Choose you this day to serve

Missions!!!!!

So today some people got their mission calls. It was fantastically awesome, especially because all of the girls are obviously more excited than the guys now for missions.  BTdubs, it was two girls who will now be serving in Minnesota and Japan. They are amazing.  

So aside from the dating economics that was thrown off by the announcement last conference, I've been thinking about some other things lately.  

The classic life dilemma of a sophomore female in Jerusalem is: do I go or not.  I try throwing myself into that vicarious situation to determine what I would do every time the conversation comes up.  My conclusion:

The mission isn't so much the cultural experiences like teaching penguins, but rather the 1) spiritual growth of others and 2) spiritual growth of the missionary. 

Hypothetically, is a mission beneficial at all if the missionary doesn't practice what he or she had preached after returning home? Not remaining faithful obviously spites the spiritual growth.  But not to define what a mission is with what a mission is not, I think the best definition of a mission is the "application of celestial law to life here and now, to consecrate [or] to set apart or dedicate [two years] as sacred, devoted to holy purposes. True success in this life comes in consecrating our lives—that is, our time and choices—to God’s purposes"  

Complete dedication is most easily accomplished by going on a mission, but I feel it can - and should - be done even after serving a mission.  So the real question isn't whether or not to go on a mission, but how to life a misionariesque life.   The basics start with a family.  I mean, the mission is a necessity for young men because they would be terrible fathers without it.  But I think it extends even beyond the home and church callings. Missionaries don't have families and don't have any other church callings, at least not usually.  So I think the answer to how to live like a missionary lies beyond the white picket fence lifestyle.  

The best example I have someone who has fulfilled this is my best friend.  He is awesome. And I just remembered that I forgot his birthday. Not a good thing.  Anyway, he is 81 now and we have an incredible story.  His name is Welsford Clark, aka Gus. And he taught at BYU.  He never served a mission as a young adult because of the Korean War, but as he taught at BYU, he would find people that needed help, and he would help them.  And then he went on missions after he retired.  Like 5.  On the first in the Philippines, he started helping those who didn't have the funds to get out on their missions.  It became a habit that stuck.  He wouldn't remember how many missionaries he has helped over the years, but he's remembered all of them by name. Believe me, I had to listen to every story.  Sometimes he tells me them twice and I complete the story for him, and he's like "YEAH! HOW DID YOU KNOW?!?!"  And then I tell him he already told me that one.  Its cute.  

And BTdubs, I became one of them :)  We met while I was in the MTC after some pretty neat spiritual experiences and we wrote each other my whole mission. Since he's so old I can see now how his misionariesque life has made him happy and God really joyful.  And I really want to be like him.  

So, for everyone worried about serving missions, I'd worry alot.  Not alot about when or where - although thats kinda important too - but about how to always live like a missionary.  Just like Welsford H.  Clark.