Elder Daryl H. Garn
Of the Seventy
How important it is for fathers and sons to work together on the basics in
preparing for a mission.
At
a recent stake conference, a returned missionary spoke on the subject of
preparing for missionary service. He used the analogy of a father saying to
his son, "I will be happy when you play in your first basketball game so you can
learn to dribble and shoot the basketball." He compared that example
to a father saying to his son, "I will be happy when you go on your mission
so you can learn to be a good person and teach the gospel." This analogy
had a significant impact on me as I reflected on my life.
When I was a young boy, my greatest desire was
to play basketball. Fortunately, I had a father who was anxious to see
that his son's desire was
met. Dad and I would practice the basics of passing and dribbling the basketball
hour after hour in our small kitchen. I would listen to college basketball
games on the radio and dream of playing college ball someday. Serving a
mission
was far from my mind at that time; consequently, I spent very little effort
in missionary preparation. In an attempt to ensure some balance in my life,
my dad—who had not held a Church calling in many years—accepted
the call to serve as my Scoutmaster. He operated by the book, and due to
his diligence,
some of my friends and I became Eagle Scouts. I realize now that Scouting
is great preparation for a mission.
My boyhood dream came true when I made the basketball
team at Utah State University. During my second year at Utah State, a returned
missionary befriended me. Because of his example I began looking at my
associates
at school, including those on the basketball team, and realized that the
people I most wanted to be like were those who had served missions. With
the kind
and loving mentoring of my good friend—and, I am sure, as a result of my
mother's prayers and good example—my desires changed. After my second
year at Utah State, I was called to serve in the Western Canadian Mission.
Three months into my mission, a new missionary from Idaho
was assigned to be my companion. We had been together only a few days when
I realized something very significant: my new companion knew the gospel, while
I only knew the discussions. How I wished that I had prepared to be a missionary
as hard as I had prepared to be a basketball player. My companion had prepared
for his mission throughout his life and was immediately a valuable member
of the team. How important it is for fathers and sons to work together on
the basics in preparing for a mission.
I believe it is appropriate to compare the game of basketball
to missionary work. The game of basketball includes not only the time you
compete with another team on the court but also the hours of proper training
and practice. The great work of saving souls is not limited to the two years
that you serve a mission but, rather, requires years of righteous living and
preparation in order to meet the standard for full-time missionary service.
On January 11, 2003, as part of the worldwide
leadership training broadcast, President Gordon B. Hinckley instructed
priesthood leaders regarding
missionary work. His remarks have caused each of us to reflect on our individual
responsibility to share the gospel. President Hinckley said, "The time
has come when we must raise the standards of those who are called to serve
as ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ to the world" ("Missionary
Service," First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan. 2003,
17).
There are two aspects of raising the standard
for missionary service that we would do well to consider. The first is
the early preparation
of young men and women. In their letter introducing some modifications to
the Young Men and Young Women programs, the First Presidency said, "As
youth work on these goals, they will develop skills and attributes that will
lead them to the temple and prepare them for a lifetime of service to their
families and the Lord" (First Presidency letter, 28 Sept. 2001). Listen
carefully to their words: "develop skills and attributes." As parents
and leaders of youth, we need to help our young people identify these skills
and attributes.
The second aspect revolves around personal worthiness,
which comes through keeping the commandments of God. Some young men have
had the
notion that they can break the commandments, confess to their bishops one
year before they plan to go on a mission, and then be worthy to serve.
The
repentance process is far more than planned confession followed by a waiting
period. We often hear this question of one who has transgressed: "How
long will I have to wait before I can go on my mission?" Keep in mind
that repentance is not simply a waiting game. The Savior said: "And ye
shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit.
And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will
I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost" (3
Nephi 9:20).
Now is the time to kindle that fire. President
Hinckley has said, "We simply cannot permit those who have not qualified themselves
as to worthiness to go into the world to speak the glad tidings of the gospel" (First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan.
2003, 17). We now understand from the First Presidency's statement on missionary
work that there
are transgressions that will disqualify young men and women from missionary
service (see "Statement on Missionary Work from the First Presidency
and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles," 11 Dec. 2002).
President James E. Faust said: "There need to be some
absolutes in life. There are some things that should not ever be done, some
lines that should never be crossed, vows that should never be broken, words
that should never be spoken, and thoughts that should never be entertained"
("Integrity,
the Mother of Many Virtues," Ensign, May 1982,
48).
The bar for missionary service has been raised. "Those
individuals not able to meet the physical, mental, and emotional demands of
full-time missionary work are honorably excused. . . . They may be called
to serve in other rewarding capacities" ("Statement on Missionary
Work from the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles," 11
Dec. 2002). We believe by following the guidelines outlined by the First
Presidency, there will be an increase in the number of full-time missionaries
who are worthy and prepared to serve.
In sports we often have great athletes whom we
admire, and we strive to develop skills to become like them. In our spiritual
lives we
also have great examples to follow, the greatest being our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ, who responded to Thomas's question, "How can we know the
way?" (John 14:5).
The scriptures record, "Jesus saith unto him, I am the
way" (John 14:6). In 2 Nephi we read: "Follow thou me. Wherefore,
my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep
the commandments of the Father?" (2
Nephi 31:10).
My young friends, there are many who are following "the
way" of the Savior, whom you can seek to follow as your example as you
prepare for missionary service. You will find them among your family, your
friends, and your Church leaders. Even today, I count as one of my greatest
blessings those dear friends who set the proper example by following the
Savior.
It is my prayer that you young men will be diligent
in your righteous desires, that you will be successful in all that you
do, and that
you will be, as Elder M. Russell Ballard has said, "the greatest generation
of missionaries in the history of the Church" ("The
Greatest Generation of Missionaries," Ensign, Nov. 2002, 47; Liahona, Nov.
2002, 47).
I testify, as President Hinckley recently said
of missionary service, that "there is no greater work. There is no more important work" (First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan. 2003, 21). In the
name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Previous
