I'm so thankful for callings in the church. I have had a lot of different ones over the years of being an adult, and each one comes with its own set of challenges and joys. For the record, Primary Singing Time Leader, and Seminary teacher go down as my favorites, and seeing as I don't touch a piano any other time of the week, I'm always thankful to be an organist or pianist.
At the moment, my "learning opportunity" is Gospel Doctrine teacher. Supposedly, I shouldn't have this calling, seeing as seminary teachers aren't supposed to hold any other callings due to the intense nature of seminary, but the bishopric took pity on me. I was feeling rather an oddball, not having much to do on Sunday, and so they let me do this.
It is undoubtedly one of the hardest callings I've ever held. This sounds crazy to me, especially thinking that I've served as both a Primary president (4 years) and a Young Women's president (one year). However, it requires so much dependence on the spirit, that in the words of King Benjamin, yes, I am a beggar, asking the Lord to help me in ways that I can't help myself when preparing lessons.
In the week leading up to any lesson, my thoughts are consumed with the lesson topic. It sometimes feels like the Lord sends experiences my way, or even memories, that will pertain specifically to my lesson. I'm always so thankful for this, and yet I feel a great responsibility to successfully transmit those feelings, thoughts and experiences in a way that will benefit the class. In fact, the needs of the class are the driving force in how I prepare a lesson. How can I make the lesson meaningful enough that the class members will leave the class having learning something, or feel motivated to change something in their lives?
You know, I might not feel this so strongly if I hadn't been the recipient of some pretty awesome Gospel Doctrine lessons myself. I will never forget the lessons of Steve Peine and Dave Carlson in our Bitburg ward. I do believe those men just had a natural talent to teach, and their teaching was effortless. 40 minutes would feel like five, and I left class each week with a basket full of things to improve in my own life. That's the kind of teacher I aim to be. The lessons will never be effortless for me, or easy for me to prepare (again, I think that's a natural talent), but I am trying to make a difference.
Two weeks ago, I taught a lesson from the Doctrine and Covenants on the Law of Consecration. Let me say this: I hold no judgement towards the early Saints because they couldn't make the Law of Consecration work. I do believe it will take a near perfect person (and more so a near perfect group of people) to work it successfully. However, we as Latter Day Saints can definitely consecrate our lives to the church and the gospel itself, and that's what we focused on.
First think of dedication. What is dedication?
Boy, I got some really great answers from the class: commitment, passion, an ALL IN mentality, action, effort. My favorite answer though came from a doctoral student who has just finished writing his dissertation, and as a finishing touch, added a dedication to the beginning of it. That kind of dedication is really an expression of love.
So what is the difference between dedication and consecration? Take all those wonderful things that are necessary to be a dedicated human being and do them in the Lord's service. That's consecration. All that action, all that passion, all that love in the service of the Lord.
It's what we as Latter-day Saints do on an almost daily basis. We dedicate time each day to praying, to reading our scriptures, to helping others, to setting examples of kindness and patience, to serving in callings, and to using our talents to better the kingdom.
Today, I was teaching again, and the topic of the lesson was keeping the Sabbath day holy. It was a very natural transition to refer back to the lesson from two weeks ago, because keeping the Sabbath day holy is just another way to consecrate our lives to the Lord.
We teach the primary kids how to keep the Sabbath day holy with a list of "dos" and "don'ts". We don't go waterskiing on Sunday, but we do read. We don't go shopping on Sunday, but we do go to church. As we age, we learn that keeping the Sabbath day holy is really a set of personal choices that will bring us closer to Heavenly Father. What do we do that helps us remember what our Savior did for us? What takes us away from Him? Of course, one of the easiest things to do to keep the Sabbath day holy is going to church (which, of course, everyone in the class was doing so 50 points to the State College Gryffindor team!)
Why do we do it though? Why do we covenant to consecrate our lives? When I look at the bishops I have known in the past (as well as my own honey), it's a demanding life to serve as bishop along with living a normal, busy life. It's not like bishops can say, "Hey Life, I'm going to put you on hold while I serve as bishop for five years. I'll catch you on the flip side." No, both the bishop and their family sacrifice time in their lives for the service of others. And the same can be said for any other calling. Callings generally stretch us, and they ask us to do more and be more than we would want to be naturally.
And let's think about missionaries. Holy smokes, what other volunteer position asks young single adults to leave their families and go talk to people about religions in other countries and in other languages....and asks them to do this for years...with no contact with their families?
And tithing. Probably one of the most obvious ways of living the law of consecration. Who in their right minds thinks it's a good idea to give 10% of their income to the church? I won't lie when I say that I like the Catholic way of passing around a basket and throwing in a Jackson or two.
So why do we agree to live this life? Why do we agree to do something that is harder than life already is?
Today, I shared a really beautiful story that I think answers that question.
In the mid-1820s, Joseph Smith went to Bainbridge, NY on a treasure seeking adventure. While he was unsuccessful at that, he met the Joseph Knight family in Colesville, NY. They heard Joseph Smith's story of seeing God the Father, and Jesus Christ, and they believed him. They joined the church, along with several other people who lived in Colesville.
These people became known as "the Colesville branch" and church historians think this was probably the first congregation of the church. Joseph Knight was present at several important events in the early church, including being in the Smith home the night that Joseph Smith returned with the gold plates from the Hill Cumorah. And Brother Knight donated food and writing supplies to Joseph Smith while the translation of the gold plates was occurring. He was a good man.
When the call was given to gather in Ohio, many of the Colesville branch members sold their homes and business at a loss. They needed money to get to Ohio, and they did what they needed to to make it so. I can only imagine the pain of selling a home for less than it was worth, seeing as we will end up selling our own home for a loss. However, they listened to the call of the prophet (and the Lord) and did it.
Enter Leman Copley. Leman Copley was part of a large Shaker contingent in Ohio, but when he heard the missionaries, he too joined the church. He owned a 759 acre farm, and soon after he joined the church, the Law of Consecration was presented to the members, and he willingly volunteered his land to the incoming saints. However, only a month later, he joined a mission effort to the nearby Shaker congregation, and he was pulled back into that church, thus kicking the saints off of his land. A month later, the Saints were moving to Missouri.
Among these Saints were Joseph Knight and his wife, Polly. Only days after reaching Missouri (over 1,000 miles), Polly died.
Oh goodness, talk about consecration. I think of the Knight family, and how easily they could have just kept going about their business back in New York if they hadn't decided to join the church. They wouldn't have lost their home and business, they wouldn't have been forced off their land in Ohio, and perhaps Sister Knight would have had more years of living. However, just like the saints of today, they were willing to give everything to the church and to the Lord for the building up of the kingdom.
A year later, the prophet Joseph Smith was visiting the Colesville Saints in Missouri. Section 59 of the Doctrine and Covenants speaks specifically to the Knight family in the first two verses:
Then, in an even more touching act, Joseph Knight recorded that the Prophet Joseph sealed the members of the branch up unto eternal life.
I'm no scriptorian, and I can't say exactly what that means, but in my mind, I do believe that each member of that branch has a spot in eternity with our Savior.
The Spirit was so sweet in our construction zone of a Sunday school room as we discussed what consecration meant in our own lives. It was obvious that everyone is at a different stage of being able to dedicate their lives to their Lord, but it was also obvious that everyone IS trying, and in my mind, that's what matters.
We each have our journey to Missouri. We have things that we will struggle with in giving to the church. We will think that we don't have time to do something we are asked, or we might feel that something is too difficult to sacrifice. However, the promises are there for the taking if we are willing.
I personally am thankful for the opportunity that this calling has afforded me to give up time in preparation before every lesson, and to get me out of my piano-playing comfort zone. I do hope that this work of teaching will indeed follow me into the eternities.
At the moment, my "learning opportunity" is Gospel Doctrine teacher. Supposedly, I shouldn't have this calling, seeing as seminary teachers aren't supposed to hold any other callings due to the intense nature of seminary, but the bishopric took pity on me. I was feeling rather an oddball, not having much to do on Sunday, and so they let me do this.
It is undoubtedly one of the hardest callings I've ever held. This sounds crazy to me, especially thinking that I've served as both a Primary president (4 years) and a Young Women's president (one year). However, it requires so much dependence on the spirit, that in the words of King Benjamin, yes, I am a beggar, asking the Lord to help me in ways that I can't help myself when preparing lessons.
In the week leading up to any lesson, my thoughts are consumed with the lesson topic. It sometimes feels like the Lord sends experiences my way, or even memories, that will pertain specifically to my lesson. I'm always so thankful for this, and yet I feel a great responsibility to successfully transmit those feelings, thoughts and experiences in a way that will benefit the class. In fact, the needs of the class are the driving force in how I prepare a lesson. How can I make the lesson meaningful enough that the class members will leave the class having learning something, or feel motivated to change something in their lives?
You know, I might not feel this so strongly if I hadn't been the recipient of some pretty awesome Gospel Doctrine lessons myself. I will never forget the lessons of Steve Peine and Dave Carlson in our Bitburg ward. I do believe those men just had a natural talent to teach, and their teaching was effortless. 40 minutes would feel like five, and I left class each week with a basket full of things to improve in my own life. That's the kind of teacher I aim to be. The lessons will never be effortless for me, or easy for me to prepare (again, I think that's a natural talent), but I am trying to make a difference.
Two weeks ago, I taught a lesson from the Doctrine and Covenants on the Law of Consecration. Let me say this: I hold no judgement towards the early Saints because they couldn't make the Law of Consecration work. I do believe it will take a near perfect person (and more so a near perfect group of people) to work it successfully. However, we as Latter Day Saints can definitely consecrate our lives to the church and the gospel itself, and that's what we focused on.
First think of dedication. What is dedication?
Boy, I got some really great answers from the class: commitment, passion, an ALL IN mentality, action, effort. My favorite answer though came from a doctoral student who has just finished writing his dissertation, and as a finishing touch, added a dedication to the beginning of it. That kind of dedication is really an expression of love.
So what is the difference between dedication and consecration? Take all those wonderful things that are necessary to be a dedicated human being and do them in the Lord's service. That's consecration. All that action, all that passion, all that love in the service of the Lord.
It's what we as Latter-day Saints do on an almost daily basis. We dedicate time each day to praying, to reading our scriptures, to helping others, to setting examples of kindness and patience, to serving in callings, and to using our talents to better the kingdom.
Today, I was teaching again, and the topic of the lesson was keeping the Sabbath day holy. It was a very natural transition to refer back to the lesson from two weeks ago, because keeping the Sabbath day holy is just another way to consecrate our lives to the Lord.
We teach the primary kids how to keep the Sabbath day holy with a list of "dos" and "don'ts". We don't go waterskiing on Sunday, but we do read. We don't go shopping on Sunday, but we do go to church. As we age, we learn that keeping the Sabbath day holy is really a set of personal choices that will bring us closer to Heavenly Father. What do we do that helps us remember what our Savior did for us? What takes us away from Him? Of course, one of the easiest things to do to keep the Sabbath day holy is going to church (which, of course, everyone in the class was doing so 50 points to the State College Gryffindor team!)
Why do we do it though? Why do we covenant to consecrate our lives? When I look at the bishops I have known in the past (as well as my own honey), it's a demanding life to serve as bishop along with living a normal, busy life. It's not like bishops can say, "Hey Life, I'm going to put you on hold while I serve as bishop for five years. I'll catch you on the flip side." No, both the bishop and their family sacrifice time in their lives for the service of others. And the same can be said for any other calling. Callings generally stretch us, and they ask us to do more and be more than we would want to be naturally.
And let's think about missionaries. Holy smokes, what other volunteer position asks young single adults to leave their families and go talk to people about religions in other countries and in other languages....and asks them to do this for years...with no contact with their families?
And tithing. Probably one of the most obvious ways of living the law of consecration. Who in their right minds thinks it's a good idea to give 10% of their income to the church? I won't lie when I say that I like the Catholic way of passing around a basket and throwing in a Jackson or two.
So why do we agree to live this life? Why do we agree to do something that is harder than life already is?
Today, I shared a really beautiful story that I think answers that question.
In the mid-1820s, Joseph Smith went to Bainbridge, NY on a treasure seeking adventure. While he was unsuccessful at that, he met the Joseph Knight family in Colesville, NY. They heard Joseph Smith's story of seeing God the Father, and Jesus Christ, and they believed him. They joined the church, along with several other people who lived in Colesville.
These people became known as "the Colesville branch" and church historians think this was probably the first congregation of the church. Joseph Knight was present at several important events in the early church, including being in the Smith home the night that Joseph Smith returned with the gold plates from the Hill Cumorah. And Brother Knight donated food and writing supplies to Joseph Smith while the translation of the gold plates was occurring. He was a good man.
When the call was given to gather in Ohio, many of the Colesville branch members sold their homes and business at a loss. They needed money to get to Ohio, and they did what they needed to to make it so. I can only imagine the pain of selling a home for less than it was worth, seeing as we will end up selling our own home for a loss. However, they listened to the call of the prophet (and the Lord) and did it.
Enter Leman Copley. Leman Copley was part of a large Shaker contingent in Ohio, but when he heard the missionaries, he too joined the church. He owned a 759 acre farm, and soon after he joined the church, the Law of Consecration was presented to the members, and he willingly volunteered his land to the incoming saints. However, only a month later, he joined a mission effort to the nearby Shaker congregation, and he was pulled back into that church, thus kicking the saints off of his land. A month later, the Saints were moving to Missouri.
Among these Saints were Joseph Knight and his wife, Polly. Only days after reaching Missouri (over 1,000 miles), Polly died.
Oh goodness, talk about consecration. I think of the Knight family, and how easily they could have just kept going about their business back in New York if they hadn't decided to join the church. They wouldn't have lost their home and business, they wouldn't have been forced off their land in Ohio, and perhaps Sister Knight would have had more years of living. However, just like the saints of today, they were willing to give everything to the church and to the Lord for the building up of the kingdom.
A year later, the prophet Joseph Smith was visiting the Colesville Saints in Missouri. Section 59 of the Doctrine and Covenants speaks specifically to the Knight family in the first two verses:
Behold, blessed, saith the Lord, are they who have come up unto this land with an eye single to my glory, according to my commandments.
For those that live shall inherit the earth, and those that die shall rest from all their labors, and their works shall follow them; and they shall receive a crown in the mansions of my Father which I have prepared for them.How beautiful is that? I love the idea that the works that Polly Knight did here on earth would follow her into eternity. The sacrifice, the hard work, the tests of faith. It honestly reminds me of all the medals our family has received for running different races. They are symbols of sweat, pain and dedication, and we hang them proudly in our homes. Think of all the "eternal" medals Polly (and the rest of us who consecrate our lives to the church) earn.
Then, in an even more touching act, Joseph Knight recorded that the Prophet Joseph sealed the members of the branch up unto eternal life.
I'm no scriptorian, and I can't say exactly what that means, but in my mind, I do believe that each member of that branch has a spot in eternity with our Savior.
The Spirit was so sweet in our construction zone of a Sunday school room as we discussed what consecration meant in our own lives. It was obvious that everyone is at a different stage of being able to dedicate their lives to their Lord, but it was also obvious that everyone IS trying, and in my mind, that's what matters.
We each have our journey to Missouri. We have things that we will struggle with in giving to the church. We will think that we don't have time to do something we are asked, or we might feel that something is too difficult to sacrifice. However, the promises are there for the taking if we are willing.
I personally am thankful for the opportunity that this calling has afforded me to give up time in preparation before every lesson, and to get me out of my piano-playing comfort zone. I do hope that this work of teaching will indeed follow me into the eternities.
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