What to Expect When You're Expecting the Missionaries

One of the primary ways that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spreads its message is through its missionaries. You’ve probably seen the missionaries on the streets, riding their bikes, or knocking at your front door. If you’re curious about the church and want to learn more, talking to the missionaries is a great way to have your questions answered. It can be scary, though, inviting strangers into your home to share a message you don’t know a lot about and are not sure you’d believe even if you did hear it. Today I hope to alleviate some of the fears you might have about inviting the missionaries into your home by explaining what to expect when you have the missionaries over for the first time.

Expect Them to be Young

One of the identifying characteristics about the missionaries is that most of them are young. Although older couples do have the opportunity to serve a mission when their children are grown, for the most part, the LDS missionaries serving around the world are between the ages of 18 and 25. This may be surprising to people outside of the church. However, scriptures suggest that the Lord has used the younger generation to do His work in times past too. For instance, in the Old Testament, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were children when they stood up and requested to not eat the king’s meat (Daniel 1:6). In the New Testament, though it does not explicitly give Mary’s age, we can guess, based on social customs of the time, that she was around the age of 16 when she gave birth to Jesus Christ ("Marry and Joseph"). These and other examples suggest that the Lord does not always have old age as a requirement to serve in His kingdom. He is the one who has called the young people of the church to serve. He trusts them with His message, and so do the members of the church.

Expect Them to Teach You

The duty of a missionary is the preach the word of God. They do this through teaching lessons and answering questions about the church. If you’ve never had the missionaries into your home before, expect them to teach you the first time you invite them in. On their first visit, they will probably teach you about Heavenly Father’s love for His children and the importance of families. In addition to this, they will probably teach you about Jesus Christ and how He restored His church through the prophet Joseph Smith. Feel free to ask the missionaries questions you have while they teach you these things. If the missionaries don’t know the answers to your questions, they will do their best to find the answers to them as long as you ask with a sincere and humble desire to know the truth. Remember that the missionaries do not want to debate or argue with you over rights and wrongs. Rather, missionaries merely desire to share with you what they know is true and then to leave it up to you to pray and discover for yourself if it is true. Ultimately, the missionaries are only tools in the hands of the Lord. The real teacher is the sweet spirit you feel as the missionaries testify. That spirit is the real teacher who will let you know what is true.

Expect Them to Invite You to Act

At the end of your time together, it is likely that the missionaries will invite you to act. They may invite you to read a passage of scripture. They may invite you to pray over the message they have shared. They may even invite you to get baptized at some future date. The reason why missionaries invite people to act is because they know that one of the best ways to find out if something is good is to try it out. We do this all the time with other important decisions we make in life. When buying a car, we take it for a test drive. When purchasing a house, we inspect it before making the sale final. When dating, we spend a lot of time getting to know someone before we commit to marrying them. When making decisions with far-reaching effects, it only makes sense to try something out before fully committing. Acting on the invitations that the missionaries extend to you is how you can put the gospel to the test before fully committing. Reading the scriptures will invite the Spirit into your life. Praying to God and asking Him your questions will invite Him to answer. Pondering over whether or not you should get baptized will give you something to pray to Him about. The Lord Himself endorsed this pattern in John 7:17 when he said: “If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” When the missionaries invite you to act they are merely extending this ancient invitation from the Lord to you today.

Expect Good Things
Meeting with the missionaries can be the beginning of many good things. I have seen one visit with the missionaries lead to better decisions and brighter futures. I have seen one visit with the missionaries lead to changed hearts and mended families. I have seen one visit with the missionaries lead to greater desires to be good and increased feelings of self-worth. I have seen one visit with the missionaries lead to deep joy and lasting peace. These, and many more blessings await those who have the courage to reach out and seek to know for themselves if what the missionaries teach is true.

Whether or not you invite the missionaries into your home to hear their message, I hope that you can appreciate the work they do and the effort they put into sharing what they believe to be true. They may be young, but they work tirelessly and with fierce determination, which to me speaks volumes about the message they have to share. As with all good things related to the church, it focuses on Jesus Christ. I know for myself that their message is true and that it is the best message in the world. I invite you to find out the same thing for yourself.

*If you're interested in meeting with the missionaries, click here for more information. 

Also, click here to watch a fun video my husband's friend recently posted called "6 Things You've Always Wondered About Mormon Missionaries"