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Patriarchal blessings and the initiatory teach us that we each have a
mission to fulfill on earth. Each of us has received spiritual gifts which
we are to use for others' benefit (D&C 46:11-12).
As Christ's disciples, we have the promise that we can do wonderful works
(D&C 84:64-66). Through temple worship,
we tap into heavenly power that equips us to go out into the world to
do the work God has appointed us (D&C 38:32-33;
109:22-23). Every person has a unique contribution to make, a vocation
tailored to his or her talents and potential.
According to popular LDS traditions, God assigned us our earthly missions
even before we were born. As premortal spirits, we received lessons to
prepare us for our ministry and then were sent to earth at a providential
time and place (D&C 138:55-56; Abr. 3:22-23).
As our life unfolds, we can discern the mission appointed to us through
the Spirit's guidance.
Alternatively, we can think of our life's mission as something that comes
to be defined during our lifetime as we dialogue with God about our dreams
and aspirations. LDS accounts about the Three Nephites and John the Revelator
show Christ commissioning individuals to different ministries based on
their own desires and his knowledge of what will bring them joy (3
Ne. 28; D&C 7). Likewise, Christ promises his latter-day disciples
that he will make us instruments for good according to what we desire
of him (D&C 6:8; Moro. 7:26).
| Related Topics:
|
 Called
to Serve |
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| I Will Follow God's
Plan (Children's Songbook
164) |
| Joseph Smith: Every [person]
who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was
ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven before
this world was. |
| Teachings of the Prophet
Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1976), 365 |
| Lorenzo Snow: Now, there
are several thousand Latter-day Saints before me, and there is not
one but has a work to perform. We did not come into this world accidentally.
We came for a special purpose. |
| The Teachings of Lorenzo
Snow (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984), 93 |
Matthias F. Cowley:
If you are laboring in any doubt as to what you should do in life,
go to God in prayer and ask Him what you should do, and let Him
guide you by His Spirit, and He will do it.
|
| Conference Report,
October 1899 |
Jeffrey R. and Patricia T.
Holland: In the ongoing process of creation . . . our heavenly
parents are preparing a lovely tapestry with exquisite colors and
patterns and hues. They are doing so lovingly and carefully and
masterfully. And each of us is playing a part—our part—in
the creation of that magnificent, eternal piece of art. . . . Each
of us has a purpose. And for each of us, that purpose is different;
it is distinct; it is divine.
|
| On Earth As It Is in
Heaven (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1989), 4, 7 |
Gordon B. Hinckley:
But what of the unsung, the unheralded, the unrecognized who lived
the gospel, loved the Lord, and did their daily work without fanfare
or applause? . . . We each make our own contribution, and that contribution
adds up to the building of the cause.
|
| “Our Testimony to
the World,” Ensign, May 1997, 83 |
Chieko N. Okazaki:
We hear lots of messages telling us what we should want, or what
is appropriate for people our age to want, or what other people
like us want, or what somebody would want if they were us. . . .
Maybe there are people in your life who don't want you to ask for
your heart's desire—for any number of reasons. Well, this
isn't between you and them. It's between you and Jesus.
|
| Disciples (Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book, 1998), 16 |
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