not a book...a pamphlet.

 (admit right up front that I just went on and on.  Maybe I should parcel it out! yes.  I will)

 Part A

A friend was teaching the Gospel Doctrine class and she made the comment, along the lines of...because I know Nancy, I will say that if she could add a National Holiday it would be General Conference.  She loves General Conference.

True.  She then asked me how I gained my testimony and I gave a real brief reply but I want to tell you the foundation of my testimony that I did not mention.  Well, maybe in passing but not really.

I had been taught the Church was based on revelation through the First Vision.  I did not connect that with the fact the Church believed that the heavens were opened.  As a Bible believing Baptist I had not really been formally taught the heavens were closed but it was clearly understood that of course they were.  How could God communicate with man anyhow???  Speak to man???  Never entered my mind.

When I found out that fact that the Church fully believed that God communes with mankind and there are Apostles on the earth and it's not just a title but has special meaning....  One of which is communication with God...Truth be told--I was floored!  I didn't really know how to deal with it.

You know the ending of this little bitty tale...my weakest link became fire-forged strong and is a joy in my life...a lifeline/confidence builder/increaser of my faith/testimony.

It wasn't that the men were amazing orators or movie star looks or anything worldly that got me when I started studying to figure it out for myself.

The clincher for me, the base of my search, was what they gave up for the Church to serve as an Apostle of Jesus Christ for the rest of their mortal life.

Just as in the Bible and the calling of Apostles of old...

Part B

And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.

And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.

And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.

And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.

(Matthew 4:18-22)

And this is the ensample unto them, that they shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost.

And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord and the power of God unto salvation. (D&C 68:3)

What I the Lord have spoken I have spoken, and I excuse not myself;  and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.  (D&C 1:38)

Part C

 The commonality of these men is testimony/commitment to serving/willingness to walk away from life as they know it....Where they live.....What they do with their time....And once they are called they serve until the time they die!  They are told when they get a break and for how long.  Month of July?  I can't remember right now.  Elder Neal A. Maxwell used to even use that time to write his books!

This year I'm really thinking of what they and their wives and their families give up in order to push the work forward.

None of the current 15 Apostles had even retired from the careers they had chosen. They were enjoying that choice and being successful in their lives.  President Monson was called as an Apostle when he was 36.  He, as all the rest, had given years of service before that call came.

Here are the ages when called to the Apostleship....
Elder....
Monson 36
Packer 46
Perry/Oaks/Bednar 52
Holland 54
Ballard 57
Anderson 58
Scott/Nelson 60
Hales/Eyring 62
Christofferson 63
Uchtdorf 64
Cook 67

Part D

(I just now remembered that I have written before about my love and conviction of Apostles!)

Below was written 2 years ago and I still feel the exact same way!.... a bit of that blog....right here! 
  
A lot of these men were just into the swing of their careers.  The sheer amount of education and success in the careers of Elder Nelson and Elder Oaks, just those two alone are mind-boggling.  Both called on the same day.  Members wondering why the call and couldn't they do more for the Church by staying and to continue developing their fields of expertise?   A Cardiovascular Surgeon!  A justice of the Utah Supreme Court!  

Dreams and plans for how many years?  how much education and sacrifice to obtain those goals.  rising to the pinnacle of success and still growing, moving ahead and then poof!....one phone call.  one meeting.  and straightway (dictionary- at once, immediately) they shift gears, no looking back and they start their ministry.  

From that moment on, every word they say will be as if chiseled in stone.  True, they have 6 months to prepare for General Conference talk but once those words are spoken...that is it.  no do overs.  no take backs.  no apologies.  no changes.  Right out of the chute that expectation is understood.

I now have a testimony that the heavens are indeed open and these chosen servants will be the ones that are used to further the work.  Therefore when I'm searching for answers to problems/challenges/adversities in my life, I can research from these Conference talks and I will find what I need and the Holy Ghost will let me know....  there it is.  just what you've been looking for.

Part E

Look at the paragraph below.  He was called in 1984 and walked away from his lifelong dream right at that point in 1984!  Proof positive that the Church is true for men such as this to leave what they were doing and serve in spreading the Gospel until their last breath!

"Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is uniquely qualified to address the topic of religious freedom. Prior to his calling as an apostle in 1984, he served as a justice on the Utah Supreme Court from 1981–1984, as legal counsel to the Illinois Constitutional Convention Bill of Rights Committee in 1970, as a professor at the University of Chicago Law School from 1961–1971, as law clerk to Chief Justice Earl Warren of the United States Supreme Court from 1957 to 1958, and as Editor-in-Chief of The University of Chicago Law Review from 1956–1957. He also served as Chairman of the Board of the Public Broadcasting Service from 1980–1985, as a board member from 1977–1985, and as president of Brigham Young University from 1971–1980."

Part F

AND Elder Nelson walked away from all of this, that he loved and enjoyed....

An internationally renowned surgeon and medical researcher, Dr. Nelson received his B.A. and M.D. degrees from the University of Utah (1945, 47). Honorary scholastic societies include Phi Beta Kappa and Alpha Omega Alpha. He served his residency in surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and at the University of Minnesota, where he was awarded his Ph.D. Degree in 1954. He also received honorary degrees of Doctor of Science from Brigham Young University in 1970, Doctor of Medical Science from Utah State University in 1989, and Doctor of Humane Letters from Snow College in 1994.

His professional work included the positions of research professor of surgery and director of the Thoracic Surgery Residency at the University of Utah and chairman of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City.

Author of numerous publications and chapters in medical textbooks, Elder Nelson lectured and visited professionally throughout the United States and in many other nations prior to his call as a General Authority. A host of awards and honors have come to him, including the Distinguished Alumni Award, University of Utah; the Heart of Gold Award from the American Heart Association; a citation for International Service from the American Heart Association; and the Golden Plate Award, presented by the American Academy of Achievement. He has been awarded honorary professorships from three universities in the People’s Republic of China.

Dr. Nelson has served as president of the Society for Vascular Surgery, a director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, chairman of the Council on Cardiovascular Surgery for the American Heart Association, and president of the Utah State Medical Association.

Part G

 (go here to learn about these marvelous men and their families and the love they have for the Savior. Love that is strong enough for them to straightway leave their careers to serve!!  your testimony will grow stronger than ever!! The above information, about Elder Nelson is from the Church site I suggested you go to)