Why I Chose to Minister
for Jesus Christ
Prepared by
Elder Dwight Burford
hisworkmanship.net
February 16, 2024, Printing
[pdf copy]
On December 12, 1982, I was ordained to the order of the Melchizedek priesthood[1] by Evangelist Louis Zonker and my father Elder Jim Burford. Very early that morning, before getting out of bed, I had been awakened to a vivid image in my mind of a man who was well-liked. He was wearing an attractive suit and tie and spoke pleasingly when he preached. The words he spoke drew many people to him, and he enjoyed their admiration and praise.
Then a second man appeared next to the image of the first. This other man preached the gospel of Jesus Christ with confidence and clarity, nothing varying.[2] His messages were not always popular with those to whom he ministered. Neither was he well-liked by them. But the Lord delighted in him because he was faithful to His plain and precious words, which He has given to us in the written scriptures inspired by His Holy Spirit of truth.
Upon seeing the marked difference between these two men, I immediately said in my heart that I wanted to be like the second man, the one who ministered for Jesus Christ by teaching His plain and precious truths. At the same time, I recognized this meant I would not be popular, but my love for the Lord drew me to this second man and his purpose in ministering for Jesus. My heart was then filled with great joy and assurance from the Lord.
Along with the assurance I received from the Lord, He also let me know He would deal with me according to my desire to be faithful to Him and His gospel. It was at this point that I recognized He had brought me to this fork in the road. While it had not occurred to me when I first saw these two men, I now understood I was at a critical juncture in my life and that my decision in that early morning hour would set the course for the rest of my days on earth and on into eternity.
During the ordination prayers later that day, I received a most gracious and powerful blessing of ordination and confirmation under the hands of Brother Zonker and my father. My wife Pam transcribed Brother Zonker’s prayer as follows:
Brother Dwight, In the beauty of this occasion and in the sacredness of this experience, your father and I place our hands upon your head to confer upon you the power and authority of the Melchisedec priesthood, to share with you many of the opportunities of life, extended beyond that which you have known up to this point. We come to you as your friends and fellow servants, aware of the intent of your heart, and of the integrity of your soul, also of the depth of your understanding about your commitment, and of your desire to serve Him as your Lord and Master.
The treasures of your life are accepted this day because they have first been conferred upon you for the privilege of sharing that which was expressed this morning so beautifully by one of the Lord’s servants, in emphasizing the calling which is yours, together with your brethren who are being ordained at this very time.
Dwight, there comes to you through the Melchisedec priesthood the keys of all the spiritual blessings of the church. It will be your privilege to open the windows of heaven and to share through your skills and gifts the precious powers for which the souls of men and women are yearning. You shall have the privilege of communing with the general assembly in the church of the firstborn. You shall have the power and the keys of heaven to unlock many of the mysteries which heretofore have even baffled your own mind and your own heart.
There shall come to you the privilege of sharing intimately in the lives of men and women and little children, which shall be a natural privilege for you to extend that which you have always wanted to do in your life.
And today you are encompassed about by a great cloud of witnesses–many of those who have lived many years in the past, those that you have come to know through your studies and through your spiritual experiences, and many who would like to be here today sharing with you and are unable. You are supported by them and shall be assisted in your ministry, as you find the opportunities to further explore that which you would like to do in your life because of your personal experience with the Lord Jesus.
Dwight, you shall be known as an ambassador. An ambassador of a country is one who goes to serve, to follow orders, who is commissioned to affect treaties, and who is also privileged to make contracts between nations. It will be your privilege to make covenants and contracts and treaties, dealing with heaven and earth between human beings and the Divine Creatures [Beings] who have created you.
And you shall discover, as you explore this possibility, that you will be walking into homes at times where the feverish brow of those who have prompted the calling, and inviting of you for ministry, shall respond to the touch of your hands, and the words of your mouth, and the sentiments of your soul, and the power of the priesthood, to share the relief that comes to those individuals as they are restored to health.
You also have the privilege of sharing in all the sacred ordinances of the church, in which you will be permitted to feed the hungry souls of those who come to you for counsel and guidance and support.
Brother Dwight, the sacredness of your calling shall not overwhelm you, for the Lord your God has prepared you and raised you up for this time. He will sustain you, and bless you, inspire you. And the demands of your ministry shall never be beyond the means of your sharing that in a way that the Lord has called you and prepared you to do.
Be kind and considerate to those with whom you serve, those with whom you study. Receive from your contact with people the lessons of life, in which you shall come to ultimately be willing to lay down your life in service for that which has been made available to you.
And as has been suggested, be considerate of your companion, one also who has been raised up for this opportunity of ministry, who will not only love you, but will also sustain you and support you.
And thus, Dwight, accept the keys of ministry to unlock many of the mysteries of life. And be willing to use your natural gifts in ways that will be the greatest blessing to the maximum number of people.
Be not discouraged if there are those who do not respond as quickly as you would desire. Permit the patience of the Good Spirit to prompt others to respond as the Lord would deal with them, even directly.
And thus, our Heavenly Father, we seal upon thy servant at this time the power, and the authority, and the blessings of the Melchisedec priesthood, which shall bind heaven and earth together and shall bring the tangible, visible witness of thy power through him.
We pray thou shalt sustain his life, protect him physically, inspire him spiritually. Permit him also, as he studies things on the earth, above the earth, and under the earth, to receive a testimony of that which thou art trying to do in lives of men and women and little children throughout the world.
May through his ministry thy kingdom come closer to the earth. And bless him with the power that which he receives this day, that he might sustain the legal authority that he receives by the higher quality of integrity and moral development that comes to him in his life and his family, that he might not only speak words, but also be an example by precept of that which he seeks to affect through his ministry.
And thus we seal, in thy name, under the mandate of the Stake Conference, and of the support of these his people in ministry and power wherever he goes. May thy will be done in his life as he continues to serve and to bless those to whom he has been called. We seal these blessings upon his life for the sake of his ministry, and also his joy, and also his future, in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen.
December 12, 1982, was one of the major crossroads the Lord has placed before me in my life. As I have journeyed along the path of ministering for Jesus Christ since then, I can truthfully testify the Lord has greatly blessed me according to His words so beautifully spoken by Brother Zonker. Of truth, the desires of my soul have been answered in my walk with Jesus, with his words being firmly rooted within me unto bearing Him fruit to His honor and glory and for the furtherance of His work.
Although I am still trying to comprehend the Lord’s merciful calling on my life, I learned something of great worth in those early morning hours of December 12, 1982. The Lord has often brought me to such junctures where I must choose between differing paths based on the hopes and desires of my heart. At these junctures, the Lord presents me with alternatives, one that leads to continued life in Him and the other which leads away from Him.
At times I have wanted to take both paths when I have come to these crossroads in my walk with Jesus Christ. However, when I think this way, I am reminded of how I grew up in Colorado where I hiked in the Sangre de Christo mountain range. When starting a particular trek, I knew I had to pick a single path for getting to my destination. Picking a wrong trail could take me far afield from my goal, requiring backtracking to a correct path (if there was yet time to continue hiking).
As noted above, it has not always been apparent to me when I have come to a crossroad in my life. On December 12, 1982, for instance, I was not told I was at a fork in the road. Only after I made my choice did I understand that I was indeed at one, and that my choice had now set the course for my life for many days and years to come.
What exactly set me on the path of ministering for Jesus? My love for the Lord soared as I read through the Book of Mormon after graduating from high school. As I read through this precious book during the summer of 1974, my soul longed to be in the service of my God, whom I found to be gracious and longsuffering, not petty or capricious as some viewed Him. Our Lord is wise and merciful and His plan for our lives is eternally motivated. For it is written:
D&C 22:23b – … this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality, and eternal life of man.
Ever since I read the gracious words of our Lord in the Book of Mormon in the summer of 1974 and in the New Testament during the fall time of the same year, I have sought to set my eyes single to the glory of God by setting them on His work and glory based on the following counsel:
D&C 16:3c-3f – Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God; for, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him. And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him on conditions of repentance. And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth. Wherefore you are called to cry repentance unto this people. And if it so be that you should labor all your days, in crying repentance unto this people, and bring save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!
In my ministry to others, I have come to realize that it is not always obvious to many that they are standing at a crossroad in their lives. Therefore, I am sharing this testimony in the hope that it will help others recognize the choices God places before them, often without announcing to them that they are at a fork in the road. Each of us must choose the path we will take at such junctures, and the path we choose will be the one which best aligns with what and whom we love.
To this end, I leave you with the following counsel of Mormon, the servant of the Lord who abridged the Book of Mormon.
10 Wherefore, all things which are good cometh of God; and that which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God and fighteth against Him continually, and inviteth and enticeth to sin and to do that which is evil continually.
11 But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually; wherefore, everything which inviteth and enticeth to do good and to love God and to serve Him is inspired of God;
12 Wherefore, take heed, my beloved brethren, that ye do not judge that which is evil to be of God, or that which is good and of God to be of the devil.
13 For behold, my brethren, it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil; And the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night;
14 For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that they may know good from evil. Wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge: for everything which inviteth to do good and to persuade to believe in Christ is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ;
15 Wherefore, ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God; but whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil and believe not in Christ and deny Him and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil;
16 For after this manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good—No! Not one! neither doth his angels, neither doth they which subject themselves unto him.
17 And now my brethren, seeing that ye know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge, ye shall also be judged;
18 Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ.
These words have been a great treasure to me over the years in that they have helped me discern between the good way which leads to eternal life versus the many ways which lead to an evil and wicked life. I trust these words will yet be a treasure to all who have set their heart on loving and abiding in the truth and life of Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 13:20,21 – Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
[1] cf. John 15:16 & I Peter 2:5-10 with Hebrews 7:11-27; see also Alma 9:63-73 & Alma 10:1-17
[2] cf. III Nephi 9:10 with Alma 12:4-5
