So far in our Senior Missionary Series, we’ve discussed the need for seniors to serve in the mission field and also the requirements you need to fulfill in order to serve. But there will be those who meet the requirements who choose not to serve, and there will be others who do not meet the requirements, but yet desire to serve so strongly that they will do whatever it takes to change their circumstances so they can go. What category do you fall in? Are you –
Ready, willing, and able?
Able, but not ready or willing?
Willing, but not ready or able?
Not ready, not willing, and not able?
The biggest determining factor in your decision to serve a senior mission will be the promptings of the Holy Ghost. Only the Spirit can tell you if you should serve.
I’ve mentioned that my mother is currently serving in England. She was widowed a year ago, and had always wanted to serve a mission but had pictured herself serving with her husband as a couple. Just a few short months after the passing of her husband, she was sitting in Sunday School and heard the teacher make a comment about the need for senior missionaries. The Spirit strongly manifested to her that she should go, and that very week, she was in to meet with her bishop. (She’s never been one to procrastinate.) Serving a mission was not on her radar at this point, but the Spirit told her to change her plans.
Prayerfully ask the Lord if He would like you to serve a mission. If the answer is “yes,” the barriers you face will be broken down for you. If health is a concern, He will either give you the strength to serve, or the Church will find you a special mission that won’t be too taxing for you. If you struggle financially, there will be donors who will step in and help pay your way. If the answer is “yes,” you need not worry about the things that might hold you back.
Sometimes, however, the answer is “no.” Perhaps you are needed more at home. Your family might be going through a rough patch and you will be called upon to help them out. Maybe your health isn’t good enough. Maybe it’s just not what you need to be doing at this time.
The most important thing to remember is this. When you become a missionary, you are agreeing to do the Lord’s work. He is the only one who can tell you where you are most needed. As you pray to know, carefully listen to the Spirit. Even if you don’t enter the mission field, there is plenty of missionary work for you to do in your own sphere of influence, with your own family, with your own friends. We are all missionaries, all the time, even if we don’t wear the black badge.
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