My hope is that when this mission to New Hampshire is finished, I will get this blog printed up so that my grandsons, in particular, will have a written record of what happened to grandpa and grandma when they went out on a mission together.
I want them to know that missionary work is the most important work they will perform when they are young and that the skills and knowledge they will gain on their missions will stand them in good stead as they progress through their lives. They will go out as 19yr old boys, and come home as 21 year old young men, matured by the challenges that come with missionary life, and be well grounded in their belief in God and Jesus and this will enable them to take their place as head of a family when they marry in the Temple.
What other church takes 19yr old boys and sends them to the far corners of the earth and asks them to invite their fellowman to come to Christ? These young men do this service for two years at their own expense and come home well rounded individuals. Individuals who will take their place in society as solid citizens.
I look forward to my grandsons going out as missionaries when they are old enough.
Return with honor, Ethan and Oliver, and Grandpa and Grandma will be eternally happy for you.
Here at the Missionary Training Center, we are surrounded by about 2,500 missionaries preparing for their labors. They are busy every day learning new languages, coping with new experiences, being homesick, checking the mail for packages from home, missing girlfriends, (the lady missionaries are missing boyfriends), missing their families, interrupting their schooling for two years, but they are happy in their new life situation. Soon they will leave for their mission assignments prepared to go to work.
What more could we ask?
I remember having a conversation with the principal of the high school in California where my kids attended. He told me (he was Jewish)) how much he admired our missionary program, and wished that all young could have that experience.
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