New Year, New Calling
Lynda and I met with Brother Jacobsen this past Wednesday night. He is a member of the bishopric in our ward. We had a feeling that we would receive a calling of some sort. We’ve been members of this ward since June and haven’t even been asked to speak in church! So something was bound to happen soon.
When we first moved here to Oregon we both felt that we were being guided here for a reason. But after months of attending church, going to as many activities as we could manage and making ourselves available; we had received no calling. For quite a long time we didn’t even have home or visiting teaching assignments. The whole situation seemed to be trying our faith. We still believed that we were brought here for a reason, but that reason wasn’t making itself known to us as quickly as we had thought it would. There were doubts, at least in my mind, that maybe we had made the wrong choice. That maybe we we were being a little crazy in packing up and moving without anything to come to.
Well, it turns out that living in Oregon and paying for the medical expenses of my cancer and DVT has been a real blessing. Without the Oregon Health Plan we would have been paying for these tests and procedures for a very long time. So that is one reason for us to be here.
Another came along when we talked with Brother Jacobsen the other night. He extended an invitation to work in the Sunday School as youth teachers. We would be team teaching either the 12-13 year olds or 14-15 year olds. I have done this before. My first calling after returning home from my mission was teaching the 12-13 year olds in the Cedar 17th ward in Cedar City, Utah. I also taught the same age group in the Apple Farms ward in West Valley, Utah, not to mention all the time I spent serving in the Young Mens program there, working with all the young men and the scouts.
For Lynda, though, it will be a new experience. She taught Primary with me when we lived in Lehi, Utah and has worked in the Young Women’s program as well, usually helping in some way with Girl’s Camp. So it will be new, but I think she will do great!
New year, new calling. The new year will start a time for us to improve ourselves and our understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ. While at the same time helping the youth of the ward gain their own testimonies and come to know their Savior in a more personal way.