The Lord works in mysterious ways.

I got a calling. The bishopric counselor came to my "home" and sat in the "bedroom" on my other "chair" and said, "We'd like you to serve as the teacher for the 12 and 13 year olds in Sunday School." I did "backflips" and "handsprings". Of course, I accepted. Then we talked about the kids and my schedule. No problem, we have people who can sub when you are gone, etc.

Gave me the manual two days later and I got my lesson prepared on John Taylor, complete with object lesson and all.

I arrived early, checked out material from the library, saw one of my students, recruited him to help me carry stuff. He asked, "Are you our new teacher?" I said, "Shhh. Yes. I'll get set apart today." He smiled. Great kid.

So we got to the classroom and he immediately starts setting up chairs. What a guy. We finished and he went his 13 year old way. I went...my own way.

I walk down the hall and here comes the bishopric member who called me.

"Hey, Brian! How you doin'?"

"Great!"

"Guess what?"

"What?!"

"Your calling has been changed."

"...what do you mean?"

"Has the stake not called you, yet?"

"The...choke...STAKE?"

"Yes, I'm bummed, they pre-empted us. I guess they can do that."

"What is it?"

But of course he was mum.

I saw the bishop later. And he just grinned that evil bishop grin.

"What's up?", I asked.

"The stake had other ideas, but you are going to do very well in this new calling. I will gladly give you up for this."

The only stake callings I can think of are:

Stake presidency

High Council

Stake YM presidency

HP group leaders

Elders Quorum presidency

Executive secretary

Bishopric member

Ward YM presidency

Ward Clerks

There might be something I've missed.

The bishop would not be happy to have me do the following:

Stake presidency

High Council

Stake YM presidency

I am not an elder, so that's out. He might conceivably be excited to have a HP group leader, but I don't see it. Possibly an exec sec or ward clerk, but I've never seen a bishop get real excited about those, though. Bishop's counselor, maybe? Is one of them moving? The ward YM president just got called about two weeks ago and neither it nor scoutmaster is a stake calling, thank goodness.

I await their call.

On to other things.

I was helping a new member get her kids ready for class, and the three year old (why is it always three year olds?) look at me, pointed to my belly and said, "What's IN there?"

His mother was mortified, but she doesn't know me. I will get miles and miles out of that.

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When Brigham and his family and aunts and cousin Beau came to visit my office, he spotted a diversity poster (we are required to practice diversity, unless...well never mind.) with a picture of a large, fat, Polynesian man with tattoos. See below.

I was holding him. He looked at the picture and pointed to it, then will all sincerity, asked, "Boppa, when did you get all the tattoos?"

I let him live.