Following the Spirit

Aldon Nance always wanted to serve a mission, but after being drafted to serve in the Vietnam War, was unable to do so. Upon returning home, he met Connie Camper, a young woman who also dreamed of sharing the gospel as a full-time missionary. But before she had the chance, the two fell in love and were married in the Salt Lake Temple. The day of their wedding, they committed to each other that they would one day serve a mission together. Forty years later, the Nances were called to manage the employment resource center in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

"We were willing to serve wherever the Lord wanted us, but when we got our call, we wondered 'why employment?'" Connie says. "Neither one of us had experience in that field."

The Nances quickly recognized how the Lord had been preparing them for their mission throughout their lives as they daily used the skills they had acquired through their own employment, Church service, and life experience. Most of all, years of daily scripture study and prayer, hundreds of family home evenings, and steadfast obedience to the counsel of the prophet helped the Nances be guided by the Spirit. "We did nothing without asking our Heavenly Father what He would want us to say and do that day," says Connie.

One day, an immigrant from Colombia visited the employment resource center needing help finding a job. Although Connie knew little about this woman's past employment experience, she was suddenly prompted to tell her about an opening for a mortuary receptionist. The woman's face suddenly lit up as she explained that her last job in her home country had been working in a similar capacity. Connie helped her to apply for the position, and the woman was later hired.

"People with a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and languages would come in to the center, and because we rarely knew anything about the discipline in which they had worked or understood their language, it was often difficult to know how to help them," Aldon says. "But we would say a quick prayer and open our mouths, and the Lord always took over."