Many, especially those who are not of our faith often ask, why do we Mormons serve missions?  We do it for many reasons.  Yes, it is expected of us as our Prophet Thomas S. Monson states.

But we also go because we do believe we have something that can bless the lives of others, much like having all the riches we could possibly imagine and we want others to have the blessings of those riches as well.

My own parents were converts to the Church, a direct result of missionary work.  My father was serving in the military, in Viet Nam at the time missionaries first knocked on our family’s door.  My mother listened to the missionaries and accepted the Book of Mormon they offered because she felt sympathy for the missionaries.  Not knowing much about the Mormon church she thought they could not go home until they placed enough Books of Mormon.

Mom joined the Church and then my Dad as well, shortly after he got back from over seas. Though I was young, only 5 at the time, I distinctly remember those missionaries and will always be grateful they took two years out of their lives to bring the gospel into our lives.

Years later, I too served a mission in California.  My son Kyle is in the Missionary Training Center preparing to enter the Argentina Nuequén Mission and my Mom is now preparing to go to the Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa Mission in February.

I loved my mission and the opportunity I had to serve the Lord.  I am so grateful I had that opportunity when I was young.  The experiences I had have been a foundation in my life that have been there as I have gone through life’s struggles.  I am excited for my son to have such experiences himself and am excited to be able to share them here.