My Testimony of Callings in the LDS Church

Over my adult years, I've held different callings ranging from "Sewing Committee Member"- a calling I thought was silly and ridiculous - to Relief Society President and many in between. I have been part of a RS Presidency in a brand new ward where we had to come up with every calling and assign all visiting teaching from scratch. I have, at times, not felt that my calling was very significant (cough, sewing committee, cough cough   ), but the older I get and the more callings I have, my testimony of callings is growing. 

Especially in the new ward when I had to be part of a lot of calling decisions, but also in other callings since then, I know that sometimes logic is relied upon when calling someone to serve. The logical way to set up visiting teaching that the RS President in the brand new ward decided to use was starting at the ends of the alphabet and assigning pairs by last name. Often, when someone moves out and someone else moves in, it makes sense to put the new sister in the old one's place. But sometimes it didn't feel right, and so the presidencies I've participated in would move a few sisters around until we felt comfortable. In my most recent calling, a new Primary Presidency was called and one of the counselors the President felt she should call was due to have a baby in less than 3 weeks. I was called to serve as RS President less than 2 months after my first baby was born. I have a cousin who serves as RS President in a branch in the midwest that is struggling, and she has very few reliable people to help her as counselors and many of the other callings she needs to fill. It is a hard calling for her. 

I think a lot of people in the church view callings as on some sort of totem pole. They think that the more "important" the calling, the more spiritual the person, and if you never reach "bishop" or "district leader" or whatever that you must not be spiritual enough. I've been around some of these people recently and it makes me sad that they see things that way. 

I believe that every calling given to us is from God and is for our good (if we choose to view it that way, which I did not do with "sewing committee"), and that there is a reason we were given that calling or that visiting teacher partner. The reason could be because God needs a strong individual to lead a group of His children (such as in the case of my cousin). The reason could be because you have a certain experience that will help just one of God's children in a very specific way (such as in the case of a story I heard recently about a RS President who reached out to one sister in the ward struggling with infertility who knew what it was like because she'd had struggles herself). The reason could be because you need the calling to help you grow (such as my current calling in Primary where I must learn to appreciate and have love for the Senior Primary age kids  ). The reason could be because many people will look up to you and will gain strength from your leadership or your talk in a variety of ways. 

The way my testimony has changed recently is this: I believe this applies not only to ward or stake callings, but also to the general callings of the church. Because I believe so strongly in callings and visiting teaching companionship pairings and such, I don't know why I've never extended the same belief to the general authorities in the church. We see them as such amazing men and women who share such spiritual talks and insights and we put them on a pedestal sometimes. But if I believe that God called me to be in Primary right now to help me grow, or to maybe help me touch one kid's life, or whatever the reason, why would that not also apply to God calling President Monson as our Prophet? When he passes away, another will take his place. Which means that there are others who could be Prophet right at this moment, but they aren't because God chose President Monson and he is the prophet right now. Some of the women in the General Presidencies of the Church have shared much loved and appreciated words about addiction and heartache and healing recently. Who's to say God didn't call them simply because they understand us and they know us and we need to hear strength and wisdom from them? What if these experiences as a well known person in the church are mostly to help them grow as a person? 

I have to believe that if God extends my callings for certain reasons, He also extends your callings and partnerships for certain reasons, and that He also calls other men and women clear up into the General Authorities of the Church to their callings for certain reasons as well.