The [Book of Mormon] tells us that those who completely
devote their lives to the task of spreading the gospel experience exquisite joy.
Missionary Work Is the Lifeblood of the Church H. Verlan Andersen
We don’t expect them to be perfect, but they need to be
anxious, willing, and committed to serve so they can reach new levels of
spirituality as gospel teachers. They need to know the message of the
Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and teach it with power in their own
words under the guiding influence of the Holy Spirit.
The Essential Role of Member Missionary Work M. Russell Ballard
Important is the humble nature of the people and their
dependence on the Lord for the things they stand in need of, making them
receptive to the promptings of the Spirit.
Missionary Work in the Philippines Augusto A. Lim
Missionary work is the lifeblood of the Church. There is no
greater work, no more important work. It blesses the lives of all those who
participate in it…You might be asking yourself: How can I assist in missionary
work? There are two fundamental truths to keep in mind as you embark on the
work. First, have a clear understanding that God loves all His children and
desires their salvation. In Doctrine and Covenants 18:13 we read, “And how
great is his joy in the soul that repenteth.” Second, our message of Christ and
His restored gospel is the most important gift you have to give.
Go Ye Therefore Silvia H. Allred
Although our missionaries are strengthened, elevated, and magnified
by their service, that is not their primary purpose, and neither they nor their
families nor their leaders should regard a mission as the solution to
unresolved problems. The Lord needs our best; He needs those who can run, not
just walk—but to run physically and spiritually—those who can wield eternal
influence with purity and strength and conviction.
Missionary Work—Our Responsibility David B. Haight
The single most important thing you can do to prepare for a
call to serve is to become a missionary long before you go on a mission…you can
increase in your desire to serve God (see D&C 4:3), and you can begin to
think as missionaries think, to read what missionaries read, to pray as
missionaries pray, and to feel what missionaries feel. You can avoid the
worldly influences that cause the Holy Ghost to withdraw, and you can grow in
confidence in recognizing and responding to spiritual promptings. Line upon line
and precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, you can gradually
become the missionary you hope to be and the missionary the Savior expects.
Becoming a Missionary David A. Bednar
The Lord isn’t asking us to load up a handcart; He’s asking
us to fortify our faith. He isn’t asking us to walk across a continent; He’s
asking us to walk across the street to visit our neighbor. He isn’t asking us
to give all of our worldly possessions to build a temple; He’s asking us to
give of our means and our time despite the pressures of modern living to
continue to build temples and then to attend regularly the temples already
built. He isn’t asking us to die a martyr’s death; He’s asking us to live a
disciple’s life.
The Truth of God Shall Go Forth M. Russell Ballard
If you don’t raise the bar, how will you ever know your
potential?
Raising the Bar L. Tom Perry
You cannot be responsible for whether or not those you teach
will accept your testimony and join the Church. Do not feel that you must
obtain a quota of baptisms to be successful. An old saying teaches that you can
count the number of seeds in a single apple, but you can’t count the number of
apples in a single seed. The harvest is the Lord’s. Your responsibility is to
thrust in the sickle.
What I Want My Son to Know before He Leaves on His Mission James E.
Faust
When you extend to a friend an
invitation to meet with the missionaries, you are offering to share something
that is most valuable and cherished. Is that offensive? [My wife] Sister Oaks and I have
not found this to be the case. In fact, we have found that when we offer to
share the gospel, friendships are strengthened, even though the friends may not
embrace the gospel message.
Consider that you are invited to a
friend’s house for breakfast. On the table you see a large pitcher of freshly
squeezed orange juice from which your host fills his glass. But he offers you
none. Finally, you ask, “Could I have a glass of orange juice?”
He replies, “Oh, I am sorry. I was
afraid you might not like orange juice, and I didn’t want to offend you by
offering you something you didn’t desire.”
Now, that sounds absurd, but it is
not too different from the way we hesitate to offer up something far sweeter
than orange juice. I have often worried how I would answer some friend about my
hesitancy when I meet him beyond the veil.
Brothers and sisters, I pray that
we may put our fears and our hesitancy behind us and no more keep secret the
great treasure that is ours.
Sharing the Gospel Robert C. Oaks
No missionary that ever lived
failed to influence the lives of many for the better regardless of the number
of converts he may have gained.
With respect to his personal
challenges, every missionary will tell you, as I tell you now, that as he
presses on and exercises his faith there comes the most extraordinary spiritual
sensation: a flow of confidence, courage and power to overcome, a knowledge
that God is with him and that he cannot fail with God on his side—regardless of
the nature of the problem or even the results.
The Blessings of Missionary Service James
M. Dunn
Missionary work is not limited to proclaiming the gospel to
… people now living on the earth. [It] is also continuing beyond the veil among
[those] who have died either without hearing the gospel or without accepting it
while they lived on the earth. Our great part … is to perform on this earth the
ordinances required for those who accept the gospel over there. … I hope to see
us dissolve the artificial boundary line … between missionary work and temple
and genealogical work, because it is the same great redemptive work!
The Things of Eternity—Stand We in Jeopardy? Spencer W. Kimball
Asking every member to be a
missionary is not nearly as crucial as asking every member to be a member!
Thank you for living the gospel.
Thank you also for praying for the
missionaries. Everyone prays for the missionaries. May it ever be so. In that
same spirit, we should also pray for those who are (or who need to be) meeting
the missionaries.
Witnesses Unto Me Jeffrey R. Holland
Until you know a person’s name and face, the Lord cannot
help you know his or her heart.
“The Work of Salvation” Missionary Broadcast Russell M. Nelson
The Spirit is the most important single element in this
work. With the Spirit magnifying your call, you can do miracles for the Lord in
the mission field. Without the Spirit, you will never succeed regardless of
your talent and ability.
Preach
My Gospel pg 176 Ezra Taft Benson
We love the Lord. We serve Him. We
follow Him. We represent Him.
As we serve, we do not represent
our families, our friends, our branches or wards, or our communities or
nations. Rather, we represent Him. His purposes must be our purposes. His
interests should be our interests. His work should be our work. His ways should
be our ways. His will increasingly should become our will…
A release as a full-time missionary
is a call to serve as a lifelong missionary…
Preach
My Gospel missionaries know we do not teach lessons; we teach people. We do
not merely recite or present memorized messages about gospel topics. We invite
seekers of truth to experience the mighty change of heart. We understand that
talking and telling alone are not teaching.
Becoming a Preach My Gospel Missionary
David A. Bednar
What is a consecrated missionary?
It is a missionary who is willing to lay everything on the altar of sacrifice
and to hold nothing back. It is a willingness to give every ounce of energy,
every conscious thought, and every drop of passion to this work – to submit our
will to God’s will whatever it may be. Every missionary who has been to the
temple has covenanted to consecrate his all. The book of Omni records the depth
and breadth of that covenant: “Yea, come unto me, and offer your whole souls as
an offering unto him” (Omni 1:26)…
It’s not about what you want, it’s
about what the Lord wants…
A consecrated nature will cause us
to be obedient, not because we have to, but because we want to…
Sometimes in life we just have to
square our shoulders and do it. There is no magic pill that makes us
courageous, no passage of time that strengthens us, no memorized approach that
emboldens us. We are left only with the compelling counsel of King Benjamin:
“And now, if ye believe all these things, see that you do them” (Mosiah 4:19)…
Sometimes we have missionaries who
are so worried about offending people that in the process they never ever save
them…
I do not believe there is one
missionary whose weaknesses are greater than the potential strengths within
him. Why? Because each of us is a son and daughter of God, with his divine
nature and divine potential woven into the very fabric of our souls.
Becoming a Consecrated Missionary Tad R. Callister
