Paul and Steven,
I’m very sorry I’ve caused you both to feel unwanted or unheard this week. I handled it poorly and seek your forgiveness.
I now know I should have given you more background. Ironically I withheld the background so there was room for your input and to make this decision more inclusive. Obviously I failed miserably. Again, I’m very sorry.
The background…
When I heard the announcement in General Conference on Saturday afternoon, my first reaction was: “Oh man, we just made all those changes to the High Council, including the final slot less than a week earlier. Why wasn’t I more in tune to anticipate this and hold off making those changes, or at least the Josh Ricker call?”
Later in the session, as I sat in the Conference Center castigating myself in my mind for not being in tune with the Spirit and now we were going to have to make some more changes to the HC to make this work, suddenly my mind was opened and I saw the changes that I presented to you clearly come into my mind (a sweet enlightening that I confess I don’t receive often). It all made sense and came together very neatly. No angels, not even a burning in the bosom. But this sudden enlightenment in a direction I had not considered was a sweet experience.
The only “hole” was Stake Sunday school president. I didn’t know who that was to be. That came several days later while visiting with Paul on the phone it was made known to me that Josh Ricker should be our SS president. I was comforted in knowing that we would not have to re-shuffle any of the HC to make this work.
When I returned home I immediately and excitedly reached out to both of you to see if we could meet. Our schedules simply wouldn’t mesh. So I waited and went to the temple on Wednesday morning to make sure this was the right direction to see if my heart needed tempering over the changes.
That afternoon (Wed) I emailed you both the recommendations that had come into my mind quite dramatically. In my foolish thinking (yes, still naive at my age) I expected you both to react with the same enthusiasm. I should have given you the background and I shouldn’t have suggested that I still wanted recommendations—it was my innocent attempt to help you both to feel a part of this decision, but instead it only opened the door for you to push back and feel unlistened to. It was a horrible mistake on my part.
Obviously I was ready to move forward quickly (I had been pondering and praying about it for days), but I failed to give you time to digest it all or even ask questions.
Remember when we met after the trek reunion and discussed HC assignments, especially for the new HC? You both recommended that Doug Rial be assigned to the TC Ward. You may recall I pushed back. Steven, you were especially insistent that was where Doug needed to be assigned. I felt the strength of your conviction and accepted it. I am asking you both to feel the strength of my conviction regarding the changes I am recommending.
Please know I very much want to please you both and deeply desire for you to be happy in your service in our presidency. I’m so very sorry that I failed you miserably this week and disrupted the unity of our faith.
Crismon
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