I hope they call me on a mission or how we send away our young adults to serve

When I student taught in second grade, my mentor teacher told me she thought every young adult should serve out of the country for a while to learn about other countries and how to be selfless. What a great idea. In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have a program for our 18 and 19 year-old young adults. It's called serving a mission. Not all serve out of the United States, but all have the opportunity to learn and grow and serve and teach others about Jesus Christ and our church. Here's some details.

Men can serve when they are 18. Women when they are 19. Men serve for two years, women for 18 months. Neither men or women have to go at 18 or 19. They can wait a while and go when they are ready.

Our missionaries pay to go on missions. The missionary can save up the money and/or the family pays. Right now the cost is $400/month. In the United States every missionary family contributes that same amount. That money is used all over the world to pay for missionary rent, food, and other necessities. The initial cost to acquire the clothing, necessary doctor visits and shots, and other necessities to begin a mission is about $1500-2000.

There are several steps before becoming a missionary. A young person must be worthy: have no moral or other transgressions that haven't been taken care of by visiting with a bishop and repenting; have a testimony of Jesus Christ, the restored gospel, and Joseph Smith; receive endowments in the temple; and complete the necessary paperwork. The missionary must be healthy, pass medical and dental exams, and participate in an interview with the bishop and stake president. Once those steps are finished, the paperwork is submitted and the missionary waits at least two weeks for the call. A committee meets in Salt Lake to determine the location each missionary will serve. This is done with faith, study, and inspiration. Then the family and prospective missionary wait for the call. And wait. In our area, the call usually comes on a Thursday. The letter arrives in a big white envelope and reads, "You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the [name of mission]. You should report to the [name of Missionary Training Center--depending on location] on [report date--this can be in one month, two, three, four...]. You will prepare to preach the gospel in the [Spanish] language (if applicable)..." Then the family rejoices and the mom cries.

Missionaries serve away from their families. They can e-mail once a week. They can call on Mother's Day and Christmas and now many can skype on those days. The family does not travel to visit the missionary or text the missionary. The family does write e-mails, send packages and letters, and pray a lot for the missionary. Some families "pick up" the missionary at the end of the mission.

So why do families send missionaries to serve and why does a missionary sacrifice to serve? First, because of our testimony of Jesus Christ and the restored gospel. Second, because it is a commandment for young men and a suggestion for young women. Third, because while serving, missionaries grown in countless ways. Their testimonies increase, they develop more self discipline, learn to live with and get along with many different companions, develop in responsibility, learn to love and serve the people in their mission, and learn to submit to the Savior in order to survive and thrive on their mission.

Look for missionaries in your area and when you see them, smile and wave. They'll share the gospel with you if you want, but even if you're not interested know that they are our sons, our daughters that we are sharing with the world.