Caitlins Creations: My Advice for Sister Missionaries (really all missionaries)

I am sorry I didn't post yesterday! I have a really good reason. My little sister is turning 19 in March and just got her mission call for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I am so excited for her to experience the joy that comes from a mission. I can't describe how I feel about my mission in words, all I can tell you is that it was the second best decision I have ever made in my life. The best decision was marrying Zack of course :)

My Advice for Sister Missionaries!

I love all these girls. Each one of them helped me become a better person, more compassionate, more understanding and they taught me to truly enjoy life.

1. My first advice is as soon as you get your call, commit to being 100% obedient! I know this one is going to be the most difficult out of all the advice I have. But its going to be the one that will make you a better missionary. Before I left my stake president (leader in charge of LDS congregations in an area) committed me to being 100% obedient and I said I would do it. I tried my best at being obedient, but I still fell short of that goal. In the end I used my knowledge of Christ and the Atonement to help me become a better missionary and the more I tried the better I got at being 100% obedient, I wasn't perfect but I did my best and I have absolutely no regrets. If you can make a goal of being 100% obedient on your mission you too will walk away with no regrets. This means making sure your phone calls home are only 30 minutes if the hand book says 30 minutes, this means getting out of bed at 6:30 to exercise, this means taking only an hour lunch break and nothing more. I promise the more you work at being obedient the more you are able to have success.

2. Read the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon is another Testament of Jesus Christ and if you want a Free copy (for those reading who aren't LDS) you can get one here. The Book of Mormon is a book about relationships. It's about families who go through hard challenges, about brothers who are learning to get along, about couples learning to communicate. It's about men finding God and learning how they can come closer to Him. It's about people everywhere learning what Christ did for mankind and experience the love He has for His children. The Book of Mormon helps testify of Christ and helps show that He loves every single one of us. My advice for missionaries is to read The Book of Mormon every day. Don't miss a single day of reading it. This book will help you gain a different understanding of the gospel, of the work you are a part of and of the Savior Jesus Christ. Reading the book everyday with your investigators in mind will help you when you go to teach them, you will know what they need to hear and you will be able to help them understand the truths that are taught. The Book of Mormon is a powerful tool and I know that if you read it everyday it will help you become a better missionary.

3. Write in your journal every night. My mission was the one time I wrote in my journal every single day. I have never done that before or after but I am so grateful I did it then. I love reading through my journal, some stuff I wrote was all venting. That is totally okay, we all have days like that where we just vent. Other times I wrote about my testimony, the people I taught, my companions etc. I love reading my journal and I know my kids and grand kids will love reading my journal even more than I do. I hope you commit to writing in your journal every night.

4. Pray for your companion. This is important, I didn't learn this until half way through my mission. I am not the easiest person in the world to live with and I know my companions probably disliked the idea of having to be with me 24 hours 7 days a week. After I figured out that what I was doing wasn't working I started praying for my companion. It helped me see them in a different light, it helped me feel more love for them and it helped me be more conscious of how I was treating them. Now my companion's and I are really good friends. I go to them for advice and I know when I have kids I will definitely ask their advice because most of them are mom's now. I love them all dearly and I truly believe it's because I prayed for them. So if you aren't getting along, just remember to pray and hopefully things will get better.

5. Smile a lot. Have fun! This is going to be one of the best times of your life and it will be the best because you make it that way. Don't forget to smile and have fun.