The Employer
By Pelatiah- Dec 2012
As members of the LDS church it is
possible to go through many different stages or levels of devotion. We may take the church for granted, going
through the motions per se for long periods of time. At some point we may “catch the vision” and
realize there is something much deeper to be found. We become lockstep members, checking off all
the appropriate boxes, assuming and perhaps even aspiring to leadership
positions. These leadership positions
are perceived as steps of spiritual progression or attainment. Deeper study and devotion reveal the
importance of making ones calling and election sure and/or receiving the Second
Comforter. Ultimately this path leads to
frustration as these promises remain unfulfilled despite the endless devotion
given to them. This is what the
preparatory gospel is meant to do. Ultimately
we must realize that what we search for is not found in books, in study, or in
the Gospel checklists we make for ourselves.
As it says in Luke 17:21 “Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, Lo there! for, behold, the
kingdom of God is within you.” Instead
of being a lockstep follower, searching high and low for what was promised, we
now follow what is within us. We find
out we are not naked after all. We don’t
lack anything. We are the Prodigal sons
that have returned home after a long and unfruitful search for
fulfillment. The parable below is an
attempt to relate this concept in terms of an Employee seeking structure and
fulfillment but ultimately finding disappointment until finally realizing he
has been the Employer all along. It is
not so much about becoming the Employer but discovering that is has always been
that way.
Adam was a senior employee
of an
esteemed and well established manufacturing company. This company
had been around for many years
and was well respected. In fact, members
of Adam’s family have been a part of this company for several
generations. Adam had enjoyed the stability the company
offered and the association with his fellow employees. The
benefits were excellent. Adam was offered and accepted many
leadership
and supervisorial opportunities. He
found satisfaction in these roles by helping his subordinates and
enjoyed the
occasional acclaim and praise that would result from his efforts.
As he advanced in the company he began to
understand more fully how the company operated, how it came into
existence, as
well as its efficiencies and inefficiencies.
With Adam’s new knowledge and
enthusiasm he was excited to see himself and the company progress and
expand. He began to notice areas where
inefficiencies could be addressed and processes streamlined. He was promised by upper management that he
would be rewarded for his dedication and efforts. As Adam began to suggest ways the company
could improve and question practices that had been in place for generations he
began to meet resistance. He was told
not to question longstanding policies and procedures. After all, the company had been successful
for generations, long before he came along.
Adam began to ask himself “What
is next, what else is there to achieve, is this all there is?” Adam noticed some employees that had reached
his level left the company due to this frustration and gained employment with
competitors. Adam stayed in contact with
these employees and noticed that after the “newness” wore off they began
experiencing some of the same frustrations they had first experienced with
Adam’s company.
Adam began pondering, wondering,
researching as to whether he could make it “on his own”. Could he
become his own Employer? Could he make it without the current
corporate structure around him? The corporate structure that had
proven “successful” for
generations. Could he make it
without the association of his fellow employees, the benefits
structures
offered, the protection of the employee union?
At last Adam arrived at a point where his heart was telling him he
could
make it on his own but his head told him otherwise. In fact, his
heart was telling him, he NEEDED
to make it on his own.
At long last, Adam took the
plunge. He fired his Employer and set
off on his own. At first it was a bit
terrifying. He had left the “safety” and
“stability” of his Employer. Now his
success or failure was all up to him. At
first it was difficult. Adam had to
break down many barriers which he had constructed himself, barriers that were
standing in the way of his success.
Could he really find the fulfillment and success he was seeking on his
own? Why was he
the only one who could see that ultimate success was to be found outside the
confines of the Employer? Was he
crazy? Many of his former fellow
employees and the management of his former Employer ostracized him. They thought he was foolish and crazy for
venturing off on his own. But Adam began
to discover the freedom he had longed for.
It was now up to him. His
decisions alone now determined his sense of success and fulfillment. No longer was his aim directed to please his
superiors, to seek fulfillment with vain company awards or words of recognition
from others.
Adam began to realize that life
had
become a bit of a roller coaster. It was
now up to him to provide his own benefits and his own insurance.
He had to seek out his own contracts. At times, Adam was
tempted to return and give up
his newfound freedom for what was once familiar and safe. Out on
his own, he could not hide behind an
Employer any further. He now was the Employer. Now that
Adam had tasted this newfound
freedom and understanding he began to understand the reality. He could
never go
back. To do so would be disingenuous to who he was now, to who he
had become. It would be to lose faith in himself. Life
would
never be the same. Adam began to trust
and follow his heart in new venture. There would still be days of
frustration
and disappointment but life for Adam now had never been so abundant and
fulfilling.
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