Ever since I was a young primary boy, I always wanted to serve a mission, after I had grown a foot or two of course. I would only be 17 once I graduated high school and I always planned on going to college a year before my mission. This plan, what I once thought was set in stone, got fogged up when President Monson made the announcement that the mission age would be lowered from 19 to 18 for boys. When this announcement was made, I was at a cross country meet and when one of the other Mormon boys broke the news to us, I thought he was just joking. When some of the other Mormons on the team checked their phones I knew that this was really happening. At first I didn't give much thought to the announcement but as a senior in high school at the time, I realized that I could go on my mission in a year. Then I really started to think what going on a mission would really mean. Unfortunately I focused on the negatives and what I couldn't do on a mission like going without movies or music for two years or the possibility of being sent to a foreign land where I wouldn't know the language. The announcement was the first time I realized how close serving a mission was and how unprepared I was to go.
Later in my senior year, I decided to stick to my original plan and go to two semesters of BYU straight out of high school. I felt like I needed more time to think about what to do and knew I wasn't ready to leave after my 18th birthday in August of 2013. BYU was definitely the right place to go. I got a job at the MTC Cafeteria and met plenty of returned missionaries as well as those putting their papers in. My first semester at BYU was the first time I really got to know about was missionaries were really like and what the blessings of going on a mission were. But still, I was pessimistic about serving a mission and didn't know what to do. I prayed and prayed to the Lord whether is was the right thing to do but to my surprise, no answer was immediate. After Thanksgiving, my parents suggested that I open my mission papers so that I could leave shortly after winter semester. I figured why not, if I open my papers it doesn't mean I need to finish them in case that was the answer I got.
The date came for my interview with the Bishop and I still hadn't found my answer to whether I should go on a mission or not. But, I got home from campus, got dressed in my suit and tie, and walked over to my Bishop's office. I waited outside his office for a few minutes wondering if I was doing the right thing or if i was just doing it because others wanted me to. The Bishop finished his other interview and let me in. As soon as I sat down with the Bishop, I had an overwhelming warm feeling come over me. This was my answer! I was doing the right thing and God was beside me! From that moment forward, I knew that going on a mission was the right thing to do. I still have my concerns and my fears, whether it was me freaking out over where I would be called to or my fear that I will never get the language, but now I can push through that because I know why I am going. I know that my short term sacrifices will bring eternal blessings to not just me but all of the those that are taught the gospel through my service. I know that the mission won't be easy, but it will be the thing that makes me stronger. I know that I am not alone, that I have the support of my family and friends, a testimony, and the help of Christ. I learned that if we take that leap of faith that God and Christ will be right there to catch us and to help us on our way. I always knew deep down inside that a mission was the right thing to do but it wasn't until I trusted in the Lord and stepped into the unknown that I really knew why I was going and that I really could do it.
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