Boyd K. Packer - Mine Errand from the Lord

"Wherefore I, Jacob, gave unto them these words as I taught them in the temple, having first obtained mine errand from the Lord."
-Jacob 1:17

Significant Dates in the Life of Boyd K. Packer

Preface

One summer evening on a little island of the Pacific, while he was serving as a pilot in the Air Force during World War II, young Boyd K. Packer made a decision that would permanently affect the course of his life. He said, "I was thinking about what I wanted to do with my life after the war, should I be fortunate enough to survive. What did I want to be? It was on that night that I decided I wanted to be a teacher." (From TYD, p. 340. For key to abbreviations and reference codes, see Sources on p. 599.) In 1949 he began his career as a seminary teacher in Brigham City and has continued as a teacher to the present day as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Beginning with his call as an Assistant to the Twelve in 1961 and then as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve in 1970, he has served as a General Authority for forty-seven years. During this time of service he has traveled to some seventy countries, many of them multiple times, and he has spoken at more than 1,300 stake, regional, area, and general conferences. In the words of Elder Dallin H. Oaks, "Whenever this man speaks he teaches." His desire to teach well and to help others do the same led him to write his remarkable book, Teach Ye Diligently. It has blessed the lives of countless teachers. As a master teacher he has had a profound impact upon the Church. Indeed, it has been one of his lifelong goals to become more like the Master Teacher, Jesus Christ.