The gift of service: Serving God by serving his friend
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"All of God's children wear the same jersey — our team is the brotherhood of man." — President Dieter F. Uchtdorf
The locals who gather in the barber shops, diners and, yes, perhaps even the Church meetinghouse parking lots of Arizona's Upper Gila River Valley will likely tell you that the annual football game between Thatcher High School and nearby Safford High is bigger than the Super Bowl.
Each year the rivalry game is circled on countless calendars. Students and fans from the respective schools wonder if their quarterback will lead their team to victory.
The play callers from last fall's gridiron contest share a history that stretches back years prior to the 2010 football season. Thatcher senior quarterback Teren Bingham and his Safford High counterpart, Brandon McEuen, have been friends since third grade. Both are fine athletes, so they've grown up playing with and against each other in several different sports.
Their friendship — which has been documented in a short video posted in the youth section of lds.org — has survived the pitched rivalry between their two schools. It's a bond that's been fortified by the gospel and a young man's duty to God to care and serve for others.
The popular Church-produced video is a testament to the power that exists when an Aaronic Priesthood holder chooses to perform his sacred duty to God.
Months before the big game, Teren remembers standing with his priests quorum and reciting a rich verse from Doctrine and Covenants Section 4: "Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day."
Teren wondered what he could do to best serve God. His thoughts turned to his buddy and football rival Brandon McEuen, who was not a member. In the video, Brandon admits that he had experienced trials and challenges in his young life. He wanted to change. So when Teren invited him to Church he set school animosities aside, slipped on a white shirt and tie and happily accepted.
Soon Brandon decided to listen to the missionary discussion. His friend Teren was at his side during each discussion. The sister missionaries invited Brandon to be baptized on Sept. 4, 2010. The date caught the quarterback's attention.
"September 4th? — I think we're playing Thatcher the day before," he recalled saying with a smile. "I didn't know how that would work out."
Still, he agreed on the time and place. Once again, Teren chose to serve God by serving his friend and exercising his priesthood authority. He told Brandon that he could baptize him and would be honored to do so. Brandon agreed.
The 2010 chapter of the Thatcher-Safford football rivalry was a high-scoring event, with Safford winning 41-22. Brandon recorded 463 yards of total offense in the win. After the game, the two exhausted quarterbacks embraced on the football field.
The next day, Teren and Brandon were together again, this time in the waters of baptism. "Me and Teren are like brothers," said Brandon in the video. "He baptized me and showed me the right way."
Now Teren looks to Brandon as an example. The new member has already caught the missionary spirit and recently baptized one of his friends. Brandon said he cherishes the fellowship that can be found in a dutiful Aaronic Priesthood quorum and a welcoming ward.
"[I] have brothers around me that will always have my back."
Last month, Teren attended the Young Men General Presidency training inside the Salt Lake Tabernacle and, in front of thousands, offered his testimony of fulfilling one's duty to God and sharing the gospel with friends.
