MormonSpeak: Joyfully overwhelmed

My favorite part of Monday�s press conference at which a new First Presidency of the LDS Church was introduced was when President Dieter F. Uchtdorf walked into the room. While the rest of the brethren looked pleasant enough — calm, handsome, distinguished — only President Uchtdorf wore a big, broad smile.

As the newest member of the First Presidency, he had to know that every media eye was upon him — well, OK, him and President Monson. But rather than playing it cool, he smiled a smile that perfectly expressed what he was feeling inside — something he later characterized as being �joyfully overwhelmed.�

I could relate to that. Having been �joyfully overwhelmed� a few times in my life, I knew exactly how that felt. And even if I hadn�t actually felt it myself a time or two, I would have understood it perfectly because it was so clearly written on his face with that smile.

My second-most favorite moment of the press conference was also courtesy of President Uchtdorf. Right after he talked about being �joyfully overwhelmed� he testified that �I know this call comes from God because human beings would have had a difficult time to do the same.�

Who hasn�t thought that when an especially challenging calling has been issued? Like when I was called to be a Scoutmaster. For the third time. And I don't even like camping.

�I know this call must have come from the Lord,� I told my wife, Anita, �because nobody else would have called me to this calling for the third time, especially after the way I messed it the first two times.�

So OK, President Uchtdorf didn't exactly say anything about messing up. But the sentiment is the same. Or at least similar.

And I guess that�s part of the beauty of the Lord�s method of gospel governance. Even though few of us will ever know what it feels like to be a newly called member of the First Presidency, we all know how it feels to be �joyfully overwhelmed� by a new calling. New bishops are almost always �joyfully overwhelmed.� So are new Sunbeam teachers. And our new ward mission leader, himself a member for less than two years, confessed that his first thought upon being called to his position was: �You�ve got to be kidding.�

Which is essentially saying, �I�m joyfully overwhelmed.� Only with shorter words.