Monday, January 19, 2009

Reference:
Acts 6
3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
4 But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.
5 And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:
6 Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.
7 And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.

Simple Statement of Truth: Christ's true church has been restored in modern days in every aspect: We, like Stephen and as children in God's kingdom, are prayerfully asked to carry out callings and are set apart by the Lord’s stewards to do them.

I have a very strong testimony of the restoration of the gospel, but every once in a while something comes along that I haven't really thought much about before. I never really thought that the way that we serve in our church and the way that we are called by our bishops mirrors the behavior of the church of Christ's time. I think what I really like about this example in the scriptures is that the apostles saw a problem, the widows were being neglected, and they needed to take care of it. Although they wanted to help the widows themselves, they recognized that they have great responsibilities and it would be more effective to delegate authority to other faithful members. To me, this really is a testimony of the holiness of callings; it shows me that my calling is part of an ancient tradition, part of the church that Peter led. And, more than that, it shows me that callings and the willingness of people to serve in callings help the Church to be an efficient and charitable institution, bringing all of us closer to a Christ-like existence.

President Uchtdorf urges all of us to "lift where we stand." Not only do I think this is a call for all of us to engage ourselves in the work of the gospel, but I also think that the act of serving in God's Church and being called to serve is a testimony of the restoration of the gospel.

2 comments:

Brad Boyce said...

I really appreciate your ssop (simple statement of principle). I really liked how revelation worked in this instance. There was a problem it came before the leaders, they prayed and fasted to find a solution and as in Moses' time as in our (the 8th quorum of the 70 being called and formed) as the Church grows problem will arise but we always can be assured that revelation and counsel will be the result.

Ashley McCune said...

Reading this scripture block and your statement testified to me again of the origin of callings. We shoule not question whether we were the right person chosen or not. We should have faith in our leaders that they have received inspiration to call us at this time.