A Tale of Two Bishops

I know two particular men who served as bishops in the same ward consecutively. I served in callings that allowed me to attend PEC and Ward Council and Welfare meetings with both of these bishops, so I was able to see them in action up close. I will call them Bishop X and Bishop Y. In many ways they could not be more different from each other.

Bishop X was the perfect image of a bishop. He really looked and acted the part. He always seemed to have a way of saying and doing exactly the right thing all the time. He was very cautious and deliberate in all of his decisions. He had a way of studying it out in his own mind very thoroughly. When he called someone to a calling the general reaction would be something like a firm head nod by the members of the ward. A logical choice. The right person for the job. Exactly who I would have called.

Bishop Y was not exactly what you would expect from a bishop. A very good man of course, worthy in every way, including being worthy of admiration and respect. But he did not necessarily look like a bishop. He was a little unpredictable in what he might say and do. Rarely seemed to have a plan. But this did not stop him from taking action. He had a way of flying by the seat of his pants so to speak. When he called someone to a calling, there might occasionally be a gasp or two heard. Not all that logical of a choice, maybe even one of the last people you would think to call to such a position.

Again, I want to say that I have total respect and support for both bishops. I also should say that some of the unexpected callings that were extended by bishop Y worked out quite well, some worked well enough, others were disasters. The same could be said perhaps of the callings extended by bishop X however.

The differences between these two bishops to me is quite obvious and striking. It makes me wonder which one was following the spirit of inspiration more? Bishop X (the cautious, thorough one, who always wanted to do the right thing), or bishop Y (the one who appeared to wing it at times).

There is the 'study it out in your mind' scripture in D&C 9, and there is 'being lead by the spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do' in 1 Nephi 4.

With the differences so obvious, which one was more likely following the spirit, X or Y? Could two approaches that seemed so different both be inspired from the same source? Could bishop X be planning and thinking to much to be inspired sometimes? Could bishop Y be just doing the first thing that comes to mind and not patiently seeking inspiration? Let me know what you think.

(There may be a couple of people out there from this ward who know exactly who I am talking about. Please do not mention names or even guess. The last thing I want to do is stir up any trouble. I hope to maybe learn something about church leadership and seeking inspiration from this.)