I recently returned from a mini-mission! On Thursday, June 6th, we had a Missionary Training Center experience. It was pretty much like a fireside directed by the Chicago mission president and his wife, as well as two missionaries from the area. The next day, we began our experience as mini-missionaries. Here, I'll tell you some of the stuff that went down last weekend. I've broken it up into days/times of day. Keep in mind, this is an ultra-condensed summary.
Friday Night
On Friday night, my friend Jane* and I arrived at two missionaries' apartment about an hour, hour and a half away. We got there around 9:30 PM. We had a planning session with the missionaries, Sister Jones and Sister Righton. We didn't get to bed until after 11 (missionary bedtime is 10:30! But I'll tell you why it went so late).
It was kind of a messed up day for the Sisters. A recently baptized member had passed away about an hour before Jane and I arrived. So the day was really out of the ordinary, and of course, death is always sad news. We know that death is a step into the next segment of our eternal lives, but it's still hard when someone we love takes that step before us. So, we were all kind of thrown for a loop.
Saturday Morning
We woke up at 6:30 AM (except for me... I woke up way earlier than that and had a hard time falling back asleep. Eventually, I did for a little while). With four girls aged from about 17-23 needing to get ready in the morning, we obviously had to do a rotation. While one was using the bathroom, another was in the kitchen eating breakfast, and another was doing personal scripture study, etcetera.
During my own personal study, I read out of Preach My Gospel--kinda like a guide to help missionaries know what they need to know and do. I also read from the scriptures. I know that the scriptures are the word of God, and I know God provides us with multiple--uncountable-ways of feeling His love. I have felt God's witness to me that the Book of Mormon, as well as the Bible, are His word. An angel didn't come down and declare it to me, nor did I go back in time and meet the ancient prophets who transcribed it. Instead, this special, sacred witness came to me quietly--into my mind and my heart, as I studied and prayed.
We had companion study at 9. It consisted of reading a bit from the missionary handbook (the no-nos and yeses of missionary conduct), as well as discussing what we'd learned in our personal studies. We finished and reviewed our plans for the day.
Saturday Afternoon
And to begin.... TRACTING. For those who don't know what tracting is, it's when missionaries go door-to-door with the hope that someone would like to learn more. (If there's a "No trespassing" sign, we heed it! We believe in obeying the law.) The four of us split up into couples--I was with Sister Jones, and Jane was with Sister Righton. Jane and Sister Righton took one side of the street, and Siser Jones and I took the other.
The first group of people Sister Jones and I went up to were sitting outside, chatting. Sister Jones introduced us and asked if they would like to learn more about the Church. We were (ahem, quite rudely) turned down, but that's okay. That's to be expected. And we kept going, without a worry.
A lot of people didn't answer their doors. Some people even went around back and drove away after we'd left the porch. That was actually kind of funny.
There were definitely some rude responses and people that looked at us like we were a foul disease (ha). I won't dwell on those. All we can do is extend an invitation, and if we're rejected, we've done the best we can.
Cuz there were also some really polite people! Even if they weren't interested and didn't want to learn about what we believe at all, they were still kind and patient. And that's cool. I love it when people totally respect our religion as we respect theirs. We just totally love our own religion, so we wanna share it with others, you know? But everyone has the right to believe in whatever they will.
We also stopped by some less-active members of the Church (those who don't really attend anymore), some referrals (members of the Church told the missionaries that these people might want to know more), as well as some recently baptized members. They were kind, but not always interested. One lady in particular was really nice. She lives in an assisted living center. She has Alzheimer's, so repetition was inevitable, but we had a very enjoyable visit with her, and we were able to share some scriptures.
Saturday Evening
We had dinner at some members' house. The food was awesome, and they were super nice people. We shared a little bit about why member missionary work is important (cuz seriously, I know I'd be more inclined to listen about a religion from a friend of that religion than a missionary I've never even met before).
We went to a man's house and taught him about faith and we also just answered some of his questions. It was a good visit. (Plus, he gave us these super delicious mango/coconut/fruit/chocolate things to eat on the road, so our taste buds thought so, too.)
Then, we went to Rob's. Now, Rob was the boyfriend of Emily, the woman who had passed away on Friday. Emily died of cancer in a hospice at 61 years old. It was so difficult to see Rob in so much pain, even though he was being strong. He knows that he will see Emily again, and that she's happy and healthy now. I believe he really needed to talk to someone about all that he was feeling. He told us about the night Emily died, how he'd watched her take her last breath. He told us he still leaves the baby monitor on, hoping he'll hear her voice.
It was heartbreaking. We were all crying with him. Jane and I had never met Emily or Rob before, but we knew he was hurting. We also know that Emily is safe where she is now, and we've prayed for Rob that he may feel the comfort he needs. God is there for him, and I hope he takes full advantage of God's unspeakable love.
We returned home and prepared for bed and for the following day.
Sunday
The morning started out the same, pretty much--getting ready, and personal/companion study. We took pictures with each other (this girl forgot her camera, so that's going to be delivered via my branch's wonderful full-time missionaries. Otherwise, I would post some pictures of my fabulous friends). By the way, it was Sister Jones's 23rd birthday (happy birthday to herrrr, happy birthday to herrrr, happy birthday, Sister Jo-ones, happy birthday to herrrr!)!
Then we packed lunches and headed over to the church building. The Sisters had a meeting to go to at 11 o'clock, but there wasn't enough space in the room for Jane and me to join, so we waited for them in the foyer/library, and at some point ate our lunches in the kitchen (just for reference, if you make a pizza, don't wrap it in aluminum foil-- when you open it, the pizza will be on one side... and the cheese will be on the other).
We had sacrament meeting starting at 1, and then gospel principles class and relief society after.
We had to leave to return to our own area. We said goodbye to Sisters Jones and Righton, and headed back home.
We went to the Stake Center, where there was a {fantastic} dinner prepared for us and our parents. We then had a testimony meeting. It was wonderful to see so many happy returned mini-missionaries. Several of us shared some of what we learned. One thing that I learned is that the Lord is truly on your side, when you work hard and do your best. Even if people reject you, even if you feel inadequate, even if you can't seem to find anyone who will listen, He will be there to comfort, uplift, and bless you.
I love this gospel. I love this Church. And I love my Savior, Jesus Christ, and my Heavenly Father. The mini-mission was a great experience for me, and I appreciate the opportunity I had to serve the Lord full-time for a few days.
(All of these captioned photos are from the LDS Missionaries page on Facebook.)
*Note: All names have been changed for sake of privacy (cuz I didn't ask for permission to use their real names haha).
I'd like to...
Learn more about Jesus Christ: http://mormon.org/beliefs/jesus-christ
Learn about God's commandments: http://mormon.org/beliefs/commandments
Request a free copy of the Book of Mormon: http://mormon.org/free-book-of-mormon
Request a free copy of the Bible: http://mormon.org/free-bible
Meet with Mormon missionaries: http://mormon.org/missionaries
Locate a meetinghouse: http://mormon.org/worship
Find a family history center: https://familysearch.org/locations/centerlocator
Chat with Church representatives: http://mormon.org/chat
Read frequently asked questions: http://mormon.org/faq
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