Little Angel Jordan

I flipped through my scriptures after church as I did my personal study. My companion was sitting next to me on the couch reading in Ether. As I flipped I noticed a picture I had cut out of an Ensign and stuck in my scriptures earlier in my mission.

I studied the picture a little bit. It was a picture of Christ as he performed the atonement. There was another figure in the picture. An angel, sent to comfort Him in a time of dire need.

I read the verse underlined in red on the page. 

"And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him."

-Luke 22:43

As I thought about it I realized this is the only time we ever hear about this angel. We don't know his or her name, or their story. Only that they were called to comfort Christ.

But as I sat there I started to ponder what this Angels story may be. 

For the sake of this story I decided to refer to this angel as a girl, being a sister missionary myself, but I don't know for sure. I also decided to give her a name. I decided to call her Jordan. As I sat staring at this picture a story started to unfold in my mind and I quickly wrote it down. This story is fiction and I don't claim any of it to be true, but it taught me something. I decided to dedicate it to my trainee, Sister Hart. I hope you can learn something from it too.

Jordan was a new angel. She was small and had only made the decision to be an angel a short time before. Her wings felt uncomfortable and heavy to carry as she was not quite used to them yet, and her robes fit a little too loose because they were a size too big. 

Jordan awoke early in the morning and stretched out her wings. 6:30 am and class started in 20 minutes. She yawned as she grabbed her bag and ran out the door.

She got to the long hallway where the classrooms were. Because Jordan was a new angel she had extra training classes to attend everyday. She was the last angel to sit down so she took the last empty seat in the back of the room. She pulled out her notes and started to write down the steps that were written on the board for creating miracles for the people on earth. 

1. Find someone with a lot of faith
2. Give them a prompting
3. Reward them for acting

The teacher asked for a demonstration. The whole class looked down on earth and one of the more experienced Angels quickly made a miracle happen in South America. After a few minutes several other people in the room had successfully accomplished this task. "I'll never be able to do this" she thought to herself. She struggled to complete the task and the teacher said that anyone who was not able to do it would have to take the assignment home as homework. The bell rang and she left the room to head to her next class.

Her next class was choir. She sat down in the second row and started to talk to the girl next to her. "I've never really been a singer." She whispered. Is it hard? "No" the girl responded, "but I've been training to be in this choir my whole earthly life." She continued, "I started singing when I was young. By high school I was the in my schools choir, and I eventually got my masters in vocal performances and sang with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir." 

The teacher came to the front of the room and explained that all are welcome to join this choir and that nobody will be turned away so they should feel free to come and join bring their friends. And she asked the choir to begin with vocal exercises. Although the teacher had said the class was open to everyone and that you didn't need any past experience, Jordan still felt out of place as she realized that many of the people in the room had been professional singers while on earth and she didn't really know how to read music. As soon as the bell rang she slipped quickly out of the room.

Her next class was called "the ministering of Angels."  Jordan was excited about this class. It was all about comforting others. But as soon as the teacher started talking she put her face into her hands on her desk. Tears started to fill her eyes as she thought about how hard angel work is. "I'll never be able to be an angel" she thought as she remembered watching her angel friends do angel friends fluidly as if second nature to them. 

As she sat their with tears coming to her eyes a voice came over the intercom system. She listened as she heard the voice ask if Jordan could come down to the office to talk with Father.

Panic started to flash through her mind. She must be in trouble. It must mean she's not doing good enough in her angel training. 

She got to Father's office and knocked on the big door feeling smaller than ever before. 

"Come in" she heard from the other side and she opened the door and entered the room and sat in the big white chair.

Father had a smile on His face and welcomed her into the room. He asked her how her training was going and how she felt about being an angel. She said it was going okay but she didn't feel like she was the best angel. 

What He said next surprised her. Father said "Jordan, I want to call you as a comforting angel. And I don't want to call you as just any comforting angel. I want you to be the angel to comfort Christ, my Son when He performs the atonement."

"Me?" she thought. "But I'm not the best angel. I'm new and I don't know as much as the older angels. There must be someone better than me for this calling."

"Jordan" He said. "I want you for this job. You have been given special talents and gifts specifically for this task. I know you can do it."

She sat up a little taller in her chair. Maybe she would be able to do it. A few weeks later she fulfilled the call that she was given to comfort the Savior of the world.

This little angel taught me that we have all been given callings greater than ourselves. Sometimes we might feel inadequate. Sometimes we might look at the tasks that we've been given as something too big for us to accomplish. But our Father in Heaven knows us. He knows what we are capable of. As we do our best to fulfill the call that we've been given to serve others we will find that we are lifted up in the process. 

So to my trainee, Sister Hart, I just want to say that on your mission you may be called to do things that seem too hard. You may feel inadequate at times, but through your faith and diligence I know you will help make great miracles happen.

I love you lots and I am so grateful for this opportunity I've been given to be your trainer.

Love, Sister Reid

Your trainer