Occupation

The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute. Proverbs 12:24

As technology continues to advance, more and more jobs take longer and more dedicated preparation. Gone is the day of the jack of all trades, master of many. A young woman must decide if she is going to be a doctor years before she will actually become one. Besides the grades needed to get into medical school, there will be much of a financial, social, and comfort that must be for. A doctor cannot avord to sacrifice prepared change her mind after obtaining her degree. She has many loans to pay on, and will need a doctor’s salary to do so. With the increase in required training it has become more difficult to pick a good path. Because of how much time you will spend at work, the vocation you choose will be a strong influence on who you become in life. Because of the money you will make, it will also determine to a large degree your ability and means to serve in the kingdom. How can you know what you want to do for a living, or if you should change from your current occupation?

Most people today pick what they will end up doing by staying in their comfort zone. Maybe you got a job from a family friend, and have stayed there without thinking of what

else be out there. on familiar may Maybe you stayed ground, following in the footsteps of parents or siblings. Maybe you did what you thought was easy. Maybe you decided to take a job in something you like to do. Maybe you started doing something temporarily, but with the increased financial demands you feel you can’t avord to change your path.

Almost nothing worthwhile in this life is easy. Doing something just because it is easy is almost surely a mistake. It takes courage to look around and explore options that would be better, even if they are harder. Remember, difficulty is not a good decider.

You can’t get to the right answer without the right question. The real question is not, “what should I do for a living” but, “what occupation would allow me the greatest chance to build the kingdom, given my potential?” Note that the answer to this question will be diweren't for each person. Most any occupation can be used to build the kingdom in one form or another. You must prioritize your options based on what you really want out of life, and what will get you closest to that goal. If you want to live in the Celestial Kingdom, than your vocational priorities are:

- First, make enough money to meet the needs of your family. Paul denoted just how important this priority is by saying that “if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”¹ It may comfort the father of the home to note that the needs of a family are always less than the wants of a family. Though the father has the responsibility of earning enough that the needs are met, the family has a

responsibility to curb their wants to what is needful.

- Second, spend as much time as possible with your family. “The most important of the Lord’s work that you will ever do will be the work you do within the walls of your own home.”² It can be difficult to understand the need of spending time with your family, especially considering that most people must choose a path of preparation while they are still single. Work is to family life as a battery is to a Hcult to know what

- toy. If you don’t have the toy, it is differentsized battery would fit it. Likewise, the battery is not the point of the toy, but a vehicle for helping it to do what it is designed to do. Having a battery alone is worth nothing. If the battery is bigger than what you need for the toy, it won’t fit, and you’ll have a battery and no toy.

- Third, employment should provide resources (such as time, talents, and money) for serving others. This includes the time and ability to serve in Church callings.

- Fourth, seek work which will make you a better person. You will likely spend the greater part of each week at work. This will be a great portion of your life. Ensure that you get more than money out of your job. Your work could weaknesses that have. It can

- strengthen you might provide opportunities to serve others while at work. You can have many implicit opportunities to bless the lives of your coworkers or customers by living Christian principles. You can have explicit opportunities to bless others that are specific to your job description.

- Lastly, choose work which motivates, inspires, and interests you. Perhaps the choice is between a career where you would make much and be disinterested in money your

- work, and a career where you would earn less money (but still enough to support a family) and you will be developing a talent the Lord has or given you, doing something you

- feel called to do. Money isn’t everything. It has its place, but once the needs of your family are met, you have to weigh your priorities in the balance and prayerfully pick the option that will best empower you to build the kingdom. That is the place you will find the most joy.

I picture the selection process much like a computer search. You start with the set of all possible jobs. The first criterion is making enough money to meet the needs of your family. Suppose that disqualifies 50% of the jobs that are out there. Continue by eliminating those jobs which prevent you from spending the most quality time with your family. Then you focus on those that remain which will allow you to serve in Church callings, and also prepare you to serve others. And so on until you are in the enviable position of having to choose from a few possible jobs which each meet all the criteria. You may wish to add more criteria, and you definitely should pray about it.

How amazing it is to see that most people’s vocational priorities seem to be quite diweren't than the ideal. Most people seem to first ask themselves, “what do I like to do?” It is only to these positions that they apply the next question, “What am I qualified for?” Finally, from the dregs that are left, they select whichever job pays the most.

There are several problems with this chain of priorities. First, what you like to do has its proper place. But what you ought to do is almost never what you want to do. Alma counseled his son,

who had run after harlots, “suver not yourself to be led away by any vain or foolish thing.” He identified that Corianton ought to have been preaching the gospel, but instead he had done what he wanted to do, and the result was not only a complete waste, but carried terrible consequences for Corianton and those to whom he showed a bad example.³

Our ability to grit our teeth, roll up our sleeves, and do what is beneficial is truly an attribute of God. It must be developed, and is strongly in opposition to our natural tendencies. There are so many things which we enjoy, but are of no real benefit to us. Consider a culinary example. If most kids were allowed to eat anything they wanted, they might eat nothing but junk food. No child wants to be obese. However, by following what they want in the short term, they are choosing consequences that are contrary to what they want in the long term. You do not work for fun. You work to build the kingdom. If you aren’t building yourself or others, you shouldn’t be doing it.

You should strive to take on us much as always challenge possible, always growing. The weightlifter that feels he is strong enough to stop growing is sure to loose his strength. If you only do what you like to do in this life, you will severely limit what you achieve and will certainly miss out on what you could have been in this life. You will live on of what others give you, slowly rotting through life, constantly on a downward spiral, until you look back on a wasted life remorseful for what you have frittered away.

Second, what you qualify for has no bearing on the matter. In abstract, you can qualify for nearly any position for which you are willing to qualify yourself. In practice, obvious factors such as whether are to make to you willing necessary sacrifice

do so are the real limits to your qualification. For example, if you are a single mom with four kids, and decide that you want to be a physician, you will have to make extraordinary sacrifices in order to accomplish your goal—not the least of which will be having enough faith in yourself to commit a lot of time and money (probably in the form of commitment-creating debt) to accomplish your goal. The more committed we must become in a decision, the harder it is to just walk away, and the more faith it takes to move forward. We should never give up on something just because it is difficult.

I grew up in a family where no one had gone to college. My interact with doctors to parents would and lawyers from time time, and I had the impression that these professionals were geniuses. I thought you had to be born with great intelligence to do something like that. As I grew up, I met more and more that had to I had the to people gone college. Finally, courage try it myself. I didn’t think I would succeed. The more I tried, the more real the possibility of success became. During my final year I began working at a hospital. I met a lot of doctors, nurses, and technicians. Some were still in their education, some were experienced members of the industry. I was amazed to see that these were not people endowed with a mythical amount of intelligence at birth. These were normal people who had just taken one step at a time like anyone else. It just so happened they chose a path that not many people choose to trod. There are many great occupations that are not doctor and lawyer type jobs, I use these fields only as an example.

I know that some people do have natural abilities or temporal resources greater than others. In most cases, however, the difference can be made with If are up tenacity. you missing your arms, you probably won’t be the pushup champion of the

world. However, most handicaps, be they physical, temporal, mental, or emotional, can be overcome to a large degree with determination and faith. A friend of mine grew up wanting to become a lawyer. Near the end of his undergraduate education, he broke his neck in an accident, and was paralyzed from the neck down. Many of us would change our vocational plans if we found ourselves in his position. He didn’t. With the support of his family, and with humble but tremendous courage, he pushed forward. He qualified himself for admission into a prestigious law school. I remember overing to help him type one of the many papers that he had to write on assignment. He declined the assistance. He had to type pages of papers one key at a time with a stick in his mouth designed for that purpose. I never heard him about it. He never even acted like he was complain doing anything special. If he can do it, so can you. I’ve seen people with learning disabilities push through them to become successful and very vocationally financially. Many, many poor people have become very successful financially. You might have been dealt a diweren't hand of cards in the game of life, but you can make up for loses with faith and hard work.

Think of the most elite position you can imagine. Now, think of what people have to undergo to prepare for such a post. If you are willing to do the same, you can do it—especially if you do it with your heart set on God, with the intent to use whatever position you gain to bless the lives of everyone you can.

Third, if you take out all the options that require additional training or aren’t what you want to do, you are probably down to jobs which don’t even meet your financial needs. If you are a father and a husband, such a situation demands your full dedication to rectify, since supporting your family is a paramount duty. While basing a career choice solely on money is not optimal,

you are probably going to be better on than choosing based on what like to do or what can do without further you you any preparation.

It is rare that someone has reconciled their vocation to all of the kingdom building priorities outlined above. It is a shame because leaving even just one unmet will lead to missed opportunities.

Besides those individuals who choose not to obtain training for a field, there are those who choose careers with no thought about potential employment. A good rule of thumb to identify these careers is to investigate how many years of a starting salary would it take to repay the full cost of the education required. If it is over one or two years, it is not a wise career. Some pick careers like that because they hope they somehow they will be one of the few in that field that get a job. Some just do it because it seems fun or less challenging than a more profitable career. It is unwise to pick a limited job market or low pay scale. It would be wise to choose a career that is in demand and that can support a family. As for avoiding a challenging career, if you have already decided that you have worked hard enough after the rigors of high school, then you probably won’t accomplish much in this life. Once you crest a hill, the only way to go is down.

Poor career choices will reduce the quality of life you live, but it doesn’t end there. Besides the damage you are doing to your children by neglecting their temporal needs, you are increasing the likelihood that they will grow up to be just like you, and will perpetuate your poor choices in the next generation.

Most people do not enjoy their jobs, so don’t be shocked if don’t feel like are on vacation when are at work. you you you However, if you follow these suggestions, you will feel peace in knowing that you have dedicated your vocation to the Lord, no

matter if you love your job or not.

Thrust a man into prison and bind him with chains, and then let him be filled with the comfort and with the glory of eternity, and that prison is a palace to him. Again, let a man be seated upon a throne with power and dominion in this world, ruling his million and millions and without that peace which flows from the Lord of Hosts—without that contentment and joy that come from heaven, his palace is a prison; his life is a burden to him; he lives in fear, in dread, and in sorrow. But when a person is filled with the peace and power of God, all is right with him. (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses 5:1-2)

With such an attitude, whatever we do at work, we do unto the Lord,

Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. (Ephesians 6:5-8.)

This blessing would not be yours to claim if you arbitrarily selected a job with no thought to service to the Lord.

If, instead of following these consecrated priorities, you submit to the world’s priorities of work, you will find yourself missing out on precious family time, the most important time you will ever spend. You may find yourself making too little money to cover the needs of your family, which is one of your main tasks if you are a father. You may find yourself losing chances to bless the lives of others because of hectic work schedule. You your may find yourself not attending Church or unwilling to accept Church callings because of your priorities.

After a life of preaching the gospel, Alma’s son Corianton was in line to be the bearer of the plates. He took a ship north

to deliver provisions to another people. He never returned. We do not know his exact reason for But that he going. suppose went north as a businessman. of his reason for not Regardless returning, he missed a tremendous service opportunity to be the custodian of the plates which were eventually published as the Book of Mormon. How many today choose an employment option which prevents them from reaching their spiritual potential, either knowingly or unknowingly?

There are differences in how consecrated work must be approached in both men and women. One reason that women may be tempted to leave the home for work is the perceived power or short-term success they may see in a career, compared to the perceived monotony and long-term dedication required in raising a family. It should be noted that men should not go into the workplace for the perceived power nor for the short-term success, nor to escape the duties of home life. Men should go to work to fulfill a divine commandment to provide for their families. The Lord blesses them, not because they are working, but because they are doing what he has asked. Though the method of receipt may be diweren't, faithful women who resist the urge to leave the home, and whose husbands provide an environment where they can fulfill their full-time role in the home, will be blessed just as their husbands are. The men will grow the most from doing what the Lord asks them to do, and the women will grow the most from doing what the Lord asks them to do. True success in life comes not from the career you pick, but from your seeking an interest in the work of the Lord with all your heart, and structuring your life to make your greatest attempt at it.

Consecrated vocational work is not just about what you choose as your career. It is about how your work fits into your life, and what your life’s purpose is. Consecration is focusing

every element of your life to the Lord’s work. Work is one such element. No matter your occupation, you can make it holy to the Lord’s work.

J.S. Bach was a noted example of vocational consecration. Though he earned a living from the music he composed, his objective was to worship God. He recognized that he was building the kingdom when he wrote his music. He knew that God had blessed him with the talent, and that only through God would music come to him which was worthy of its purpose. Said Bach, “God, who has not known a work of imperfection, must be most pleased with the most perfect art.”⁴ To that end, he began each composition by writing “Jesu Juva” atop the blank paper. The translation: “Jesus help me.” He concluded each piece by writing the letters “SDG,” which is an acronym for “Only to God be the Glory.”

Another great example of this principle is Alma. He said that from the time he had seen an angel, “even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.”¹⁷⁵ He clearly describes gospel work here. But how could he have labored without ceasing in bringing souls to Christ if we know that he also labored for his own support and worked as a government oHcial?⁵ At a very

minimum, Alma saw his temporal work as a source of funding for his missionary work. More likely, he took advantage of every opportunity, whether in the field or in the judgment seat, to live Christian principles and teach by example and precept the gospel of Jesus Christ, to the greatest extent allowed by those who listened.

This totally consecrated view of life may seem like something new and dramatic, but it isn’t. Voices from the past are a clarion call to return to our fundamental roots of consecration. Consider a comment made of Wilford Woodruv. Note how seamless were his ecclesiastical and temporal duties. All his duties and actions were unified in their purpose—to build the kingdom:

In all of his thoughts and labors, whether secular or spiritual, he sustained the same lofty inspiration. When he preached, he preached in the name of the Lord, when he plowed he plowed for the glory of God’s Kingdom. All that he said and all that he did was to him but a unified whole in the dispensation of God’s purposes. Life to him, in its highest and best sense, was the fulfillment of the Divine will. Wherever he was, whatever he was doing, he was thinking of his Maker, with whom he worked, walked, and talked in this life.” (“Wilford Woodruv,” Matthias Cowley, p181)

You might say that it would be easy for an Apostle to live a consecrated life. After all, if your full-time responsibility is to be a witness of the Savior, how hard could it be to make every action holy? It should first be remembered that Wilford Woodruv lived a consecrated life far before he was called as an Apostle. Second, keep in mind that Wilford Woodruv lived in a time when much time was in the necessities of life. An spent obtaining Apostle was not exempt from the many manual labor tasks of building homes for himself and others, farming, etc.

Are you confused about how he could plow for the glory of God’s Kingdom? The secret is not only in the action, but the motive.

With God, and also with those who understand the principles of life and salvation, the Priesthood, the oracles of truth and the gifts and callings of God to the children of men, there is no difference in spiritual and temporal matters—all are one.” (Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, 8)

We are told that with God, there is no difference between the spiritual and temporal commandments.⁶ When we do temporal things with a pure heart and with the intent to build the kingdom, they are as holy to the Lord as our home teaching or service. If motives are focused on the temple your building kingdom, you will feel the Spirit of God in all that you do.

Zechariah understood this principle. He prophesied that one day even the bells of the horses will be “HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD,” “Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts.”⁷ How can rudimentary work animals and plain vessels be considered holy? The purpose of the animal and vessel determined its holiness. Nephi’s temple, though made of less costly materials, served the same holy purpose as that of Solomon’s, and was therefore just as holy.⁸

Building the kingdom is not just putting on a missionary plaque and a suit and knocking doors. Building the kingdom is consecrating our time, talents, means, and everything we have or could have to the establishment of a people prepared to receive the Lord. Our whole purpose, even in work, is to help ourselves and others improve and draw closer to God. Though we receive money for our temporal work, the money is not our purpose, only a means to our real end, the building of Zion. “But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for they labor for money they shall perish.”⁹ I believe that we can worship God by doing the best we can in whatever our craft.

God derives great joy from seeing his children magnify their talents, as indicated in the parable of the talents. We possess a great capacity to give joy to our Father by applying ourselves to excellence in our vocations.