One of my favorite “missionary” figures from The Book of Mormon has to be Ammon, one of the sons of Mosiah. In the seventeenth chapter of Alma, the things Ammon says in these versus serve as a prime example of what a missionary should be like: “And the king inquired of Ammon if it were his desire to dwell in the land among the Lamanites, or among his people. And Ammon said unto him: Yea, I desire to dwell among this people for a time; yea, and perhaps until the day I die. And it came to pass that king Lamoni was much pleased with Ammon, and caused that his bands should be loosed; and he would that Ammon should take one of his daughters to wife. But Ammon said unto him: Nay, but I will be thy servant. Therefore Ammon became a servant to king Lamoni. And it came to pass that he was set among other servants to watch the flocks of Lamoni, according to the custom of the Lamanites.” (Alma 17:22-25)
Of course, missionary work was a lot different back in Ammon’s time than it is now. In today’s Latter-day Saints community, young men set aside two years of their lives (and young women set aside 18 months) to go out and serve wherever they are called as representatives of the church and of the Lord, Jesus Christ. In his opening remarks of the October 2010 General Conference, President Thomas S. Monson said, “I repeat what prophets have long taught – that every worthy, able young man should prepare to serve a mission. Missionary service is a priesthood duty – an obligation the Lord expects of us who have been given so very much. Young men, I admonish you to prepare for service as a missionary.” Though this admonition is directed to the young men, the principle for preparation of a mission equally applies to young women who desire to serve as well.
It’s been nearly a year now since I came home from my mission in Japan. I can’t emphasize enough on how much my mission meant to me. To every young man currently serving or who has served, please know that the mission you were called to serve in was meant specifically for you. Being half-Japanese myself, it was almost no surprise that I got called to serve in Japan; my family and I were all excited and grateful that I had received such an opportunity.
Despite the excitement and opportunities, there were times I felt troubled regarding some of my experiences in additions to all the good ones I had. Japan has become quite a diverse place, with people from many different countries residing there. Within my mission, there is an abundant population of Brazilian citizens living in the more industrial cities. With that being the case there are also many missionaries serving from Brazil as well. Much to my surprise, I ended up serving in some of these areas with a Brazilian Elder as my companion. With so much focus concentrated on Brazilian investigators, I had to do my best in learning another language. Without a doubt, I felt like I was being held back (and somewhat cheated) from utilizing the Japanese language, which I was originally called to speak. The way my mission turned out was unexpected; but then again, that ought to be the case for every missionary who serves. I ended up spending almost half of my mission proselyting in areas with fairly strong Brazilian and other non-Japanese communities. Elder Neil L. Andersen stated, “Missionary service requires sacrifice. There will always be something you leave behind when you respond to the prophet’s call to serve.” I really never expected to set aside the Japanese language at one point while in Japan!
At one point, I expressed my frustrations to my dad via E-mail (and my mission president indirectly in the end.). In response, my dad wrote back assuring me that this all happened through no fault of my own. Him being the wiser, he taught me that in missions and life in general, we are all given assignments and they’re all important and not everybody can do them. We don’t always understand the reasoning behind the assignments we’re given but only I was able to fulfill my given assignments. Sometimes these tasks aren’t “prestigious” or “high-profile” but they are all important and not everyone can fulfill them. My dad taught me to take pride (in a humble way of course!) with the fact that I could fulfill my assignments both in the mission field and in life.
To young men who have yet to serve, I highly encourage you to prepare for a mission. In this modern era, the church has become very accommodating thanks to the sacrifices of many contributing members concerning equalized financial matters. Whether you have yet to serve, currently serving or have served, you should be grateful because this wasn’t the case several decades ago. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland in a conference address referred to his own experience: “When I was called to serve a mission back before the dawn of time, there was no equalization of missionary costs. Each had to bear the full expense of the mission to which he or she was sent. Some missions were very expensive, and as it turned out, mind was one of those.”
Unlike Ammon, missionaries of today will only leave their hearts and spiritual influences behind with the people they served, even until the day they die. Please consider how blessed you are to live in this time and age, for not being required to bear the full expenses. And please consider how grateful you should be for the sacrifices people in your lives have made so you could have the chance to serve. To this day, I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to serve my mission in Japan and for the people who reside there. I am grateful for this restored gospel. I know the Savior lives and He gave his life for us. I am grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I know The Book of Mormon is true, as a testament of Jesus Christ. The gospel is true. I leave my thoughts with you, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
