Evan's Story, chaper 22, service in the Priesthood

Service in the Priesthood

Every elder, priest, teacher, or deacon is to be ordained according to the gifts and callings of God unto him.

Doctrine and Covenants 20-60

   In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, young men may be ordained into the Aaronic Priesthood when they are twelve years of age. This priesthood takes its name from Aaron, the brother of Moses. The most visible function for these young men is to bless and pass the Sacrament. When Evan was twelve, it was his desire to be given this Priesthood. It was my privilege of ordaining him a Deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood.

    He had a rough start. His first duty was to help pass the Sacrament. The Deacon Quorum advisers and the other young men practiced with Evan and everyone thought he was ready. His task was to carry a tray of broken bread to the congregation. There is usually five boys assigned this task. Evan was supposed to take his tray to the church pews furthest from their starting point. While Evan balanced the tray on his lap, he quickly wheeled forward, but the tray tumbled from his lap, spilling the sacrament bread. One of the counselors in the Bishopric, Paul Jarvis, quietly picked up the pieces. Later, he said some kind words from the pulpit.

   Subsequently, someone would push Evan while he held on to the sacrament tray. In retrospect, I suppose it was better that way. It provided an opportunity for someone to be of service. He performed this duty faithfully for the next two years whenever his health allowed.

   At fourteen, I ordained him a Teacher. The Teacher’s duty, concerning the Sacrament, is to prepare it. That is, the trays are set out, the bread has been delivered, and the individual sacrament cups have been filled with water. To the best of his ability, he assisted the other Teachers in preparing the Sacrament.

   As a Teacher, he was also able to accompany me when I visited other members as a Home Teacher, that is, he was now my junior companion. It is the Duty of each Home Teacher to visit his assigned families at least once a month. We bring a spiritual message and see how the family is doing. Evan, being the quiet one, doesn’t usually say much during these visits, but he does bring a spirit with him. Besides, everyone loves Evan.

   When Evan was sixteen years old, I ordained him a Priest. Now he could perform other duties. A Priest can baptize new members. But since we perform baptism by immersion, this is one task Evan has not been able to perform. A Priest can say the Sacrament prayers for the bread and water. In the LDS religion, these are the symbols we use for the body and blood of Christ. Evan’s strong point is that he can read fairly well. Therefore, this was one Priesthood duty he was able to do. All we had to do was provide a card with the designated prayers and a microphone. But we provide these things for every Priest who is blessing the Sacrament.

   Evan loved blessing the Sacrament. He did this every Sunday for the next four years. He usually blessed the bread. He even had the prayer memorized.

   As Evan grew older, it was time to let other young men perform this duty. We also ordained Evan into the Melchizedek Priesthood. This Priesthood takes its name from a High Priest who lived at the same time as Abraham. As an Elder in the Melchizedek Priesthood, Evan is able to perform other duties. He can help confirm new members after baptism. He can assist in giving Priesthood blessings to sick or otherwise afflicted members. When a baby is given a name and a blessing, he can be a part of the circle. Evan has done all of these.

Mike, David, Spencer, John, and Evan on the way to Priesthood Meeting

   Usually, when a man is ordained an Elder, it is time to think about serving a full time mission. Because of his limitations, Evan is not serving a mission, or is he? Because of his spiritual influence, most of the other young men he grew up with served honorable missions. By the way, that’s our former Bishop, Bishop Nielsen’s opinion. Evan may not have an encyclopedic knowledge, but pertaining to the Gospel, he knows enough. He knows Right from Wrong and he always avoids Wrong. In the community, he’s always willing to tell people he is a Mormon.

   While attending his adult day program, Evan mentioned that he was a member to a new worker. She was a struggling single mother, a member of the LDS church, who wasn’t attending. Evan invited her back to church. Even when she didn’t start attending right away, Evan was still a shining beacon for her.

   One night, several ward members were at a beach bonfire. A girl that we didn’t know came up to Cindy and introduced herself as this woman’s daughter. Evan had invited her family to the beach bonfire, and they just needed a little more encouragement to join. Introductions were made, and soon, new friendships were formed. The family started to attend again and her son was baptized. She was very grateful for Evan’s efforts to bring her back into the fold.