From a letter written to his father:
When I first came on my mission, I heard of a missionary who tried to get his time in the field extended. I confess that I couldn’t really understand him then.
Now my appreciation for my mission has vastly changed. At first it seemed like such a demanding thing — tract, tract, try to get people to listen, try to get them to read the Book of Mormon — I thought that was all there was to a mission. All I could see was the minute detail of the thing I was laboriously doing — I hadn’t caught the fantastic overall picture of what a mission really is.
I have now. This mission has formed me more than any other part of my life. A mission is the greatest training program for success that exists ; only on a mission does a young man spend all his time merely trying to get people to listen to him, to understand his arguments, to be successful. It is here on my mission that I have come to an understanding of the meaning of life — why I am here and where I want to go.
It amazes me how little I knew about the gospel before. Sure, I had a lot of facts down, but I just hadn’t caught the vision. I had heard people say that the gospel was and is a message of happiness and good news, yet I didn’t understand why. It is here that I have begun to feel the joy that the gospel was established to give to man.
It is here that I have found what the word success really means — to be worthy of entering the celestial world, to have our calling and election sure.
Here, material and worldly things have taken on a second importance ; and because I attach a greater importance to what is important, I am happier than ever before. Christ promised that if we seek first his kingdom, all other things will be added unto us. I know this is true.
I am only 21 years old and yet I am a leader in the most important organization in France — L’Eglise de Jesus-Christ. Where else or when again will I have the opportunity to hold such authority and responsibility as I now hold? And when again will I be able to consecrate all my energy and time to it?
Perhaps this is one of the most fantastic things about a mission. It is the only time one has to consecrate all to one goal — serving the Lord. At home there’s school, finances, marriage, children, worry about what others think. Here there’s only one thing.
At home when I didn’t like something, I went away from it; here I can’t. I have to face it, learn to get along in situations and with people that are hard to get along with. How great it is to find that you have conquered something that you otherwise would run away from!
At home when I tried to convince someone that I was right, if they didn’t agree, I went looking for someone who did, and stayed with him. Here I can’t give up that easily. Contacts are so few that one fights till death before giving up. And then when you finally taste victory over the extremely difficult, you wonder why you don’t burst from all the joy in you.
Every day is spent trying to be more successful, doing things that are hard, and growing from it.
Bearing testimony; teaching lessons; kneeling in prayer for the conversion of an investigator; begging the Lord for guidance on a member problem; feeling the Holy Spirit use you to teach and exhort; placing your hands with those of an apostle on the head of a sick person and translating for him as he blesses the person; crying when you hear a radio broadcast of general conference; finding comradeship among people you would never have selected at home — friendships now so great that leaving them is like parting from family; getting up at 6:00 — cold, tired, allergic, broke, but without a worry in the world; living for others, dependent only upon God; joy when you hear of others’ successes — where would I have ever known these things if it weren’t for a mission?
And yet, I guess it’s only the beginning. A mission is the time to get the direction straight. If I keep in the same stream, my joy will double, triple, and be multiplied eternally. Eternal wedlock, service to the Church, children, service to the world and my country! The Lord must have loved us to give us all this joy.
Aw, Mitt! Wish I could give that 21 year old missionary a hug. I love it when you can tell in a missionary’s letter that they’ve been truly changed by their experience.
This was a fun, invigorating read! I know some RMs who could have written something very similar, especially those who are very success-oriented. I think there’s something we all can learn from this.
At the same time, it’s comforting to know that the Lord can use all of us, even the ones who aren’t so persistent and goal-driven, to build the kingdom and care for each other.
Nice perspective on 21 yr old Mitt. I know my own mission letters home were not so eloquent or thoughtful as this.
He was quite the writer! This was a very enjoyable read. Thanks for posting.
Very fun to read. If I may ask, where did you get the letter, or where is the source of it? Just curious.
@Bob: Ardis is a professional researcher who sells her discoveries to earn a living. She has told us before that she does not cite sources in public because sometimes people take her work and incorporate it into their own work as if they had discovered it. That may not be the case with everything and of course she can speak for herself now, but that is the general rule.