Should I Serve a Full-time Mission?

Note:  Having served six full-time missions (including one as mission president and another as mission president’s counselor), two stake missions, and one Church service mission, I admit to not being neutral on the above question.  The more I have served, the more reasons I have found why you, too, would want to consider it.  I hope something in the following pages will help you make your own decision.

WHAT MISSIONARIES I KNEW IN THE FIELD SAID

[How would you like to feel as excited and happy as these missionaries and see the same kind of miracles they saw?]

• “I’m in heaven!  I’ve never been so happy in my life.”

• “This week I had a great experience.  I had the opportunity to attend the sealing of my first converts.  It was the greatest experience of my life.” 

• “Missionary work certainly isn’t easy.  It’s the most difficult thing I’ve ever done, but it’s also the most valuable and worthwhile thing in this world.”

• “I have never learned so much in so little time.”

• “We had three baptisms this Sunday.  They were very special people.  During the fourth discussion, we asked them to share with us the answers they had received to their prayers.  The eighteen-year-old girl told us that while she was bathing, she decided to pray.  She said she heard a voice tell her to get baptized and continue strong in the Church.  Then we asked the thirteen-year-old boy, and he said that he, too, heard a voice tell him the same thing.  What a wonderful experience!”

• “Some days ago, we met with a sister whom we are teaching, and she gave us a surprise because she told us she was going to get baptized.  The interesting thing is that this sister has had several dreams.  Some days ago, she said she saw herself seated in a chair and some brethren were putting their hands on her head.  Then Sunday night she had a dream in which she told us she was seated in a chair, and the description she gave us of the chair matched the chairs in the temple.”

• “We introduced ourselves [to a new contact we met in the street] and he acted like he already knew us and our church.  We shared a short discussion with him, and it turned out he had had a dream about us two years earlier, and he remembered me because of my hair.  We have an appointment with him for this Thursday.”

• “One investigator told us during the first discussion that a week before he didn’t even believe in God and that all his life he had been an atheist, but six days ago he had a dream, or better said a vision in which he saw two personages, and one said to the other, ‘This is my beloved Son.  Hear him.’  And the interesting thing is that he had never read either the Bible or the Book of Mormon.” 

WHAT DO THE SCRIPTURES SAY ABOUT OUR MISSIONARY RESPONSIBILITY?

• Lift up your heart and rejoice, for the hour of your mission is come; and your tongue shall be loosed, and you shall declare glad tidings of great joy unto this generation. (D&C 31:3)

• And now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father.  Amen.   (D&C 15:6

• The field is white already to harvest; wherefore, thrust in your sickles, and reap with all your might, mind, and strength …and you shall be laden with sheaves upon your backs, for lo, I am with you. (D&C 33:7-8.)

• Behold, I sent you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor.  Therefore, they are left without excuse, and their sins are upon their own heads.  (D&C 88:81_82)

• But with some I am not well pleased, for they will not open their mouths, but they hide the talent which I have given unto them, because of the fear of man.  Wo unto such, for mine anger is kindled against them.    (D&C 60:2)

• Every man should take righteousness in his hands and faithfulness upon his loins, and lift a warning voice unto the inhabitants of the earth; and declare both by word and by flight that desolation shall come upon the wicked.  (D&C 63:37)

• Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God; Wherefore, you are called to cry repentance unto this people.  And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!  And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me! (D&C 18:10-16)

• And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.  (Matthew 24:14)

• Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men; For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say.  But a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall declare whatsoever thing ye declare in my name, in solemnity of heart, in the spirit of meekness, in all things.   And I give unto you this promise, that inasmuch as ye do this the Holy Ghost shall be shed forth in bearing record unto all things whatsoever ye shall say.  (D&C 100:5-8) 

• Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men.  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.  Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work;   For behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul;   And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.  Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence.   Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.  Amen.  (D&C 4:1_7)

• Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth!   (2 Nephi 2:8)

WHAT HAVE THE PROPHETS BEEN SAYING?

Spencer W. Kimball

• The question is frequently asked:  Should every young man fill a mission?  And the answer has been given by the Lord.  It is “Yes.”  Every young man should fill a mission….  Every man should also pay his tithing.  Every man should observe the Sabbath.  Every man should attend his meetings.  Every man should marry in the temple and properly train his children and do many other mighty works.  Of course he should.  He does not always do it.  (Ensign, October 1974, pp. 5-6.)

• We want you to know that this is really serious business.  We’re not merely inviting people to go on missions.  We are saying, This is your work!  The God of heaven, through his prophets, has called you to this service.  (Spencer W. Kimball, Teachings, p. 549.)

• The chronological clock calls for a mission call for the young man at nineteen [The minimum age has since been lowered to eighteen.]  If he is not prepared spiritually, financially, and according to his desires and moods about that time, the likelihood of his filling a mission at a later date is slim indeed.  (Spencer W. Kimball, Teachings, p. 558.)  

Ezra Taft Benson

• The Lord wants every young man to serve a full-time mission.  Currently, only a fifth of the eligible young men in the Church are serving full-time missions.  This is not pleasing to the Lord.  We can do better.  We must do better.  Not only should a mission be regarded as a priesthood duty, but every young man should look forward to this experience with great joy and anticipation.  What a privilege–what a sacred privilege–to serve the Lord full-time for two years with all your heart, might, mind, and strength.  You can do nothing more important.  School can wait.  Scholarships can be deferred.  Occupational goals can be postponed.  Yes, even temple marriage should wait until after a young man has served an honorable full-time mission for the Lord.  And I would admonish you to date only faithful young women who also believe this and give you that encouragement.  Young men, look forward to full-time missionary service.  Show your love and commitment to the Lord by responding to His call to serve.  (Ensign, May 1986, p. 4.)

Gordon B. Hinckley

• Too many of our young men have not yet decided to give two years of service to the Lord.  I speak particularly to you young men who live in the United States and Canada, the host nations from which the gospel is to go to other nations.  While you reap the benefits of prosperity unprecedented in the history of mankind, do you ever think that one of the reasons the Lord sent you to earth under such favorable circumstances is that you could use your talents, education, and money to bless others with the gospel?  (Teachings, p. 193) 

• I wish to remind everyone within my hearing that the comforts we have, the peace we have, and, most important, the faith and knowledge of the things of God that we have, were bought with a terrible price by those who have gone before us.  Sacrifice has always been a part of the gospel of Jesus Christ….  Let us never forget that we have a marvelous heritage received from great and courageous people who endured unimaginable suffering and demonstrated unbelievable courage for the cause they loved.  You and I know what we should do.  God help us to do it when it needs to be done.  (General Conference, Oct. 1991)

• There may be a few young men in this vast audience tonight who may be wondering, ever so seriously, whether they should go on missions.  There may be a scarcity of money.  There may be compelling plans for education.  There may be that wonderful girl you love and feel you cannot leave.  You say to yourself, “The choice is mine.”  That is true.  But before you make a decision against a mission, count your blessings, my dear friend.  Think of all the great and marvelous things you have–your very life, your health, your parents, your home, the girl you love.  Are they not all gifts from a generous Heavenly Father?  Did you really earn them alone, independent of His blessing?  No, the lives of all of us are in His hands.  All of the precious things that are ours come from Him who is the giver of every good gift.  I am not suggesting that He will withdraw His blessings and leave you bereft if you do not go on a mission.  But I am saying that out of a spirit of appreciation and gratitude, and a sense of duty, you ought to make whatever adjustment is necessary to give a little of your time–as little as two years–consecrating your strength, your means, your talents to the work of sharing with others the gospel, which is the source of so much of the good that you have.  I promise that if you will do so, you will come to know that what appears today to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment that you will ever make.  (Ensign, May 1986, pp. 40-41.) (CR, Nov., 1991.)

Russell M. Nelson

• Preparation for a mission is important. A mission is a voluntary act of service to God and humankind. Missionaries support that privilege with their personal savings. Parents, families, friends, and donors to the General Missionary Fund may also assist. All missionaries, younger and older, serve with the sole hope of making life better for other people.

• The decision to serve a mission will shape the spiritual destiny of the missionary, his or her spouse, and their posterity for generations to come. A desire to serve is a natural outcome of one’s conversion, worthiness, and preparation.  (General Conference, October 2012

• Today I reaffirm strongly that the Lord has asked every worthy, able young man to prepare for and serve a mission. For Latter-day Saint young men, missionary service is a priesthood responsibility. You young men have been reserved for this time when the promised gathering of Israel is taking place. As you serve missions, you play a pivotal role in this unprecedented event! For you young and able sisters, a mission is also a powerful, but optional, opportunity. We love sister missionaries and welcome them wholeheartedly. What you contribute to this work is magnificent! Pray to know if the Lord would have you serve a mission, and the Holy Ghost will respond to your heart and mind.  (General Conference, April 2022)

WHAT IF I’M NOT SURE THAT GOD LIVES AND THAT THIS IS HIS CHURCH?  AM I SUPPOSED TO GO TELL PEOPLE IT’S TRUE WHEN I’M NOT SURE ABOUT IT MYSELF? 

Great question!  The answer is a definite no.  That’s like asking if a pitcher with a broken arm is supposed to pitch anyway.  Your first step is not to put in your mission papers but to make a serious effort to find out if what the missionaries in the field are teaching is true.  Does God really live?  Does He love you?  Did He actually speak to Joseph Smith?  Is Russell M. Nelson truly a prophet? 

The good news is that it’s easy enough to find out, though it will take some serious effort on your part.  And it will require a willingness on your part to accept a “yes” answer if it should come.  If you aren’t willing to do that, the Lord won’t force a testimony upon you. 

Here are the keys to getting an answer for yourself:

• Jesus said, “If any man will do his [God’s] will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.”  (John 7:17).  In other words, do an experiment.  Try the gospel out, doing everything the scriptures and prophets have said we should do, and see if it brings you the happiness, excitement, and conviction that come from receiving the Holy Ghost.  Pray with sincerity.  Read and study the scriptures.  Keep the commandments.  Participate enthusiastically in your classes.  Pay your tithing.  Be clean in your thoughts and actions.  If the gospel weren’t true, and if you tried that experiment with a sincere heart for a couple of months, you wouldn’t feel anything different afterwards.  You could then in all honesty say it wasn’t true.  But I’ve never known anyone who seriously tried this without getting the promised testimony.
• Start reading the Book of Mormon from cover to cover, asking yourself if an uneducated New York farm boy could have written it, or if you get a strong feeling that it was written by prophets of God and translated by divine power.  You are probably already aware of the promise in Moroni 10:4-5 that if after receiving “these things” (the Book of Mormon), you ask God with real intent, with a sincere heart, if it’s true, you’ll know it’s true by the power of the Holy Ghost.  But that testimony won’t necessarily come in the first few pages or chapters of the book.  Moroni’s promise is in the last chapter, not the first.  But if you read the entire book and ask with a willingness to accept the implications of a “yes” answer, you’ll get it.   And you’ll be so excited about it that wild horses couldn’t keep you from serving a mission!

SOME ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE SUBJECT

• Remember, this is the time Satan is likely to do all he can to convince you not to serve a mission.  It was just before Joseph Smith’s first vision that Satan tried hard to stop Joseph’s prayer.  It was as Christ was about to begin his mortal ministry, following his baptism, that Satan worked hardest to stop him.  For the same reasons, Satan wants to stop you now, before you have served a mission.  Though there is a veil over your memory, he remembers you from the pre-mortal life and knows who you were there and what you were there foreordained to do.  He knows that if he can talk you out of a mission, he’ll have significantly neutralized one who potentially could be one of the great missionaries and one of the great Church leaders of this century.  Knowing this will enable you to recognize some of the opposition and temptations you face at present for what they are.

• Ask yourself:  Would you really want to marry the kind of girl who could be satisfied not to marry a returned missionary?

• Do your future children deserve to have a father who has served a mission?

• Would you someday want to be able to be considered for positions of service and responsibility in the Church for which a mission would better prepare you? 

• What promises may you have made to the Lord or even to your future investigators in the pre-mortal life regarding your willingness to serve a mission here?

• If you don’t serve a mission, are you sure you will be happy with that decision in another ten years?  Or one hundred years?  Or a million?

• The oath and covenant of the Melchizedek Priesthood, which you will receive when you are ordained an elder, involves commitment on the part of the priesthood holder to “magnify” his calling–in other words, to make the priesthood bigger and more important in his life, and to look for additional things he can do with it.  Would one who didn’t choose to serve a mission really be able to feel he had “magnified” his calling?  Would he be able to expect the Lord to fulfill His part of the covenant, that all that the Father has would someday be given to him?  (D&C 84:33-39.)

• One question asked of prospective Melchizedek Priesthood recipients is whether they sustain the president of the Church as a prophet, seer, and revelator.  It is difficult to see how one could be said to sustain the prophets in that role and ignore their repeated urging that every young man serve a mission.  Of the living prophet, the Lord has said:  “His word ye shall receive as if from my own mouth, in all patience and faith.”  (D&C 21:5.)

• How would you feel if after years of practice and work you succeeded in becoming a pitcher for your favorite major league baseball team, helped them to the league championship, and were picked to start the final game of the World Series?  Can you imagine yourself on the day of the game thinking it was just too much trouble to get out of bed, or too much work to go out in front of all those fans and throw baseballs?  Could you be satisfied to sit in the stands and watch your teammates battle without you?  Could you bear to see the rest of the team receive their championship rings, no thanks to you, while you stood on the sidelines hoping no one would notice you?   Were you not part of a “championship team” in the pre-mortal life, sent here at this particular time to be part of the greatest and most exciting contest in all of our eternal existence?  The Lord foreordained you and at one time you agreed to serve as a key player in this final contest before the Second Coming of the Savior.  Can you be content to “sit in the stands” while others fill the role you were sent here to fill?  The Lord’s work will go on and His “team” will win the victory, with or without us, but if we choose to be bystanders rather than active participants in this most wonderful and challenging of all conflicts, are we not likely to regret it for the endless ages of eternity?

• Some young men seem to feel they need to ask the Lord whether they should serve a mission.  However, the scriptures teach that we need not expect special revelation to repeat that which the Lord has already plainly revealed.  We’d probably feel a bit foolish asking the Lord if it was okay for us to smoke or drink, as an exception to the general rule, or whether 5% tithing was acceptable in our case.  If we have a testimony of the scriptures and of the modern prophets in general, perhaps we do not need to expect special revelation to us individually on every subject on which they have already spoken.  This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pray to feel good about their counsel, but that is different from praying about whether we need to accept their counsel in the first place.  President Marion G. Romney assured us that:  “The spirit of the Lord will never direct a person to take a position in opposition to the counsel of the Presidency of His Church.”  (Conference Report, April 1942, pp. 19-20.)

• You can do it!  As Nephi taught us, the Lord gives no commandments to his children without preparing the way for them whereby they can accomplish that which he has commanded.  The Lord and you will make a great team!  How about it?