Missionary Calendar

It's not about what you might be thinking.

Instead, it's about the reality of missionary life.

Let's talk about what REALLY goes on for faithfully serving Elders and Sisters who set aside a portion of their regular daily life to leave home and comforts of family, familiar surroundings and friends to travel at their own expense to teach the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Pictures on the calendar can include the excitement of receiving that special envelope from Box B in Salt Lake City. And the picture of the reaction to the calling should get a page as well.
Since mission life isn't restricted to just one moment a month, this calendar needs to be divided into days and sometimes, perhaps hours.

Morning means rising early and getting ready for the day by the usual ablutions and also through fervent scripture and lesson study and prayer. For those who are also learning a new language, the time in the morning must also include the study of that language and how to teach the principles of the gospel in that new tongue.

Photos of missionary breakfasts will be an interesting addition. Breakfast varies as widely as the Elders and Sisters themselves. Some eat lightly due to habit or circumstance and others eat as if they will never belly up to a table again in their natural lives.

Who does the cooking will also need a snapshot since my husband assures me that some missionaries never learned to even boil water and eating their food is a sheer act of faith that cannot be comprehended by those who haven't experienced the like.

For people who are not familiar with the mission bikes, they deserve a frame in and of themselves. Mission bikes are maligned, abused and used hard by young men and women who are not always good conservators of the property. Even the best of missionaries can have 'oops' moments on a bike leaving skinned paint, chipped chrome and the occassional broken bone.

If the Elders or Sisters are fortunate enough to have a car, the process of cleaning it for mission inspection is a whole chapter book of photos. Elders tend to be rougher on the cars than the Sisters (sorry boys, but facts is facts!) and their cars are a collection of junk for some companionships. They become the equivalent of rolling closet floors and underbed storage hidden by a bedspread pulled a bit to low.

What should really be the focus of the photographs though is the light that infuses the countenance of the missionaries who have caught the vision of the work they are performing. They are happy! They are smiling and above all, they are light in motion.

Mission calendars would do well to show the 'we have new clothes' right next to the 'what's left at the end of my mission clothes' photographs. Those who are dedicated to the job are not fashion plates by the time the honorable release comes. Their clothing reflects the work they have done for indeed it IS work.

Calendar photos would bear witness of the exhaustion at the end of a busy day and the frustration when a 'golden' slips away. They would show the humble, praying missionaries seeking and petitioning the Lord to show them a fresh approach to a hardened heart.

It would show the tears of joy when someone says 'yes' to baptism and the happiness that fills the lives of those who embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the change that comes to them when all of the burden of sin is literally washed away through the cleansing process of repentance and entering the waters of baptism by immersion.

And for those who have gained a testimony of the value and worth of a soul, the mission isn't about numbers but about hearts touched and seeds planted. There isn't a camera in the world which has the ability to capture that moment. But it would be good if there were.

The understanding that comes can be seen in the actions of the missionaries. They are dedicated and they are tired when they are anxiously engaged in the work of the Lord.

Maybe if we could make a calendar of missionaries that shows the blessing of service, we could help others to prepare to go forth and serve themselves.