Ensign, ‘Watch Over and Strengthen’, May 2000 “Confidence depends on your seeing the call for what it is. Your call to serve is not from human beings. It is a trust from God. And the service is not simply to perform a task. Whatever name it has, every call is an opportunity and an obligation to watch over and strengthen the children of our Heavenly Father. The Savior’s work is to bring to pass their immortality and eternal life (see Moses 1:39). He called us to serve others so that we could strengthen our own faith as well as theirs. He knows that by serving Him we will come to know Him.” — Henry Eyring
Romans 1:1 “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God”.
Contrary to what Mr. Eyring stated when a member of the Church receives a calling to serve it comes directly through a phone call from a man. He also made it abundantly clear that callings are obligations placed upon members to ensure the salvation of mankind.
The true meaning of serving God doesn’t include your phone ringing with the voice on the other end stating your name was next on the list to fill an empty spot on the church’s roster.
As I’ve stated many times before, I can guarantee God would never call me to be a Sunday school teacher for toddlers. Not that I don’t like them! It’s not what the Lord has in mind for me, or for them.
Here’s what Oswald Chambers said about callings and serving the Lord. Not surprisingly, his explanation is the total opposite of Mr. Eyring’s. Furthermore, he also points out that your personal holiness is an effect, not the cause of your work!
Do You See Your Calling? “Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the Gospel of God. The one thing that is all important is that the Gospel of God should be realized as the abiding Reality. Reality is not human goodness, nor holiness, nor heaven, nor hell, but Redemption; and the need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker today. As workers we have to get used to the revelation that Redemption is the only Reality. Personal holiness is an effect, not a cause, and if we place our faith in human goodness, in the effect of Redemption, we shall go under when the test comes.” — Oswald Chambers [emp. added]
When you have an opportunity share with a Mormon you know how the Lord called you, and what it means to be a true servant of the Most High God!
With Love in Christ –—
Michelle
[…] Mormon Callings are Obligations from Men, not God – Henry Eyring May 2000 […]
Excellent observation. I was in the primary presidency YEARS ago. We would look over the Ward directory to find names to ‘call on the phone’ to ask them to teach or whatever was needed. I remember being surprised that Moroni or someone didn’t whisper the names in our ears. No, we looked at the list to see who didn’t have a ‘calling’. Being Born Again and attending a God-loving church, opportunities to serve are announced and we are asked to pray about that and see how God would use us. Eye-opening. No guilt.
Yeah, I love little kids and raised a couple of them myself. In fact, Kirk and I taught 5-8 yr old kids at our church for a couple of yrs and that was about all I could do. 😉
I love teaching but I’m better suited teaching adults, not their kids. It wouldn’t be fair to either party but especially the kids. 😉
I used to get so offended when people said the LDS church is a cult until I started listening to podcasts that did deep dives into cult’s, that’s when I started to see how cleverly the church has woven all these manipulation techniques into nicely packaged church lingo and practices.
What I noticed was that all cults have 2 major factors that determine the retention of followers or not, volunteered money and time. All “successful” cults have these two have common because the more money and time you’ve volunteered to an organization, the harder it is to walk away from. If doubt starts to creep in, the natural rebuttal is “This has to be real, look how much tithing I’ve paid and how much time I’ve volunteered to callings over the years! If this isn’t real, what does that say about me and what I’ve dedicated my life to?!”
It’s hard to walk away from something we’ve put our time into, especially in the name of God. Callings were a very clever way to disguise free labor as a request from God for your spiritual growth. “Don’t turn down a calling” or “maximize your calling”. It’s just another tool in a cult leader’s manipulation belt that keeps its followers engaged and dedicated to them.
Callings are a tool used by the LDS suits. Another tool are threats and promises. That’s a nasty business. “If you don’t pay your tithing, you can’t go to the temple. If you don’t go to the temple, dead people can’t make it to the celestial kingdom. If they can’t go to the celestial kingdom, it is a faithless member’s fault.” Pay, pay, pay (ale). Just a little joke. It all makes me angry/sad/bitter. OTOH, Jesus called me to Himself. He freed me from that deception. I praise the Name of Jesus. I rejoice with a full heart.