Five Things I Learned on My Mission

I wrote this on Facebook in 2011 – it refers to a talk I gave back in 2008. As I read it I realized I would not change anything that I wrote. But I would add a sixth thing that I learned. For all my missions I have had the perfect mission companion!

I was looking through our Indonesian mission blog and came across some notes about a talk I gave after we got home. Now after going to South Africa I think they still sum up my thoughts…Bill

“Five Things I Learned on My Mission.”

1. The Lord knows where I needed to serve. I included the thought that we teach young members “I’ll go where you want me to go” but when we get older that many decide that we know better where we should serve than the Lord does.

2. I really do belong to the Household of God – a Fellow Citizen with the Saints. (Ephesians 2:19) That no matter what branch we went to, we were immediately accepted and felt welcomed.

3. My Mission was more about learning than about teaching. I learned to have more patience, more faith, and to listen to the Lord. I learned from the leaders and the members on what it means to be faithful in adversity. That you do not need lots of money to be happy.

4. There are no sacrifices in serving a mission. (Mosiah 2:24)

5. Missions are like potato chips – one is not enough. Home is a wonderful place to visit between missions.