A Short Lived Break...And That's Okay

That saying about don't get too comfortable- well...that one seems to hold true most of the time, especially for me. To make the point, I received a new calling shortly after being released (okay, it was like almost 2 weeks, but only seemed like a couple days). I knew when the member of the stake presidency called that something major was coming down. He called and asked if he could stop by. I hate that feeling of (I almost said dread, but that isn't what I want to convey) anxiety wondering what callings are available and what it will entail. I had called my father asking what stake callings were available (such as High Council, clerks, etc.). He told me there were no openings that he knew of. That made me feel a little better. Pres. Riches showed up about 90 minutes later and made small talk. I was going crazy so I just simply asked him what calling he had for me. He extended the call of.... (Drum Roll please).........(Still waiting, huh?)........(Why not just skip ahead?)....Ward Clerk. I think I was shocked as that was never even a calling that I had considered to be an option. I told him yes, and was visibly relieved. My wife told me later that I looked stunned when he asked. We both still laugh about that. It has been an interesting ride to say the least. I have already attended endless meetings (which is fine) and am learning the crash-course way (stumble through it until you figure it out). The only thing I feel a little bit bad about is the fact that my wife and I were excited to be able to arrive at church and leave at the same time (not to mention that I was hoping to have a calling that would allow me to help get the kids ready for church each week). But now I have meeting an hour earlier than I did when I was the EQ president. Oh well, lol, such is life!
Well, I guess I better end this. I am truly looking forward to this calling. It will be new and different.

Keep the Faith...

Released!

I have finally received a release from my calling. I am much relieved. I learned SO much being the EQ President, but I knew it was time for me to be done. As I reflect back over the last almost 4 years, I am thankful for all the blessing I received. I know that I have become a more vocal person (scary isn't it!), a man more sure of how to talk to people without fear, a man who learned the value and importance of faithfully completing his home teaching, and man who learned the power that can be shared in the priesthood of God. I don't regret a single moment of my calling. I know everything happened just as it should have. I look forward to whatever the Lord has in store for me next.

Keep the Faith...

Update

In the last month, shockingly not much has changed!
I am still frustrated and bothered by my calling. I know that the Lord knows best, and will not call his children to fail in any calling. I think that is my lifeline.

But enough of this. I am looking forward to next year's lesson books. We are going to be studying the Gospel Principles. The church has "updated" the book (whatever that means) and is re-releasing it for study in the Priesthood and Relief Society classes. It will be nice to study the basics.

Well, I know this is short, but so is time.

Keep the Faith...

Priesthood Power of God

Today is a special day. We are blessing our newest addition. What a great privilege it is to have the priesthood power of god that allows me to bless the lives of others, especially those of my wife and children. That is one of the truest principles of the gospel. That service is required to exercise the priesthood. I can not use it on myself, to bless myself- however I can use it to provide service to others which will bring blessing to me. I am thankful that I will have the opportunity in a few short hours to bless my son and humbly exercise the priesthood power.

Keep the Faith...

Sacrifice

Today's lesson in Gospel Essentials was on sacrifice. It was very interesting to be apart of this discussion. The teacher started off with the question of what IS sacrifice? It was generally agreed that it is a giving up of something desirable in token of something else.

I truly think that as we progress towards the 2nd coming of Christ, we are going to be asked to sacrifice more and more. Are we going to be ready? Are we going to be able to do it? With the calling I have, I can honestly say that most men can't even sacrifice time enough to fulfill the priesthood duty and complete their home teaching. How can they possibly comply when asked to sacrifice even more?

I don't know what the answer is, but I know what the result will be if things don't change soon...

Keep the Faith

Rope's End

I guess that I am a little down lately because I keep having these strong feelings that I really want to be released from my current calling. I don't feel like I am making any progress in this calling. It is a chore just to get the teachers to teach. A challenge to motivate members of my quorum (ok, more like impossible), and spiritually draining to pull people along. Yet we are told and taught that we are to do the best we can in the assignments we are given, having faith that we will be receive the means to succeed.

This is where I become torn.

I have longed, thought, and struggled over the decision of calling and asking for a release. But at the same time, I don't have the desire to admit defeat (partly from my perfectionist personality) and mostly because of what I have been taught.

Tonight is a elder's social that was my idea, yet I have very little desire to even attend. I guess after being in this position for just over 3 years and having done over 15 socials/events, I am a little burned out on this whole experience.

I guess we will see where this all leads to.

The Example of Children

As my wife and I were working last night, we glanced over at our 2 year old and found this:

He was looking for pictures of Jesus. What a great reminder that we need to be reading daily from the words of the prophets. I love how our little ones also make sure that we read the scriptures, have family prayer, and sing our primary song nightly. It is amazing the power little ones can have over adults, and even more astounding is the amount of love that they can extract from us as their parents. I also love how forgiving little ones are. I look forward to having our 5th child with in the next two weeks. What a blessing from the Lord.