Leaving Seminary

My wife (Chanel) and I have lived in Sierra Vista for almost 2 years. I have been the seminary teacher down here and I have loved it. I love my students will all of my heart. God has given me charity for them and I really do love them. The hardest thing about leaving S&I is leaving these students. They have brought me so much happiness; I will always be grateful to God that He let us come down to Sierra Vista.

I'd always dreamed of being a seminary teacher and once I got the job I thought I was going to die a seminary teacher. But now I believe God has a different plan for me.

Last March (2014), Chanel and I went with my parents back to Nauvoo. We went and visited my grandpa and step-grandma who were serving a mission in the Nauvoo temple. My step-grandma, Susan Easton Black, is a famous church historian, so while we were in Nauvoo she showed us all of the sights. We were only there a couple of days but before we left Susan and my grandpa started asking me if I'd ever thought of doing something other than seminary. I told them that I hadn't. So we started talking about becoming a professor, and I started envisioning myself becoming like Susan. The day before we left my grandpa gave me a blessing; it was one of the most powerful and spiritual moments of my life. Gratefully, Susan wrote down what my grandpa said and she sent me her notes. What a tender mercy that has been.

As we arrived back in Arizona, my mind wouldn't stop racing. I couldn't get the idea of pursuing a new career out of my head. For months I studied for the GRE and looked up Graduate schools. I researched and wrote a 25 page paper just so I could apply to grad programs. I just couldn't shake the feeling that I was supposed to do something different with my life. As my dad and I talked over the summer, he brought up the story told by Elder Holland entitled "Wrong Roads." I felt that God had let me become a seminary teacher because I had wanted it so badly, but I felt like He was now telling me that I'd gone down the wrong road for me. I loved my job and I loved teaching the students, but I felt there was something else I was supposed to do.

Then General Conference happened in October. I went in with the question "Is it right or good for me to pursue a new career?" On Sunday afternoon, I felt that my prayer was answered straight from heaven. I felt that God was speaking directly to me through Elder Carlos Godoy. Here are some quotes from his talk:

At the end of the 1980s, our young family was made up of my wife, Mônica, two of our four children, and me. We lived in São Paulo, Brazil, I worked for a good company, I had finished my university studies, and I had recently been released as bishop of the ward where we had lived. Life was good, and everything seemed to be as it should be—until one day an old friend came to visit us.

At the conclusion of his visit, he made a comment and asked a question that unsettled my convictions. He said, “Carlos, everything seems to be going well for you, your family, your career, and your service in the Church, but—” and then came the question, “if you continue to live as you are living, will the blessings promised in your patriarchal blessing be fulfilled?”

After his visit, I turned my attention to my patriarchal blessing, wondering, “If we continue to live as we are living, will the promised blessings be fulfilled?” After some pondering, I had the feeling that some changes were necessary, particularly in relation to my education and profession.

It was not a decision between what was right and wrong but between what was good and what was better, as Elder Dallin H. Oaks taught us when he said: “As we consider various choices, we should remember that it is not enough that something is good. Other choices are better, and still others are best” (“Good, Better, Best,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2007, 104–5). (Elder Carlos Godoy, "The Lord Has a Plan For Us!" October 2014 General Conference-Read or watch the talk here)

I started to cry as I listened to this talk. I felt that if I had gone to any of the Brethren in Salt Lake City and asked my question "Is it right or good for me to pursue a new career?" no one could have answered my question better. I felt exactly like Elder Godoy. There were things in my patriarchal blessing and in the blessing I received from my grandfather that I just couldn't see being fulfilled if I stayed with Seminary. This decision wasn't between something good or bad, but between something better and best.

This talk gave me the confidence to keep moving forward. With time we started thinking about what we'd do if graduate school didn't work out. I've always found finance interesting, and so I started asking friends who were in that career how they liked it. My interest in this field started to grow rapidly and I started to seriously consider it as another option. Eventually I ended up talking with a member of my stake presidency, President Landon Spilsbury. He works for Edward Jones.

As I met with Landon over a period of a couple of weeks I felt good about pursuing a career with Edward Jones. I prayed and fasted about it for months. My wife did the same, and as the time arrived when Edward Jones offered us a job, we decided to take it. I prayed right after they offered me the job and I felt the Spirit tell me that this was a good thing for us to pursue. I had felt that before while praying about Edward Jones. When I got home and told Chanel we prayed about it and I prayed about it individually again and each time I did, I felt God's confirming answer. I truly believe this is what God wants us to do at this time in our lives. I will still continue to pursue my interests in Church History, but I will do so as a hobby instead of as a career.

It will not be easy for us. I love teaching seminary and I love these students. If I didn't, this decision would be a lot easier; my amazing students are making this decision so hard for us. But I know that doing the right thing is not always easy; in fact, it's often harder than doing the wrong thing. I don't know what our future holds, but I do believe that this step is one that God supports us in and wants us to make. I'm grateful that God let's us make our own decisions, but I'm more grateful for the peace and confirmation He gives us after we do so.

So as this school year comes to an end, we are saying goodbye to seminary teaching and Sierra Vista. We have loved our time down here. I have loved living my dream of being a seminary teacher. Most of all, I have loved teaching my incredible students about Jesus Christ. It's only through His grace that I can do hard things in this life. He has supported me through tough decisions before, and I know He will be with us as we make this difficult decision. We trust God and know that He sees more than we can. Right now we're just trying to act on the light we've received and trust that He will keep guiding us to whatever future He has prepared for us.

We love Sierra Vista and will miss all of the students and all of our friends we've made while living here. We will always thank God that He sent us here. God truly has been so good to us.