In his talk Called to the Work, Elder David A. Bednar unsurprisingly spoke of missionary work. In particular, he spoke about how one is "called to serve as a missionary" and then, secondarily, "assigned to labor" in a specific area. In fact, he shared a historical account of a pair of early missionaries who were told to go "to the north or to the south, to the east or to the west, it mattereth not, for ye cannot go amiss" (D&C 80:3).
The core of Elder Bednar's message seems to have been that the exact location of our missionary service doesn't matter as much as the actual service does, with the implication being that we can give missionary service basically anywhere. Not all missionaries are called to serve in exotic, foreign lands. In fact, if "every member [is] a missionary," as President David O. McKay said in 1959, then most missionaries serve their missions right at home.
Yes, full time missionaries are called to serve in specific areas, just as I was called to serve in the Canada Winnipeg Mission, but we don't have to go to distant places, or even go door-to-door, to teach the Gospel. We can teach our friends and acquaintances by example, and occasionally open up opportunities to discuss the gospel in casual conversation. We are all "called to serve," but, not being assigned to any particular area, we are to serve God and His children wherever we happen to be. I don't think it matters much where we offer the bulk of our service. What matters is that we actually open our mouths and serve.
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