New Callings

Someone from the Bishopric texted me this morning and asked if he could come by for a few minutes before church.  That's almost never a good thing, especially when you really love the calling you currently have.  In the 90 minutes that I had to wait, I conjured up plenty of things to potentially be worried and irritated about.  I'm not sure why I do that.  Anyway, I must have let all those things out of my head because McKay, who happened to be sitting next to me when I got the text said, "Well, why don't you just tell him no if you don't want a new calling."  I have a hard time doing that when my prayers lately consist mostly of pleas for humility and more opportunities to be useful in the Kingdom.  So then he said, "...or you could just cry."  Ha!  Oh, this boy has come to know me way too well in his short 12 years on earth.  I have to admit that I considered that a pretty good option for a minute or two.  It has worked in the past.  

But, in the end, I decided to stop fretting and just go say a prayer and muster up a little humility and willingness.  

And guess what...it wasn't as disappointing a visit as I anticipated.  The great news is that they didn't release me from this Gospel Doctrine calling I love the heck out of.  Thank goodness, because man, I love the Book of Mormon!  And I've already planned next week's lesson and it's gonna be good, so it would be a shame not to be able to teach it.  The not so good news is that In addition to teaching GD every three weeks, they also want me to be the ward choir director.  ugh...that is not my favorite calling.  In fact, I was just having a conversation over Christmas break with someone about how that happens to be my least favorite calling in the whole church.  Apparently what happens when you carelessly release stuff like that into the universe is that you immediately have another chance at that thing you hate and another opportunity to learn to love it.  

All that praying this morning must have helped, though, because as I sat in Sacrament today, all I could think of was how grateful I am for the small handful of things I can do.  Directing the choir might not be my first choice of callings, but at least I know I'm somewhat capable of it.  I have access to good music.  I've been in good choirs before and I know what works and what doesn't.  I can certainly stand up there once a week and lead a bunch of people who want to sing...and we have a dang lot of enthusiastic singers in our ward!  I'm grateful to be able to contribute and to have been asked.  And surprisingly, when I thought about the last time I directed a choir, instead of remembering all the ways that I failed miserably at that calling, I was actually flooded with all the really good memories of that experience.  There were lots that I had forgotten.

I'm grateful today for the Spirit that brings gratitude and remembrance in abundance when we ask for it, and for the floods of happy things that have filled my head all day, even in the middle of the Super Bowl.  It was kind of a nice day to be reminded of stuff.