My son went into the U.S. Army Reserve so he could use the money from basic and specialty training to pay for his LDS mission as well as have much of his education subsidized. It was a far cry from how I prepared for my mission adventure in the 1980s.
After I graduated from high school, I worked several jobs. I claimed to be working to earn money toward my mission, and I thought I was doing just that.
However, by the time I had more than my fair share at a full cup of freedom that a paycheck granted — shoes, fast food, gas for the avocado-green Ford Pinto — there wasn't much time left to effectively put aside the money that I needed to serve a full-time mission. I was experience wise and money poor.