Zion's Bootcamp

     We live in troubling times, when the war between good and evil is growing ever hotter. I have long since begun to think of missions as a sort of boot camp or basic training for this war in which we all either are, or will be, inevitably involved. 

     Here at "camp Zion" the schedule is grueling, and progress can seem slow. We live as we have never lived before, pushing ourselves to greater heights and further lengths than we ever had dreamed possible. On the days when we feel we have nothing more to give, we hear our sergeant's call to "try a little harder" and "do a little better." No experience in my life has ever been more difficult or more strenuous.

     Yet in a very real sense we are protected from the actual battle zone. We have a little book of rules and regulations that builds a protective barrier between us and the outside world. While some see it as a jail fence, most eventually come to recognize it for what it is- a protection against the enemy as we undergo some of the most important training we will ever have in this life. We also come to realize that soon enough we will be called in to battle to fight on the front lines of the war with sin.

     I know there will come a day, sooner than I would like, when I will be back at the home front. I know that once there, I will time and time again look back on the training I received during my 18-moth stay in Zion's Bootcamp, and thank my God for teaching me what I needed to know to survive.

     To those of you already fighting on the home front, don't you quit! Keep going until you have done all you can, even when you are tired. Focus on the most important things and avoid wasting time. When the days get tough, remember who it is that leads our forces. A favorite scripture comes to mind: 

"Dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."

     "Cheerfully do all things that lie in our power." How I love those words. Don't give up, and don't give in. Keep up the battle on the home front.

How to get the missionaries to stop asking me "Who do you know that we could teach?"

     So a key component in this new age of missionary work is member involvement, specifically in finding. But too often when we ask people whom they know we could teach, they pause for a moment, adopt that "dear in the headlights look" and give us the same, familiar answers: "Look, I just don't get out much." or "I really don't know of anyone." and "I can't talk to people about religion at work/school."

     Sometimes I just want to say to "Folks, I love you, you know I do. But here's the thing: The missionaries know even less than you do about who to teach in your area. We are 2000 miles away from home, family, work, and acquaintances for Pete's sakes!"

     Do you appreciate that? Do you recognize that the missionaries have less of a social life then you do? Do you appreciate that they have no personal resources to draw on other than pounding the pavement, knocking doors,and talking with strangers? And that's what we do. We go out and knock doors every day. We talk with everyone, we ask them for referrals- in short we use the resources we have. But what was the reason that 3 of the last 4 people/families in this area got baptized and came into the church? Because they had a friend or family member with the courage to open their mouth and share.

     As representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ are going to keep using every resource we have available to bring people into the gospel, it is our duty and our calling after all, but we need you to do the same: use your resources. Why? Because you have more of them! And, if I could be so bold, because you have a responsibility to share the gospel too.

     Now you don't have to do this alone!! President Monson has specifically counseled that we pray to find missionary opportunities in "those areas where our influence is limited and where we are not allowed to share the gospel freely." and Elder Andersen has promised, "as you pray to know with whom to speak, names and faces will come into your mind. Words to speak will be given in the very moment you need them. Opportunities will open to you. Faith will overcome doubt, and the Lord will bless you with your very own miracles."

    I add my own witness to Elder Andersen's. Pray for missionary opportunities, and they will come. They will be natural, and they will be Spirit led. I know the Lord will bless you to find someone who is ready to accept the gospel.

     And when you do, CALL THE MISSIONARIES!!