Jenny and Jeff at his High School Graduation 2012
Recently David Archuleta announced he was going to serve a mission for the LDS church.
For my readers who are curious to know how this works:
Young LDS men and women indicate to their Bishops that they are interested in serving a full time Mission. Â They have to be worthy to serve and pass two interviews with Priesthood Leaders. Â Then they fill out some paperwork which shares a variety of factual information about them with the church leadership. Â They do not get to pick where they will serve and We Believe that the Holy Spirit influences those who make those sacred decisions that the missionaries will be sent to the best place for them to serve.
After a few weeks they receive a “call” and are asked to report to the Mission Training Center in Provo Utah on a certain date. Â They pay all expenses for travel to the MTC, clothing, and scriptures etc…and also pay a monthly fee to cover living expenses and incidentals tied to mission life.
The new missionaries are not allowed to phone home or have significant contact with family and friends back home, but they are allowed to skype on Christmas and visit with Family Members. Â This is to keep them focused on the work and also provide growth and development during the two years they are in the field.
Young Men age 19 are eligible to serve and Young Women aged 21 are eligible to serve. Â The age discrepancy is to discourage fraternization of the young people while they are missionaries and also to encourage young women to marry if they have the opportunity. Â All young men are called to serve, and young women are able to go if they so choose.
You do not have to be a lifelong member of the church to serve a mission.
Many times young people will get baptized in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and they will immediately decide that they want to serve. Â Some of the best Missionaries I have known over the years have been those on fire with new member enthusiasm who immediately turn around and request to serve. Â The church likes to have them faithfully attend church meetings and prepare for Temple Ordinances for a year before they go out to preach the gospel.
I predict David will be an amazing missionary in whatever locale he is called to serve. Â And wish him well as he prepares to go.
Paul and I are Ward Missionaries, which is a part time six month calling to teach the Gospel to anyone within our locale who is interested in learning more about the church.
We partner with the full time missionaries to teach the investigators as well as anyone in our ward who is interested in learning more about the principles of the gospel.
We are so excited about this six month mission at church.
I purchased the Preach my Gospel Missionary Manual for all of my children when it was first published a few years ago, but have never really made a study of the book til now.
This past week Paul and I drove down to the Denver Temple to attend a Session at the temple and we listened to the audio of Preach my Gospel on our Mp3 Player. Â We had been asked to prepare for todays meeting by studying the first chapter in the manual.
The whole book is available to read here on the Churchs web site.
Here is the PDF of the text from Chapter One Click
Paul and I plan to use this book for our Family Home Evening lessons with the boys over the next few months. Â Our oldest son Jeff is preparing to serve a Mission for the church and although he has been studying the book on his own, we thought it would be great to study it together as Paul and I attempt to master the various principles and lessons to teach to those interested in joining the church in our location. Â We are planning to serve a mission some day as a couple, so this will be great preparation for that time.
When I was blessed last week as the Bishop set me apart for this new calling I felt a sobering reality weigh down on my mind that I need to be a better example of Christ Like Living and behavior, not only for my own family but for those I come in contact with in my day to day life and also on the internet. Â My new resolution is to stop swearing and trash talking, (even about politicians) and using sarcasm and in your face debate tactics when I am engaging with others on the web. This does not mean that I will stop blogging about politics and fraud, rather I will find that “well modulated tone” that so many of my brothers and sisters in Christ have mastered when interacting with friend and foe alike.
I cannot think of anything I would rather do in the church that serve as a Missionary. Â If any of you are interested in learning more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, please contact me here: Jenny@NaturalFamilyCo.com to learn more!
