Last evening, Stephanie and I were set apart as fulltime missionaries. In the Church, when we receive and accept callings, we are normally set apart by the ecclesiastical leader that issued the call, which usually comes from a bishop or a stake president in the local organizations. In the case of fulltime missionaries, the call comes from the President of the church. Obviously, it wouldn't make sense for him to spend time personally setting apart the tens of thousands of missionaries that are called each year from all across the world, so that responsibility is delegated to the local stake presidents. My stake president was not available last night, so he delegated the responsibility to his first counselor. I was actually happy for this arrangement. He and I had been in the same local congregation (ward) years ago where I was bishop, and then upon my release, he was called as bishop for that ward. So, we have had years of association serving each other in marvelous ways.
When one is set apart, the priesthood leader places his hands on your head and, under the authority of the holy priesthood and inspiration of God, states the capacity in which you will be serving and bestows any blessing and counsel that he feels inspired to give in support of that calling. These can include gifts (capabilities), insights, cautions, and direction that are needed for your time serving in that capacity.
One item to note that sometimes surprises people is that in the Church there is no paid, professional clergy. We are a church of laity when it comes to the ecclesiastical functioning of the Church. Yes, there are positions within the functioning of the Church that are hired positions in order to run offices, upkeep building, and otherwise deal with the necessities of the world, but when it comes to the actual ecclesiastical efforts, nobody is paid. My time and effort in my various Church responsibilities and ministering over the years was voluntarily donated.
It is a remarkable thing to think about. Men and women who may work as a teacher, a carpenter, a plumber, an engineer, a businessperson, or a lawyer is also studying, preparing lessons or sermons, visiting and ministering to the needy, comforting the afflicted and otherwise doing good during their nights and weekends to help their fellow men and to keep the Church functioning. Even looking at the primary leaders in the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles you find men that have had careers as educators, lawyers, engineers, doctors, etc. Russel M. Nelson, the current president of the Church (now over 100 years old and still sharp!) was a renowned, pioneering heart surgeon.
