{"chapter_no":"23","chapter_title":"Bishop Tyler's Dilemma","book_id":"2","book_name":"The Story of James","subchapter_no":"0","page_no":"294","page_number":"1","verses_count":0,"total_pages":4,"page_content":"

 <\/p>

Chapter 23<\/p>

Bishop Tyler's Dilemma<\/h1><\/p>

 <\/p>

Bishop Tyler ponders his interview with James<\/i> <\/i>while <\/i>at the temple—Was James's goal proper and
in line with<\/i> the principles of the<\/i> <\/i>C<\/i>hurch<\/i>?—<\/i>What are the inherent responsibilities in the gospel for a man
or woman <\/i>in <\/i>the Church<\/i> <\/i>who has faith, desire, and a powerful testimony of Jesus Christ?<\/i><\/p>

 <\/p>

 <\/p>

 <\/p>

Early the next morning, Bishop Tyler picked up the phone in the kitchen of his home and
put in a call to work. He talked with his assistant, a young man named Jeffrey Bell, explaining
that something important had come up and he needed a couple days off to take care of it. Jeff
would be in charge of the office until he returned. It was a brief call and no further information
was given. It was almost unheard of for Kevin to take even one day off, let alone––and so
suddenly––more than one. Accordingly, there was concern among Kevin’s work associates, all
of them hoping that everything with him and his family was okay and that nothing serious had
happened.<\/p>

 <\/p>

In fact, something significant had happened, but nothing worrisome or of a grave nature.
In the midst of his sleep, around 3:30 AM, Bishop Tyler awoke unexpectedly. In that instant, he
heard a voice pass quickly through his mind, saying, “A beautiful temple,” or something to that
effect. It was the voice of the Spirit, a simple flow of words, but words conveying a clear
message. He understood it to mean, \"Haste thee, and get thou up to the temple.\" Bishop Tyler
obeyed the prompting.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Watching the clock hour by hour in bed, he waited for morning to arrive. At 7:00, he
arose, showered, and got dressed in his best suit. After placing the call into work, he got into his
car and drove over to the temple. What he was about to do was important—something that
needed to be done today. When one is directed by the Spirit, it is not something to be taken
lightly. His wife Janice was curious about the sudden change of plan for the day. She considered
asking to go with him, but it seemed clear that this was something he had to do on his own. A
formal priesthood assignment had been received. <\/p>

 <\/p>

He reached the temple at 8:45 and attended the next scheduled endowment session, after
which he sat alone pondering in the reverent atmosphere of the temple. <\/p>

 <\/p>

The Spirit of the Lord had led him to this holy place to receive counsel. As a priesthood
leader with many years of experience, he had the basic skills needed to properly ask the Lord for
revelation and, in fact, he had visited the temple like this many times before seeking help in
important matters. The situation today, however, was reversed. He had already received <\/p>

revelation earlier that morning commanding him to go to the temple, and not in response to his
own supplication. The Spirit was out in front, creating the impetus for Bishop Tyler to act––like
Nephi in the land of Bountiful being commanded, \"Arise, and get thee to the mountain.\" The
matter at hand, obviously, was James's testimony and his goals in life––things that had left him,
as James’s bishop, in a stupor the day before. It was as though James, through his innocent
aspirations in the gospel, had taken a brush in hand and painted a series of beautiful illustrations
upon Bishop Tyler’s mind, bringing to life a new vision of what was possible to do in the ward,
and in the Church at large, in the years ahead. Unsure how to react, he needed guidance from the
Lord. What does a bishop do in a case like this?<\/p>

 <\/p>

He pondered the issue for almost an hour, then at 11:45, he left the temple to go eat lunch
at a nearby restaurant. Ordering a roast beef sandwich, he devoured it quickly along with a side
order of French fries—attending a temple session often makes one hungry! The sandwich was
delicious, so he called the waitress over to order another one. She obliged. Finished with the
second sandwich, he sat and watched people come and go during the restaurant’s busy lunch
hour. The thoughts that had occupied his mind in the temple continued here in the restaurant. He
remained deep in thought about the matter with James and what the Lord might have him do.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Where had all of this come from in James’s life? Was he just looking for something new
in his life now that basketball had been taken away from him? Yes, that was certainly a part of it.
But the fallout from the accident seemed to be only one of many factors. James had always
possessed a strong desire to dedicate himself to something. His passion for basketball had now
been superseded by something else and, in fact, by something much better.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Bishop Tyler could see nothing wrong in what James was proposing. It was in perfect
harmony with the highest principles of the restored gospel. But could this be a situation where
virtue might be overdone, leading James astray and others in the ward with him? <\/p>

 <\/p>

Was James heading down the wrong road? <\/p>

 <\/p>

The answer was \"No.\" It was nothing like that at all.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Did this new goal of James follow the proper order of things from the standpoint of the
Church? <\/p>

 <\/p>

The answer was \"Yes.\" Everything so far had followed proper priesthood protocol.<\/p>

 <\/p>

First, James had developed a strong desire within himself to do good. Second, the goals
defined were unselfish and for the benefit of others outside himself. Third, his thought process
was sound, showing patience, good organizational skills, and a long-term investor’s approach in
the planning of his life, and something driven both by serious prayer and the study of the
scriptures. Fourth, there were the remarkable events that had helped to shape his decision, events
that had, apparently, strengthened his testimony and created a dramatic change for the better in
his life. Fifth, and most recently, a family home evening lesson and a family counsel had both
been involved, the point at which James first shared his goals and testimony with others. He had
kept these things confidential prior to that time. Sixth, once discovered, the whole matter had <\/p>

been immediately brought forward and laid at the feet of him, the bishop, for review and to
receive counsel. And seventh, James's testimony had been accompanied by a strong
manifestation of the Spirit during the interview in the bishopric office, adding an exclamation
point to everything he had been saying. <\/p>

 <\/p>

Surely, everything had been done in proper order. Nobody had circumvented the
priesthood process. So was there a problem still?<\/span><\/p>

 <\/p>

It wasn’t so much a feeling that there was a problem here, but a concern that they were
now entering into an unknown territory of the gospel. If James had done something wrong, and
was going about things in an improper way, it would be easy––he would just counsel James,
correct him in whatever it was that he was doing wrong, and then send him off towards
repentance. A bishop is well trained to handle that kind of scenario. But here, it was the opposite.
James was doing everything correctly and had a wonderful attitude. The problem was that he, the
bishop, was not trained to deal with a situation like this. A young Aaronic Priesthood holder was
volunteering himself to the ward with desires to do unimaginably good things for the rest of his
life. But there was no official calling or ordination on the books he had to give him. On the other
hand, James was not asking for one either. He just wanted to learn how to make the ward better
and was offering his time in that regard. And both James and his parents had wanted him to
check first with the priesthood leadership in the ward before doing anything. That’s why they
had come to him<\/span>.<\/p>

 <\/p>

The goal James wanted to pursue was related to his individual faith, his desires, and his
testimony, and it was not anything that required a formal Church organization transaction. If all
was deemed to be in order, however, it was not out of the question that a formal calling could be
created for something like this. But that was the easy part. The real question was what kind of
precedent this would set, something he as the bishop might need to discuss at some point with
the stake president.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Not wanting to be embarrassed in front of the ward, or in a meeting with the stake
president, Bishop Tyler therefore returned once again to the main question: Was this a proper
goal for a young man (or a man or woman of any age) of the Church to pursue? Was everything
in order? <\/p>

 <\/p>

As a priest in the Aaronic Priesthood, what was James actually allowed to do within the
existing framework of the Church? Were there limitations in place as to how great of works a
young man might undertake for the benefit of his ward... a restriction of duties or good works?
The answer to that seemed to be a resounding “No.” Furthermore, James would soon be of age to
receive the Melchizedek Priesthood. It was just a matter of time. And whether he held the
Aaronic Priesthood or the Melchizedek Priesthood, the answer in both cases was the same––no
quota of blessings from God was in place, no restrictions on the quality or quantity of good
works he could do, and no restrictions on the dramatic impact those good works could have on a
ward, as long as everything followed the established, proper order of the Church.<\/p>

 <\/p>

And in terms of the priesthood itself, and the practicality of formal callings therein,
Bishop Tyler also recognized that James, in the years before he had been ordained to be a <\/p>

deacon, had often been called upon––like his older brothers––to participate in a wide range of
service projects and assignments with priesthood holders in the ward. This came about because
there was often a shortfall of available manpower in the active priesthood holder ranks. His
father was bishop at the time and couldn’t always wait around to see if those called would show
up for their assignments. So, to make sure important tasks got done, he would end up calling
upon his younger sons when needed, like shoveling snow on winter days at the church, setting up
chairs in the cultural hall, helping people move in and out of the ward, and helping single sisters
and elderly members with home repairs. James had always proved himself to be obedient to
priesthood callings even before he was old enough to be ordained to the priesthood!<\/p>

 <\/p>

In light of this dilemma faced by Bishop Tyler, we might ask ourselves as readers the
following question: What are the responsibilities of a man or woman in the Church who has
desire, faith in Christ, and a powerful testimony of the gospel? <\/p>

 <\/p>

It would seem that the responsibilities of such persons are limitless, just as the
opportunities for the blessings they can receive in return are limitless. These responsibilities go
far beyond that which is given them to do as part of the normal, day-to-day operations of a ward.
This was the principle of the gospel James was bringing forth. <\/p>

 <\/p>

Like Jacob of the Book of Mormon, James accepted the fact that he was responsible for
the spiritual welfare of others, for the souls of those who exist within the Church as well as those
who exist without. A layman's knowledge and a sense of duty in the gospel had thrust these ideas
upon him, enough at least to prick his conscience; desire in the gospel, and a love for his fellow
man, had caused him to act upon that duty<\/span>.<\/p>"}