Today we experienced the splitting of the Cape Town South
Africa Stake of Zion to form the Bellville South Africa Stake of Zion.
I am amused that the Cape Town Stake does not include Cape
Town, and the Bellville stake includes both Cape Town and Bellville.
Yesterday, as I was working on installing a door, I had one
of my sessions of scripture study without any scriptures in my hands. These can
be among my most powerful study sessions as my hands are busy weeding or doing
things and my brain is studying the scriptures that I have in my memory banks. I
was pondering a theme that has been on my mind for a few days, anticipating a
possible call for me to be interviewed for the organisation of the stake. Here
are some of the thoughts that went through my mind.
I wonder how many of us would call someone who really was
prejudiced and rebellious to serve a mission? But the Lord called Jonah to go
and preach the Gospel in Nineveh. Jonah really did not care for the people of Nineveh.
He ran off in the opposite direction. When he realised that his decision was
threatening the lives of other people on the ship on which he was trying to escape
his assignment, he had them throw him overboard. We might say to ourselves that
he really was not appropriate for our mission objectives and give up on him and
call someone else, but the Lord sent a great fish to help Jonah to shore, and
to give him some time to reflect and repent.
Well, Jonah did go and preach, and was successful, but he
was miserable because his prejudice made him not want to share his exclusive
club of salvation in the Kingdom of God with the people of Nineveh who he
really did not like. So he sulked and moaned and whined. And the Lord continued
to be patient with him, trying to get him to rise to his potential for
greatness.
Another example – would we call someone who to promote the
work was really working hard to interfere with the Work of Salvation? Would we
call someone who was really not worthy of a Temple Recommend to serve? The Lord
sent an angel to a group of youths who were on their way to disrupt the Church.
He called them to serve as his missionaries. He called them to repent. He gave
Alma the Younger three days’ time for repenting, during which time his heart
was harrowed up so that it would be prepared for the service to which he had
been called. Would we say – ‘no, he is not worthy’ and look for someone else,
or would we take the risk with someone and call him and let him decide whether
or not he will repent and accept the challenge to become softened and worthy of
a Temple Recommend? I argue that the Lord does not wait for people to wander
into worthiness – he challenges them up-front and that makes the difference in
their lives.
Another interesting case is an avowed enemy of the Church –
not even a member, someone who is going off to persecute the Saints. But the
Lord sent an angel to call Saul of Tarsus and let him recognise that it is hard
to kick against the pricks. He let Saul repent, and then sent the member of the
local unit. This member, presumably a leader, was really hesitant, and asked
the Lord if He knew who this man was and what he had been doing to the Saints?
I mean, really – he was a bad oke! But the Lord reassured Ananias that this was
his work and that Saul was a chosen vessel. And Saul rose to the occasion.
I have heard many stories of people called who really were
not worthy at the time for their calls, but who put their lives in order and
became worthy, and were commendable in the way that they magnified their
callings. Elder Ted R. Callister spoke in the October 2013 General Conference about
calling
an unworthy man as a stake clerk in the Glendale stake. I remember in the book
The Challenge from my mission days
1973-1975 I can’t find the book and cannot recall the author), about a stake
president visiting a less active brother who would not return to Church because
he did not approve of his bishop and others. The stake president challenged
this brother to attend ward conference the next day to sustain his new bishop. Upon
being asked who that would be, he was told “You!” Was he worthy to hold a
Temple Recommend? No. Did he very promptly become worthy? Yes. And he served
excellently as the bishop.
I remember Robert Sackley, a regional representative, telling
of how he was called as bishop of half of a ward that was divided. The leaders
had proposed a dividing line that would split the ward evenly in terms of
active members. But the authorities used a different dividing line such that when
the ward was divided one half that was predominantly less active and he was
called to preside over that half. Within a year his ward was more active than
the other ward. How could that be without him having called unworthy people to
lead? And did that call not bring them into activity because of the challenge?
I have long felt that the Temple Recommend interview can be
a very powerful spiritual experience. If a member is invited in, and all
questions asked, right up to ‘Do you consider yourself worthy to participate in
the ordinances of the Temple?’ they can feel the Spirit and realise what in
their lives is not in harmony with the Gospel. It does not have the same impact
if one stops after three questions and says “Oh no, you won’t qualify” and stop
there. I also feel to start the interview with reminding the member that I am
simply asking the questions on behalf of the lord, and that their answers are given
to the Lord, not just to me. It is also sometimes appropriate to remind them
that the Lord knows the answer to each and every question, but asks because we
need to experience of accounting for our lives. I am struck by the fact that the
Lord knows all things, but he asked Cain “Where is thy brother Abel?” He asked the
woman who touched the skirt of His garment “Who touched me?” He asked Peter “Lovest
thou me?” And He asked that three times! But Peter needed to answer more than
the Lord needed to ask.
I have also witnessed the power of going through all
thirteen Articles of Faith and after reciting each ask “Now, what do you
believe?” I insist that they declare what they do believe, not what they do not
believe. That brings a powerful spirit into the room and can bring about a
life-changing experience.
I remember about 1970 or so my sister Judy telling of a
sister (the daughter of the mission president at the time) who told of a
powerful call to serve. I have often reflected on that as I have interviewed people
to issue a call to serve. I have realised that it is essential to lay a solid
foundation before the person being interviewed knows anything about a call. I
schedule the interview with adequate time to discuss their lives, their
interests, their talents, their time and family commitments and during all of
this process I am seeking the confirmation of the Spirit that this call is
right for them. If I do not get that confirmation the interview is ended
without the person knowing why there was an interview. However, if I do get that
confirmation then I am absolutely confident in saying “The Lord wants you to
serve as such-and-such” and I have almost never had someone decline a calling
when following this process. But I have been in interviews where the first
words are “We want to call you to such-and-such a position” and somehow the
spirit is just not as strong as when it is without doubt a call from the Lord.
Our two stakes need to grow. We can grow. May the Lord bless
us to have a powerful Spirit about us so that we can rise to the level and
potential that He wants us to achieve!
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