Comments on: Two Year Mission: Was it Worth it?

By: Andrew

Andrew — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 06:10:34 +0000

You say your two-year mission helped you grow up. When you grow up, you don’t go around saying, “Man,” all the time.

By: Mark's dad

Mark's dad — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 01:39:39 +0000

I spent over an hour writng a comment, and lost it all when I failed to give an address.

I think this is appropriately symbolic of this time–run by computers who can’t care and administered by executives who count money.

By: Kullervo

Kullervo — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 00:48:02 +0000

Hey, a person brought to Christ is a person brought to Christ. if indeed they are brought to Christ.

By: Steve M

Steve M — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 19:45:43 +0000

I don’t think it’s necessary to feel guilty for converting people, unless it was done through some kind of manipulation or something. If the Church really does enrich their lives and make them better, happier people, then great. If not, they’ll probably end up leaving in the long run.

In my last area, my companion and I baptized a man who was on the verge of cheating on his wife when we first started teaching him. His conversion to Mormonism was what kept him from taking that step. He really did become a new human being, with new values and priorities. Even if I don’t have the same thoughts about the Church now as I did then, I think we really did help this guy, his marriage, and his family.

By: Mark

Mark — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 18:06:46 +0000

Wow. That must have been so tough to have worked for two years with no baptisms. It makes it tough because that’s what people (missionaries, members, mission presidents) see as “success” on the mission. The raw “numbers”. Imagine if success was judged by other kinds of accomplishments.

(Although it does relieve me a little bit to know that since i went to Germany, I baptized exactly zero people in two years, so while it was a worthwhile experience for me, I also don’t have to feel bad for converting people to what I now believe to be a basically false religion).

It can be almost heart-wrenching to do just that. Recently I spoke with a young man from my mission (who I converted) who was still having problems with his large Catholic family ever since ripped him out of Catholicism and left him to deal with it alone. Four years later things still weren’t going well for him and his family relationships because he wanted to put the LDS church in first place. I wrote him and told him that it is a church like any other churches and that he shouldn’t ruin his familial relationships over it. He couldn’t believe I would write him that after all I had taught him and all the headache he had gone through during the last several years. It was hard for me to do, and for him to hear, but I believe he’ll be happier for it now.

I have another convert who just wrote me telling me she is going to serve a mission. I have not responded to her, (nor will I). She’s happy and I’ll just stay out of this one but the ripple effect continues till today with the people I baptized.

I guess I can’t feel too bad, though. I was just a nineteen-year old kid, after all, doing what I thought was right.

By: Kullervo

Kullervo — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 14:37:11 +0000

My mission was definitely worth it. I got out of the nest, I learned German, I learned how to work, and I honestly grew up.

Was I misguided? Sure.

But I know I spent two years doing my best to do what I thought was right- making huge sacrifices for something I thought was noble and good and true. To me, that does the trick. Time well spent.

(Although it does relieve me a little bit to know that since i went to Germany, I baptized exactly zero people in two years, so while it was a worthwhile experience for me, I also don’t have ot feel bad for converting people to what I now believe to be a basically false religion).

By: Dando

Dando — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 06:15:59 +0000

There is a conversation going on in Protestant churches that we have been guilty of “Evangelical Gnosticism” in the last 100 years. Our work has primarily been a “spiritual” work alone, we preach the Gospel and plant churches. The only thing we have focused on is saving people’s souls, while Christ wants to save their whole person. Their souls are important to be sure, but they are not merely souls. They lack food, they lack education, they lack community, the lack healthy relationships and they lack salvation. Jesus can solve all of these issues.