MR says: Missionary work is tough. But besides being misunderstood by people outside our faith, missionaries are often misunderstood by Church members too. Here are five things missionaries wish all Church members knew.
As an LDS missionary in the Manchester New Hampshire Mission, I often had things I wanted to tell the members, but I did not. I thought [maybe] it was only my feelings or my mission.
But in the 19 months since I got home, I’ve had the chance to talk and work with missionaries in North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, California, and elsewhere. After talking with countless returned missionaries, [I found] most of us feel the same. Here is what a lot of us feel… Spoiler, we feel a lot like you do!
Member meals are not about the food.
It’s not about the food. Trust us, we like the food, and I’d never pass up a good homemade meal. But it is feeling wanted and loved by the members that we need. It feeds our spirit, and yours! When we knock doors all day, and get rejected time and time again, we get discouraged. But when we go to church and no one . . . wants us to come over, we feel rejected by our own church [members].
But when people ask us to come over, it renews us and inspires us to keep trying. Feeling your love eases our stress and fears. Let us come over to your house, and we can all feast on the Gospel together!