My sister, Cambrea, recently reported to the Provo Missionary Training Center to prepare for her service in the Arizona Mesa Mission. A few days before she reported, she asked me why I chose to serve a mission. Now I have always known I would serve a mission, and tried to live my life accordingly. But when she asked me, two scriptures came to mind that impacted me greatly before and during my mission. The first one is found in Doctrine and Covenants, section 4.
This scripture answers the question future missionaries ask themselves frequently, in a very simple way. If you feel that desire to serve God, you are called to the work. It is that easy. Whenever I felt overwhelmed or like I couldn't go on anymore, this scripture would be brought to mind. I would remember that I loved God, and I wanted to serve him, and that would always trump my negative feelings or experiences.
What some members forget though, is this Scripture isn't necessarily saying if you want to serve god, you have to serve a full time mission. Elder Anderson put it best when he said:
The greatest missionary work we can do is within the walls of our own homes and with the people and friends we associate ourselves with. We do not need to go across the world to find people who need the redeeming power of Christ's Gospel. We pass people on the street, in the store, in school, that are longing to have the truth. It is our responsibility as members and as missionaries to lead people to light of the gospel. This is best done by being an example. President Oaks, who came and spoke at BYUI this past week gave a perfect example of why we must be good examples.
Those who seek to keep all the commandments of God are almost always a minority among those who don’t. That is the reality that caused Jesus to teach that the kingdom of God is like a leaven (see Matthew 13:33). A leaven—yeast—is hidden away in the larger mass until the whole is leavened, which means raised by its influence. That is our role, and to accomplish this duty, we must not only keep the commandments but also be examples of civility in our own circles of love and beyond. As followers of Christ, we should seek to live peaceably and lovingly with other children of God who do not share our values and do not have the covenant obligations we have assumed. In a democratic government we should seek “fairness for all.” That is how we follow the teaching to be in the world but not of the world. So it was that, at the conclusion of His ministry, Jesus prayed to the Father, “Not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil” (John 17:15).
The final scripture I shared with my sister that day about why I served a mission is found in Alma.
I had felt before my mission, and since after, so much joy in the gospel of Jesus Christ and by repenting. My spirit longed to share that with my brothers and sisters that I didn't yet know. I knew that if only one person heard my message in Pennsylvania, that I had fulfilled my purpose as a missionary and would've been changed for good. I didn't see a lot of success as far as numbers go on my mission, but I was successful in the way I tried my very best and received the same blessings of those who may have had dozens of missionaries. I feel the exact same way Alma feels about his call as a missionary.
I can't believe its been that long and I have been home for almost 5 months. When I opened my call, it was the best day of my life. And then I went to Pennsylvania. I miss Pennsylvania and the people there with a power I have never felt before. Not a day goes by that I don't think of my experiences and the people I left in that beautiful state. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would a million times. I left my heart and soul there and can't wait to go back soon and see the people who I can now call family. My mission was the best thing of my life, and the best thing for my life, and I wouldn't trade my time there for all of the riches in the world.
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