Perhaps the Greater Your Age, the Greater Your Appreciation

I remember last summer, a year ago, when I was so very excited for my 21st birthday. It would mean I was old enough to serve a full time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At the time, Sister missionaries were only allowed to serve beginning at the age of 21. I started my mission papers last summer, eagerly looking forward to taking care of everything I needed to before Christmas so I could submit my papers then.  And then the announcement came - young men could serve missions at 18 and young women at 19 (previously the ages had been 19 for men, 21 for women.)  At first I was elated.  I could leave even earlier on my mission!  However, since I had already signed up for my housing contract, I ended up having to stay for winter semester anyway.  In the end, this was good, because I learned a lot this semester and grew a great deal (with the help of my friends and my mission preparation class at BYU.)  The more I thought about the age change, the more I wondered how it would change my mission experience.  Sisters would be younger now, which will create a different dynamic than when all the women serving together were above 21.  In some ways, I'll be the "last of a generation" of Sisters who serve at the older age (although there will always be some who serve later on than the beginning 19 year old age.)  Initially, I was, in part, a little bit disappointed.  Going on a mission as a female used to be somewhat more rare, as you had to make it to the age of 21 and still be unmarried and in a position to serve and have that desire.  With the sudden rush of girls wanting to serve, I was concerned that many wouldn't be serving for the right reasons, or would be immature, etc.,  and that to a certain extent it might "tarnish" the reputation of Sister missionaries. That wasn't the right way to look at it, but it was, in part, a semi-valid concern of mine that has been refuted by many of my 19 year old girl friends who are serving or preparing to serve missions now - and very capably doing so, as well.

                             
  Some 21 year old Sister missionaries            Some 19 year old Sister missionaries

Different ages, same purpose - which starts with their righteous desire to serve God's children

And then I thought about it some more.  This was opening up an opportunity for many Sisters who wouldn't have had the chance to serve otherwise, because of schooling, etc.  Just because I was fortunate enough to have been in a position at the age of 21 to serve doesn't mean that many other girls who would like to serve could have.  This was one other way of giving people options, and Heavenly Father is always willing to work with us to reach our goals and desires, if they are righteous.  The mission age lowering was an answer to many prayers, and I was not so stubborn in my way of thought to not see that.  Whether the women serving were 19, 21, or 28, if they served with the right purpose and their only reason and desire to serve was to share the Gospel that had made them so happy - well, there is nothing but good in that.

A small word of caution, though.  I am very excited for the opportunity I have to serve a mission, and there are very clearly many blessings both for myself and others that will come from it.  However, I have seen in some instances that people are very disappointed when they aren't called somewhere "exciting" on their missions, and are going "Stateside" or somewhere familiar to them.  The purpose of missionary work is the same no matter where you are.  To share the Gospel.  A mission is not a time for "travel opportunities" or simply just because someone feels like a change in life, or just doesn't want to be doing what they're doing anymore.  A mission is not an escape from problems or boredom, but is very, very hard work. There will be little to no time to play the part of a tourist on a mission, if a missionary is doing what they're supposed to.  And because of this - where you are called does not matter.  You will be performing the same work no matter where you are.  Yes, I personally was called to an "exciting" mission or what have you, but I can honestly say that I would have been more than happy serving in the States.  There are advantages and disadvantages to any place you may serve your mission, but ultimately your goals and purpose are exactly the same no matter where you go - to serve the people, and preach the Gospel.  

Missionaries proselyting

A mission is a huge commitment.  I would encourage anyone who feels ready for service to consider it, consider their options, and prayerfully ponder that decision.  If you receive your call and feel disappointed - pray about it.  Those mission calls are inspired and prompted by God.  If you are curious about how the mission call process works, here is the talk for you.  

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/04/the-divine-call-of-a-missionary?lang=eng

I hope that all missionaries serving, and especially Sisters, prepare well for their calls and are ready and willing to see the Lord's hand in their lives through the place they are called to.  If you go in with the right attitude and desires, it won't matter where you are called, and even if you do initially experience some disappointments, you will, in the long run, see why that mission was ever so right and tailored just for you.  I have heard many a person testify of this, so even though I do not yet have an experience of that myself, I am sure it holds true.  I'm sorry I had to get on my high horse about this, but I want to serve alongside missionaries who are hardworking and earnest in the work, and are genuinely serving for the right reasons. Let us all align our goals and desires with the Lord's, especially with regards to missionary work.

This all being said - I am so grateful for the fact that so many missionaries are able to serve now, both Elders and Sisters.  Missionary work is hard, but also rewarding in ways that I cannot even personally comprehend right now, as I have yet to serve.  Missionaries see daily miracles as they serve, both of small magnitude and larger magnitude.  I would like to share part of a talk given by Elder Dallin H. Oaks, entitled "Miracles" and given in Alberta, Canada in 2000.  This is specifically about the Manila temple, which is located in the city I will be serving in as a missionary.

The Manila temple, in the Philippines.

Elder Oaks:  "I experienced another miracle during an attempted military coup to overthrow the government of Philippine president Corazon Aquino in December 1989.  Many persons were killed in nearly a week of heavy fighting between rebel and loyal government troops. A principal site of this fighting was Camp Aguinaldo, which adjoins our temple in Manila.
During the first day of the attempted coup, gunfire and bombing could be heard from our temple. That night the road in front of the temple was occupied by rebel armored vehicles, trucks, and many soldiers. With the coming of daylight on Saturday, these rebel forces exchanged gunfire with the loyal government troops in Camp Aguinaldo. Opposing aircraft fired rockets and dropped bombs.
At about 3:00 P.M. Saturday afternoon, the rebel soldiers breached the gate of the temple and occupied our temple grounds. At this time we had five Philippine employees there: three security men and two custodians. Our temple president, Floyd H. Hogan, instructed them by phone not to resist the soldiers entering the temple grounds or the temple annex, which housed auxiliary facilities like name processing, but to secure the temple and take cover there. The man in charge, Brother Espi, later wrote that he worked to develop a good relationship with the rebel soldiers to convince them that even though they wanted to get access to the temple, “because of the sacred nature of the temple, they should not try to enter.”
Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning there were almost continuous exchanges of gunfire between the government troops in Camp Aguinaldo and the rebels around the camp, including those occupying our temple grounds. Brother Espi later wrote: “We all thought that we are on our own but still asked our Heavenly Father to strengthen each one of us and to spare the temple from being desecrated.”
Others were praying too. In his later report, Area President George I. Cannon wrote: “The Sunday when the rebellion was going on was fast Sunday. Throughout the Philippines the members were praying and fasting for the temple, for the members, and for the missionaries.”
Sunday morning a government helicopter gunship appeared and strafed the vicinity of the temple, but retreated because of stiff resistance from the rebels’ 50-caliber machine guns. About noon that day an air force plane dropped several bombs that hit the residence house near the temple. Bomb fragments broke windows in the temple annex.
Sunday evening Manila radio reported that the Mormon temple was in rebel hands but that a government force was moving in to drive them out. At that report, President Hogan, the temple president and a retired colonel in the U.S. military, went into action himself. He made the dangerous walk from the temple president’s home to the assembling government troops. There he found that their commander had given the rebels one hour to surrender and planned to attack them at 11:00 P.M. His force included armored personnel carriers, heavy mortars, and at least 150 soldiers, who believed they outnumbered and could easily defeat the rebel force in the temple annex. But their attack would obviously employ extensive heavy weapons and rifle fire and would cause great damage to the temple facilities. President Hogan argued with the commanding officer that if he would only wait until daylight, the rebels might abandon the temple grounds and no attack would be necessary. The commander insisted that he had to follow his orders, and President Hogan was not able to contact the general who had given the order to see if he would rescind it.
During this time I was the member of the Quorum of the Twelve whom the Philippines Area President contacted for help at headquarters. Thirty minutes before the 11:00 P.M. Manila deadline, Area President George I. Cannon phoned me to report that our temple annex and grounds were the last remaining rebel stronghold in Manila and the army had massed artillery and troops for an assault at any moment. He said he had done all he could through the Philippine government and the American ambassador to discourage the attack, but without success. It was then 7:30 A.M. Sunday in Salt Lake City.
By a remarkable coincidence—one of those happenings that cannot be coincidental—the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles had scheduled an unusual meeting that Sunday morning. At 8:00 A.M., 3 December, just 30 minutes after I received that alarming report from Manila, the assembled First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve bowed in prayer and pleaded with the Lord to intervene to protect His house. Elder Marvin J. Ashton led our prayer. As we prayed, it was 11:00 P.M. Sunday evening in Manila, the exact hour appointed for the assault.
The attack never came. Twenty minutes after our prayer, President Cannon phoned Church headquarters to report that the military commander had unexpectedly decided against a night assault. Early the next morning, Philippine time, President Hogan phoned to say that the rebels had melted away during the night. I recorded in my journal, “I consider this a miracle of divine intervention no less impressive than many recorded in holy writ.”
On Monday morning President Hogan inspected the temple annex. It had shrapnel marks and many broken windows on the north side, but inside, none of its locked rooms had been entered. The temple itself had not been entered and was not damaged. A total of six mortar or rocket shells had exploded inside the temple grounds. From their trajectory, President Hogan concluded that some of these shells had to have passed between the spires of the temple. The patron housing building under construction nearby had been hit by four or five rockets and had sustained extensive damage. The Manila temple opened for normal sessions the next day.
A week later I received a letter from the Philippine ambassador to the United States, Emmanuel Pelaez, whom I had recently hosted at Church headquarters. His letter explained how he had worked behind the scenes, as soon as he learned that our temple was threatened, to urge the Philippine military to “do everything possible” to spare this sacred building from damage. After the fighting was over, they had reported to him that “they were careful in their counter-shelling, so as not to cause damage” to the temple.  I concluded that the Lord had worked behind the scenes through these government servants to save His house.
When I was in the Philippines a few months later, I personally inspected the temple and grounds and found that despite all of the shelling and exchanges of gunfire within a few feet of this sacred edifice, it was completely unmarked by any shell fire except for one bullet hole, apparently a single stray rifle shot, at the top of the highest steeple. As President and Sister Donald L. Hilton of the Philippines Manila Mission wrote in a letter sent to their missionaries, “an unseen army of angels assisted faithful temple guards that the temple was not desecrated.”  End quote.

Missionaries in front of the Manila temple

Missionary work, is in and of itself, a miracle, as Elder Oaks also stated in that same talk:
 "Still another miracle is the way missionaries are protected during their labors. Of course we have fatalities among our young missionaries—about three to six per year over the last decade—all of them tragic. But the official death rates for comparable-age young men and women in the United States are eight times higher than the death rates of our missionaries. In other words, our young men and women are eight times safer in the mission field than the general population of their peers at home. In view of the hazards of missionary labor, this mortality record is nothing less than a miracle."

 For more on that, and other miracles, the link to the talk that was excerpted from, click here.

It's only 18 days before I leave for Manila! The countdown is getting ever smaller now. I finished taking my typhoid fever pills last week, and I *think* I have all of my clothes for my mission now. I've been getting scriptures read and talks , too. I hope everyone has a good week, and I hope that everyone looks for opportunities to spiritually grow and improve yourself this week, as well as look for the small miracles (or big ones) that continuously occur in your lives. Time ever marches forward, whether you're 21 or 70 - and I hope we all take the time to really analyze our progress and make sure that we are progressing and moving forward along with the time. Take moments to stop and appreciate the progress you have made, and the Lord's blessings in your life. Smell the roses and daisies along the journey, and enjoy the small moments and miracles in life!