For almost fifty years as a general authority from 1958 until 2008, Gordon B. Hinckley has helped shape missionary programs and policies. As President of the Church he was involved in the calling of thousands of mission presidents and hundreds of thousands of missionaries as well as the creation of new missions. He signed the missionary calls of over 600,000 missionaries in his twelve years ten months and fifteen days as President of the Church.
As the most traveled LDS President he has spoken to thousands of missionaries in over 60 countries giving hundreds of talks to groups of missionaries. Missionary work has been of his main subjects at numerous Stake, Regional (Area), and General Conferences. On 21 February 1999 at the age of 88 he addressed the largest group of missionaries ever assembled to that date by satellite. He set up on 31 March 2001 the Perpetual Education Fund which awards loans to students who repay them forward. Most recipients are return missionaries from underdeveloped countries who train for jobs after their missions. The current missionary plan, Preach My Gospel was introduced under his administration.
He has spoken on hundreds of occasions about missionary work and missionary service.I want to share with you what I think are some of his better quotes on the subject of missionary service. I hope they inspire you as they have me.
Gordon B. Hinckley's Missionary Statements from Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord(630 page Missionary Book on this site)
All Will Hear
In the early days of the Church, John Taylor was called to go to France, to open the work there. There had not been missionaries in the great nation of France, and this was what he said in 1849: “I am engaged in my Master’s business. I am a minister of Jehovah to proclaim His will to the nations. I go to unlock the door of life to a mighty nation, to publish to millions the principles of life, light, and truth, intelligence and salvation, to burst their fetters, liberate the oppressed, reclaim the wandering, correct their views, improve their morals, save them from degradation, ruin and misery, and lead them to light, life, truth and celestial glory” (Life of John Taylor, p. 208).
It is the same today. You missionaries are here in your Master’s business. You are ministers of Jehovah to proclaim His will to the nations. You have come to unlock the door to a mighty nation, to publish to millions the principles of truth and salvation. How tremendous is your calling! You are going to be here for less than two years; the sister missionaries, less than eighteen months. Make the most of it while you are here. You can’t afford to sleep longer than is needful. You have a great work to do, and if you don’t do it, who will? Don’t waste your time, please. On your narrow shoulders rests this work. Your testimony will make the difference between those who accept the gospel and those who do not. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Brazil Porto Alegre Missionary Meeting, 13 November 1996).
Within the space of that twenty year preceding his death, Joseph Smith set in motion a program for carrying the gospel to the nations of the earth. I marvel at the boldness with which he moved. Even in the infant days of the Church, in times of dark adversity, men were called to leave homes and families, to cross the sea, to proclaim the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. His mind, his vision encompassed the entire earth. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Joseph the Seer,” Ensign, [May 1977]: 65).
It was said that at one time the sun never set on the British Empire. That empire has now been diminished. But it is true that the sun never sets on this work of the Lord as it is touching the lives of people across the earth.
And this is only the beginning. We have scarcely scratched the surface. We are engaged in a work for the souls of men and women everywhere. Our work knows no boundaries. Under the providence of the Lord it will continue. Those nations now closed to us will someday be open. That is my faith. That is my belief. That is my testimony.
The little stone which was cut out of the mountain without hands is rolling forth to fill the earth (see Dan. 2:31–45; D&C 65:2). (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The State of the Church,” Ensign, [November 2003]: 4).
I rejoice at what is occurring in the great missionary efforts of the Church, This work of teaching the gospel to others was the first responsibility laid upon the Prophet Joseph Smith in the opening of this dispensation. It must never be removed from that preeminent position. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [December 1986]: 3).
It is an inspiring experience . . . to witness the manner in which the Lord is weaving the tapestry of his grand design in those foreign parts of the earth. He is gathering his children there as elsewhere—“one of a city and two of a family.” He is remembering the promises made of old as he works among those who have seen so much of poverty and misery and evil and oppression. He is answering the prayers of those who have gone before, and who struggled to establish a foothold for the gospel in those distant places. . . .
. . . The work is becoming very much enlarged. It does require a commensurate accumulation of men and means. It requires an expansion of mind and energy, ability and perseverance. Let us prepare ourselves more diligently for the great assignment which God has laid upon us to carry this work to the children of the earth wherever we may be permitted to go. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1962, pp. 71, 73).
In recent months, I have had the opportunity of traveling in the People’s Republic of China and in the nations of eastern Europe, including Russia. My heart has been touched by the warmth of good people wherever I have gone. All are children of our Father in Heaven. True, there are vast chasms of political and ideological differences. But innately people are the same. They are all sons and daughters of God. They have within their hearts basically the same longings. Husbands love their wives, wives their husbands. Parents love their children, and children their parents. Their minds respond to the same truths if they are given the opportunity to hear them. Speaking of the people generally, they desire peace not war. They desire brotherhood and not conflict. They desire truth and not propaganda. Ours is a great and compelling responsibility, to teach the everlasting gospel to the peoples of the earth. Many gates are now closed against us. But I am convinced that the Lord in his own time will open them, provided we constantly seek and pray for such openings and are prepared to take advantage of them. I do not know specifically the time frame of the Lord’s work, but I do know that we must be anxiously engaged. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Faith: The Essence of True Religion,” Ensign, [November 1981]: 5-6).
One cannot think of the hundreds of millions who have never heard of this work without wondering how our charge to teach all mankind can ever be accomplished. There are nations where we presently cannot legally go. We honor and obey the laws of these nations. But if we will both be alert and patient, the Lord will open the way in the appropriate season. His is the timetable. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “We Have a Work to Do,” Ensign, [February 1988]: 6).
During the twenty years and more that I have served as a General Authority. I have seen in a very personal and intimate way a miraculous opening and strengthening of the work in some of the great nations of Asia. We now have well over a hundred thousand members with strong wards and stakes in lands where only twenty-five years ago we scarcely dreamed of entering. The Lord, moving in his mysterious way, has unlocked those doors and touched the hearts of the people. That process is at work today in other lands. I am convinced of this, although the progress may appear almost imperceptible. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Faith: The Essence of True Religion,” Ensign, [November 1981]: 6).
Well, it’s growing because it has a commission to go in the world and teach the gospel, to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. We consider that a divine commission, and we are pursuing it very aggressively; and at the same time, while in that process, we think we are doing good. We think we are improving people’s lives. We think we are causing them to stand taller and straighter and be better people, and when all is said and done. I guess that is the purpose of our religion. We are trying to do our part and do it in a very aggressive but practical and hardheaded way, if you please, so that we build on a strong foundation for the future. (Gordon B. Hinckley, National Press Club Address, Washington D.C., 8 March 2000 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley, Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 470-471).
We must look after the individual. Christ always spoke of individuals. He healed the sick, individually. He spoke in His parables of individuals. This Church is concerned with individuals, notwithstanding our numbers. Whether they be 6 or 10 or 12 or 50 million, we must never lose sight of the fact that the individual is the important thing. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Deseret News Interview, 25 February 2000).
It is wonderful what we can do as we practice a little ingenuity. You ought to take advantage of every opportunity in the world to speak with people about why we are there and what we are doing and give them some taste of a gospel message. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, [4 July 1998]: ).
When I reflect on the condition of the world, when I witness the multitudinous problems than can be solved by the gospel of Jesus Christ, I feel to cry out as did Alma: "O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!
"Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth." (Alma 29:1-2).
From the times that Samuel Smith put a few copies of the newly published Book of Mormon into his knapsack and tried to distribute them in the communities of his area--even before the Church was organized--from that time until the present there has never been a season when this Church has not engaged in missionary work. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "There Must be Messengers," Ensign, [October 1987]: 2).
But all of us acknowledge that we have barely scratched the surface. We have a mandate laid upon us from which we cannot shrink. It is the charge from the Lord himself to teach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. The field is white, but the laborers are relatively few.
You will recall that Alma gave up the judgment seats so that he might have time and strength for a greater work: "And this he did that he himself might go forth among his people...that me might preach the word of God unto them, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty, and that he might pull down, by the word of God, all the pride and craftiness and all the contentions which were among his people, seeing no way that he might reclaim them save it were in bearing down in pure testimony against them." (Alma 4:19).
For this same reason, the world today needs the power of pure testimony. It needs the gospel of Jesus Christ, and if the world is to hear that gospel, there must be messengers to teach it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "There Must be Messengers," Ensign, [October 1987]: 2).
To me it is a thing of wonder that at a time when our people were struggling to gain a foothold in these mountains, they put the spread of the gospel ahead of comfort, security, the well-being of their families, and all other considerations. Across the broad prairie between the mountains of the West and the Missouri and Mississippi rivers there were two bodies of Latter-day Saints moving in opposite directions. Missionaries traveling to the eastern states and Europe passed converts gathering from those lands to the Zion of the West. There were likewise a movement to the West Coast and across the Pacific, with elders going to Hawaii, even to Hong Kong, China, Siam, Ceylon, and India. This was all part of this grand vision of an Ensign to the nations. It has gone on ever since, and it goes on today at an accelerated pace. In a hundred nations missionaries of the Church are teaching the doctrines of the kingdom.
They are building the kingdom across the world. They are touching for everlasting good the lives of all with whom they work, and generations who come after them will be affected by what they do today. They are fulfilling the declarations of ancient prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord concerning the "marvelous work and a wonder" that should come to pass in the dispensation of the fullness of times. (Isaiah 29:14). (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR O'89, Ensign, [November 1989]: 53).
The opportunities are greater today. In most of the missions we have a much better atmosphere in which to work. It is different than it was as recently as forty years ago. There seems to be less bigotry in the world. There is more tolerance. And some of the larger churches have experienced difficulties filling the spiritual needs of their members. There is dissatisfaction among a great many Christian people. They are not happy with what they have, and, therefore, respond readily to the message of the restored gospel. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "A Visit with Gordon B. Hinckley," New Era 3 [June 1973]: 30-31).
Let us reach out to the world in our missionary service, teaching all who will listen concerning the restoration of the gospel; speaking without fear, but also without self-righteousness, of the First Vision; testifying of the Book of Mormon and of the restoration of the priesthood. Let us, brothers and sisters, get on our knees and pray for the opportunity to bring others into the joy of the gospel. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, 2 April 2000).
I think every member of the Church has the capacity to teach the gospel to nonmembers. I was told the other day of a crippled woman, homebound, who spends her days in a wheelchair, who has been the means of bring thirty-seven people into the Church. . . . We need an awareness, an everyday awareness of the great power that we have to do this thing.
Second, a desire, I think many of us realize that we could do it, but we lack the desire. Let every man single out another, a friend. Let him get on his knees and pray to the Lord to help him bring that man into the Church. I am satisfied as I am of anything that with that kind of prayerful, conscientious, directed effort, there isn’t a man in this Church who could not convert another. . . .
Third, the faith to try. It is so simple. . . . This is not complex. It is simple. We have in the Northern Far East Mission of the Church today a beautiful and capable Japanese girl, born in Honolulu. I said to her, “Were your folks members of the Church?” “No, they were Buddhist.” “How is it then that you are here?” She said, “I had a high school friend who took me to Mutual once a week and then gave me a tract to read.” That girl went on to the University of Hawaii and then to Illinois Wesleyan University, from which school she was graduated. Today she is a missionary in Japan. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Ready to Harvest,” Improvement Era, [July 1961]: 508).
Our Message
This cause in which we are engaged is not an ordinary cause. It is the cause of Christ. It is the kingdom of God our Eternal Father. It is the building of Zion on the earth, the fulfillment of prophecy given of old and a vision revealed in this dispensation. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 119).
The message you carry is a precious and wonderful message. There is no greater message in all the world than this of which you bear testimony. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents' Seminar, Church News, 3 July 1999).
Our message is so imperative, when you stop to think that the salvation, the eternal salvation of the world, rests upon the shoulders of this Church. When all is said and done, if the world is going to be saved, we have to do it. There is no escaping from that. No other people in the history of the world have received the kind of mandate that we have received. We are responsible for all who have lived upon the earth. That involves our family history and temple work. We are responsible for all who now live upon the earth, and that involves our missionary work. And we are going to be responsible for all who will yet live upon the earth. No one ever received a greater or more compelling mandate than we of this Church have received, and we'd better be getting at it. I see that it did so much for me, far greater than the time spent, two years. The things that happened in my life transcend so many other values. I am here today because of that mission, and I plead with you now to make the most of your missions. (Gordon B. Hinckley, New Mission Presidents' Seminar, Church News, 3 July 1999).
“I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way. . .that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth” 1 Nephi 3:7).
We ask tremendous things of missionaries. It is so hard for shy and diffident young people to do the things we sometimes ask them to do. But what a marvelous thing that they try. They have the faith to do, the faith to act, the faith to go forward and make the effort. And what a marvelous gift that is to bring home. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 4).
Purpose of the Work
Go out and preach the work. The first obligation laid upon this Church, even before it was organized, was the obligation to go out and teach the gospel. That obligation has never been lifted. It has been with us ever since. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Columbia, South Carolina Missionary meeting, 20 November 2004 in Ensign, [February 2007]: 4–8).
I have seen miracles in my time, my brothers and sisters. The greatest miracle of all, I believe, is the transformation that comes into the life of a man or a woman who accepts the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and tries to live it in his or her life. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Vacaville/Santa Rosa California Regional Conference, 21 May 1995).
I have seen in the season of my apostleship the corps of full-time missionaries grow from 10,000 to approximately 45,000, for an increase of 425 percent, with a comparable growth in missions from 67 to 267, or a 398 percent growth.
Now, these are statistics, not particularly interesting in table form, but tremendously significant in the lives of millions of the sons and daughters of God our Eternal Father who live in 135 nations and territories scattered across the earth where the Church is established.
When I think of these things, I feel like standing and shouting hallelujah. But more appropriately, I feel to kneel and say in humility, thanks be to God and His beloved Son, our Redeemer, for the growth of this Their work, and thanks be to my brothers and sisters, young and old, you who have been faithful and diligent in your duty in causing this to happen. This has been a joyful thing to observe. We now have approximately 60,000 missionaries. Come July, there will be 333 missions. We are trying to fulfill the mandate of the Lord when He said, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19). (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Our Solemn Responsibilities,” Ensign, November 1991]: 49).
Additionally, there are 137,629 volunteers and missionaries in non-proselyting activities. These are, for the most part, mature individuals who contribute their time and talents without compensation of any kind but with a great love for the work of the kingdom. Their united contribution is the equivalent of 15,174 full-time employees with a payroll value of $531,000,000. What a remarkable thing this is. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Work Moves Forward,” Ensign, [May 1999]: 4).
The missionary program is the great, vibrant, pulsating thing that keeps this Church growing and moving and going forward across the world. It is a miracle. It is a miracle beyond the comprehension of most of us. We are from Dan to Beersheba and far beyond in a wonderful, great effort. Between forty-eight and fifty thousand missionaries. Behind every one of them lie a mother’s prayers, a father’s faith, and the love of the people of this Church and the blessing of the Lord upon these His chosen servants. There is nothing like it. . . .
They are out there as servants of the Lord to dedicate all they have of strength and wisdom and means and time to the building of the kingdom of God. Why do they do it? Because they know in their hearts that it’s truth. And that’s the strength of the Church. It is in the hearts of the people, individuals, who can stand and say, as I believe everyone in this congregation can stand and say, “This is the work of God. He lives. Jesus is our Redeemer. They appeared to the boy Joseph. It happened in the grove. The Book of Mormon has come forth as a witness to the world of the living reality of the Son of God, and the priesthood and the Church are upon the earth. We are his servants and his ministers. (Gordon B. Hinckley, East Millcreek 12th Ward Sacrament Meeting, 2 July 1995).
Mission of the Church
The gospel is nothing to be ashamed of. It is something to be proud of. “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord,” wrote Paul to Timothy (2 Tim. 1:8). Opportunities for sharing the gospel are everywhere. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Find the Lambs, Feed the Sheep,” Ensign, [May 1999]: 105–6).
We have laid upon us as a people a greater charge, a greater responsibility than any other people have ever had in the history of the world. We are responsible for the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all who have lived upon the earth, to all who now live upon the earth, and to all who will yet live upon the earth. No other people have had so great a responsibility as that. God bless the faithful Latter-day Saints who carry in their hearts the love and respect of the great doctrine of the eternity of the family, and tremendous doctrine of vicarious work for the dead. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 326).
Our Responsibility
We have laid upon us as a people a greater charge, a greater responsibility than any other people have ever had in the history of the world. We are responsible for the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all who have lived upon the earth, to all who now live upon the earth, and to all who will yet live upon the earth. No other people have had so great a responsibility as that. God bless the faithful Latter-day Saints who carry in their hearts the love and respect of the great doctrine of the eternity of the family, and tremendous doctrine of vicarious work for the dead. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 326).
Great is our work, tremendous is our responsibility in helping to find those to teach. The Lord has laid upon us a mandate to teach the gospel to every creature. This will take the very best efforts of every [member]” (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1999]: 107).
I wish I could awaken in the heart of every man, woman, boy, and girl here this morning the great consuming desire to share the gospel with others. If you do that you live better, you try to make your lives more exemplary because you know that those you teach will not believe unless you back up what you say by the goodness of your lives." He further declared: "I think every member of the Church has the capacity to teach the gospel to nonmembers. I was told the other day of a crippled woman, homebound, who spends her days in a wheelchair, who has been the means of bringing thirty-seven people into the Church. . . We need an awareness, an everyday awareness of the great power that we have to do this thing. Second, a desire. . . I am as satisfied as I am of anything that with that kind of prayerful, conscientious, directed effort, there isn't a man in this Church who could not convert another. . . Third, the faith to try. It is so simple. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Ready to Harvest." Improvement Era, [July 1961]: 508).
I wish I could awaken in the heart of every man, woman, boy, and girl here this morning the great consuming desire to share the gospel with others. If you do that you live better, you try to make your lives more exemplary because you know that those you teach will not believe unless you back up what you say by the goodness of your lives. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Alaska Anchorage Regional Conference, 18 June 1995).
The missionary process is fourfold: (1) finding the investigator, (2) teaching the investigator, (3) baptizing the worthy convert, (4) fellowshipping the new member. … It is important that 5 years from now, 10 years from now, 20 years from now, the man or the woman whom you baptized is an active and faithful and devoted and worthy member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Missionary meeting, Houston, Texas, 20 September 1998).
With renewed emphasis, let us urge missionary service as well as help to missionaries as a duty and a responsibility. The mandate of the Lord is upon us. It is our responsibility to carry the gospel to the people of the earth. Marvelous things are happening. Yet more wonderful things can be brought to pass. May we be faithful in building the kingdom we love and in doing the will of Him who is our Savior and who commanded us to teach the gospel.
At this time of the year, when the thoughts of so many turn to the birth and life of the Lord and the sharing of gifts, let us each do something to share the greatest gift we can give anyone--the gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Let each of us participate in missionary service in some way at this Christmas season. Let us be bearers of love and peace to all mankind. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 6).
I am inclined to think that notwithstanding the gains we see in the work of the Lord, notwithstanding the reformation we see in the lives of many people, often we are prone to emphasize the problems and disregard the progress.
I am optimistic concerning the work of the Lord. I cannot believe that God has established His work in the earth to have it fail. I cannot believe that it is getting weaker. I know that it is getting stronger. I realize, of course, that we are beset in the world with many tragic problems. I am a newspaper reader, and I have seen a good deal of this earth. I have been in areas where war rages and hate smolders in the hearts of people. I have seen the appalling poverty that hovers over many lands. I have seen the oppression of those in bondage and the brutality of their overlords. I have watched with alarm the crumbling morals of our society.
And yet I am optimistic. I have a simple and solemn faith that right will triumph and that truth will prevail. I am not so naive as to believe there will not be setbacks, but I believe that “truth crushed to earth will rise again. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
Member Missionary Work
Bring people into the Church. Bring them in with love. Bring them in with kindness. Bring them in with the example of your lives. So live the gospel that they will see in you something of wonder and beauty and be encouraged to inquire, study the gospel and join the Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller. Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 235).
The Lord declared that “this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached … for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14). Can it possibly be accomplished? I remember an insight that suggested how it can happen.
I met a woman in South America who had just joined the Church. Fired by a great love for that which she had found, she had gone about enthusiastically telling others. During a period of only seven months since her baptism, she had referred three hundred acquaintances to the missionaries so that they might explain the gospel to them. At one point, sixty had come into the Church. More likely came in. In São Paulo, Brazil, I met the young missionary who first had taught her the gospel. He too had been a convert, had gone on a mission to represent the Church at considerable financial sacrifice. The woman of whom I speak was one of forty-three he had assisted in bringing into the Church to that point. This young man of Brazil had expanded himself more than one hundred times—forty-three converts of his own and sixty through one of those he converted, with more from others of his converts to come. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
Last year there were approximately 300,000 convert baptisms throughout the Church. This is tremendously significant. This is the equivalent of 120 new stakes of 2,500 members each. Think of that: 120 new stakes in a single year! It is wonderful. But it is not enough. I am not being unrealistic when I say that with concerted effort, with recognition of the duty which falls upon each of us as members of the Church, and with sincere prayer to the Lord for help, we could double that number. The big initial task is first to find interested investigators. So many of us look upon missionary work as simply tracting. Everyone who is familiar with this work knows there is a better way. That way is through the members of the Church. Whenever there is a member who introduces an investigator, there is an immediate support system. The member bears testimony of the truth of the work. He is anxious for the happiness of his investigator friend. He becomes excited as that friend makes progress in learning the gospel.
The full-time missionaries may do the actual teaching, but the member, wherever possible, will back up that teaching with the offering of his home to carry on this missionary service. He will bear sincere testimony of the divinity of the work. He will be there to answer questions when the missionaries are not around. He will be a friend to the convert who is making a big and often difficult change.
The gospel is nothing to be ashamed of. It is something to be proud of. “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord,” wrote Paul to Timothy (2 Tim. 1:8). Opportunities for sharing the gospel are everywhere.
Dr. William Ghormley served as president of the stake in Corpus Christi, Texas. He bought his gasoline at a particular station. Each time he filled his tank he would leave a piece of Church literature with the station owner. It might have been a tract or a Church magazine or the Church News, but he never went there without leaving something. The man who ran the station was converted by the power of the Spirit as he read that literature. When last I checked, he was serving as a bishop.
The process of bringing new people into the Church is not the responsibility alone of the missionaries. They succeed best when members become the source from which new investigators are found.
I would like to suggest that every bishop in the Church give as a motto to his people, “Let’s all work to grow the ward.” I am not sure the grammar is correct, but the idea is right.
Let there be cultivated an awareness in every member’s heart of his own potential for bringing others to a knowledge of the truth. Let him work at it. Let him pray with great earnestness about it. Let each member pray, as did Alma of old:
“O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing [others] again unto thee in Christ.
“Behold, O Lord, their souls are precious, and many of them are our brethren; therefore, give unto us, O Lord, power and wisdom that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee” (Alma 31:34–35).
My heart reaches out to you missionaries. You simply cannot do it alone and do it well. You must have the help of others. That power to help lies within each of us. But you must do all you can. You must be anxiously engaged. When you are not working on referrals of members, you must be developing those referrals yourselves through tracting and related means.
I spoke at the funeral of a dear friend the other day. Some years ago he served as a mission president. He felt totally inadequate when he arrived in the field. He was sent to succeed a very good man, a man of great ability, an excellent leader, and a very able president.
When this new man took over the mission and made his first tour of meetings with missionaries, he said to them: “I never served a mission as a young man, and so I don’t know what you are going through. But do your best, your very, very best. Say your prayers and work hard and leave the harvest to the Lord.”
With that kind of spirit and that outreach of love, a whole new attitude spread through the mission. Members got behind the missionaries. Within a year the number of converts had doubled.
And now this word from Moroni, both to the missionaries and to the converts: “See that ye are not baptized unworthily; see that ye partake not of the sacrament of Christ unworthily; but see that ye do all things in worthiness, and do it in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God; and if ye do this, and endure to the end, ye will in no wise be cast out” (Mormon 9:29).
Speaking of worthiness in coming into the Church, President Joseph F. Smith once wrote: “People must be taught before they are fit candidates for baptism. Now, what shall they be taught? Why, faith in God, in Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost, faith in the efficacy of prayer, and in the ordinances and principles of the gospel which Jesus taught; faith in the restoration of this gospel and all its powers, to the Prophet Joseph Smith; faith in the Church which he was instrumental in establishing; faith in the priesthood, as authorized servants of the living God; faith in the revelations received in modern times; faith in the performance of the works required of a Latter-day Saint; faith in the principle of tithing, and in all other requirements, temporal and spiritual, mentioned in the law of God; and, finally, faith to live lives of righteousness before the Lord” (“Baptism,” Improvement Era, Jan. 1911, 267–68). (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Find the Lambs, Feed the Sheep,” Ensign, [May 1999]: 104).
That is a powerful testimony of what can be done. However, missionaries do not need to neglect proselyting to assist in fellowshipping the members. The two efforts can go hand in hand. You have the Saints to help, all of them. You have bishops and their ward councils. You have stake presidents and their stake councils. Most particularly, you have the Member Missionary Coordinating Council, which meets periodically to consider missionary problems in the stakes and most particularly to keep track of and give an accounting of every new member who has come into the Church. Your own full-time mission president will frequently attend this meeting.
Under the direction of this council, another six lessons will be taught to more firmly ground new members in their faith.
Now, to you bishops who hold your ward council meetings, a discussion of the status of converts in that meeting may be the most important business you will conduct. You are not bound by rigid rules. You have unlimited flexibility. You are entitled to answers to your prayers, to inspiration and revelation from the Lord in dealing with this matter. I am appalled when I hear that a bishop is indifferent toward those who come into the Church. At that time, they may not be very attractive people. But if they are treated right, the gospel will refine them. Their very dress, their demeanor, their deportment will improve. All of us have seen miracles occur. How great is our opportunity, how tremendous our challenge.
My beloved brethren and sisters, it is our responsibility, the responsibility of each of us, of the stake presidency, of the high council, of the bishopric, of the Sunday School presidency, of the Primary presidency, of the Young Men presidency, of the Young Women presidency, of the Relief Society presidency, and of the priesthood quorum officers to see that every one who is baptized is encouraged and made to feel the wondrous warmth of this gospel of our Lord. I am pleased to report that we are making progress, but there is so very much more that remains to be done.
How glorious is this work. It is filled with miracles. We could talk about them all evening as we have witnessed them.
Brothers and sisters, all of you out in the wards and stakes and in the districts and branches, I invite you to become a vast army with enthusiasm for this work and a great overarching desire to assist the missionaries in the tremendous responsibility they have to carry the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. “The field is white [and] ready to harvest” (D&C 4:4). The Lord has repeatedly declared this. Shall we not take Him at His word?
Before the Church was organized, there was missionary work. It has continued ever since, notwithstanding the difficulties of many of the seasons through which our people have passed. Let us, every one, resolve within ourselves to arise to a new opportunity, a new sense of responsibility, a new shouldering of obligation to assist our Father in Heaven in His glorious work of bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of His sons and daughters throughout the earth.
This is God’s holy work. This is His Church and kingdom. The vision that occurred in the Sacred Grove was just as Joseph said it was. We are building a new temple overlooking this hallowed ground to further testify to the reality of this most sacred event. As I recently stood in the snow to determine where this new temple will stand, there came into my heart a true understanding of the importance of what happened in the Sacred Grove. The Book of Mormon is true. It testifies of the Lord Jesus Christ. His priesthood has been restored and is among us. The keys of that priesthood, which have come from heavenly beings, are exercised for our eternal blessing. Such is our testimony—yours and mine—a testimony which we must share with others. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Find the Lambs, Feed the Sheep,” Ensign, [May 1999]: 104).
We have such an obligation to those who are baptized into the Church. We cannot neglect them. We cannot leave them to stand alone. They need help as they become accustomed to the ways and culture of this Church. And it is our great blessing and opportunity to afford that help. … A warm smile, a friendly handshake, an encouraging word will do wonders. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign,/Rose Park, Regional Conference, Utah, 28 February 1999).
We all need to be reminded to share the gospel with our associates. I emphasize the word share. I like it. I depreciate the use of what might be perceived as force and pressure upon those who live among us. I think it unnecessary. Neighborliness and exemplary living of the gospel of Jesus Christ, with an awareness of opportunity to quietly and graciously lead them in the direction of the Church, will accomplish much more, and will be resisted less and appreciated more by those we seek to help. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Miracle Made Possible by Faith,” Ensign, [May 1984]: 46).
Every time a new member comes into the Church, something happens. There is an infusion of strength and faith and testimony that is wonderful. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 309).
I am convinced that there are many, many thousands. . . who, with warmth and welcome, can be led to the eternal truths of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. They are looking better than they have. They must be friendshipped. They must be fellowshipped. They must be made to feel comfortable and at home, so they can observe in the lives of the members of the Church those virtues they wish for themselves. . . .
The world is our responsibility. We cannot evade it. I think of the words of Jacob in the Book of Mormon, who with his brother Joseph had been consecrated a priest and teacher unto the people:
“And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence.” (Jacob 1:19.) (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Question of a Mission,” Ensign, [May 1986]: 42).
We have so much to do in this world to spread the influence of this gospel. Let us go forth on our assigned mission. We feel the compulsion of the Lord’s mandate to teach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. (See D&C 133:37.) We hope that in so doing we shall not offend, but rather that we shall do so with graciousness and in that spirit of love which was of the very essence of him of whom we testify. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Reach Out in Love and Kindness,” Ensign, [November 1982]: 77).
I wish to invite members of the Church to consider anew the great mandate given by the Lord to all who desire to be known as his disciples. It is a mandate we cannot dodge, and one from which we cannot shrink. That mandate is to teach the gospel to the nations and peoples of the earth.
This was the final charge given by the Lord following is resurrection and before his ascension. It was repeated at the opening of this dispensation. Following the organization of the first Quorum of the Twelve in 1835, Oliver Cowdery, Counselor in the First Presidency, delivered a “charge” to these men. That statement has become something of a charter for all members of the Twelve who have succeeded that first group. In that charge is the following counsel: “Be zealous to save souls. The soul of one man is as precious as the soul of another. . . . The Gospel must roll forth, and it will until it fills the whole earth. . . . You have a work to do that no other men can do; you must proclaim the Gospel in its simplicity and purity; and we commend you to God and the word of His grace.” (History of the Church, 2:196-198).
Subsequent to that counsel, the Lord gave the revelation known as Doctrine and Covenants section 112, which was directed to the Twelve. In it are these words:
“Contend thou, therefore, morning by morning; and day after day let they warning voice go forth; and when the night cometh let not the inhabitants of the earth slumber, because of thy speech. . . .
“And I will be with you; and in whatsoever place ye shall proclaim my name an effectual door shall be opened unto you, that they may receive my word.” (D&C 112:5, 19.) (Gordon B. Hinckley, “We Have a Work to Do,” Ensign, [February 1988]: 2).
Here is a great key to reactivation of many of those who have fallen by the wayside. Each has a talent that can be employed. It is the task of leaders to match those talents with needs, and then to offer a challenge. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [November 1982]: 8).
With the ever-increasing number of converts, we must make an increasingly substantial effort to assist them as they find their way. Every one of them needs three things: a friend, a responsibility, and nurturing with the 'good word of God' (Moroni 6:4). It is our duty and opportunity to provide these things. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1997 ).
A convert is a 'precious person. He or she will make a tremendous decision in coming into the Church. Retention will primarily be the work of the local wards and branches. However, you have a very, very important part in this. Your missionaries must be sure that conversion is real, that it is life-changing, that it is something that is to last forever and go on through generations...There is no point in baptizing people if they do not become solid members of the Church.' Actual harm, he said, may be done to those who leave old friendships and old ways of doing things only to be allowed to slip into inactivity. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, [4 July 1998]; ).
He said missionaries should keep in touch with those who have been baptized. 'Any individual who has been worthy of baptism is worthy of saving, now and for as long as he lives and the generations who follow. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, [4 July 1998]; ).
I believe it is totally unnecessary that we lose [any of] those who are baptized. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, [4 July 1998]; ).
It is an absolute imperative that we look after those who have become a part of us. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1997 ).
Nobody gains when there is baptism without retention, The missionary loses, and while the Church gains statistically, the membership suffers, really, and the enthusiasm of the convert turns to ashes. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, [4 July 1998]; ).
Every one of us has an obligation to fellowship those (converts), to put our arms around them, to bring them into the Church in full activity. It is not enough just to go to Church on Sundays; we must reach out each day. I wish with all my heart that in Costa Rica every man, woman, and child who was baptized would remain faithful and active. And that can happen if all of you make up your minds to reach out and help the new convert. There is no point in the missionaries baptizing people only to have them come into the Church for a little while and then drift off. You have remained faithful, and I thank you for that, but again urge that you make an extra effort to reach out to those who have recently been baptized...They need your help. God bless you to fellowship the new convert. That is so very, very important. That is a principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Only as we reach out to help others are we truly Latter-day Saints. (Gordon B. Hinckley, San Jose, Costa Rica, Member Fireside, 20 January 1997).
They [the missionaries] still have an obligation to nurture and help those they have baptized—to befriend them, to write to them, to give them encouragement. But greater than that is your responsibility, my brethren, as bishops, as stake presidents, as elders quorum presidents, to put your arms around these people and make them feel comfortable and at home and warm and happy. It is an imperative. What does it profit the missionary to baptize someone who leaves the Church within six months? Nothing is accomplished, in fact, damage is done. We have pulled them away from their old moorings and brought them into the Church, only to have them drift away. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Woods Cross Utah Regional Conference, 10 January 1998 ).
Those who have come into the Church made a great sacrifice, many of them, when they were baptized. They are precious. They are the same kind of people that you are and their generations will become the same kind of people as will your generations if they are nurtured and brought along in the Church. I don't know how to say it more strongly. This is a matter about which I feel so deeply as I go about this Church across the world. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Woods Cross Utah Regional Conference, 10 January 1998).
Will you please see that every convert who comes into the Church while you are here on this mission is so taught that he or she will grow in faith and that a year after baptism he or she will be ready to get a temple recommend, and as soon as the temple is completed will be eligible to go to the house of the Lord? (Gordon B. Hinckley, Bolivia Cochabamba Missionary Meeting, November 10, 1996).
You are His messengers. You are ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ. Never forget that. You do not have the responsibility only to go out and give missionary lessons—that is, you do not have that alone. You are ambassadors of Jesus Christ. He has given you His right, His power, His authority to teach people the truth that will save them, that will turn their lives around and give them opportunity and growth. Will you please see that every convert who comes into the Church while you are here on this mission is so taught that he or she will grow in faith and that a year after baptism he or she will be ready to get a temple recommend, and as soon as the temple is completed will be eligible to go to the house of the Lord? (Gordon B. Hinckley, Bolivia Cochabamba Missionary Meeting, 10 November 1996).
The capacity lies within our young people by the tens of tens of thousands to bring their friends into the fold of the Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1961, p. 89).
We have so much to do in this world to spread the influence of this gospel. Let us go forth on our assigned mission. We feel the compulsion of the Lord's mandate to teach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. We hope that in so doing we shall not offend, but rather that we shall do so with graciousness and in the spirit of love which was the very essence of him of whom we testify. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, October 1982).
We have such an obligation to those who are baptized into the Church. We cannot neglect them. We cannot leave them to stand alone. They need help as they become accustomed to the ways and culture of this Church. And it is our great blessing and opportunity to afford that help. … A warm smile, a friendly handshake, an encouraging word will do wonders. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign,/Rose Park, Utah, Regional Conference, 28 February 1999).
Every one of you can be a missionary. Every one of you can befriend somebody, lead him to the Church, stay with him, help him, be a friend to him as he grows in faith and faithfulness as a member of the Church. You don’t have to go across the world, really, when all is said and done. You can do it right here. What a significant and wonderful thing that is. This is a great harvest field of the Church, my brethren and sisters. I believe that. There is nothing that will bring you greater satisfaction than to be responsible for someone being led to this Church, standing with him or her, befriending him or her, watching him or her grow in faith and faithfulness. Miraculous is the conversion process of this Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Washington, Utah, Buena Vista Stake Conference, 20 January 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley, Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 323-324.
Every convert needs a friend in the Church, someone who will be close to him, someone who will answer his questions, someone who will look after him and keep him coming. He needs a responsibility. He needs something to do. He won’t grow without responsibility. He must have a responsibility. We must take care of those who come into the Church as converts. They need constant nurturing in the gospel. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Woods Cross, Utah, Regional Conference,10 January 1998).
This Church expects something of people. It has high standards. It has strong doctrine. It expects great service from people. They don’t just idly go along. We expect them to do things. People respond to that. They welcome the opportunity to be of service, and as they do so, they grow in their capacity, in their understanding, and in their qualifications to do things and do them well. (Gordon B. Hinckley, ORF [Austrian] television Interview, 6 November 2001).
On an airplane flight a few weeks ago, a friend of mine engaged a lady in a conversation. He told her about his trip to Anderson, South Carolina, to visit a fourth cousin because he was seeking information concerning some of his ancestors.
He asked this lady sitting next to him, "Would you like to know why I am interested in my ancestors who died long ago?"
"Yes, I would," she replied.
"I was trying to find information about my forebears so I could perform certain work for them in the temple. Do you know where the Savior was during the three days His body lay in the tomb following the crucifixion?"
"No. We now have altogether some 5,300 retired men and women serving in a meaningful missionary capacity for this Church throughout the world. The number is growing. They go where they are called. They serve where they are needed. Friendships are established; skills are shared; opportunities are opened for those who will never forget the men and women who have come among them in a spirit of entire unselfishness to teach and do good. They receive no money. They go at their own expense. The measure of their devotion is unlimited. The fruits of their efforts are beyond calculation. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Los Angeles World Affairs Council, 12 June 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 517-518).
Last year there were approximately 300,000 convert baptisms throughout the Church. This is tremendously significant. This is the equivalent of 120 new stakes of 2,500 members each. Think of that: 120 new stakes in a single year! It is wonderful. But it is not enough. I am not being unrealistic when I say that with concerted effort, with recognition of the duty which falls upon each of us as members of the Church, and with sincere prayer to the Lord for help, we could double that number. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1999]: 104).
In behalf of the missionaries … , I want to plead with the Saints to do all that you possibly can to provide referrals [of people] whom they might teach. You will be happy if you do so. Everyone that you see come into the Church because of your effort will bring happiness into your lives. I make that as a promise to each of you.” (Gordon B. Hinckley, Pusan, Korea Fireside, 21 May 1996).
Brethren and sisters of the Church, in the work of the Lord. There must be friendship. There must be love unfeigned. There must be appreciation and thanks expressed. There must be constant nurturing with the good word of God. All of these are small things, so easy to do, and they make so great a difference.
I have come to feel that the greatest tragedy in the Church is the loss of those who join the Church and then fall away. With very few exceptions it need not happen. I am convinced that almost universally those who are baptized by the missionaries have been taught sufficiently to have received knowledge and testimony enough to warrant their baptism. But it is not an easy thing to make the transition incident to joining this Church. It means cutting old ties. It means leaving friends. It may mean setting aside cherished beliefs. It may require a change of habits and a suppression of appetites. In so many cases it means loneliness and even fear of the unknown. There must be nurturing and strengthening during this difficult season of a convert's life. A tremendous price has been paid for his or her presence in the Church. The long efforts of the missionaries and the cost of their service, the separation from old relationships and the trauma associated with all of this make it imperative that these precious souls be welcomed, reassured, helped in their times of weakness, given responsibility under which they may grow strong, and encouraged and thanked for all they do.
Who can question this great program of teaching the gospel to the world? It is the work of God. It results--or can result--in happiness for all who become the beneficiaries of its selfless service. It is as Paul said it would be when he wrote to Timothy, that young man of faith and works:
"Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands....
"Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." (1 Tim. 4:14, 16).
Note the words, "Thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." Is not this the story of missionary work? He who goes forth as a servant of the Lord saves himself. He grows in faith. He grows in capacity. He grows in understanding. He grows in love for the Lord.
He likewise blesses those who hear him. Every person in this Church, with rare exception, is a member because of missionaries who taught him or taught his forebears. Every person could stand and bear testimony and express appreciation for those who were the means of bringing to him or his forebears this work of salvation and eternal life. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "There Must be Messengers," Ensign, [October 1987]: 5).
I believe. . . with all my heart that the field is white ready to harvest . . . I think the answer to an increased number of converts does not lie particularly in our methods—effective as those are. Rather, I think we are living in the day of the fulfillment of the word of the Lord given through the Prophet Joel, and repeated by Moroni in his first visitation to the Prophet Joseph.
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh. . . “ (Joel 2:28.)
. . . Great and magnificent as is the work of the . . . missionaries who have been set apart, I am convinced that we have a far greater force for teaching the gospel to the world in the membership of the Church—“every man a missionary”—as has been said here so convincingly tonight. “Every man a missionary.” (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1961, pp. 87-88).
Stake and Local Missions
After a convert's baptism, stake missionaries are responsible for teaching the fellowshipping lessons to assist converts in making the tremendous adjustment that usually comes with baptism into the Church. That adjustment involves leaving old friends, old associates, and old ways. It involves repentance and commitment to better behavior. If we lose only one new convert, it is too great a loss. That loss can be avoided with well-organized stake missions whose missionaries and members work with the converts to assist them in becoming well grounded in the faith. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "There Must be Messengers," Ensign, [October 1987]: 4).
We ought to see that everyone who joins this Church is made welcome, is made to feel at home, has friends in the Church, and has something to do in the Church with which he can grow in faith and faithfulness” (Gordon B. Hinckley, Aruba Meeting, 16 March 2001).
Missionary Preparation
Cultivate in our homes a proper attitude toward missionary service. We enjoy the blessings we so greatly treasure because of those who have gone before us. Out of a sense of appreciation, out of simple gratitude, we should make an effort to extend these same blessings to others. Our young people have an obligation to prepare themselves for missionary service.
We should also build the attitude that there is nothing of a vacation, nothing of a holiday in this great missionary service. It is hard, and at times discouraging, work. Last year our missionaries averaged sixty-seven hours a week in actual proselyting effort. Let those who contemplate missions realize that they will work as they have never worked before, and that they may expect such joy as they have not previously known.
. . . Foster training for missionary service. One of the great compliments paid the Savior was that he taught as one having authority. The missionary, who knows scripture and can quote it speaks with the voice of authority. It is not essential to memorize five hundred citations, nor even three hundred. Fifty well chosen verses of scripture will become a remarkably effective tool in the hands of a missionary.
May I suggest that in our family night gatherings we make it a project to memorize one scripture citation a week pertinent to this work. At the conclusion of a year our children will have on their lips a fund of scripture which will remain with them throughout their lives.
. . . Make financial preparation. Missionary work, like everything else, has become more costly. . . . A little at a time, systematically saved, will assure our children that the necessary means will be available when a missionary call comes. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1959, p. 120).
Every man or woman who goes forth in service blesses the lives of all he teaches. Furthermore, his or her own life is enriched by his selfless labor. Who has not witnessed the miracle of the missionary who has grown in a wondrous way while engaged in the work of the Master?
Priesthood leaders and fathers and mothers should begin while a boy is very young to point him in the direction of missionary service. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Miracle Made Possible by Faith,” Ensign, [May 1984]: 46).
In missionary work, as in all else, preparation precedes power. Encouragement to prepare while still very young can make a tremendous difference. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Regional Representatives’ Seminar, April 1987).
As we came in here, we met two young men. I said, “Are you going on a mission?” One young man said, “I just sent my papers in.” The other man said, “I’m getting my papers ready to send in.” I said to myself, “It’s for real. It’s happening. Things are working as they should work.”
It should be the ambition, the desire, the hoped-for experience of every young man in this Church to go into the world as a teacher of the eternal gospel, as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I don’t know where you’ll go. Some of you may even be sent here or to other parts of Asia. It will prove to be a tremendous and wonderful experience for you. You will live close to the Lord. You will pray as you never prayed before. You’ll teach, and you’ll do great good that will bless your life as long as you live. There is no questioning my mind concerning that.
So to all of those little boys who are here tonight, I want to urge you to save and prepare and think of and dream of and pray for the experience of a mission in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Singapore Member Meeting, 30 January 2000 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley: Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, p. 281).
Prepare now to go on a mission. It will not be a burden. It will not be a waste of time. It will be an opportunity and a great challenge. It will do something for you that nothing else will do for you. It will sharpen your skills. It will train you in leadership. It will bring testimony and conviction into your heart. You will bless the lives of others as you bless your own. It will bring you nearer to God and to His Divine Son as you bear witness and testimony of Him. Your knowledge of the gospel will strengthen and deepen. Your love for your fellowmen will increase. Your fears will fade as you stand boldly in testimony of the truth. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Converts and Young Men,” Ensign, [May 1997]: 59).
To you younger boys, may I encourage you to save money now for a future mission. Put it in a place where it is safe, not in a speculative account where it may be endangered. Consecrate it for this great purpose, and let it not be used for any other. Prepare yourselves. Attend seminary and institute. Prayerfully read the Book of Mormon.
I hear much these days of costly youth excursions to exotic places during spring breaks and at other times. Why not stay near home and put the money in your future missionary accounts? Someday you will be grateful you did. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR A'86, Ensign, [May 1986]: 41).
Young men, prepare for missionary service. Save money for that purpose. Save it in a secure way so that it will be available when you need it. Study a foreign language if you have opportunity to do so. Take advantage of every opportunity to enlarge your understanding of the gospel. Make the effort to participate in seminary and institute programs. The Lord’s work need the very best you are capable of providing. Now is the time to prepare for service. Keep yourselves clean as those worthy to represent the Lord before the world. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 44).
We urge adherence to the rule of missionary support which has been in effect from the beginnings of the Church--namely, that it is the responsibility of the individual and the family to provide support for the missionary. This must be encouraged, even though there may necessarily be some delay in departure. Better a young man delays his mission for a year and earns money toward his support than he rely entirely on others.
But because of economic conditions in some lands, it is not possible for some young men and women to serve without some financial help. Wards and quorums should then help to the extent possible. The balance may come from the general missionary fund comprised of the contributions of Church members. We encourage members to contribute to the general missionary fund, where it is appropriate and possible for you to do so. This fund has made it possible for thousands of our young men and women to serve. Without it, thousands will be unable to do so.
With every such contribution comes a blessing promised by the Lord. Said He concerning those who assist missionaries: "And he who feeds you, or clothes you, or gives you money, shall in nowise lose his reward.
"And he that doeth not these things is not my disciple; by this you may know my disciples." (D&C 84:90-91). (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 6).
We ask that parents begin early to train their children. Where there is family prayer, where there are family home evenings, where there is scripture reading, where the father and mother are active in the Church and speak with enthusiasm concerning the Church and the gospel, the children in such homes become imbued in a natural way with a desire to teach the gospel to others. There is usually a tradition of missionary work in such homes. Savings accounts are set up while children are small. Boys grow up with a natural expectation that they will be called to serve as missionaries for the Church. A mission becomes as much a part of a boy's program for life as is an education. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "There Must be Messengers," Ensign, [October 1987]: 2).
We enjoy the blessings we so greatly treasure because of those who have gone before us. Out of a sense of appreciation, out of simple gratitude, we should make an effort to extend these same blessings to others. Our young people have an obligation to prepare themselves for missionary service. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1959, p. 120).
The Lord said, "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30). This is the day of preparation for you boys, whether you are twelve or fourteen or sixteen or eighteen. Watch yourselves. Never use language when you are with your friends that would be incompatible with the calling that will come to you, if you are worthy of it, to go into the world to represent this church and to serve as an ambassador of the Lord. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR O'84, Ensign, [November 1984]: 48).
There may be a few young men in this vast audience tonight who may be wondering, ever so seriously, whether they should go on missions. There may be scarcity of money. There may be compelling plans for education. There may be that wonderful girl you love and feel you cannot leave. You say to yourself, “The choice is mine.”
That is true. But before you make a decision against a mission, count your blessings, my dear friend. Think of all the great and marvelous things you have—your very life, your health, your parents, your home, the girl you love. Are they not all gifts from a generous Heavenly Father? No, the lives of all of us are in His hands. All of the previous things that are ours come from Him who is the giver of every good gift.
. . . I am saying that out of a spirit of appreciation and gratitude, and a sense of duty, you ought to make whatever adjustment is necessary to give a little of your time—as little as two years—consecrating your strength, your means, your talents to the work of sharing with others the gospel, which is the source of so much of the good that you have.
I promise that if you will do so, you will come to know that what appears today to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment that you will ever make...
The Church needs you. The Lord needs you. The world needs you. . . . There are many out there who need exactly what you have to offer. They are not easy to find, but they will not be found unless there are those who are prepared and willing to seek them out. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Question of a Mission,” Ensign, [May 1986]: 40-41).
Some years ago I attended a stake conference in a rural area. We were emphasizing missionary work in the Saturday evening meeting. An eighteen-year-old farm boy with freckles on his nose and a winning smile on his face was asked to tell what he had done to get ready for a mission. He listed ten things that had helped him. Here is his list:
1. First and most important, I have had great parents to help me. They have encouraged me to go on a mission for as long as I can remember. They have helped me to save money for this purpose.
2. I have attended church. I have learned many wonderful lessons that have helped me to understand the meaning of the gospel.
3. I have been in Scouting for seven years. I am an Eagle Scout. I have been taught to 'be prepared.' I have repeated many times the Scout oath, 'To do my duty to God and my country.'
4. I have earned a Duty to God Award. I know that this duty includes sharing the gospel with others.
5. I am the priest quorum assistant. I work directly under my bishop, who is my quorum president. Ever since I was a deacon my bishop and his counselors have interviewed me and have spoken about my going on a mission. They have helped give me a vision of what a great opportunity and responsibility it is to serve the Lord as a missionary.
6. I have attended seminary, where I have studied the gospel I have had wonderful teachers and friends. I have read and studied the Book of Mormon, and I know it is the word of God.
7. I have been a Primary teacher. This has been a great challenge. I have a small class of boys and girls who are not always easy to handle, but I love them and they know it. We are learning together.
8. I have taken part in family home evenings from the time I was a child. My family and I have prayed together, sung together, and read the scriptures together. We have made plans together concerning our lives and the things we want to do.
9. I have tried to live a clean life. There have been temptations; but I have a goal to go on a mission, and I want to be worthy to go. I decided a long time ago that I don't need to drink beer, I don't need to smoke, I don't need drugs, and I don't need to get mixed up in immorality.
10. I have responsibilities in school to lead and serve. I am a student-body officer. I enjoy it, I am growing from it, and I have made many wonderful friends because of it.”
This boy concluded by saying: "I have enjoyed the story of Ammon in the Book of Mormon. He fought the robbers and protected the sheep. While others, who had run from the robbers, were bragging to the king, Ammon was down with the horses. He did what he was supposed to do when he was supposed to. If we do this and pray for help, we will be ready."
I have never heard a better summary of missionary preparation. It outlines in a very realistic way the preparation that should begin in childhood and continue consistently until a young man is ready to receive a call.
That call will bless the missionary's life, and the lives of those who hear him. And there are others whose lives are blessed when a missionary serves, such as the members of his family who in most cases support him, pray for him, and try to live worthy of him. I think everyone who has ever sustained a missionary can testify of the great good that comes to a family when a son or daughter goes into the mission field. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, (December 1986): 5).
If we are to increase substantially the number of missionaries, we must begin the preparation process early. That process begins with parents. I wish to discuss four phases of preparation for missionary service: (1) Spiritual preparation; (2) mental preparation; (3) social preparation; (4) financial preparation.
A missionary's spiritual preparation will be strengthened by better family home evenings, by improved teaching in the Aaronic Priesthood and auxiliary organizations, by attendance at seminary and institute, by going to the temple to be baptized in behalf of the dead, by encouragement to read the Book of Mormon. Every boy would benefit from reading the account of the sons of Mosiah. Concerning them the record states:
"Now these sons of Mosiah...had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God.
"But this is not all; they had given themselves to much prayed, and fasting; therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation, and when they taught, they taught with power and authority of God." (Alma 17:2-3).
Mental preparation. Bishoprics need to be diligent and prayerful as they conduct personal interviews with boys, beginning when the boys are deacons. Let bishoprics give encouragement in the direction of missionary service. Let them help these young men shape their minds and thoughts to face the rigors of missionary service, to make the needed cultural adjustments incident to missionary work in many lands, to surrender themselves wholeheartedly to missionary service when they are called. Obviously, parents should under gird all of these matters with wise and inspired counsel of the same points.
Social preparation. Let us teach our young people with counsel and love the importance of keeping themselves clean and worthy to represent the Lord as His ambassadors before the world. Let us encourage wholesome social activities, and let our youth learn the great are of getting along with others. While in the mission field they will have companions with whom they will be obliged to work. They must be able to look for the good in those companions and to draw from the lives of others virtues to incorporate into their own lives.
Financial Preparation. Missions have become costly. The average expense today is $250 [$400 today] a month, which means approximately $6,000 for a period of two years. The time to start saving is when boys are very young. Let those savings be kept in safe accounts and not be placed in speculative ventures. The young man to whom I referred earlier had saved money to finance his mission. Many of our young men have done so. Many could do much more. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 5-6).
It follows that if we have more missionaries, there will be more converts. It also follows that if missionaries are better prepared, they will be more effective.
I am one who believes that missionary work is primarily a priesthood responsibility. While many young women perform a tremendous service in the field, some more effectively than the elders, the basic responsibility lies with our young men. We must point our young men toward missionary service earlier, and we must prepare them better. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 4).
Worthiness
To you young men who look forward to going on missions, please do not cloud your lives with anything that would cast a doubt upon your worthiness to go forth as servants of the living God.
You who are missionaries must not; you cannot under any circumstances compromise the divine power which you carry within you as ordained ministers of the gospel. By way of warning and forewarning, the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have set forth the following statement directed to you:
“As missionaries, you are expected to maintain the highest standards of conduct, including strict observance of the law of chastity. . . .
“. . . You should never be alone with anyone else, male or female, adult or child [other than your assigned companion].
“Even false accusations against an innocent missionary can take many months to investigate and may result in disruption or termination of missionary service.
Protect yourselves from such accusations by never being separated from your companion, even in the homes you visit” (First Presidency statement on missionary conduct, Mar. 22, 2002).
You need not worry about these things if you will at all times observe the rules of missionary service. If you do so, you will have a wonderful experience, and you will return in honor to those you love without taint or suspicion or regret. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, 6 April 2002).
I wish to say to you boys, you should prepare for that great responsibility. Coach [Lavell] Edwards talked to you about the importance of preparation. The Lord said, "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear." (D&C 38:30). This is the day of preparation for you boys, whether you are twelve or fourteen or sixteen or eighteen, Watch yourselves. Never use language when you are with your friends that would be incompatible with the calling that will come to you, if you are worthy of it, to go into the world to represent this church and to serve as an ambassador of the Lord. God bless you to this end. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR O'84, Ensign, [November 1984]: 48).
Who Should Serve A Mission
The Lord’s work needs the very best you are capable of providing. Now is the time to prepare for that service. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1982, p. 63; Ensign, [May 1982]: 42).
I recall talking years ago with a Japanese brother about his son going on a mission. The father replied that he could not think of his son’s taking time from school for a mission. The son did not go and has been the loser because of it.
I contrast that with the family of Brother and Sister Masao Watabe. I have known them for many years. Brother Warabe has served in many capacities in the Church in Japan. Today he is an ordained patriarch.
They have not had much money, but they saved to make it possible for their children to serve missions. Masahisa went to Japan. He then completed his education and is an expert in ceramics. Masaji served in Japan, was educated there and in the United States where he now works for a Japanese company. Masakazu served in Brazil, then earned a doctorate degree and is on the faculty of Brigham Young University. Masasue labored in the Fukuoka mission and is now in school in San Francisco.
In serving others through the great missionary cause, they have brought blessings into their own lives. And now today, the father and mother are serving their fourth mission, this one in the Taipei Taiwan Temple, where Brother Watabe is a counselor to the temple president and Sister Watabe is assistant to the matron. Where there is faith, there are miracles. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Missionary Service,” Tambuli [March 1988]: 2).
You are good. But it is not enough just to be good. You must be good for something. You must contribute good to the world. The world must be a better place for your presence. And the good that is in you must be spread to others. (Gordon B. Hinckley, BYU Devotional, September 17, 1996).
When should a young man NOT go on a mission? In the first place, a young man does not initiate his missionary call. In light of this, it is not his prerogative to choose or not to choose to go on a mission. His bishop and stake president recommend him, and he may state his desires to them. The call comes from the president of the Church, and the young man may then accept it or reject it.
There are circumstances under which he should frankly tell his bishop that he should not be considered for a mission. If he feels himself unworthy to represent the Church as a missionary because of immorality or failure to live other Church standards, he must candidly tell his bishop.
If he has health problems, either physical or mental, that would make it difficult or impossible for him to stand the rigors of missionary service, he should advise the bishop.
He may be seriously in debt or have other financial problems that would make it inadvisable for him to go at a particular time. He should candidly counsel with his bishop on these matters.
Furthermore, if he has a critical attitude concerning the Church, if he is unwilling to go unselfishly where he is called and devote himself whole-heartedly to the work, there may be a serious question as to whether he should be considered for missionary service.
On the other hand, he should know that if he responds to a call given him and devotes himself to the work in the right spirit and attitude, walking in obedience to the counsel of those placed over him, he will come to know a joy and satisfaction such as he is not likely to experience in any other activity in life. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "When Should a Young Man Not Go on a Mission?" Answers for Young Latter-Day Saints, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1977, pp. 39-40).
I am confident that the time will never come when we shall not need vigorous men and women of faith to go into the world as missionaries. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1959, p. 120).
The Church needs you. The Lord needs you. The world needs you--yes, ten thousand more of you. There are many out there who need exactly what you have to offer. They are not easy to find, but they will not be found unless there are those who are prepared and willing to seek them out. God bless you each one, every one of you, that a mission may be a planned and essential part of the program of your lives. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR A'86, Ensign, [May 1986]: 41).
Now, we have an interesting custom in the Church. Departing missionaries, are accorded a farewell. In some wards this has become a problem. Between outgoing missionaries and returning missionaries, most sacrament meetings are devoted to farewells and homecomings.
No one else in the Church has a farewell when entering a particular service. We never have a special farewell meeting for a newly called bishop, for a stake president, for a Relief Society president, for a General Authority, or anyone else for whom I can think. Why should we have missionary farewells?
The First Presidency and the Twelve, after most prayerful and careful consideration, have reached the decision that the present program of missionary farewells should be modified.
The departing missionary will be given the opportunity to speak in a sacrament meeting for 15 or 20 minutes. But parents and siblings will not be invited to do so. There might be two or more departing missionaries who speak in the same service. The meeting will be entirely in the hands of the bishop and will not be arranged by the family. There will not be special music or anything of that kind.
We know this will be a great disappointment to many families. Mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, and friends have participated in the past. We ask that you accept this decision. Where a farewell has already been arranged, it may go forward. But none in the traditional sense should be planned for the future. We are convinced that when all aspects of the situation are considered, this is a wise decision. Please, accept it, my dear brethren. I extend this plea also to the sisters, particularly the mothers.
We hope also that holding elaborate open houses after the sacrament meeting at which the missionaries speaks will not prevail. Members of the family may wish to get together. We have no objection to this. However, we ask that there be no public reception to which large numbers are invited.
Missionary service is such a wonderful experience that it brings with it its own generous reward. And when a missionary returns to his family and his ward, he may again be given opportunity to speak in a sacrament meeting. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, 5 October 2002).
The Calling of A Missionary
We now have more [missionaries] serving in the field than we have ever had, but we do not have enough. The world, with its four billion plus people, is a very large world. And while we do not have access to many millions of these, the numbers we are free to work with are still very large. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1988]: 92).
Every one of you is so important to this cause. Without you the Church would not grow; it would just go along in a static way and finally it would fade and dwindle and die here. You are what keeps it alive with a constant infusion of new blood, of converts who come into the Church who bring with them their strengths. You are so very, very, very important. Do not ever think that what you are doing is not important. It is so very, very important. You may not bring very many converts into the Church during your mission. I do not care about that so long as you try, so long as you work hard. If you will work hard, the matter of converts will take care of itself. I am satisfied of that. Give it your very best. (Gordon B. Hinckley, The Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1997, p. 357).
Every young man seeking to please his Heavenly Father would be willing and anxious to give approximately a tithe of his life at the age of nineteen or twenty to go into the world to preach the gospel. He would save his money for this; he would plan his life’s program around it; he would keep himself physically, mentally, and morally alert, as well as spiritually strong, to be prepared for this great and sacred responsibility.
While in the mission field he would be “anxiously engage” in the work of the Lord (see D&C 58:27), willing to give freely of his time, his talents, his strengths, and his substance to bless the lives of others. He would guard against wasting his time or diminishing his effectiveness through engaging in activities that might in any way be out of harmony with his great and sacred call. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “To Please Our Heavenly Father,” Ensign, [May 1985]: 49).
You are part of a great miracle that’s occurring over the earth. I never get over the fact that what we are doing is in very deed a remarkable miracle: to send out young men and young women into a world that is unreceptive, generally, to their message, and to teach that world and to have one here and another there give attention. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents’ Seminar, 24 June 1995).
Every man and woman who goes forth in [missionary] service blesses the lives of all he teaches. Furthermore, his or her own life is enriched by this selfless labor. Who has not witnessed the miracle of a missionary who has grown in a wondrous way while engaged in the work of the Master?
Priesthood leaders and fathers and mothers should begin while a boy is very young to point him in the direction of missionary service. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Miracle Made Possible by Faith,” Ensign, [May 1984]: 46).
I am confident that the time will never come when we shall not need vigorous men and woman of faith to go into the world as missionaries for this cause. We have never found, and I think we never shall find, an adequate substitute for the situation in which two wholesome young men meet with a family, reason with them, teach them, testify to them, and pray with them. We shall always need missionaries. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1959, p. 120).
You never can foretell the consequences of that which you do. And the man or the woman, or the boy or the girl, on whom you call today, with whom you speak, with whom you may leave a Book of Mormon, who may turn you down, may later become interested and come into this Church. … Strange are the ways of the Lord in touching the hearts of people. You never can tell the consequences of that which you do. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Boston, Massachusetts Missionary Meeting, 22 March 2002).
The Missionary in the Mission Field
This is a work of miracles. Miracles are performed in the lives of the missionaries. Your presence here is really a miracle. This is a nation in which only about 1 percent of the people are Christians, but here we have a great, growing organization now, more than a thousand missionaries in Japan; but a hundred thousand members of the Church in Japan. I’ve seen the miracle of the whole thing since I started coming here thirty-six years ago. In those days we did not own a chapel; we did not have a building of our own except a little run-down place up in the north island, not a single building did we own in all of Asia.
When I see the strength of the Church here today, and go into stake centers and beautiful houses of worship and think of those smelly, cold, drafty little old houses in which we used to meet, I know that a miracle has taken place. It is wonderful. What a marvelous thing that each of you can be a part of this great miracle that’s taking place in this good land, this nation of Japan, which is one of the great nations of the earth, among these very able and wonderful people. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Japan Tokyo North, Japan Tokyo South, and Japan Sendai Missionary Meeting, 18 May 1996).
You can’t afford to be lazy. You can’t afford not to get up in the morning. You cannot afford not to study the prophets of old. You cannot afford not to be acquainted with them and their great work. You cannot afford not to get along with your companion. You cannot afford to be thinking all the time of the girl you left at home. She is home. You are here. She has her work to do, and you have your work to do, and it is pretty important, and you only have two years in which to do it—you young ladies, a year and a half, you old people, as long as you can take it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Missionary Meeting, 25 October 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 367).
Missionary work is rigorous. It is demanding. It is difficult. It has never been easy, and it never will be. It requires strength of body, strength of mind, strength of spirit. (Brian Kelly, “A Visit with Elder Gordon B. Hinckley about Missionary Work,” New Era, June 1973, p. 31).
We all like comfort; yet industry is at the heart of missionary work. This has not changed since the time of the Savior. He said, ‘… whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s the same shall save it.’ (Mark 8:35.) That is particularly true with missionary work. The greatest challenge has always been to go before the Lord in prayer and ask for strength and capacity and direction, and then go out and go to work. The Lord has declared: ‘If therefore thine eye be single [to my glory], thy whole body shall be full of light.’ (Matt. 6:22.) If a missionary works with an eye single to the glory of God, then the darkness goes out, the darkness of laziness, the darkness of sin, the darkness of procrastination, the darkness of fear, and these are all factors that influence missionary work. (Brian Kelly, “A Visit with Elder Gordon B. Hinckley,” p. 31).
I was recently in London, England, and there we held a meeting with the missionaries serving in the area. Representatives of the British Broadcasting Corporation filmed part of the service. They are preparing a documentary of our missionary work in the British Isles.
Prior to this I had been interviewed by a representative of the BBC Radio Worldwide Service. He had seen the missionaries and noted their youthful appearance. He asked me, “How do you expect people to listen to these callow youth?’
In case some of you do not know the meaning of callow, it means immature, inexperienced, lacking sophistication.
I replied to the reporter with a smile, “Callow youth? It is with these missionaries today as it was with Timothy in the days of Paul. It was Paul who wrote of his young companion, saying, ‘Let no man despise they youth but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity’ (1 Timothy 4:12).
“The remarkable thing is that people do receive them and listen to them. They are wholesome. They are bright, they are alert, they are upstanding. They are clean looking, and people quickly develop confidence in them.” . . .
“Callow youth?” Yes, they are lacking in sophistication. What a great blessing this is. They carry no element of deception. They speak with no element of sophistry. Each is a servant of the living God, an ambassador of the Lord Jesus Christ. Their power comes not of their learning in the things of the world. Their power comes of faith, and prayer, and humility. As we have been reminded, the work is not easy. It has never been easy. Long ago Jeremiah said that the Lord would gather His people one of a city and two of a family and bring them to Zion and feed them with pastors after His own heart (see Jeremiah 3:14-15). In terms of the individual missionary, the harvest is not great in most instances, but in the aggregate it becomes tremendous. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Of Missions, Temples, and Stewardship,” Ensign, [November 1995]: 51).
Every missionary ought to come to realize that work, work, work is the key to getting things done, the key to success in life. There is no substitute for work, for getting up in the morning and getting at it and staying with it to get the job done. I don’t know of a greater asset for whatever lies ahead in life than the capacity to discipline oneself to work. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 3-4).
Every one of you is so important to this cause. Without you the Church would not grow; it would just along in a static way and finally it would fade and dwindle and die here. You are what keeps it alive with a constant infusion of new blood, of converts who come into the Church who bring with them their strengths. You are so very, very, very important. Do not ever thin that what you are doing is not important. It is so very, very important. You may not bring very many converts into the Church during your mission. I do not care about that so long as you try, so long as you work hard. If you will work hard, the matter of converts will take care of itself. I am satisfied of that. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Korea Pusan and Korea Taejon Missionary Meeting, 21 May 1996).
When I left for a mission some sixty-two years ago, my good father handed me a card on which were written five words. They were the words of the Lord to the ruler of the synagogue who had received news of his daughter’s death: “Be not afraid, only believe” (Mark 5:36). I should like to express a few thoughts on this theme. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
I experienced times of discouragement on my mission, as does every missionary. On an occasion or two, when the clouds were particularly dark. I felt in a very real but indescribable way the protecting, guiding, encouraging influence of my mother. She seemed very close. I tried then, as I have tried since, to so conduct my life and perform my duty as to bring honor to her name. (Gordon B. Hinckley, One Bright Shining Hope, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2006, p. 20).
We should also build the attitude that there is nothing of a vacation, nothing of a holiday in this great missionary service. It is hard, and at times discouraging, work. Last year our missionaries averaged sixty-seven hours a week in actual proselyting effort. Let those who contemplate missions realize that they will work as they have never worked before, and that they may expect such joy as they have not previously known. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR April 1959 p. 120).
Go forward. Do your work. It’s so very, very important. You have on your narrow shoulders the responsibility of teaching the gospel to a world that doesn’t want it. At least they think they don’t want it because they haven’t tasted of it. And for many, many of those people you are the only knowledge they will ever have of this Church. It is so very important, therefore, that you make a good appearance. Someday someone might well say, “Well, yes, I met two of your missionaries years ago and I’ve been thinking about it ever since then. Come in and tell me what you have to offer.” Go forward with faith and without fear. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Missionary Meeting, 27 April 1996).
This is a great time in your lives. This is a wonderful season in your lives. This is a unique and different time in your lives. This is a time when you have opportunities that you will never have again as long as you live—the opportunity of spending your full time in the service of the Lord without any thought of money. You know you are going to have enough to get by on, not too much, I hope, but enough to get by on. You don’t have to worry about a job. You don’t have to worry about school. You don’t have to worry about a social life. There is no need to worry about Mary whom you left behind. Suppose she does marry somebody else while you are away? Get on your knees and thank the Lord and ask him to bless her. You’ll find somebody that’s better suited for you. Your tastes will be changed. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Philippines Manila/Quezon City Missionary Meeting, 31 May 1996).
I believe in our people’s sense of service. I have been in the missions of the Church where we have about forty-nine thousand missionaries. They are there at their own expense and at the expense of their families. They give to the Lord one and a half to two years of their lives. Their days are long, their weeks crowded and arduous. They speak with a persuasive conviction. They bear testimony of the living Christ and of the virtues of His marvelous work.
May I read from a letter received from one of them: “The most effective technique we have found in our work is fasting and prayer. We saw how this worked a few weeks ago with an investigator of the Church. He had a number of questions and problems to overcome, and we just didn’t seem to get anywhere when we met with him to discuss them. So we would go home to our apartment and ask the Lord to bless him and help him understand what we had explained to him. We felt it was very important that he be baptized, so we asked the Lord to bless him with a desire for baptism. Even up through the sixth lesson he was wavering, so we fasted the day before his baptism, and he has been a faithful member ever since.”
One thinks of the words of the Lord to His disciples who complained they could not perform miracles. Said He: “This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting” (Matt. 17:21).
Is it not a miracle in itself that in this day of doubt and disbelief young people, thousands of them, with lives to live and careers to build, spend a year and a half to two years in the service of the Lord, laboring constantly and even willing to fast and pray in behalf of those to whom they seek to teach a better life? I know of no experience more refreshing than to be with them and feel of their spirit. They will restore your faith in youth. They will quicken your faith in the Lord. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
In this, you young men and you young women, “flee also youthful lusts” (2 Timothy 2:22). You didn’t come to Philadelphia to find a wife. You didn’t come to Philadelphia to find a husband. You came to Philadelphia as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to give your full time and your full interests for the period for which you were called to the service of the Lord. There will be time enough when you go home to find a wife. This is not the time. Flee youthful lusts. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Missionary Meeting, 25 October 2002, Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 369).
But all of us acknowledge that we have barely scratched the surface. We have a mandate laid upon us from which we cannot shrink. It is the charge from the Lord Himself to teach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. The field is white, but the laborers are relatively few. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [December 1987] ).
Missionary Companions
No one can do this work alone. We work in pairs. “In the mouth of two or more witnesses shall [all things] be established” (2 Corinthians 13:1). We work together. There is no place for prima donnas in the mission field. Our efforts are largely team efforts, and what a marvelous thing it is to learn to work with other people. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 4).
I remember interviewing a discouraged missionary. He was having trouble with a language which was not his own. He had lost the spirit of his work and wanted to go home. He was one of 180 missionaries in that mission.
I told him that if he were to go home he would break faith with his 179 companions. Every one of them was his friend. Every one of them would pray for him, fast for him, and do almost anything else to help him. They would work with him. They would teach him. They would get on their knees with him. They would help him to learn the language and be successful because they loved him.
I am happy to report that he accepted my assurance that all of the other missionaries were his friends. They rallied around him, not to embarrass him, but to strengthen him. The terrible feeling of loneliness left him. He came to realize that he was part of a winning team. He became successful, a leader, and he has been a leader ever since. That's what each of us must do for one another.
Paul wrote to the Romans, "We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak." And then he added these significant words, "And not to please ourselves" (Romans 15:1). There is a sad tendency in our world today for persons to cut one another down. Did you ever realize that it does not take very much in the way of brainpower to make remarks that may wound another? Try the opposite of that. Try handing out compliments. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Strengthening Each Other," Ensign, [February 1985]: 3).
For a number of years, while I had responsibility for the work in Asia, I interviewed each missionary one-on-one. I asked each what virtue he or she saw in his or her companion and would like to put into his or her own life.
When I raised that question, almost invariably the missionary, an elder for example, would stop with a surprised look on his face. He had never thought of his companion that way before. He had seen his faults and weaknesses but had not seen his virtues. I would tell him to pause and think about it for a minute. Then the answers would begin to come. Such answers as, "He's a hard worker." "He gets up in the morning." "He dresses neatly." "He doesn't complain."
It was a remarkable thing, really. These young men and women, for the most part, had been oblivious to the virtues of their companions, although they were well aware of their companions' faults, and often felt discouraged because of them. But when they began to turn their attitudes around, remarkable things began to happen. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Strengthening Each Other," Ensign, [February 1985]: 3-4).
As I have met with many groups of missionaries throughout the mission, I find a tendency for missionaries to tell their faults to their companions, their friends, and sometimes in public. There is not place in the mission field to publicize your weaknesses. When you have something that is disturbing you, you should go to your mission president. To him you may unburden yourself, confess your sins and your weaknesses. You may tell him your hopes and aspirations, but there is no reason why you should tell every companion the fact that you might have smoked a few cigarettes in your life before you came, or that you had taken the name of the Lord in vain, or any other of your weaknesses. We go forward on the assumption that you are worthy to do this work. If there is something of major importance in your life that had not been adjusted before your coming into the mission field, then certainly you should make those adjustments through your president. Don't tell the saints. That does not do anyone any good. It does not mean you are being hypocritical.
You had some weaknesses, you repented, and those weaknesses are no longer a part of your life, and you are living in conformity with the program of the Church. (Spencer W. Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, ed. by Edward L. Kimball, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1982, p. 96).
Be grateful for your companions. I thank the Lord and will always be grateful for my companions in the mission field. ...[Of one companion with whom he spent 15 months] What a wonderful young man he was. How I loved him, and I hope he loved me. We became fast and good and wonderful friends. (Gordon B. Hinckley, First Presidency Trains Mission Presidents,” Ensign, [September 1999]: 76).
Treasure your companions. They have something to offer you if you will learn. Look for the good in them, and help them. Help one another. Get on your knees and pray to the Lord and ask Him to bless you. Never leave your apartments in the morning without asking for the directing and protecting guidance of the Lord. And never come back to them in the evening and go to bed without getting on your knees and thanking Him for the blessings of the day. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Hamilton, Ontario, missionary meeting, Aug. 8, 1998).
Temptation is everywhere. It’s everywhere in this world. There are those who would like to entrap the missionaries if they could. Each of you has a companion. Why? Well, for one reason the Savior said, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall [all things] be established.” (Matthew 18:16.) Another is for your mutual protection, so that you can protect one another. When you are together, it isn’t likely that both of you will go wrong. One of you might be tempted. The other will pull him up and straighten him out and give him strength to resist. Subtle are the ways of the world. Clever are the designs of the adversary. Be careful. You want to go home in honor. Don’t step into tragedy. Transgression never was happiness. Sin never was happiness. Evil never was happiness. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Philippines Manila/Quezon City Missionary Meeting, 31 May 1996).
Sister Missionaries
With reference to young sister missionaries, there has been some misunderstanding of earlier counsel regarding single sisters serving as missionaries. We need some young women. They perform a remarkable work. They can get in homes where the elders cannot. But it should be kept I mind that young sisters are not under obligation to go on missions. They should not feel that they have a duty comparable to that of young men, but some will wish to go. If so, they should counsel with their bishop as well as their parents. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “To the Bishops of the Church, Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, June 2004, p. 27 quoted in New Era, [March 2007]: 47).
Recently on a trip to Brazil we stopped overnight in Jamaica to meet with our people there. I think it was the first time a President of the Church had ever been there. At the airport, as we came through customs and immigration, were two wonderful women. One is from Los Angeles. Each is a widow. Each has reared a fine family to maturity. Each volunteered for missionary service without indicating where she might go or what she might do. They were assigned to Jamaica, and there they are performing a marvelous work. They are teaching, lifting, and encouraging those who have felt they had a small opportunity in the world.
As I shook hands and conversed with Norma Hall and Erva Fredericksen, I asked them if they were having a good time. They said they were having the time of their lives. They have found that they are needed. They have discovered that they can help. They have learned that someone depends on them. They have come alive in their declining years. They love what they are doing. About the only fear they have is that all of this will come to an end before too long. When that happens, there can be a short time of rest and relaxation and then another opportunity. Their health is better because they are actively engaged. They have never known one another before, but they have become fast friends. They are making a contribution. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Los Angeles World Affairs Council, 12 June 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 516).
I sat in a meeting in Aruba the other evening. I daresay that most of those who hear me do not know where Aruba is or that there is even such a place. It is an island off the coast of Venezuela. It is a protectorate of the Netherlands. It is an inconspicuous place in the vast world. There were about 180 in the meeting. On the front row were eight missionaries: six elders and two sisters. The congregation consisted of men and women, boys and girls of various racial strains. A little English was spoken, much of Spanish, and some expressions of other languages.
As I looked into the faces of that congregation, I thought of the faith there represented. They loved this Church. They appreciated all that it does. They stand and testify of the reality of God the Eternal Father and his resurrected Beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. They testified of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. They serve where they are called to serve. They are men and women of faith who have embraced the true and living gospel of the Master, and in their midst are these eight missionaries. I am sure that it is a lonely place for them. But they are doing what they have been asked to do because of their faith. The two young women are beautiful and happy. As I look at them, I said to myself, “Eighteen months is a long time to be in this faraway place.” But they do not complain. They speak of the great experience they are having and of the wonderful people they meet. Shining through all of their service is the reassuring faith that the work in which they are engaged is true and that the service they are giving is given unto God.
It is so with our missionaries wherever they might serve, whether it be here in Salt Lake City or in Mongolia. They go and serve with faith in their hearts. It is a phenomenon of great power that quietly whispers, “This cause is true, and to you there is an obligation to serve it regardless of the cost.”
Again, people cannot understand it, these thousands of bright and able young men and women who forgo social life, leave school, and selflessly go wherever they are sent to teach the gospel. They go by the power of faith, and they teach by the power of faith, planting a seed of faith here and another there which grow and mature into converts of strength and capacity. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, 2 April 2001).
Couple Missionaries
Some years ago I was in the Philippines, down in Cebu. We had convened a conference. I saw in the congregation an American and his wife. I had known them previously when he was a stake president, a leading officer of Union Carbide. He was a well-paid chemist and, as I understand, largely responsible for the discovery of Prestone. At the close of the meeting in Cebu, I said, “What are you doing here?”
He said, “We are having the time of our lives.” They told me their story.
When he was about to retire, they said to themselves, “What are we going to do?” We still have our health. We still have some ability. Let’s make ourselves available to the Church to use us wherever they wish.” They received a call, and then, as they related, “We sold our home.” We gave our children what furniture they wanted and gave away the rest. We found ourselves left with a few clothes, some private records, and our retirement income. We even gave away our car.
“The Church called us to come here, and here we are.” They were living in a small apartment, altogether about the size of their New York living room. They had previously known nothing of the Filipinos. Now they were working among them, lifting their sights, giving them understanding, building their faith in a great cause and faith in themselves. They were doing a wonderful work and having a wonderful time.
They have since served in other areas in various parts of the world. They are now growing old and somewhat handicapped, but they have rich and wonderful and nurturing memories—not just of the days when he was a great chemist, but of more recent years when they have been out serving among those who needed their help so urgently.
These volunteers include retired medical doctors, educators, farmers, business executives, and the garden variety of ordinary good people. We now have altogether some 5,300 retired men and women serving in a meaningful missionary capacity for this Church throughout the world. The number is growing. They go where they are called. They serve where they are needed. Friendships are established; skills are shared; opportunities are opened for those who will never forget the men and women who have come among them in a spirit of entire unselfishness to teach and do good. They receive no money. They go at their own expense. The measure of their devotion is unlimited. The fruits of their efforts are beyond calculation. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Los Angeles World Affairs Council, 12 June 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 517-518).
We now have altogether some 5,300 retired men and women serving in a meaningful missionary capacity for this Church throughout the world. The number is growing. They go where they are called. They serve where they are needed. Friendships are established; skills are shared; opportunities are opened for those who will never forget the men and women who have come among them in a spirit of entire unselfishness to teach and do good. They receive no money. They go at their own expense. The measure of their devotion is unlimited. The fruits of their efforts are beyond calculation. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Los Angeles World Affairs Council, 12 June 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 517-518).
Along with the need for young elders and sisters, there is a growing need for couples in the mission field. Older married couples are doing a wonderful work in the missions. Many more are needed. Particularly we need those with foreign language abilities. They can serve in many responsibilities under the direction of sensitive and considerate mission Presidents.
With an increasing number of people retiring while they are still possessed of health and vitality, there are many who can fill a tremendous need in the work of the Lord. However, we know that every couple is not in a position to go. Three qualifications should be observed.
(1) Candidates should have the means to sustain themselves. If their resources are limited, perhaps their children can assist. This happens in many cases, and both the parents and the children are blessed by the sacrifice made.
(2) They should not leave behind dependent children. Some of these children are at the most critical time of their lives when they need parents nearby.
(3) They should be in reasonably good health. Missionary work at best is rigorous and demanding. It requires strength and vitality. Of course, older couples are not expected to do everything young missionaries do. Some couple missionaries will proselyte, but many will not. Wise and inspired mission Presidents will have their best interests at heart.
All of us who have met couple missionaries in various parts of the world have listened to their enthusiastic reports and their expressions of gratitude for the privilege of serving. I talked recently with a couple who were leaving for their third mission. They said they felt younger than when they left for their first. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "There Must be Messengers," Ensign, [October 1987]: 4).
We were in the city of Bacolod on the island of Negros Occidente, in the Republic of the Philippines. There, to my great surprise, I met a man I had not seen in years.
The weather was steamy hot, as it always is in Bacolod, the center of the once thriving Filipino sugar industry. My friend was in a short sleeved white shirt with dark trousers, his shoes shined. His beautiful wife, Marva, was beside him. I said, "Victor Jex, what are you doing here?"
He smiled and replied, "We're doing the Lord's work. We're helping the people. We're missionaries."
"Where do you live?"
"In a little house in Iloilo on the island of Panay. We came over on the ferry for the conference."
I thought of when I had last seen them. It was a few years ago. They then lived in a beautiful home in Scarsdale, New York. He was a widely recognized and honored chemist, with a doctorate in chemical engineering. He worked for one of the big multinational companies headquartered in New York. He was credited with putting together the chemical ingredients of a product now sold around the world, the name of which is known to millions of people and the profit from which has run into many millions of dollars for his company.
He was well paid and highly respected. He was also the president of the Yorktown stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He had under his direction corps of church workers who served faithfully in their local wards, many of whom commuted each day to and from New York City, where they held high and responsible positions in some of the great corporations of America. He was their church leader.
Now he was retired. He and his wife had sold their beautiful home, had given their children what furniture they wanted, and donated the rest to others. They had disposed of their cars and everything except their clothing, their family photographs, and their family history records. They had made themselves available to the Lord and his Church to go wherever they might be sent at their own expense. They were now in the Philippines Bacolod Mission, working among the wonderful, friendly, brown-skinned people of the area. Unemployment is high in this region, and there is much of misery. But wherever Elder and Sister Jex go, they touch for good the lives of those among whom they serve.
They are there to heal the suffering people, to teach the gospel of Christ, to give encouragement and strength and hope and faith. They are there to heal wounds of misunderstanding and contention. They are there to bless the sick and to help those with diseased bodies and frustrated minds. Their smile is infectious, their laugh a joy to hear. They are living humbly among the poor, down at the level of the people, but standing straight and tall to lift with strong hands.
This former New York executive and his charming companion are in the service of the Savior, giving their full time, their resources, and their love to bless with healing the lives of many who are discouraged and need help. Here is a retire New Yorker, a man of great learning and recognized capacity, living in a home with few conveniences, a simple little place that would fit in the living room of his former house.
He and his wife are there, with others of their kind. They are two a band of remarkable and dedicated older missionary couples who minister to the wants of people with numerous problems. They receive no financial compensation. They pay their own way. This world's goods mean little to them. As I said, they sold all they had when they left to come to the Philippines. They will stay for as long as they are assigned by the Church to do so. Then they want to go on another mission. They are healers among the people, serving the cause of the Master Healer. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR O'88, “The Healing Power of Christ,” Ensign, [November 1988]: 52).
Mission Presidents
[A] factor that substantially blesses missionaries so that they may be productive in their sacred service is the caliber of men we have presiding over the missions. Those who serve in these capacities are not novices; they and their wives are mature brothers and sisters of broad experience. They stand as leaders and advisers, teaching the young missionaries and counseling older couples who come to them, protecting them from pitfalls into which they might stumble. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "We Have A Work To Do," Ensign, (January 1988): 5).
I hope, my brothers and sisters, that you can infuse your missionaries with the spirit of capturing every great opportunity that comes their way. … They will have disappointments; you’ll have disappointments. Discouragement can become contagious. You must rise above it and lift those about you. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “First Presidency Trains Mission Presidents,” Ensign, [September 1999]: 76).
You are going to get discouraged in this service. I have no doubt of it. I hope you do. It will humble you down a bit. There will be no arrogance in the face of discouragement. But look ahead, my dear brethren and sisters, look ahead to the years down the line and see the flowering of your effort. Because as surely as the sun rises in the morning, this work will come into flower in the missions where you serve. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents’ Seminar, 23 June 2000).
In the early days of the Church, the brethren asked the Prophet what they could do which would be of the greatest worth. The Prophet through revelation gave the response of the Lord:
“And now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father” (D&C 15:6; see also D&C 16:6).
I like that language—that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to do missionary work. The thing of most worth is not the buildings we have. It is not this great building or the other buildings in this area. It is not the BYU campus. It is not the welfare program. It is not the educational program of the Church. It is not any of these things. The thing which is of most worth, as the Lord has repeatedly declared in revelation, is the teaching of the gospel of Christ to those who know not its saving message.
You are not going out into a sidebar activity. You are going out to do that which the Lord has said is the most important activity of all of the many activities of His work. God bless you. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents’ Seminar, 23 June 2000).
Each of you will have a wonderful experience and work very hard, perhaps harder than you have ever worked in your lives, but you will gain deeper satisfaction as you do so. Your burden will be lightened by the Spirit of the Lord. You will be motivated by that Spirit, and you will do things you thought you were never capable of accomplishing. I don’t hesitate to promise that if you observe them, you will be blessed in your work and in your ministry. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “New Mission Presidents Instructed,” Ensign, [September 1997]: 76).
A convert is a ‘precious person.’ He or she will make a tremendous decision in coming into the Church. Retention will primarily be the work of the local wards and branches. However, you have a very, very important part in this. Your missionaries must be sure that conversion is real, that it is life-changing, that it is something that is to last forever and go on through generations...There is no point in baptizing people if they do not become solid members of the Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents’ Seminar. Church News, 4 July 1998).
We send you with love and our prayers and our respect and our confidence, charging you to love your missionaries and work with them. Take care of them. Do not give up on them. Work with them. Love them into activity. Love them into righteousness. Love them into obedience. Be a father to them. Be as a mother to them. Be kind to them. They will never forget you. They will remember you all the days of their lives. They will name their children after you. They will send you wedding invitations, more than you want to receive. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents’ Seminar, 23 June 2000).
In recent months I have had the opportunity of speaking with sixty-three men and extending to them calls to serve as Presidents of missions. One cannot have such an experience without coming to recognize the depth of faith found in the hearts of this people. Husbands and wives and children, at the call of the Church, are willing to leave the comforts of their homes, the association of their friends and loved ones, and their employment to go out to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Brethren, the work of the Lord is advancing as much as at any time in its history and every more rapidly. As individuals we may fail in our part in it, but if we do so God will raise up others to take our places, for he will not permit this work to fail. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR A'84, Ensign, [May 1984]: 48).
Retention will primarily be the work of the local wards and branches. However, you have a very, very important part in this. Your missionaries must be sure that conversion is real, that it is life-changing, that it is something that is to last forever and go on through generations. Nobody gains when there is baptism without retention. The missionary loses, and while the Church gains statistically, the membership suffers, really, and the enthusiasm of the convert turns to ashes. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “New Mission Presidents Trained,” Ensign, [September 1998]: 79–80).
When all the mechanics of missionary work have been discussed, mastered, and utilized, there is no message so important, none so new as the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ, our master and our King, whose holy name is the name of the Church we go out to represent. . . . the Lord will not let you down if you walk with faith and humility.
You will be trained in greater depth than any generation of mission presidents before you were ever trained. Your fears, your concerns, [your] sacrifices are not new. They have been felt by those who have similarly gone forth since the earliest days of the Church.
I hope that each of you presidents and leaders will carry in your hearts a flame of faith and knowledge from which the candles of those who serve under you will catch a light and become of the very essence of their testimonies of the work. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “New Mission Presidents Receive Instruction,” Ensign, [September 1992]: 74–75).
Now, you have met here today to be strengthened, to be uplifted, to be encouraged, to be helped, to make of yourselves a better missionary. I hope that every one of you, when you leave here today, will say to yourself, ”I am going to try a little harder. I am going to give a little more to it. I am not going to worry about sending those e-mails home every 36 hours. Once a week I will write to my folks, yes, but I am not going to worry about home.” You have a father and mother to look after home; you don’t need to. You are here to represent the Lord. “I am going to work a little harder and then try a little harder. Maybe I can’t memorize the lessons. Maybe I don’t have it in my head to memorize the lessons.” Well, do your best. It will be important that you do so, but do it in such a way that you can be flexible. If you feel inspired to give lesson number 3 or 4 or 5 or 6, don’t regret it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Philadelphia Pennsylvania Missionary Meeting, 25 October 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 370-371).
The Son of God came into this world not to condemn the world, but to save it.
God will not forsake us if we come unto Him in faith. He is not sending us out to fail, but to succeed. “Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God will take thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers.” (D&C 112:10.)
Of course there will be personal benefits. These will come in proportion to the degree of selflessness evidenced in service. Lose yourselves in the work, so that your lives might be filled with light.
You husbands and wives must become great exemplars before your missionaries in following this standard. It is a constant challenge to keep the eye of the missionary on the glory of Him whom he serves. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “News of the Church,” Ensign, [September 1990]: 74).
President Jay Quealy was seriously injured while he was presiding here. He went over to see what time the missionaries were getting up on the island and it was raining and he foolishly rode a scooter, which they were permitted to do in those days. He got on a road where there was some pea gravel and skidded right into a police van. Of all the vehicles to hit, he picked the worst one he could have done. It threw him right up over the hood and into the windshield. He broke both legs, an arm, and some ribs.
I came over here then to look after the mission for a time. He says (I do not say this) that when I administered to him I said that he would walk again on his natural legs and be unimpaired in his work. The doctors said he had gangrene in his legs and they would have to take them off. He said, “No, I won’t let you take them off. I was given a promise by a servant of the Lord that I would walk again with my natural legs.
Now, I do not remember that, but he did and spoke of it. The nurses, wonderful Chinese nurses, massaged his legs and the gangrene miraculously cleared and until the time of his death he walked on his natural legs. I have seen miracles here by the power of the priesthood and by the power of faith. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Hong Kong Missionary Meeting, 25 May 1996).
Prayer
Recognize that there is a power greater than ours, that no matter how good a man is, he is not good enough, that no matter how wise he is, he is not wise enough, that no matter how strong he is, he is not strong enough for all of the things which he will face in life, and that there is a source of power to which he can go with the assurance that he will be listened to and that there will be a response. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 4).
Every morning . . . missionaries should get on their knees and plead with the Lord to loosen their tongues and speak through them the blessings of those they will be teaching. If they will do this, a new light will come into their lives. There will be greater enthusiasm for the work. They will come to know that in a very real sense, they are servants of the Lord speaking in His behalf. They will find a different response from those they teach. As they do so by the Spirit, their investigators will respond under the influence of the same Spirit. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Missionary Service,” First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, 11 January 2003, p. 20).
The trouble with most of our prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up the telephone and ordering groceries—we place our order and hang up. We need to meditate, contemplate, think of what we are praying about and for and then speak to the Lord as one man speaketh to another. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1997, p. 20).
I always remember two young men who served in my mission. One was a superstar. He was educated. He was bright. He was quick. He was a little arrogant. We had another who was a sign painter. He came from a sign shop with very little education, but he knew his inadequacies and he relied on the Lord. When he prayed, you knew he was talking with the Lord. It wasn’t a rote thing, it was a conversation and that young man accomplished wonders while the other young man went through the motions. The power that was in the one and the absence of the power in the other was apparent. Call upon the Lord. He has extended the invitation, and He will answer. Gordon B. Hinckley, Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1997, p. 469).
Languages (The Gift of Tongues)
Study a foreign language if you have opportunity to do so. You may never be called to a land where that language is spoken, but the study will have given you a better understanding of your own tongue or of another tongue you may be asked to acquire. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1982, p. 63; Ensign, [May 1982]: 42).
I had an uncle come here, Alonzo A. Hinckley, way back in the early days. He later became a member of the Council of the Twelve. He spoke of the miracle, the great difficulty in learning this language and of his pleas with the Lord to help him, to loosen his tongue so that he could speak to the people words of testimony and truth. Suddenly, just out of the clear blue, he sat in a meeting and understood what was being said and then was called upon to speak and spoke with clarity to the people. A miracle. This is a land of miracles and as has been said, this is a work of miracles. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Netherlands Amsterdam Missionary Meeting, 13 June 1996).
I can walk down the street of Salt Lake City and meet people who speak a score or more of languages: Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Russian, Albanian, Czech, Slovak, Serbian, Japanese, Chinese—both Mandarin and Cantonese—Mongolian, Estonian, various dialects of the Philippines, and whatever else you wish to have. I think it is a tremendous phenomenon. All have learned these languages while serving as missionaries. And as they have learned the language of the land in which they have served, they have had companions in this service who are natives of those lands and who in turn have learned English from them. This cross-fertilization of languages and cultures is a tremendous thing. Misunderstanding grows out of ignorance and suspicion. As we learn to know those various cultures, we come to appreciate them. The cause of peace is strengthened in a very real sense by this tremendous program.
We now have 333 missions across the world. Each becomes a bridge to better understanding among people, to greater appreciation for other cultures. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Washington D.C. Address to the National Press Club, 8 March 2000 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 464).
I am at least superficially acquainted with some of the problems encountered by our missionaries incident to our carrying out the program of the Church where there are marked differences between our culture and the cultures of the people of those lands. But I feel these differences are of minor importance in comparison with the great burden of our responsibility to teach the gospel of the Master and that alone. . . .
The Spirit of the Lord will overcome the effect of any differences in culture or other situations between a missionary and those he teaches. The Lord himself made the process clear . . . .
Now even greater challenges lie ahead for the future. One cannot think of . . . China, . . . India, the vast populations of Russia and the Middle East without wondering how it can ever be accomplished. It will be accomplished, for the Lord has given us a mandate. If we put forth our efforts, he will open the way. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Things Are Getting Better,” BYU Devotional Speeches of the Year, 8 April 1976, pp. 87, 90-91).
Who are our neighbors? The people of the world are our neighbors. We no longer live in a little secluded area. We no longer consider ourselves isolated from the world. It is a marvelous thing that we do in sending out missionaries to the far ends of the earth, where they partake of the culture and the systems of the lands in which they live. It has such a tremendous and dramatic effect. They never get over their experiences. They want to be helpful, they want to be generous, and you are affording them an opportunity to be so. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Washington D.C. Address to the National Press Club, March 8, 2000 in quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004 Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 480).
To our young men I would like to say, prepare yourselves, not only financially as you have been urged to do, but also intellectually and morally and spiritually. Study languages. This gospel is not for the people of America only. This gospel is for the people of the earth, and we have incumbent upon us the obligation to learn to speak their tongues. If you be called to a foreign language mission, you will be better equipped if you have studied the language. If called to an English-speaking mission, you will understand your own language better." Gordon B. Hinckley, Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1997, p. 345).
Sacrifice
Yes, this work requires sacrifice, it requires effort, it requires courage to speak out and faith to try. This cause does not need critics; it does not need doubters. It needs men and women of solemn purpose. As Paul wrote to Timothy: “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
“Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord” (2 Timothy 1:7–8).
I wish that every member of this church would put those words where he might see them every morning as he begins his day. They would give us the courage to speak up, they would give us the faith to try, they would strengthen our conviction of the Lord Jesus Christ. I believe that more miracles would happen over the earth.
I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that this is their holy work, and I plead with you and with the God of heaven that we shall have the power and the faith and the devotion to roll it forward to its great destiny. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
You are making a sacrifice, but it is not a sacrifice because you will get more than you give up, you will gain more than you give, and it will prove to be an investment with tremendous returns. It will prove to be a blessing instead of a sacrifice. No one who ever served this work as a missionary, who gave his or her best efforts, need worry about making a sacrifice because there will come blessings into the life of that individual for as long as he or she lives. I have not the slightest doubt about that. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Hawaii Honolulu Missionary Meeting, 17 February 1996).
The young man who goes into the world preaching the gospel of peace loses himself and saves himself. Missionary work is one of the great miracles of our time. A transformation comes into the lives of boys. Under the leadership of good mission presidents, they subject themselves to the discipline of the mission field, and that in itself becomes a remarkable blessing. They establish habits of work. They discover the values of life that are most important. They develop in their hearts a fervent testimony that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ. They develop a new and wonderful sense of the meaning of the priesthood. The future of the Church will be so much the stronger by reason of the missionary service of our young men because of the tremendous strength with which they will return to carry out their activities in life, including service in the Church. A mission is not an expense. It is a great investment. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Regional Representatives Seminar, 5 April 1985; Ensign, [May 1985]: 96-97).
Trials
I talked last night with the father of a missionary. He said, “I’ve just been talking with my son in another land. He is beaten; he is destroyed. He is lonely; he is afraid. What can I do to help him?”
I said, “How long has he been there?”
He said, “Three months.”
I said, “I guess that’s the experience of almost every missionary who has been there three months. There is scarcely a young man or woman who is called to go into the world in a position of great responsibility to represent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who does not feel much of the time, I am sure, in the early months of his or her mission, the terrible loneliness of that responsibility. But he also comes to know, as he works in the service of the Lord, the sweet and marvelous companionship of the Holy Spirit which softens and takes from him that feeling of loneliness” (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Loneliness of Leadership,” BYU Speeches of the Year, 1969 Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 1970).
At his graduation ceremony Spencer [Kimball] was stunned to hear his father announce over the podium that instead of going to college, Spencer would be serving a mission. He hadn’t really given it much immediate thought, since most missionaries at that time were older men, but he embraced the formal call when it arrived from Salt Lake City. To finance his mission he sold his horse, and spent the summer working at a diary near Globe, Arizona. The eighteen-hour days were grueling, but at the end of the summer the cigar-smoking non-Mormon diary owner threw a party for Spencer and gave him a gold watch to take on his mission.
Spencer left for Missouri at nineteen, younger than most, at a time when missionaries still traveled “without purse or scrip.” After teaching in a schoolhouse one night, Spencer and his companion asked for a bed. In response, a family of eight led the two missionaries down a seemingly endless path through the dark woods to a one-room shack. The mother and five children climbed into the loft, and the father and his son shared a cot—giving Spencer and his companion the only bed in the house. They had given a widow’s mite, sacrificing all they had for the elders. (in A Prophet’s Voice: Inspiring Quotes from Spencer W. Kimball, compiled by Edward Kimball, American Fork, UT.: Covenant, 2007, pp. 4-5).
In June we dedicated a new temple in Atlanta, Georgia. This was the culmination of a dream that began a century and more ago when, in the days of the poverty of our people, missionaries were first sent to the southern states. A few accepted their testimony, but many more rose in bitterness against them. These early missionaries endured much persecution. Some were stripped and beaten; some were murdered by hateful enemies. But with faith they persevered. Eventually, thousands upon thousands joined the Church, and today the work is strong and growing in that beautiful part of the nation where we now have hundreds of faithful congregations of Latter-day Saints.
On the occasion of the Atlanta Temple dedication, the testimonies of the people—those spoken and those expressed in tears of gratitude—together with their songs of thanksgiving, all bore witness to the strength of their faith and their love for God. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR O'83, Ensign, [November 1983]: 51-52).
Preaching the Gospel
Missionary work is concerned with searching and winnowing and gleaning and teaching with love and kindness. Every missionary ought to come to realize that the world is full of beautiful, wonderful people.
Of course there are rascals. There are a lot of them around and they are meddlesome and nasty. But there are more of the good than the bad. Our mission is to find the good and make them better and teach the bad when we find them and make them good. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Mission Presidents’ Seminar: Apostles Counsel Embarking Leaders," Church News, [2 July 1994]: 5).
People ask me what my favorite scripture is. “I say, ‘Well, I have several of them.’ One of them is this: ‘Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers’ (D&C 112:10). There is no room for arrogance in our lives. There is no room for conceit in our lives. There is no room for egotism in our lives. We must be humble before the Lord. He has so declared, and if we will do it He will hear our prayers and answer them with a blessing upon our heads. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “President Hinckley Visits Canada and Texas,” Ensign, [November 1998]: 105–109).
We are deeply grateful for the opportunities of radio and television, and the generosity of the public press, all of which help to build a favorable atmosphere in which to teach the gospel. But I am confident that the time will never come when we shall not need vigorous men an women of faith to go into the world as missionaries for this cause. We have never found, and I think we shall never find, an adequate substitute for the situation in which two wholesome young men meet with a family, reason with them, teach them, testify to them, and pray with them. We shall always need missionaries. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, April 1959, pp. 119-120).
Will you please see that every convert who comes into the Church while you are here on this mission is so taught that he or she will grow in faith and that a year after baptism he or she will be ready to get a temple recommend, and as soon as the temple is completed will be eligible to go to the house of the Lord? (Gordon B. Hinckley, Bolivia Cochabamba Missionary Meeting, 10 November 1996).
There is reason to believe that as the years pass and as our use of modern media increases our missionaries will spend more of their time in answering the queries of truth-seekers who come to us, and less time in going door to door in search of them. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Future Missionary," Church News, [20 December 1947]: 11).
Preaching the First Principles
I am not surprised that comparatively few people join the Church from among the large number on whom the missionaries call. There’s no faith. On the other hand, I am amazed that so many do. It is a marvelous and wonderful thing that thousands are touched by the miracle of the Holy Spirit, that they believe and accept and become members. They are baptized. Their lives are forever touched for good. Miracles occur. A seed of faith comes into their hearts. It enlarges as they learn. And they accept principle upon principle, until they have every one of the marvelous blessings that come to those who walk with faith in this, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
It is faith that is the converter. It is faith that is the teacher. Thus it has been from the beginning.
…Faith? There can be no doubt about it. When doubts arose, when tragedies struck, the quiet voice of faith was heard in the stillness of the night as certain and reassuring as was the place of the polar star in the heavens above.
It was this mysterious and wonderful manifestation of faith that brought reassurance, that spoke with certainty, that came as a gift from God concerning this great latter-day work. Countless, literally countless, are the stories of its expression in the pioneer period of the Church. But it does not stop there.
As it was then, so it is today. This precious and marvelous gift of faith, this gift from God our Eternal Father, is still the strength of this work and the quiet vibrancy of its message. Faith underlies it all. Faith is the substance of it all. Whether it be going into the mission field, living the Word of Wisdom, paying one’s tithing, it is all the same. It is the faith within us that is evidenced in all we do.
Our critics cannot understand it. Because they do not understand, they attack. A quiet inquiry, an anxious desire to grasp the principle behind the result, could bring greater understanding and appreciation.
I was asked at a news conference on one occasion how we get men to leave their vocations, to leave home, and serve the Church.
I responded that we simply ask them, and we know what their answer will be.
What a marvelous and wonderful thing it is, this powerful conviction that says the Church is true. It is God’s holy work. He overrules in the things of His kingdom and in the lives of His sons and daughters. This is the reason for the growth of the Church. The strength of this cause and kingdom is not found in its temporal assets, impressive as they may be. It is found in the hearts of its people. That is why it is successful. That is why it is strong and growing. That is why it is able to accomplish the wonderful things that it does. It all comes of the gift of faith, bestowed by the Almighty upon His children who doubt not and fear not, but go forward.
I sat in a meeting in Aruba the other evening. I dare say that most of those who hear me do not know where Aruba is or that there is even such a place. It is an island off the coast of Venezuela. It is a protectorate of the Netherlands. It is an inconspicuous place in this vast world. There were about 180 in the meeting. On the front row were eight missionaries: six elders and two sisters. The congregation consisted of men and women, boys and girls of various racial strains. A little English was spoken, much of Spanish, and some expressions of other languages. As I looked into the faces of that congregation, I thought of the faith there represented. They love this Church. They appreciate all that it does. They stand and testify of the reality of God the Eternal Father and of His Resurrected Beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. They testify of the Prophet Joseph Smith and of the Book of Mormon. They serve where they are called to serve. They are men and women of faith who have embraced the true and living gospel of the Master, and in their midst are these eight missionaries. I am sure that it is a lonely place for them. But they are doing what they have been asked to do because of their faith. The two young women are beautiful and happy. As I looked at them, I said to myself, Eighteen months is a long time to be in this faraway place. But they do not complain. They speak of the great experience they are having and of the wonderful people they meet. Shining through all of their service is the reassuring faith that the work in which they are engaged is true and that the service they are giving is given unto God.
It is so with our missionaries wherever they might serve, whether it be right here in Salt Lake City or in Mongolia. They go and serve with faith in their hearts. It is a phenomenon of great power that quietly whispers, “This cause is true, and to you there is an obligation to serve it regardless of the cost.”
Again, people cannot understand it, these thousands of bright and able young men and women who forgo social life, leave school, and selflessly go wherever they are sent to teach the gospel. They go by the power of faith, and they teach by the power of faith, planting a seed of faith here and another there which grow and mature into converts of strength and capacity.
Faith is the basis of testimony. Faith underlies loyalty to the Church. Faith represents sacrifice, gladly given in moving forward the work of the Lord.
The Lord has commanded us to take upon ourselves “the shield of faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” (D&C 27:17). (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Miracle of Faith,” Liahona, [July 2001]: 82-84).
Every time you bring a convert into this Church you bless a life. Not one life, if he or she remains faithful, but many lives. For that which you do becomes the work of generations yet to come. All of us here are the fruits of missionary work—our fathers, our grandfathers, our great-grandfathers who accepted the testimony of missionaries and came into the Church. We are the beneficiaries. I never look at missionaries that I do not feel inclined to say, you never can foretell the consequences of what you do in this service. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Hong Kong Missionary Meeting, 25 May 1996).
Nobody gains when there is baptism without retention. The missionary loses, and while the Church gains statistically, the membership suffers, really, and the enthusiasm of the convert turns to ashes, (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, 4 July 1998).
Preaching by Service
I think there is no greater thing concerning future integrity that a missionary can learn than the value of personal virtue. I think there are fewer words greater than the promise given under the inspiration of the Lord as set forth by the Prophet Joseph Smith: “Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly.” That’s the commandment. And then the promise: “Thy confidence [shall] was strong in the presence of God” (D&C 121:45). That’s the promise to those who walk in virtue. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era [March 2007]: 4).
I’m going to read two or three statements from what I regard as the greatest missionary letters ever written. They were written by Paul to his young companion, Timothy. In 1 Timothy, the fourth chapter, the twelfth verse, Paul wrote: “Let no man despise they youth.” People look at you and say: “What are you doing as a minister of the gospel? What do you know about it, you young men and women?” That’s what they think. Here you are, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one. Not educated—they look upon you as being not educated—as youth. “Let no man despise they youth”—Timothy was a young man, like you—“but be thou an example of the believers in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” What he is saying is that if you reflect in your lives the elements of the gospel, people will look beyond your youth as in the faces of men and women who are believers in word, in their conversation, in their acts of love and charity, in spirit, their attitude, in faith, in purity.
Skipping to the fourteenth verse, “Neglect not the gift that is in thee which was given thee by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.” Timothy was called just way you were, by the spirit of prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Who are the presbytery? The elders of the Church who set you apart, in most cases your stake presidents. . . .
Skip down to verse sixteen, “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine, continue in them, for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee.” That’s what happens when you go out and teach others; you save them. You are an instrument in the hands of the Lord in saving them, but you also save yourselves. You come home a different young man from what you were when you came into the field. And, if you remember what you learned in the mission field, you will be faithful all of your life. Those are the words of Paul to Timothy and they are the words from me to you.
Let me add one or two other things. The fifth chapter, twenty-second verse reads: “Keep thyself pure.” Paul puts it just that plainly and just that simply. “Keep thyself pure.” Every one of you knows what that means. I remember thirty years ago being in Taiwan when a missionary destroyed himself because he became involved in immorality. He was excommunicated from the Church. I have been trying to find him ever since. I don’t know what happened to him. I guess he’s out of the Church. I guess his children are out of the Church. He’s old enough to have grandchildren; I suppose probably they are out of the Church because of the foolish thing which he did. “Keep thyself pure.” There is no substitute for purity. What was it that Sir Galahad said? “My strength is the strength of ten, because my heart is pure.” What was it the Lord said? “Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly.” That’s the commandment of the Lord through modern revelation. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Spain Madrid Missionary Meeting, 11 June 1996).
Do you want to be happy? Forget yourself and get lost in this great cause. Lend your efforts to helping people. . . . Stand higher, lift those with feeble knees, hold up the arms of those that hang down. Live the gospel of Jesus Christ. (Gordon B. Hinckley, The Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1997, p. 597).
Preaching by the Spirit
The availability of inspiration—each of us, if we live for it, if we cultivate it, can have it. I love these great words of revelation, these words of promise: “God shall give unto you knowledge by his Holy Spirit, yea, by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost” (D&C 121:26). What a precious gift to bring home—the assurance, the certainty that if we live for it, we have available to us that which comes by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era [March 2007]: 4).
Now, I have listened very intently to what has been said here, what Brother Condie said and what Brother Ballard has said. All he has been trying to tell you to do is to equip yourselves better to do the work which lies ahead of you, my brothers and sisters. He wants you to lift your heads out of the book—instead of just quoting from rote, to speak by the power and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and in so doing to speak into the hearts of the people. In this city of brotherly love, where people are so mean and unfriendly and have dogs that bark at you and all of those things, you just have to rely on the Spirit of the Lord, and you won’t have that Spirit unless you ask for it and work for it. I believe that with all my heart.
The Lord has said with reference to what Elder Ballard has just been saying:
“And ye shall go forth in the power of my Spirit.”
Do you have that? Are you going forward in the power of the Spirit of the Lord, or are you just getting up in the morning and going through the ritual of the thing?
“And ye shall go forth in the power of my Spirit, preaching my gospel, two by two, in my name.” (D&C 42:6).
Don’t you ever forget that your responsibility is to speak in the name of the Lord, my brethren and sisters. You are His representatives. The mantle of His power rests upon you. You young men, you young women, you carry something that is almost beyond you, and yet it isn’t beyond you because that power and authority has been bestowed upon you. Don’t you ever forget. And in your missionary service you are going forth in the name of the Lord, “lifting up your voices as with the sound of a trump, declaring my word like unto angels of God” (D&C 42:6). I don’t suppose you ever regard yourself as an angel, but that is what you are really, when all is said and done—like unto angels of God.
I was holding a meeting of this kind with President Henry D. Moyle in Chicago. We had two missionaries there and a great crowd of people in that hall, and went on all day. When we separated for a break, I went out and walked around in the lobby, and a fine stylish-looking woman said, “Who in the world is this group in there, all dressed in black suits?” And I said, “They are Mormon missionaries.” She said, “They look like angels dressed in black.” Well, that is what you are. You are angels dressed in black, speaking with the power of the Almighty.
“And you shall go forth baptizing with water, saying: Repent ye, repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. . . .
“And again I say unto you, that it shall not be given to any one to go forth to preach my gospel, or to build up my church, except he be ordained by some one who has authority” (D&C 42:7, 11).
You have been ordained, and you have authority to preach the gospel.
“And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the power of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach” (D&C 42:14).
Well, my brethren and sisters, my associates in this work, except ye have the Spirit ye shall not teach. We have some lessons, yes. We have gone to extremes in making them rigid. We have to free up a little. You have to recite less and testify more.
Now, you have to pray for this. I know that you pray; of course you pray. You pray every morning. And I hope you pray during the day. But when you pray, do you really ask the Lord, as His servants, to speak thorough you, to let His power rest upon you and let the Holy Ghost bear witness to the people as you testify to them? Do you really pray that way? Have you really learned to plead with the Lord as if your life depended upon it, my brethren and sisters—your life as a missionary of the gospel of Jesus Christ. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Missionary Meeting, 25 October 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 364-366).
Preaching with Love
I love the missionaries of this Church. I have been one and I have worked with them and I love them. And I mean that. To me it is an ever-refreshing miracle that a boy from a dusty little town like Parowan and a girl from a dusty little town like Vacaville could come out into the world and touch people’s hearts and change their lives. It is a miracle. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Washington D.C. North and South Missionary Meeting, 12 November 1995).
Love for the Lord, love for His servants the missionaries. Missionary work is a work of love and trust, and it has to be done on that basis. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Mission Presidents' Seminar, July 1995).
I love the English people. No one can sell the English short in my mind because I labored with them, I lived with them, I was in their homes at their firesides, I learned to know their hearts, and I learned to love them.
I have learned to love the people of Asia. I spent 11 years among them, and I love them. To me, I love them as much as I love anybody because of the experience I have had as a missionary, as it were, among them.
There’s something wrong if a missionary doesn’t come back with a great love for the people among he labored. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 3).
Preaching with the Book of Mormon
If I were a bishop or stake president today, what would I do? I think that I would try to put my major efforts on building the spirituality of the people. I would work as hard as I knew how to work in building their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, in God our Eternal Father, in the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Restoration of this work and what it means and what it is all about. I would encourage my people to read the scriptures, to read the Book of Mormon, to read the New Testament. I would urge them with all the capacity I have to read quietly and thoughtfully and introspectively, if you please. I would urge them to read the teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Eugene, Oregon, Regional Conference,14 September 1996).
As a missionary, I read each evening before going to bed a few chapters of the Book of Mormon, and there came into my heart a conviction which has never left: that this is the word of God, restored to the earth by the power of the Almighty, translated by the gift and power of God to the convincing of the Jew and the Gentile that Jesus is the Christ. I thank the Lord for the testimony which I have of the truth of the word of God as found in these sacred revealed books. And I hope that every missionary would leave his or her field of labor with a conviction in his or her heart that these things are true. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 2).
I remember hearing a story from a mission president of a missionary who had left a copy of the Book of Mormon with a family, and they put it on a bookshelf and never looked at it. It just sat there and sat there; finally they sold the home. They were cleaning out all of their books and there was the Book of Mormon. They said they were going to throw it out, but for some unknown reason, they just put it back on the shelf and left it there. The family that bought their home saw it and never looked at it.
Then the father in that family broke his leg in an industrial accident. He just had to sit there and lie there for two to three weeks because of the seriousness of this compound fracture. He said to the wife one day, “Get me that book of the bookshelf, that Book of Mormon. Let’s see what it is. We have never even looked at it.” So she brought it down, and he began to read it. It took hold of him. The Spirit touched his heart, and eventually he came into the Church. You can never tell the consequences, my brothers and sisters, of that which you do.
My son, who today is a mission president, told the story of tracting out a family in Germany many years ago. They would have nothing to do with it. He bore his testimony. About two or three years later, missionaries again knocked on that door, and because of the testimony of the earlier missionaries, they listened to the missionaries who came. Out of that family in Germany has come a bishop, a stake president, and others who are faithful and true and wonderful in this Church. You never can tell the consequences of that which you do, my brothers and sisters. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Boston Massachusetts Missionary Meeting, 22 March 2002 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley, Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, pp. 330-331).
Without reservation I promise you that if you will prayerfully read the Book of Mormon, regardless of how many times you previously have read it, there will come into our hearts an added measure of the Spirit of the Lord. There will come a strengthened resolution to walk in obedience to his commandments, and there will come a strong testimony of the living reality of the Son of God. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Power of the Book of Mormon,” Ensign, [June 1988]: 6).
Conversion
There is no miracle like the miracle of conversion. It is the great process by which those with responsive hearts listen to the teachings and testimonies of missionaries and change their lives, leaving the past behind them, and moving forward into a new life. There is no miracle quite like it in all the world. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2001, p. 30).
It is not an easy thing to become a member of this Church. In most cases it involves setting aside old habits, leaving old friends and associations, and stepping into a new society which is different and somewhat demanding. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, Apr. 1997, 66; Ensign,[ May 1997]: 47).
It is the miracle of conversion. It is the great process by which those with responsive hearts listen to the teachings and testimonies of missionaries and change their lives, leaving the past behind them, and moving forward into a new life. There is no miracle quite like it in all the world. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Arlington Hills Ward Sacrament Meeting, Salt Lake City, Utah, 9 June 1996).
Some individuals have been baptized only, they have not been fellowshipped, and in two or three months they say goodbye. It is important, my brethren and sisters, to see that they are converted, that they have in their hearts a conviction concerning this great work. It is not a matter of the head only. It is a matter of the heart and its being touched by the Holy Spirit until they know that this work is true, that Joseph Smith was verily a prophet of God, that God lives and that Jesus Christ lives and that they appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, that the Book of Mormon is true, that the priesthood is here with all of its gifts and blessings. I cannot emphasize this too strongly. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Columbia Bogota North, South, and Missionary Training Center Meeting, 8 November 1996).
Converts are not peas in a pod, they are not automobiles on a production line; they are men and women, sons and daughters of our Father in Heaven, into whose hearts have come the truths of the restored gospel of the Master. Nobody knows, nobody can predict the consequences of those . . . conversions. (Gordon B. Hinckley, BYU Student Body Address, 28 January 1959, p. 3).
We call upon every member of the Church to reach out to new converts, to put your arms around them and make them feel at home. Bless them with your friendship. Encourage them with your faith. See that there are no losses among them. Every man, woman, or child who is worthy of baptism is worthy of a secure and friendly situation in which to grow in the Church and its many activities. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, 5 April 2003).
want to say that when we started emphasizing in our missionary program the truth about God as a basic and fundamental and primary principle, and began to encourage those who were willing to listen to get on their knees and ask him. . .concerning the truth of that teaching, we began to get converts in such numbers as we had not had in many, many years. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Cornerstone,” Improvement Era, [June 1969]: 425).
If we would improve the world in which we live, we must first improve the lives of the people. Conversion is never a mass process. It is an individual thing. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Wonders of Jesus,” Improvement Era, [June 1969]: 74).
I vividly recall the great and moving experience it was to participate in [the dedication of the Guatemala City Temple].
In ten dedicatory sessions, thousands of wonderful people joined in presenting this sacred house to God our Eternal Father and His Beloved Son Jesus Christ. Those familiar with the people estimated that more than 75 percent of those who were there were descendants of Father Lehi.
What an inspiration it was to look into their faces—handsome men and women with lovely children. Yet behind their stoic expressions, I felt I could see, almost in vision, generations of their forebears—the glorious days of their strength and goodness when they knew and worshiped the Christ, and then the tragic, miserable years, reaching through many generations, when, having rejected Him, their blood ran from the wounds of conflict, and they lived in pain, filth, poverty, and oppression.
Hundreds of those who came to the dedicatory services lived in the mountains and jungles of Guatemala and other areas of Central America. They came because their lives have been touched by faithful missionaries who have walked from humble home to humble home and told these people of their forebears and read to them from their own forgotten testament of Christ. They have been touched by the power of the Holy Spirit. The scales of darkness have slowly but surely fallen from their eyes. . . It is a latter-day miracle, a wonderful thing to behold. How did it happen? How did it all come to be?
One need look no further than to the many missionaries who have labored in that part of the world, who in obedience to the Lord, accepted a call from His prophet to serve a mission. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Giving Ourselves to the Service of the Lord,” Ensign, [March 1987]: 2).
Converts are those who have been taught and have accepted the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. They are those into whose hearts has come a new faith and into whose minds has come a new understanding. They are those into whose lives has come a new desire to live up to higher standards of behavior. They are those who have come to know a new happiness and an enlarged circle of friends. They are those whose sights have been raised to a new understanding of the eternal purposes of God. Converts are tremendously important because they are men, women, and children who have repented of past ways and adopted new patterns of living.
There likely will be more than 200,000 converts in 1986. How much more wonderful if this gospel had touched the lives of an additional 50,000--or an additional 100,000. Yet I am one who believes that this is well within our reach. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 3-4).
Months passed. One day another missionary, finding the record of this visit, decided that he and his companion would try again. He was a tall elder from California who carried a big smile on his face.
They knocked on the door; the man answered. Could they come in for a few minutes? they asked. He consented.
The missionary said, in effect, “I wonder if you know how to pray.” The man answered that he knew the Lord’s Prayer. The missionary said, “That is good, but let me tell you how to give a personal prayer.” He went on to explain that we get on our knees in an attitude of humility before the God of heaven. The man did so. The missionary then went on to say, “We address God as our Father in Heaven. We then thank Him for His blessings. We express our innermost hopes and desires. We ask Him to bless those in need. We do it all in the name of His Beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, concluding with ‘amen.’”
It was a pleasant experience for the man. He had gleaned a little light and understanding, a touch of faith. He was ready to try another step.
Line upon line, the missionaries patiently taught him. He responded as his faith grew into a dim light of understanding. Friends from his branch gathered around to reassure him and answer his questions. The men played tennis with him, and he and his family were invited to their homes for dinner.
He was baptized, and that was a giant step of faith. The branch president asked him to be a Scoutmaster to four boys.
Think of the success of a boy from your ward who is called by the authority of the priesthood and leaves home with the prayers of his father, mother, brothers, and sisters and goes into the world. Soon he writes to his family that this is the first time "I've really come to know what it means to be alive with the Spirit of the Lord." That is success--the greatest success story in the world. I never get over the miracle of it. I thank the Lord for it." (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1985]: 98).
As a people we have problems, yes. We’re not doing all that we ought to be doing, that’s true. Yet I want to say to you that this is the greatest success story on the face of the earth—the story of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. There is no other story in all the world quite like it. You leaders gathered from more than ninety nations of the world, speaking numerous languages, all testify to the great power and strength of the work of God.
Last year, more than 192,000 convert baptisms were performed, the equivalent of sixty-four new stakes of Zion in one year. It is a success story. Think of the success of a boy from your ward who is called by the authority of the priesthood and leaves home with the prayers of his father, mother, brothers, and sisters and goes into the world. Soon he writes to his family that this is the first time ‘I’ve really come to know what it means to be alive with the Spirit of the Lord.’ That is success—the greatest success story in the world. I never get over the miracle of it. I thank the Lord for it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Stake Presidents’ Meeting, 5 April 1985).
I met a naval officer from a distant nation, a brilliant young man who had been brought to the United States for advanced training. Some of his associates in the United States Navy, whose behavior had attracted him, shared with him at his request their religious beliefs. He was not a Christian, but he was interested. They told him of the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, born in Bethlehem, who gave his life for all mankind. They told him of the appearance of God, The Eternal Father, and the resurrected Lord to the boy Joseph Smith. The spoke of modern prophets. They
taught him the gospel of the Master. The Spirit touched his heart, and he was baptized.
He was introduced to me just before he was to return to this native land. We spoke of these things, then I said: “Your people are not Christians. What will happen when you return home a Christian, and, more particularly, a Mormon Christian?”
His face clouded, and he replied, “My family will be disappointed. They may cast me out and regard me as dead. As for my future and my career, all opportunity may be foreclosed against me.”
I asked, “Are you willing to pay so great a price for the gospel?”
His dark eyes, moistened by tears, shone from his handsome brown face as he answered, “It’s true, isn’t it?”
Ashamed at having asked the question, I responded, “Yes, it’s true.”
To which he replied, “Then what else matters?”
These are questions I should like to leave with you. “It’s true, isn’t it? Then what else really matters?” (Gordon B. Hinckley, “’It’s True, Isn’t It?’” Ensign, [July 1993]: 2).
The Returned Missionary
Young men, be clean in dress and manner. I do not expect you to look like missionaries all of the time. But let me say that the clean and conservative dress and grooming of our missionaries has become as a badge of honor recognized wherever they go. The age in which we are living now has become an age of sloppy dress and sloppy manners. But I am not so concerned about what you wear as I am that it be clean. Whenever you administer to or pass the sacrament, look your very best. Be sure of your personal cleanliness. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Body Is Sacred,” New Era, [November 2006]: 2–5).
How tragic it is, how very, very tragic, when we see occasionally, once in a great while, a returned missionary who slips back into old and careless ways. That’s a tragedy that we ought to work with all our might to avoid. Think of the tragedy that comes when a man begins to get a little learning and knowledge, as he supposes, and in an act that leads to apostasy, kicks over the faith of his fathers. What a tragedy that is.
What a beautiful and magnificent thing it is to see humble and sweet and good people who keep the faith through thick and thin, through adversity and prosperity. Keep the faith. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Laie Hawaii Regional Conference, 23 January 2000 quoted in Discourses of President Gordon B. Hinckley: Volume 2: 2000-2004, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2005, pp. 274-275).
Furthermore, young men and women who serve missions are never the same. They return home with qualities and strengths that seem to come from no other experience. They know, as they never knew before, that this work is true and that it is the most important work on the face of the earth. They return home with a desire to continue to serve. They have established a foundation on which to grow in future responsibilities. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 4).
I know that our young men are under a great obligation to qualify themselves through education to fill positions of responsibility in the world. Their time is precious. But I do not hesitate to promise that the time spent in faithful and devoted service as a missionary, declaring the Master, will only add to their qualifications for positions of responsibility in the future. Regardless of the vocation they choose to pursue, they will be better qualified in their powers of expression, in their habits of industry, in the value they place on training, in the integrity of their lives, and in their recognition of a higher source of strength and power than that which lies within their native capacity. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “He Slumbers Not, nor Sleeps,” Ensign, [May 1983]: 8).
When you go home, you may wish to take some gifts. Everyone likes to shop. I don’t know why. Let me suggest ten gifts to take home with you on the day when you are released from this labor and go back to your loved ones.
1. A knowledge of and love of God our Eternal Father and His Son the Lord Jesus Christ. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou has sent” (John 17:3). Make that your number-one gift to carry home from the mission field.
2. A knowledge and love for the scriptures, the word of the Lord. You read them. Continue to read them when you get home. Read the Book of Mormon the rest of your life. You will be inspired. You will retain the memories of your mission. And you will prepare yourselves for any opportunities that might come your way.
3. An increased love for parents. You are no longer the careless young men and women you were. You have learned to appreciate and love your parents. Tell them so.
4. A love for the people among whom you labor.
5. An appreciation for hard work. Nothing happens unless we work. You never will plow a field by turning it over in your mind. You have to get out and take hold of the plow and go to work. Work is what makes things happen. You won’t accomplish anything by sitting in your apartments thinking of all the nice people to whom you would like to teach.
6. The assurance that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is available to each of us when we live for it. Listen for the whisperings of the Spirit and follow those whisperings.
7. An understanding of teamwork. You can’t do it alone. Every one of you has a companion. Don’t look for his faults; he has plenty of them. Look for his virtues and try to bring those virtues into your life.
8. The value of personal virtue. There is no room for evil thoughts in your lives while you are here. They will destroy you if you persist in them. Dismiss them. Stay away from them. Pray to the Lord for strength to rise above them.
9. The faith to act.
10. The humility of prayer. There is power greater than any of us that is available to us. The Lord will bless us. He will guide us. He will magnify us. He will lead us to those who will accept the truth. He will protect us if we will listen to the still small voice and follow it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Guatemala City Central, North, and South Missionary Meeting, 24 January 1997).
I recently met with a group of missionaries who were to be released the next day to return home. They were from various nations across the earth, from Mongolia to Madagascar. They were clean and bright and enthusiastic. They bespoke love for the Church, for their mission president, for their companions. What a marvelous thing is this unique and tremendous program of the Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The State of the Church,” Ensign, [November 2003]: 4).
Joy through Missionary Service
We are being recognized for the tremendous virtues of our programs and the vast good which they do.
A California newspaper recently commented: “The white shirts, backpacks and bicycles give them away, even before you spot the Book of Mormon.
“They’re stereotyped, for good reason.
“These armies of young men—missionaries in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—are strictly regimented while serving missions around the globe.
“For two years, they spend 60 hours a week doing ecclesiastical work, praying, studying, and telling others about the Gospel that drove them to leave families, friends and the comfort of home behind.
“Contact with their loved ones is limited to letters and two calls a year.
“They live frugally, in private homes and apartments with companion missionaries, rising at 6 a.m. to study and pray for guidance in the work they will do until long after the sun sets. …
“This life, they say, is a sacrifice—and the most ‘fun’ they can imagine” (Priscilla Nordyke Roden, “Answering the Call,” San Bernardino County Sun, 26 Aug. 2003, p. B1).
That might have been written of our missionaries in the more than 120 nations in which they are found serving.
What a miracle it is that we should have some 60,000 of them, most of them young, giving of their time and their testimonies to the world. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “The State of the Church,” Ensign, [November 2003]: 4).
Hundreds of those who came to the [Guatemala City Temple] dedicatory services lived in the mountains and jungles of Guatemala and other areas of Central America. They came because their lives have been touched by faithful missionaries who have walked from humble home to humble home and told these people of their forebears and read to them from their own forgotten testament of Christ. They have been touched by the power of the Holy Spirit. The scales of darkness have slowly but surely fallen from their eyes. Now, among their numbers are strong men who serve as stake and mission Presidents, as bishops of wards, and as patriarchs to their people. There are likewise among them strong and beautiful women who preside over Relief Societies. Young Women organizations, and Primaries and who teach with conviction in the organizations of the Church. In each of these people there beats a heart vibrant with love for the Lord and a testimony that is moving in its expression. It is a latter-day miracle, a wonderful thing to behold. How did it happen? How did it all come to be?
One need look no further than to the many missionaries who have labored in that part of the world, who in obedience to the Lord accepted a call from his prophet to serve a mission. It was said by Peter long ago that Jesus went about doing good. As his ambassadors, missionaries in our generation have gone and continue to go throughout the world doing good in the true spirit of the Master. Let me describe one of them. He is typical of so many others who desire with all their hearts to serve the Lord.
He came from California and grew up in an ordinary sort of way, not a member of the Church. He became acquainted with a girl who was a member of the Church. He was so impressed with her that, on learning she was a member of the Church, he wished to know more. He was embraced by LDS students at Berkeley who taught him the gospel while he was going forward with his arduous scholastic program. He was baptized. Then, working nights and summers, he saved money enough to sustain him, if he spent it with care, for a period of eighteen months as a missionary. He was called to Guatemala. He was a handsome young man with a brilliant mind and a wonderful education in a highly technical field. I met him in the Guatemala City Temple. He grasped my hand warmly. I asked, "Are you happy?"
"Oh yes, so very happy," he responded. I asked where he was laboring. He said, "Out among the Lamanites, the native people of Guatemala. It is a very small place where there is much hardship, poverty, and ignorance. The mud is deep, but the people are wonderful, and I love them."
As I thought of that tall and handsome young man, gifted and educated, working among the Indians of Guatemala in a jungle village, the words of Samuel the Lamanite have come to mind:
"Yea, I say unto you, that in the latter times the promises of the Lord have been extended to our brethren, the Lamanites; and notwithstanding the many afflictions which they shall have, and notwithstanding they shall be driven to and fro upon the face of the earth, and be hunted, and shall be smitten and scattered abroad, having no place for refuge, the Lord shall be merciful unto them.
"And this is according to the prophecy that they shall again be brought to the true knowledge, which is the knowledge of their Redeemer, and their great and true shepherd, and be numbered among his sheep." (Helaman 15:12-13).
This young missionary, with his associates, was bringing to those among whom he walked "the true knowledge, which is the knowledge of their Redeemer, and their great and true shepherd, "that they might be numbered among his sheep.
This particular young man received no letters from his parents, no money, no encouragement. He had sufficient funds of his own saving to carry him through eighteen months. Because his mission was ending when we were lengthening missions from eighteen months to twentyfour, he had the option of remaining the additional six months. He asked his mission president with emotion, "Is there some way I can get help to stay another six months to work among these people I have come to love so much?" The needed someone was found, and the missionary was able to serve a full twenty-four months.
There are others like him, thousands today working in many lands, who, in the spirit of the Lord, are going about doing great good. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Giving Ourselves to the Lord," Ensign, [March 1987]: 2, 4).
These missionaries are a miracle—these young men and young women. What happens to them when the gospel really comes into their lives, when they lose themselves in the service of others? Something begins to shine through that is bright and beautiful and wonderful and tremendous. Let’s give every boy the opportunity of a mission whom we possibly can, who is worthy to go and whose health is such that he can go. Let’s not make those who can’t go because of health reasons feel inferior, or that they have no place in this kingdom, but let us see, if we possibly can, that all those who are able to go have the great and marvelous opportunity. . . .
There is nothing that builds solid faith for the present and the future like serving a mission. How grateful I am for the mission which I was on more than sixty years ago. I think I was a fairly faithful young man in this Church, but going on a mission did something for me. I don’t know how to define it, but it did something that has value every day of my life. I would like to see every boy have the opportunity of a mission. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Brigham City, Utah Regional Conference Priesthood Session, 22 February 1997).
Is it not a miracle in itself that in this day of doubt and disbelief young men, thousands of them, with lives to live and careers to build, spend two years in the service of the Lord, laboring constantly and even willing to fast and pray in behalf of those to whom they seek to teach a better life? I know of no experience more refreshing than to be with them and feel of their spirit. If any of you who are listening this day should have two of them come to your door, I hope that you will welcome them and hear them. They will restore your faith in youth. They will quicken your faith in the Lord. They will lead you to a joy you have never previously known. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Conference Report, October 1969, pp. 114-115).
Missionary service not only yields converts to the restored gospel but it also brings blessings of inestimable worth into the lives of those who give such service. As the missionary teaches the doctrine of salvation to others, he blesses his own life. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1984]: 99).
To me, missionaries are a constantly renewing miracle. During the years of my ministry as a General Authority, I have had an opportunity to meet with them across the earth. They are much the same everywhere. For the most part they are young--handsome young men and beautiful young women. They are vital and alive and enthusiastic in their work. They are not easily daunted or discouraged, although they know discouragement from time to time and in a very real way. They are dedicated and committed to the work to which they have been called. They are led and directed and inspired by a great body of mission Presidents’ whom they come to love almost as they love their own fathers. They fortify one another and develop wonderful associations--friendships that continue throughout their lives. They have been called by the spirit of prophecy and revelation, and their devoted efforts bring a constant infusion of new blood and new life into the Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 4).
How profoundly grateful I am for the experience of that mission. I touched the lives of a few who have, over the years, expressed appreciation. That has been important. But I have never been greatly concerned over the number of baptisms that I had or that other missionaries had. My satisfaction has come from the assurance that I did what the Lord wanted me to do and that I was an instrument in His hands for the accomplishment of His purposes. In the course of that experience, there became riveted into my very being a conviction and knowledge that this is in very deed the true and living work of God, restored through a prophet for the blessing of all who will accept it and live its principles. (Gordon B. Hinckley, CR A'86, “The Question of a Mission,” Ensign, [May 1986]: 40).
“'Behold how great is your calling” (D&C 112:33). How great is your calling! You are not sent here to take pictures. You are not sent here to play. You are sent here to find and teach. That's our opportunity, our challenge, and our responsibility. You'll never rise higher in all your lives than you will do while you are in the mission field. That may sound like a strange thing. I said that once in Argentina many years ago, and about ten years later I received a letter from a young man who said, 'When I was on a mission in Argentina, you came there and you put a hex on me. I haven't been able to lift it. I have been no good ever since. I failed in school, I failed in my work, I failed in my marriage.' I didn't put a hex on him. I simply told him that he would never stand taller, never rise higher, than while in the service of the Lord, and his subsequent life demonstrated that. (Gordon B. Hinckley, The Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1997, p. 362).
It is so important, my brethren and sisters, to see that [newly baptized members] are converted, that they have in their hearts a conviction concerning this great work. It is not a matter of the head only. It is a matter of the heart and its being touched by the Holy Spirit until they know that this work is true, that Joseph Smith was verily a prophet of God, that God lives and that Jesus Christ lives and that They appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, that the Book of Mormon is true, that the priesthood is here with all of its gifts and blessings. I just cannot emphasize this too strongly. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Bogotá, Colombia, Missionary Meeting, 8 November 1996).
A testimony will grow stronger in the field, and I pray that you will never lose it, as long as you live, and that from this remarkable experience will come strength and faith and power for all the years that follow throughout your life. (Gordon B. Hinckley, New Mission Presidents' Seminar, Church News, [3 July 1999] ).
Missionary work is different in nature than any other position, and is a great privilege and blessing to be involved in, and a very small gift to give. Missionary work is the payment of a tithe of your life to the advancement of the work of God in all the world...Missionaries who are prayerful, obedient and who work hard will be given some measure of harvest, for which you will be grateful all the days of your life...You will never be able to judge the consequences of that which you do as a missionary...If you bring someone into the Church and that individual stays in the Church, the harvest will go on and on, growing and growing through the years and through generations of time...We place tremendous confidence in you. We count on you to do a superb job. No less than the best will do. You must do your very, very best. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, [July 1998] ).
I have attended hundreds of missionary meetings over the years. I love to hear missionaries speak of their love for the Lord, but I also love to hear them speak with great appreciation and love concerning their parents. Boys who have been careless and indifferent stand on their feet and with tears in their eyes thank the Lord for their fathers and their mothers. In these days, what a salutary and wonderful thing it is to hear a strong young man stand up and speak with great feeling concerning his father and his mother, saying things he would never have said before in all of his life. Every boy and girl ought to come home with an increase love for parents. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Gifts to Bring Home from the Mission Field,” New Era, [March 2007]: 2).
I believe in something else that is a barometer of their goodness. Paul warned that in the last days men would be unthankful, unholy, disobedient to parents, without natural affection (see 2 Timothy 3:1–3). One need not look far in the homes of our time to see that prophecy being fulfilled. And yet I have witnessed a repudiation of that insofar as many are concerned. In my visits with our young missionaries, I have heard hundreds of our young men and women stand on their feet and express their feelings. Almost without exception they speak words of appreciation, of thankfulness for their parents. What a remarkably refreshing thing it is to hear young men and women, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, and twenty-two years of age, stand before one another and, in the quiet confidences of such a meeting, say, “I really appreciate my dad.” “I love my mother.” They are not maudlin; they are manly, athletic, able young men and womanly girls of charm and education. Their words come from the heart. Those sentiments in this day are as a cool and refreshing breeze on a hot and humid night. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
I see that it did so much for me, far greater than the time spent. … I am here today because of that mission, and I plead with you now to make the most of your missions. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “First Presidency Trains Mission Presidents,” Ensign, [September 1999]: 76).
I believe in the triumph of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the triumph of the Church and kingdom of God on the earth. If ever your faith is inclined to weaken as you see the onward march of evil and oppression, read again the story of Daniel who, putting his trust in the “God in heaven that revealeth secrets,” interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. He said concerning our day that the God of heaven shall “set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these [other] kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever” (Dan. 2:44).
I believe that the cause we have the honor to represent is that kingdom which shall stand forever.
I am not engaging in unrealistic dreams when I think of its future, for every day I see the miracle of its strength and of its growing influence in the lives of millions across the earth. Yet it is not a great impersonal juggernaut of power. It finds its best expression in the quiet of the lives of those who have embraced it.
Yes, we have problems among us. We are far from perfection. And yet I have seen so much of good that my faith constantly strengthens. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
I throw out a challenge to every young man. . . . Prepare yourselves now to be worthy to serve the Lord as a full-time missionary. He has said, “If ye are prepared ye shall not fear” (D&C38:30). Prepare to consecrate two years of your lives to this sacred service. This will in effect constitute a tithe on the first twenty years of your lives. . . . I promise you that the time you spend in the mission field, if those years are spent in dedicated service, will yield a greater return on investment than any other two years of your lives. You will come to know what dedication and consecration mean. You will develop powers of persuasion which will bless your entire life. Your timidity, your fears, your shyness will gradually disappear as you go forth with boldness and conviction. You will learn to work with others, to develop a spirit of teamwork. The cankering evil of selfishness will be supplanted by a sense of service to others. You will draw nearer to the Lord than you likely will in any other set of circumstances. You will come to know that without His help you are indeed weak and simple, but that with His help you can accomplish miracles.
You will establish habits of industry. You will develop a talent for the establishment of goals of effort. You will learn to work with singleness of purpose. What a tremendous foundation all of this will become for you in your later educational efforts and your life’s work. Two years will not be time lost. It will be skills gained. . . .
And above and beyond all of this will come that sweet peace in your heart that you have served your Lord faithfully and well. Your service will become an expression of gratitude to your Heavenly Father.
You will come to know your Redeemer as your greatest friend in time or eternity. . .
If you serve a mission faithfully, and well, you will be a better husband, you will be a better father, you will be a better student, a better worker in your chosen vocation. Love is of the essence of this missionary work. Selflessness is of its very nature. Self-discipline is its requirement. Prayer opens its reservoir of power. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Of Missions, Temples, and Stewardship,” Ensign, [November 1995]: 51-52).
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