I Go Because My Master Calls

We will be guided by the Savior in our ministries as we remember that this is His work, and it has to be done His way.

Photo by Brandon Olsen

Near the end of the British Pageant, one of our productions in Nauvoo, the recent proselytes in Britain mount a ship to join the body of the Saints in the United States.

The performers fill the stage with joy as they cheer and dance aboard the gallant ship. And then they kneel as they watch the shore fade into the distance, and they sing:

I go because my master calls;
He’s made my duty plain—
No danger can the heart apal
When Jesus stoops to reign!

And now the vessel’s side we’ve made;
The sails their bosoms swell:
Thy beauties in the distance fade—
My native land farewell.¹

These converts surely knew that they would never return to Britain in their lifetime. They were leaving behind family, friends, and the beloved country of their nascence.

But with faith they mounted that ship. Why?

“I go because my master calls”.

They went because the Lord called them.

They were “called to serve”, so they said, “I’ll go where you want me to go.”²

Personally, I find myself very comfortable when I'm at home. I like my furniture, my car, my job, and my friends. But the Lord's intent is not for us to be comfortable. No, He calls us to stretch out of our comfort zone, to traverse lands and waters and apartment complexes and front lawns, to enter the homes of the downtrodden and the weary, and to serve as His hands on the earth.

So, while there is some discomfort when the Lord calls me to serve, it is not hard for me to go, and I don’t think it ever has been.

Rather, at the start of any new mission or ministry, I always find strength by remembering the many miracles I have already seen and the guarantee of eventual success. And I remember that the Savior is the true agent in my interactions, while I am just the vessel.

So, my good friends, at the end of this mission in Nauvoo, I look forward to my next ministry. And I hope that I can continue to rely on each of you to be a companion or a help when I need it for the blessing of God's children.

Indeed, we are all one body of Saints with a call to serve, and we will be guided by the Savior in our ministries as we remember that this is His work, and it has to be done His way.

Yes, He will help us, if we are willing, to serve His mission for the rest of our lives.

Love,
Elder Torres

1. The Gallant Ship, Collection of Sacred Hymns, 1835, Page 64

2. Hymns, 249 and 270