‘Ministering’ – is defined as ‘attending to the needs and wants of someone’.  It is distinct from ‘administering which is ‘ having charge of, or controlling.’

In a gospel sense, what is the difference between ministering and administering?

How would those differences be manifest in church assignments?

As a new First Presidency, we thank you for your prayers and for your sustaining efforts. We are grateful for your lives and for your service to the Lord. Your devotion to duty and your selfless service are just as important in your callings as ours are in our callings. Through a lifetime of service in this Church, I have learned that it really doesn’t matter where one serves. What the Lord cares about is how one serves.

How do you feel when you hear the Prophet say that your devotion to duty is just as important in you calling as his is in his calling?

Do you believe that is true? Why?
Now, may I voice a concern? It is this: Too many of our brothers and sisters do not fully understand the concept of priesthood power and authority. They act as though they would rather satisfy their own selfish desires and appetites than use the power of God to bless His children.

I fear that too many of our brothers and sisters do not grasp the privileges that could be theirs. Some of our brethren, for example, act like they do not understand what the priesthood is and what it enables them to do. Let me give you some specific examples.

D&C 84: 19 And this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.

In what way does the priesthood hold the key to the knowledge of God?

‘I hope my granddaughters value the temple as did the sisters of the first Relief Society, who believed that temple blessings were the grand prize and great goal of every Latter-day Saint woman. I hope that, like early Relief Society sisters, my granddaughters will strive daily to become sufficiently mature to make and keep sacred temple covenants and that when they do go to the temple, they will pay attention to all that is said and done. Through the blessings of the temple, they will be armed with power ^{[See  Doctrine and Covenants 109:22 see also Sheri L. Dew, in Daughters in My Kingdom, 128.]} and blessed to receive “the key of the knowledge of God.”  ^{Doctrine and Covenants 84:19 see also Ezra Taft Benson, in Daughters in My Kingdom, 129.]} Through the ordinances of the priesthood found only in temples, they will be blessed to fulfill their divine, eternal responsibilities, and they will promise to live as committed disciples. I am grateful that one of the Lord’s primary purposes in organizing Relief Society was to give the women the responsibility to help each other prepare “for the greater blessings of the priesthood found in the ordinances and covenants of the temple.” ^{[Daughters in My Kingdom, 131.]’ (Sister Julie B Beck, General Conference, October 2011)}

20 Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.

What does it mean to say that the power of godliness is manifest through ordinances?

‘In the same way that certain steps are essential in the very brief performance of an Olympic athlete—jumps or maneuvers for ice skaters and snowboarders, negotiating the turns of a bobsled run, or carving through the gates of a downhill slalom course—so it is in our lives, where certain things are absolutely essential—checkpoints which move us through our spiritual performance on earth. These spiritual markers are the essential God-given ordinances of the gospel: baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, priesthood ordinations, temple ordinances, and partaking of the sacrament each week.’ (Gary E Stevenson, General Conference, April 2014)

21 And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;

This is the purpose of the Restoration – to bring back the ordinances and the authority to administer them. Remember how Joseph was told in the First Vision about those who have a form of godliness but deny the power thereof. Do we risk falling into that trap, and that condemnation?

22 For without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.

If we are to enter into God’s premises it is essential that we be blessed by the ordinances and by the power of the priesthood.

Priesthood power has been restored to this earth, and yet far too many brothers and sisters go through terrible trials in life without ever receiving a true priesthood blessing. What a tragedy! That’s a tragedy that we can eliminate.

Make a list of all of the occasions when it would be appropriate and beneficial to receive a priesthood blessing.

What do we learn about ministering with power authority from the story of the Cox family that President Nelson told? – President Nelson talks of the  power of ministering one-on-one. How can we liken this to us and our ministering responsibilities?

Quotes about being foreordained to minister:

‘Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council in heaven before this world was. I suppose that I was ordained to this very office in that Grand Council.’ (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 365)

‘Just as certain men were foreordained from before the foundations of the world, so were certain women appointed to certain tasks. Divine design—not chance—brought Mary forward to be the mother of Jesus. The boy prophet, Joseph Smith, was blessed not only with a great father but also with a superb mother, Lucy Mack, who influenced a whole dispensation.’ (Neal A Maxwell, “The Women of God,” Ensign, May 1978, p.10)

“During the ages in which we dwelt in the pre-mortal state we not only developed our various characteristics and showed our worthiness and ability, or the lack of it, but we were also where such progress could be observed. It is reasonable to believe that there was a Church organization there. The heavenly beings were living in a perfectly arranged society. Every person knew his place. Priesthood, without any question, had been conferred and the leaders were chosen to officiate. Ordinances pertaining to that pre-existence were required and the love of God prevailed. Under such conditions it was natural for our Father to discern and choose those who were most worthy and evaluate the talents of each individual. He knew not only what each of us could do, but also what each of us would do when put to the test and when responsibility was given us. Then, when the time came for our habitation on mortal earth, all things were prepared and the servants of the Lord chosen and ordained to their respective missions” (Joseph Fielding Smith,  The Way to Perfection [1970], 50–51 ).