Written - May 20, 2017
Nearly 18 months ago, I left my home and got on a plane to England. I knew, to some degree, what I was signing up for; long days, hard work, and unforgettable spiritual experiences. Since I have arrived on British soil, it has been NONSTOP. We wake up, we study, we knock doors, we teach lessons, we meet some amazing people, and we finally fall into bed at the end of the day in complete exhaustion. Then, we repeat. It's unlike anything I could ever possibly fully explain. You have to live it to know the struggle of being a full-time missionary. It's rigorous. It's daunting. It's hard; really, really hard. It has to be the most difficult thing I have ever experienced in my life. But at the same time, this "under-age experiment" is one that changes lives.
When a young 18-19 year old adolescent signs up for this gig, what they don't know is that a spiritual boot camp awaits them. One that will break them down and build them back up again. One that provides a way for these young kids to find out (and fulfill) their eternal purpose as a child of God. No wonder our teachers, friends, parents, and grandparents encourage us to serve missions from a young age. They know how vital and beneficial it will be for the rest of our lives.
During this 18 months to 2 years, we are spiritually broken down, bit by bit. Meaning that the Lord takes every single imperfect piece of us and puts people, experiences, and specific companions in our path to refine those imperfect pieces. "The natural man is an enemy to God" (Mosiah 3:19), and while we serve, the Lord only desires to remove that natural man from our spiritual DNA. What a better way to encourage this change then to send the rising generation of the church into the mission field where they can become 'valiant in the testimony of Jesus'.
While proselyting, we are faced with "haters who wanna hate" on the word of God. We meet people who challenge our beliefs and question why we left the great place of America to come to a small English village to talk to people about God. They literally think we are crazy for doing so. I had a man once who stuck his finger in my face and said you 'think' this is true, but you don't actually 'know' that it is true. Mercy. In that moment, you really have to question if you actually know it is true! I stood a little bit taller and boldly testified that I had received MANY witnesses that this gospel is true! Unfortunately he did not appreciate my testimony and we had to leave his contentious spirit, but at least I was able to stand up to the challenge that was placed before me.
As missionaries, that is one of the biggest things we are called to do; to defend The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! To defend His life and represent Him for these sacred short months. It is a "make it or break it" moment when your testimony is challenged by another. And fortunately enough, our mouths are filled and our tongues are loosed to proclaim His word! What a miraculous experience that is!
This spiritual boot camp is for the simple, the eccentric, the dedicated, the weak, the lonely, the bold, the jock, even the timid. He wants all of His children of return home with Him, therefore He needs all types of missionaries to reach His very diverse children. The proud will be humbled. The weak will be strengthened. The shy will become bold. The lonely will gain eternal friendships. Because we choose to serve for these 18-24 months, WE WILL BE CHANGED. This is a boot camp, it's not supposed to be easy. We are here to be made into who the Lord needs us to be, and as a disclaimer, we must work for that change. We must be willing to submit our will to the Lord. We must have a desire to embrace our weaknesses and go to the Lord so that He can make them into strengths!
We are assigned to a field of labor with the Most High trusting that we will give our absolute all. We don't sign up with the intent of not giving our all, but with the desire to give salvation to EVERYONE! No excuses, just hard work. And when a greenie enters the field, exact obedience is the expectation. This is because it really is the only way. These consecrated months are precious, so why waste them by doing the opposite of what is expected of you? For obedience brings about the blessings of heaven!
The goal of our missionary work is obviously to bring more souls unto Christ; a.k.a. convert as many as possible! But the most important convert at the end of our missions will always be ourselves. Did we gain an unshakeable testimony of the Book of Mormon, as well as the Atonement of Jesus Christ? Will this testimony be able to sustain us through the trials of life? 18-24 months is the time to fill up our spiritual reservoirs! This spiritual boot camp will set the standard for spiritual fitness for the rest of our lives.
When we are set apart for our missions, we are not blessed with more spirit. The "extra" spirit that we feel and otherwise obtain as the Lord's missionaries, simply comes as a result of our personal commitment to God. When we are able to sacrifice everything to serve Him, we are right in line with His will for us. "Exact obedience equals blessings " as many mission presidents repeat. So, when our 18-24 month service is over, we don't have to lose the spirit that we had in the mission field. Surely it will be different to be in the world, but the spirit doesn't have to disappear from our lives. As long as we continue to practice obedient discipleship, we will find that a portion of that same "missionary spirit" still resides with us.
Sydney Jones
