Whither You Shall Go

The Lord said this when He called Jared Carter to serve as a missionary: “Verily I say unto you, that it is my will that my servant Jared Carter should go again into the eastern countries, from place to place, and from city to city, in the power of the ordination wherewith he has been ordained, proclaiming glad tidings of great joy, even the everlasting gospel. And I will send upon him the Comforter, which shall teach him the truth and the way whither he shall go” (Doctrine and Covenants 79:1-2). I love this promise that the Lord gave him: as he would go forth to proclaim the gospel, he would be led to know the way he should go by the Holy Ghost. This is similar to what the Lord said to Thomas B. Marsh, “Go your way whithersoever I will, and it shall be given you by the Comforter what you shall do and whither you shall go” (Doctrine and Covenants 31:11). As we strive to follow Him, He promises to send us the Comforter to help us know the things we should do in whatever our responsibilities are. Nephi put it this way in the Book of Mormon: “For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do” (2 Nephi 32:5). As we strive to receive the Holy Ghost in our lives, we can learn the things that the Lord would have us do. That is an incredible promise and is a source far more dependable than AI or Google.  

               When I was growing up, I did the scouting program through the Church and enjoyed the good experiences I had in that. Within the program there are a series of steps that have to be taken and things that have to be learned in order to achieve the various awards, culminating in the Eagle Scout. There was some discretion for the youth to decide what to learn, but much of what we did consisted of a series of boxes to check as we performed activities and learned specific things. I am very grateful for the program and know that I benefitted greatly from the things that I experienced. Several years ago, the Church stopped sponsoring the scouting program and chose to develop their own worldwide program, now called Children and Youth. One of the key differences now is that there is more emphasis placed on the youth to decide what they want to accomplish. In other words, less activities and goals are prescribed by the program and more responsibility has been placed on the youth to figure out for themselves what they want to learn and accomplish. Here is what the guidebook encourages the youth to do: 

Heavenly Father has given you gifts, talents, and abilities. He wants you to discover and develop them to make yourself, other people, and even the world better. How can you improve and grow? Try asking questions like:

·        What do I feel I should learn or change in my life?

·        What talents or skills do I want to gain?

·        What spiritual habits do I need to develop or improve?

·        How can I keep the covenants I made when I was baptized?

·        Who can I serve?

Heavenly Father will answer these questions when you rely on Him. Pray. Search the scriptures and the words of living prophets. Read your patriarchal blessing, if you have one. Learn to recognize feelings and thoughts from the Holy Ghost. He will help you know what is most important for you right now.

Rather than a cookie cutter program with the same list of things to be accomplished by everyone, now the youth are invited to learn for themselves what the Lord would have them do, given their own unique talents and abilities. Surely this principle of seeking revelation for ourselves on how to improve and set goals is applicable to all of us. And I believe that the Lord’s words to these early missionaries applies to each of us as we seek to improve ourselves: the Comforter will help us understand what we should do and wither we should go to fulfill the unique mission that the Lord has for us.