Two young adult women share their experiences in deciding whether or not to serve a full-time mission.
Small, Quiet Assurances
Growing up I never wanted to serve a full-time mission. Talking to strangers about the gospel and inviting people to change their lives sounded too scary. But as I got closer to being old enough to go, I started thinking about it more and more. I wanted other people to have the blessings of the gospel, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to serve a mission. I decided that if Heavenly Father wanted me to serve, I would do it—but I desired a loud and clear answer. I soon learned that receiving revelation doesn’t always work that way, but that doesn’t mean God leaves our prayers unanswered.
There was no lightning-bolt answer to my many prayers about serving a mission. However, over time I felt many small, quiet assurances that serving a mission would be a good thing for me to do. I remember feeling a strong desire to serve God while studying the scriptures one day. Then during a Sunday School class, I felt the Spirit when the teacher talked about how serving a mission had blessed his family. I also felt peace while sitting quietly in the temple and thinking about serving a mission.
I hadn’t fully committed to serving a mission yet, but I knew I needed to act. So I scheduled an appointment with my bishop to start filling out my papers. After my interview, I called my parents and told them my thoughts. As I talked to them, I felt the Spirit confirm that I had made a good choice
I never got the big, showy answer I wanted, but I felt that the combination of my positive experiences constituted an answer. I put my trust in the Lord, worked with my local leaders to have a missionary recommendation submitted, and was called to serve in the Canada Toronto Mission.
Preparing to leave on my mission was an exciting time, but my fears and doubts didn’t magically disappear.