December 1, 2013 - Clark

Sunday, December 1, 2013

This past week, Shelley and I have been completing our missionary recommendation papers and all required medical and dental forms.  It has been amazing how quickly things have come together once we decided to respond to President Monson’s call to “make yourselves available”.

I have been especially nervous about leaving my CPA practice and the identity I have established in our community and our business.  Looking back to the time when Rennie and I negotiated with Roger and Bruce to bring them into the practice and sell our interest, it was about 20 years ago.  We required cliff vesting where they had to stay until we retired before they received 100% of our interest in the practice and we had to commit to them a specific age at which we would retire.  I had seen my father bring in a partner, John Holmgren, who was ten years younger without cliff vesting only to subsequently be required to buy him out because of poor health.  I also wanted to wait until I was at least old enough to meet the full retirement age for social security benefits.  At the time 67 seemed a lifetime away.

Next July I will be 67 and that lifetime has passed far more quickly than anticipated.  I should be grateful to Roger and Bruce for pushing me into making a date specific commitment.  It still requires a leap of faith.  I also remember a missionary fireside about 5-6 years ago where they were challenging all soon to be senior couples to set a date.  I remember setting the same 67 age date or by December of 2014.  Rennie and I have been appointed as co-chairmen or our 50-year high school reunion.  At first blush, I thought I would work an additional year and leave after the reunion.  Since Rennie and Myrna have been serving and watching several of my friends encounter unexpected health issues, I have modified my idea of when we should leave.  

I didn’t want to procrastinate the time of our departure to a later date when we may or may not be able to serve.  We’re healthy now and can afford to leave but have continued to feel an obligation to Shelley’s mother.  Emily and Monica have helped Shelley feel more secure in leaving.  They have taken an active role in visiting and caring for her. 

I have also worried about never working again for money. Leaving a lifetime of measuring success by your earnings capacity has felt threatening and I have wondered if we would have enough of a reserve built up to retire on.  During the past year our retirement savings have grown by 29% and I continue to be left without excuse.  I have also been reading in the Doctrine and Covenants.  Several sections talk about what would be of most worth to an individual and the answer is always to same, “to cry repentance and bear witness of the restoration.”  Thy will has been a difficult decision process and I’m sure will continue to be a challenge but I do know it has been much easier since deciding to go now!

It has been a blessing to see everything come together so quickly once we were committed.  We decided to send our papers in December 1^st and met with Bishop Taylor last Sunday and again Tuesday in preparation for our meeting with President Ferry today.  Many tender mercies were manifest in obtaining immunizations, doctor’s letters and successfully navigating all the online forms to apply.  

Shelley and I have had such a sense of calm and reassurance that we are doing to right thing at the right time.  President Ferry had us review Elder Rasband’s conference talk, “The divine call of a missionary”.  There is such comfort in knowing the missionary calls come from the Apostles.  I look at the opportunity as being a sanctification process in improving our own lives but we desire to share the hoy of the gospel with others.  I also hope it will be an example to our children and grandchildren of the things we value most in life.  

I appreciate others who have gone before us in providing an example of missionary service:  Jay and Marcia Stuart, Rennie and Myrna Bott and Barr and Nancy Cannon.  I will be happy to add our names to that list.  

Our call won’t come for another 4-6 weeks but the anticipation will continue to grow.  I’m pleased that we have taken that first step of faith and that the ball is out of our court.  We look forward with confidence that our call will be inspired by revelation in our behalf.  Shelley and I have joke that life is the sum total of your experiences; well this will definitely be an adventure.  I’m so happy that I won’t have to change companions as I did as a 19 year-old missionary in Germany.