MAGNIFYING YOUR CALLING

CAPSTONE: Having just received my calling to be the new Young Women’s President, I am humbled and struggle with feelings of being adequate.  These quotes have given me the strength to do my calling the best way that I can because I know that I’m not alone and that the Lord is a prayer away.  I liken it to being a brand new missionary in the field, I have no idea what I’m doing, but with prayer, I know I can do it, and I plan to do my best.  That is all that we are asked to do, and he will qualify me for the work.  I know that when I was set apart, I was blessed with having the time to fulfill all my duties for my calling, as a wife, as a mother, and as a friend.  It was truly beautiful and came at the right time to quiet all my feelings of stress.  The Lord is truly mindful of me and my needs and hears my prayers.  I need to continue to follow the counsel of the quotes and pray and read my scriptures so I can hear the promptings of the Spirit and have the knowledge of how to raise my family and teach these young women what they need to know. -becki johnson

1.        “What does it mean to magnify a calling? It means to build it up in dignity and importance, to make it honorable and commendable in the eyes of all men, to enlarge and strengthen it, to let the light of heaven shine through it to the view of other men. And how does one magnify a calling? Simply by performing the service that pertains to it.”

-Thomas S. Monson, “The Call of Duty,” April 1986 General Conference https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1986/04/the-call-of-duty?lang=eng

2.        “It is your duty first of all to learn what the Lord wants and then by the power and strength of your holy priesthood to so magnify your calling in the presence of your fellows that the people will be glad to follow you.”

-George Albert Smith,” In Conference Report,” Apr. 1942, 14.

3.        “There can be no failure in the work of the Lord when [we] do [our] best. We are but instruments; this is the Lord’s work. This is His Church, His gospel plan. These are His children we are working with. He will not permit us to fail if we do our part. He will magnify us even beyond our own talents and abilities when necessary. This I know. I am sure many of you have experienced it as I have. It is one of the sweetest experiences that can come to a human being”

-Ezra Taft Benson, “The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson” [1988], p. 372

4.       “If any brother or sister feels unprepared—even incapable—of responding to a call to serve, to sacrifice, to bless the lives of others, remember this truth: ‘Whom God calls, God qualifies.’ He who notes the sparrow’s fall will not abandon the servant’s need”                                                                                  
-Thomas S. Monson,  “Tears, Trials, Trust, Testimony,” April 1987 General Conference http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1987/04/tears-trials-trust-testimony?lang=eng

5.       “It is not in the proper spirit for us to decide where we will serve or where we will not. We serve where we are called. It does not matter what the calling may be.”                                                                        
 –Boyd K. Packer, “Called to Serve,” October 1997 General Conference http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1997/10/called-to-serve?lang=eng

6.       “Everything that is done in the Church—the leading, the teaching, the calling, the ordaining, the praying, the singing, the preparation of the sacrament, the counseling, and everything else—is done by ordinary members, the “weak things of the world.”
–Boyd K. Packer, “The Weak and the Simple of the Church,” October 2007 General Conference http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2007/10/the-weak-and-the-simple-of-the-church?lang=eng

7.       “Repentance, prayer, and pondering over the scriptures are essential parts of our qualifying for the gifts of the Spirit in our priesthood service. Further magnification of our power to serve will come as we respond with faith to go forward in our callings with the Holy Ghost to help us.”                                          
–Henry B. Eyring, “Serve with the Spirit,” October 2010 General Conference http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/10/serve-with-the-spirit?lang=eng

8.       “What does it mean to magnify [your] calling? It means to build it up in dignity . . .  to enlarge and strengthen it to let the light of heaven shine through it to the view of other men. And how does one magnify a calling? Simply by performing the service that pertains to it.”                                                             
 –Thomas S. Monson, “Priesthood Power,” Ensign November 1999  https://www.lds.org/ensign/1999/11/priesthood-power

9.       “As the Lord is patient with us, let us be patient with those we serve. Understand that they, like us, are imperfect. They, like us, make mistakes. They, like us, want others to give them the benefit of the doubt.  Never give up on anyone. And that includes not giving up on yourself.”
–Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Continue in Patience,” April 2010 General Conference https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/04/continue-in-patience?lang=eng

10.   “I can’t be a perfect servant every hour, but I can try to give more effort than I thought I could. With that habit formed early on, I will be prepared for trials later. You and I can be prepared with the strength to keep our oath and covenant through the tests that will surely come as we approach the end of life.”
  –Henry B. Eyring, “Preparation in the Priesthood: “I need your help.” October 2011 General Conference  https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2011/10/preparation-in-the-priesthood-i-need-your-help?lang=eng