Why Do Young Men and Women of Christ's Church Serve Missions?

     I have had a lot of reasons to brag to you about this young man recently.  He graduated from High School and was awarded his Eagle Scout Rank​, and now he has received and accepted a mission call for our church.   I will reveal where he is going later in the post!  It is so exciting! But, first I want to address some questions about missionary service in our church that people often ask me.

3 Reasons why Youth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Serve Missions:

• ​They have strong faith in Jesus Christ and love Him and want to spread his gospel. That is reason #1.  When members of our church are baptized, we make a covenant or promise to try to live the way Jesus Christ has taught, to try to be like him.  In Romans 10:15-16 we have been taught:

"And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

That is just one of the places the Savior gave this instruction.  We believe that his instruction to preach his word is still in force today.  So, our youth begin at an early age to prepare to know and understand the gospel well enough to teach it to others. For young men who are given the Priesthood, it is an obligation to keep themselves "physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight", as taught and said so well in Boy Scouting, in order to be able to be ready to fulfill their duties as a Priesthood holder.  If they are prepared and have a desire to do the work, they will choose to serve a mission.  Missionary service is always an individual choice.    For young women, it is also an individual choice, without the Priesthood duty attached to it.  
     Young men and young women are equally prepared to be missionaries throughout their lives, as they receive Gospel instruction in the home and at church that is centered on Jesus Christ.  When they reach the age of 14, they begin to attend Seminary everyday where they study the scriptures in depth for 4 years.  They also are given opportunities to serve others, such as the sick and elderly.  The Young men serve and officiate in the ordinance of the Sacrament on Sundays.  They are also given chances to speak and teach during these teenage years.  All of these experiences help them to learn the Gospel and to gain confidence in their ability to teach it and know what they are talking about.  As they go through these processes, they learn to love Jesus Christ and their Father in Heaven and develop the desire to serve.

This is Lindsey on her mission in Lyon France.

• They love their fellowman:  Love truly is the reason for things to be done in this life.  In Paul's letter to the Thessalonians, he wrote in chapter 4 verse 9...

"But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another."

     We try to teach our children from an early age to love their fellowman.  We are not always perfect at it, but we try.  Think about this.  When there is something in your life that makes you extremely happy and you know that it makes your life better in so many ways, don't you want to share that thing with the people you love?  And, if you know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ will help to bring love and peace to a very conflicted world, doesn't that motivate you to share that good news with anyone who hasn't received it?  I have seen my children feel the excitement of realizing that they have something true and wonderful in their lives and want to share it with others.  The shine in their eyes when they tell me about their opportunities to share their love of God with others makes my heart fill with joy.  That joy is why I am sharing this post with you today! That is why these young missionaries work and save their money to be able to go and serve for 2 years.  They aren't paid to go on missions!  They pay their own way! They live on very little as they go out to preach.  They also go where ever they are asked to go.  They don't get to pick the place they go.  They have faith that the Lord will send them where they are needed. I recently heard one young man, who had just returned from is mission in Uganda say, "I didn't go halfway around the world to live like that in order to teach a lie, I was teaching truth."  I found that very profound
​       I am so excited to tell where Jacob is needed! Wait for it...

Saying goodbye to my son Tyler as he was leaving to serve a mission in Brasil! That is Jacob at the bottom of the picture! My oldest son, Aaron, also served in Brasil, but I can't find a photo right now to share of him!

• There is tremendous personal, spiritual, emotional and intellectual growth to be had by serving a mission.  This is more of a blessing than a reason for serving, but it sure does happen!  Young men and women who serve missions learn better personal responsibility, they learn to rely on the Spirit of the Lord as they teach, their testimonies of their Savior, Jesus Christ deepen, they learn to cope with difficulties and to deal with other people in acceptable ways, they learn to speak intelligently and many learn foreign languages fluently.  These are just a few of the things I have noticed in my own children.  

     People often ask me how I can do it as a mother.  How can I send my young children off into the unknown and know that I will only be able to communicate by mail or email and maybe receive 2 phone calls per year, on Christmas and Mother's Day, if there is service available?  The 3 reasons above are my reasons, too.  I love Jesus Christ and His gospel has brought me so much joy that I am thrilled that my children can feel it in their own lives and want to share it themselves.  I have faith that they will be protected as they do the Lord's work and I recognize the blessings that will serve them well in their lives after their missions.  That is why I can do it and I am glad to send them out to serve their missions.

     So....Are you excited to hear where Jacob is going?  Cote d'Ivoire in West Africa!  Oh my gosh! Can you believe it?  Luckily he took French for 4 years of high school.  He wasn't great at it, but it should help him as he goes to the Missionary Training Center in Ghana for about 5 or 6 weeks before heading off to Cote d'Ivoire.  We have so much to do to get him ready! Shots, Visa, we've sent for his passport already,  clothes! He leaves December 19th, so we will be busy, fitting it all in with the holidays.  Yup! He leaves before Christmas!  But, we will make sure he enjoys all of the fun leading up to it.  As long as he gets some Florida Fudge, I think he will be happy!  
​     Stay tuned to find out more about the Ivory Coast as we do! If you want to know more about our church and our missionaries, be sure to click on https://www.comeuntochrist.org/ .