Operation Bishopric

I realize that I have really been slacking on updating my blog. So much has happened and the boys are constantly doing cute things that I'm afraid might get forgotten because I haven't taken the time to write them down. I must do better! Currently, by some miracle, both boys have finally settled down to take a nap, so I had better take advantage of this time and catch up as much as I can.

Well, as noted by the title of this post, one of the biggest changes right now is that Nic was called into our ward's bishopric. For those not familiar with the LDS church, I would describe the bishop of a ward as the father of the ward. He is in charge of the spiritual and temporal welfare of all members of the ward. He has two counselors to support him in this calling, and  I see these counselors as kind of older brothers who help take care of the family. Nic is now the first counselor in the bishopric.

Two weeks ago, before church, Nic received a call from the stake presidency asking if we could come meet with them after church. We weren't really anticipating a calling into the bishopric at that time. Nic had been serving as Elder's Quorum president for over six years, so we were thinking maybe he was just being released. Then at church, the bishop announced at the end of sacrament meeting that the next week we would be having a homecoming and a farewell--we would be hearing a homecoming address from a sister who had just returned from serving a mission in Russia, and we would be hearing the farewell address from the bishopric because they were being released. Suddenly, Nic was starting to sweat bullets. Still, he thought maybe they were releasing him to fill a spot left empty by someone else being called into the bishopric.

After church, we loaded up the boys and headed over to the stake center to meet with the stake presidency. The stake president met with Nic for a couple of minutes and then we all met together, and they extended the calling. They offered us some wonderful counsel and told us that they were aware of our needs having a young family.

After that, we had to keep it all a secret until it would be announced the next Sunday. It didn't make it any easier that I think we ran into the entire ward randomly through out the week, and everyone was speculating who might be in the bishopric. We were able to tell our family, however, and invite them to church the next Sunday.

On July 15, Nic was officially called and set apart as a member of the bishopric. It was a wonderful, overwhelming day. Our old bishop, Bishop Spencer, and new bishop, Bishop Messmer, both spoke. The love that a bishop has for every member of his ward is just so amazing. Bishop Messmer had just retired from his employment a few days before he was called as bishop. He joked that while many friends were wondering what he was going to be doing with all of his free time now that he was retired and many were encouraging him to let his hair down and take a long vacation, his plans were now a little different and his first thing to do with his retirement was to attend young women's camp. He also expressed his love, his testimony, and commitment to serving the ward. His words really touched my heart, and I really felt the spirit that this man had been called of God to lead and direct us.

Every day since then, it has been slowly sinking in just what this is going to entail. Nic has had meetings or church responsibilities pretty much every day this week. I'm realizing that 1-I'm not going to see a whole lot of him now and 2-this is how it's going to be for quite some years.  I have been really touched by how many people have come to me and offered their help. We have quite the list of people ready and willing to sit by us at church and help me wrangle the boys. I'm going to need it! Sam used to be really good at church, but he's really taking this toddler thing seriously and is Mr. Wiggles these days. Actually, a more accurate description is that he's my little pin ball. He is often just bouncing off of the walls. He's still a good kid--just high energy! People have also offered to help me take care of the boys during the week as needed. Miss Lavon, who has taken care of the boys for me when I went to my newspaper staff meetings all year, has offered to be our 'Granny Nanny' and help in whatever we need. It has been good to be the recipient of such an outpouring of love and support.

When Nic was set apart, I felt the spirit strongly that this is exactly where the Lord needs him. I might be prejudice, but Nic is such a good man. His genuine love and acceptance of all people and his willingness to roll up his sleeves and work, are two of his best qualities that will really bless the lives of people. He's not perfect, but he has a great love for the Lord and an honest desire to do what is right. I cry as I write this because I'm realizing how truly blessed I am to be married to a man like Nic.

This is going to be a new adventure for our family with many ups and downs. But above all, I know that the Lord is aware of our family and will bless us abundantly through this new calling. And, hey, we've already had our first miracle: I had the boys loaded up by 8:30 a.m., and we made it to church by quarter to nine. Usually, if we make it by the sacrament, I'm feeling pretty good about things. My first Sunday of getting everyone ready on my own, and we made it ON TIME! Nothing short of a miracle! =)