not have to move across the world in order to serve others, and that each and every day I am provided with opportunities to give expecting nothing in return. With daily interactions come opportunities to serve. Whether it is a seemingly meaningless action, such as a compliment or a smile, or a well thought out action, such as a missions trip, I will be very thankful.
I fully believe that someone’s heart can be changed by being served, and I hope to be a part of that someday. In college I hope to be a Young Life leader. Young Life is a faith based organization, and as a leader, I would be spending my time serving high school students. My own Young Life leader has served me in so many ways, and has inspired me to do the same as I get older. I plan to lead Young Life at a local high school while in college, where I will be sacrificing my time to hang out with high school students. Through this, I hope to give high school students a friend and a mentor. I also ultimately hope to serve them by sharing the gospel with them. I am very thankful for Young Life, and while in college I will be ever so grateful for the opportunities it provides for me to serve.
I hope to spend most of my time serving others while in college. I believe that serving others has a tremendous impact not only on the lives of those who I am serving, but on my own as well. I believe that the most satisfying way to live is by serving others. To live is to serve others. Living in America, there are plenty of opportunities to serve, and as a college student I will be able to take them. I will eternally thankful for the opportunities to serve while in college.