Some people believe in destiny, others believe that everything is a matter of chance, I believe in foreordination. I believe that we were each called to do a specific work in our lives, our own personal missions to move forward the work of the Lord. (Of course, this foreordination is still subject to our agency, or the choices we make. If we fail to qualify, by our choices, for the missions we were called to do, then another will be chosen to do so in our place. For God’s work will not be frustrated. Although, I cannot help but think that no one could fulfill your mission like you could.)
With this in mind, I could not help but wonder, whenever I thought of the vast ages of the world, (and all the people who have been born to them) of why I was chosen to live now, in this age. (For timing is very important in fulfilling our missions.) As I said, I do not believe that it is mere random coincidence that places us in the exact time and place to which we are born. I know there is a purpose.
Not too many years ago the then current Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Ezra Taft Benson addressed this when he taught,
“God has held you in reserve to make your appearance in the final days before the second coming of the Lord. Some individuals will fall away; but the kingdom of God will remain intact to welcome the return of its head–even Jesus Christ. While our generation will be comparable in wickedness to the days of Noah, when the Lord cleansed the earth by flood, there is a major difference this time. It is that God has saved for the final inning some of His strongest children, who will help bear off the kingdom triumphantly. . . . Make no mistake about it–you are a marked generation. There has never been more expected of the faithful in such a short period of time than there is of us.” Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson [1988], pp. 104-5
We are told that we were held in reserve for this time. We are told that there is much expected of us. In more recent years, Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the twelve Apostles said,
“You are one of God’s noble and great spirits, held in reserve to come to earth at this time. (See Doctrine and Covenants 86:8-11.) In your premortal life you were appointed to help prepare the world for the great gathering of souls that will precede the Lord’s second coming. You are one of a covenant people. You are an heir to the promise that all the earth will be blessed by the seed of Abraham and that God’s covenant with Abraham will be fulfilled through his lineage in these latter days.” (See 1 Nephi 15:18; 3 Nephi 20:25.)” November 1990, Choices, Elder Russell M. Nelson
Here we learn that we were appointed in our premortal life to prepare the way of the Lord. Yet how can anyone fulfill their missions if they do not know what they are? The Lord understands this dilemma. Which is why he has prepared many ways for us to discover our missions.
1) We have Patriarchal Blessings.
2) Priesthood Blessings.
3) Personal Revelation from the Spirit.
4) The teachings of the Scriptures.
Seeking out and fulfilling your mission is a process that takes a lifetime. This process requires faith, patience, and the willingness to submit to the will of the Lord. As a warning, never expect the Lord to just lay out every little detail before you. That is not His way. We are told in the scriptures that He will give us line upon line, and precept upon precept.
This is not something to put off until one is old, and has nothing else to do. Our missions often span the course of our lifetime. Which mean we must seek Him early and often to fulfill all He has called on us to do. When we do so, though life will most likely turn out different then planned, it will be more fulfilling, joyful, and in the end we will have little if any regrets (none of which will come from doing the will of God).
