3 Pitfalls When Administering Ward Callings

We learn from the Fifth Article of Faith and from the Church Handbooks that "a person must be called of God to serve in the Church." Notice the preposition is “called of God,” not called by God. It's easy for leaders to assume that God has a calling board in heaven on the wall of His office covered with magnetic pictures of each person in your ward. We assume He has determined every calling in your ward and carefully placed individuals in specific auxiliaries, and He is waiting for you, the leader, to read His mind so that you put every person in his or her perfect calling so that your calling board matches His. This results in leaders straining to read the mind of God; or trying to figure out who was called by God, rather than who is called of God. Elder Bednar gave a similar message in the April 2017 General Conference when he said, "...a missionary is not called to a place; rather, he or she is called to serve." Likewise, a member of your ward is called to serve, and where they are assigned in your ward may not always be gift wrapped in revelation. I'll be the first to admit it’s a powerful experience when a specific person comes to the mind of the bishop, and he knows where this member should be called to serve. But leaders must also feel confident in placing individuals in callings per their own decision making capacity rather than expecting a clear revelation in every instance. Elder Robert D. Hales said, "I remind all of us that the Holy Ghost is not given to control us. Some of us unwisely seek the Holy Ghost’s direction on every minor decision in our lives. This trivializes His sacred role." This guidance can be applied to making decision in our wards and organizations. Often, revelation comes by leaders deciding with the good judgment the Lord gave him or her, and then considering it revelation. The life experiences and decision making ability the Lord has given leaders is a way He influences and directs through revelation. Once leaders recognize the autonomy they have in whom to select to serve, the more confidence they have to make a call and not fret when it doesn't work out, or the process is messy. That said, the following are key pitfalls some leaders experience in the calling process. My hope is that leaders can watch out for these pitfalls and act with confidence, minimizing the burden of trying to read the mind of God in every instance. Expecting Specific Revelation for Each Calling When leaders have the mindset of finding who is called by God rather than who is called of God, we tend to search for a specific name who could serve, rather than a list of options. This is often seen when the bishop is approached by the Relief Society president and the Primary president, both having received inspiration that a specific sister is to serve in her auxiliary. It may be that the Lord places the name of an individual in the mind of the leader not that the individual should be specifically called to that position, but rather, He is guiding you to consider someone you haven't, helping you arrive at a better decision. So, when two auxiliary leaders approach the bishopric with the same name coming from the same HeavenlySource, it is important for the bishopric to validate the auxiliary  leader’s prompting that is part of the revelatory process, and know "that final responsibility to receive inspiration on whom to call rests with the stake presidency or the bishopric." (Handbook 2: 19.1.2) When the Bishopric Makes All the Assignments