Whatever You Are, Be Awesome.
Readers Beware: I am Mormon, and this is a Mormon-y post.
Proceed with caution.
"Whatever you are, be a good one." And if you don't like what you are, change your label.
One label I've been nostalgic over lately is the label of "missionary". I'm sure you've seen the missionaries around, usually in pairs, men in white shirts and ties, women in skirts, all wearing black name tags. If you're lucky they may have even knocked on your door during dinner or any other equally inconvenient time, possibly making you frantic as you came up with any excuse about why you are too busy. We all know how that goes. I've done my fair share of avoiding such well-intending door knockers.
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| I'm the one with the blue shirt and the gap in her teeth. The other one is Hanifah Namubiru. |
Being a missionary was fascinating and awesome. I met hundreds of different people, saw way too many unsolicited body parts and ate even more bizarre animal body parts. I got to serve in Botswana for my 18 months, something I feel very, very lucky about. People serve all over the world as missionaries; we have four in our small ward or congregation here in Washington.
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| Hmm... I am the one holding the chicken foot, only slightly nervous. Turns out they're delish. |
Anyway. I think I had a point I this post. Oh yes. So, I work with the youth at church. We are currently having an activity we call "mini-mission week". During this activity, each kid roughly follows the schedule of a full-time Mormon missionary. As one of their leaders, I am too. This means waking up at 6:30 or earlier to study scriptures, wearing missionary-standard clothes (dresses/skirts--blurg), generally just surrounding yourself with uplifting stuff. It also means a media fast. No email, no apps, none of that good stuff which so easily consumes my day. It's been awesome. Instead of entertaining myself I've been improving myself. Concept.
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| Adopting an old-school African pose next to nature. I'm the one in the black shirt with an overly-sweet smile. The other one is Candy Tladi, a rad local member. |
The second part of this missionary lifestyle is sharing "The Gospel" with others. I put it in quotation marks because it's a term that Mormons use often without really understanding the practical application. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a series of steps we take to align our lives with Christ's life.
Developing faith in Him, repenting (stopping the bad and starting the good), baptism by someone who has authority, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and continuing faithfully. Forever. And Ever. No big deal really.
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| Here, I am the dorky one. Oh, right. I'm the one on the left. Nam, again, and Ayanda Sidzatane. |
There is something in Christianity that we call the Atonement. It's the act that Christ performed that allows us to become at-one with God. His suffering in Gethsemane, His death on the cross and His resurrection comprise this. I've made a lot of mistakes in my life, some bigger than others, so I of course appreciate the value in being forgiven and appreciate the Atonement for that. But what I enjoy most about it is its enabling power.
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| View from Kgale Hill in Gaborone, Botswana |
The concept here is that while in the garden Gethsemane, Christ went through all of our specific trials and circumstances, and came out on top. He knows how we feel because He felt it. Because of this, we are able to rely on Him for strength. During my hardest times, both on mission and off, I have been able to emotionally rely on Him. When I felt weak and wanted to give up, I continued on because by turning to Christ, I could borrow His determination. The uses for this are endless. When I have fear, He has hope. When I have laziness, He has enthusiasm. Our flaws are made perfect when we team up with Christ. It's that easy.
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| I'll make this one easier for you. I'm the one with the braids in her hair. The other one is Suzane Odongo. |
Ok. I feel like I'm wandering again. Oh yes. Mini-mission week. Hmm... So the point is to follow the routine of a missionary and share about Jesus (see what I did up there? Yeah, I shared about Jesus. Go me). So all of this missionary activity has made me very nostalgic of my mission. I loved having a set schedule and a time reserved for me to study every day and exercise everyday, and rarely a crying child to distract me. Or whatever my excuses have been for the past four years since mission ended. I miss how bright and shiny I was! I miss that spirit!
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| Oddly enough, one of my many favorite parts of mission were the few road trips we took down to Joburg. Hmm. |
And then I see it. I do not need to be serving a mission to feel like I am. I can wake up early on my own, study the scriptures on my own and serve those around me all on my own. I can create my own structure. We don't need specific circumstances to become our ideal selves. We can do it ourselves. And when that fails, we can do it with Christ.
What a wonderful post. I was thinking about our mission and how Monday was the 4 year anniversary of our return. Its nice to know that its never really over. The Work of salvation continues and we're very much a part of it.
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