To Our Missionary

Courage, my son, and don’t forget,
That God is with you in every step.
You talk for Him in a righteous cause,
Such as teaching His sacred and holy laws.
The message you carry of faith and prayer;
Of a God who dwells in the heavens above
And rules the world with the spirit of love.
Forget all worries and earthly care,
And put your soul in the message you bear.

-Unknown

A WAITING GIRLS PRAYER

Heavenly Father, oh, up above,
Please protect the boy I love.
No matter when or where he's found,
Keep him always safe and sound.
Help him to know and help him to see
That I love him and he loves me.
Then, Dear Lord, help me to be
The kind of girl he wants me to be.
I once had a heart that was young and gay,
But now it's blue since he's away.<>You picked him out from all the rest,
And with your help he'll do his best.
So, take care of him and bring him home to me,
Dear Heavenly Father, I pray to thee.

Author Unknown

REFLECTIONS

As I sit looking through the window
A tear still in my eye
I see my family and friends I love
As we say our last good-byes.
The ride is long and tiring
As two questions plague my mind-
“Do I want the life that lies ahead,
Or the one I left behind”?
Two years is much too long
For going door to door.
In my reflections I thought to myself
There really must be more.
I climbed down from the plane
and stared longingly at the beach.
When a man turned me the other way
And said, “Elder, go find and teach”.
I sit reflecting once again,
As this day is my last.
I say “Lord, this isn’t fair,
Two years go much too fast”.
As I sit looking through my window
A tear still in my eye.
I see the Elders and the friends I love
As we say our last good-byes.
The ride is long and tiring
As two questions plague my mind
“Do I want the life that lies ahead,
Or the one I left behind”?

Author Unknown

THE REASON WHY

When I had tried and failed in every way
To find a soul to teach someday
And after a long week I had toiled,
To find my work had all be foiled.
At last I finally knelt in prayer
And said, “O Lord it isn’t fair
That I should work so hard for you
And yet all my people all fall through.
I’ve come out here for twenty-four months
And endured hardships and overcome slumps.
I have preached the gospel with all my might
From early morning till late at night.
All the rules I have applied,
Yet everything has failed that I have tried.
Lord you know that I am working hard,
Isn’t it about time I got my reward?
Please tell me what I should do
That I might be able to satisfy you.”

The answer came to me
And set my mind and conscience free.
He said, “My son, it’s the same old story.
Your eyes are not single to my glory.
The reason that you have tried in vain
Is because you’re trying to build your fame.
The reason that I have let you fail
Is because you let your pride prevail.
I’ve let you wander in the dark and fumble
Because I’m trying to make you humble.
And the reason that your people fell through
Is because your work is not true.
My son I’m afraid you’re just a fake,
You think of numbers ten by ten
To raise your stature in the eyes of men.
You’re thinking only of your success
And that type of person I will not bless.
Here is the thing you must realize,
Your actions and thoughts are before my eyes.
I’ll never give my blessing to you
Until your heart is pure and true.”

I knelt in prayer and said to him,
“O Lord, forgive me of this sin.
What a fool I have been to surmise
That my thoughts were hidden from your eyes.
You won’t let divine blessings impart
To satisfy the lust of my evil heart.
I’m thankful you revealed this unto me
My eyes were blind, but now I see.
Lord, I’m really a foolish man.
Without your help I can’t work this plan.
Remove from my heart that awful greed.
And help me to plant a fertile seed.
From this time on, let it be
That my labors are directed only to Thee.”

Author Unknown

YOU WILL NEVER KNOW

You will never know of the gladness you brought
To a heart overburdened with care,
Of the beautiful wonderful changes you wrought
In a life once so pitifully bare.

You will never know that you brought Christ so near.
Who had once seemed so far, far away,
That you gave Him to me as a big brother so dear
Whom I understand now when I pray.

And I’ll never know of others whose lives
You’ve brightened just as you have mine,
Of many a soul who now hopefully strives
With Jesus for a comrade divine.

But our heavenly Father who watches will know
And will nurture each seed that you’ve sown,
That when harvest time comes in the fields here below
He may gather sheaves for His own.

And when He has called you, your record to share
On that glorious beautiful day,
You’ll find souls that are faithful and hearts that are true
Because you have journeyed this way.

Author Unknown

YOU

YOU ARE THE ELDER (Sister) WHO HAS TO DECIDE
WHETHER YOU’LL DO IT OR TOSS IT ASIDE.
YOU ARE THE ELDER (Sister) WHO MAKES UP HIS (Her) MIND
WHETHER YOU’LL LEAD OR LINGER BEHIND.
WHETHER YOU’LL TRY FOR THE GOAL THAT’S AFAR
OR JUST BE CONTENT TO STAY WHERE YOU ARE.
YOU MUST FOCUS YOUR GOAL UNTIL YOU CAN SEE IT,
THEN WORK WITHOUT WAIVER UNTIL YOU ACHIEVE IT.

TO BE KNOWN AS A LEADER OR KNOWN AS A SHIRK
WILL ALL BE DEPENDENT UPON YOUR DESIRE TO WORK.
TO GLEAN OR TO HARVEST, IT’S ALL UP TO YOU,
FIRST DEVELOP YOUR FAITH, THEN ALL THINGS YOU CAN DO.
NOW YOU MUST DECIDE IN THE FACE OF THE TEST,
WHETHER YOU’LL SHIRK OR GIVE IT YOUR BEST.

NOBODY HERE WILL COMPEL YOU TO RISE,
NO ONE WILL FORCE YOU TO OPEN YOUR EYES;
NO ONE WILL ANSWER FOR YOU, YES OR NO.
LIFE IS A GAME BUT IT'S YOU WHO MUST SAY,
WHETHER AS SPECTATOR OR SPORTSMAN YOU’LL PLAY.
FATE MAY BETRAY YOU, BUT YOU SETTLE FIRST,
WHETHER YOU’LL LIVE AT YOUR BEST, OR LIVE AT YOUR WORST.

SO, WHATEVER IT IS YOU ARE WANTING TO BE,
REMIND YOURSELF OFTEN OF YOUR OWN FREE AGENCY,
SPIRITUAL OR SELFISH, OR PASSIVE OR STRONG,
CHOOSING THE RIGHT WAY OR CHOOSING THE WRONG,
CARELESS OF HONOR OR GUARDING YOUR PRIDE.
ALL THESE ARE QUESTIONS WHICH YOU MUST DECIDE.
THE SELECTION IS YOURS, YOU MAY CHOOSE YOUR OWN FIELD,
BUT THE THINGS MEN CALL CHARACTER…ARE YOURS TO BUILD.

(FROM THE POEM “YOU” BY EDGAR GUEST, REWORDED FOR MISSIONARIES BY DAVID MAXWELL).

The Lord, My Companion, and Me

The Lord, my companion, and me
Make a great combination, we three.
For where he would lead, we go willingly,
The Lord, my companion, and me.

The Lord, my companion, and me
Have a work that is endless you see.
For the good honest souls must be gathered, I’m told
By the Lord, my companion, and me.

Now the Lord, my companion and me
Must pull as a team constantly;
If we would have power, we’ll remember each hour -
It’s the Lord first, my companion, then me.

-Lelia Anderson (Convert, Knoxville, Tennessee)

Missionaries Forecast

Well Elder, here’s the truth in a stanza or two
What a mission will most likely do for you.
You’ll leave old friends and a sweetheart or so,
To find a new life and a lot you don’t know.
The last goodbye kiss as you get on the plane,
Is the stop sign for girls till you get home again.
You arrive at your field to meet only new faces and
Mix yourself in the strangest places.
You cancel the rough stuff and can all the fun.
You get down and dig for there is work to be done.
Each day you go out on a tracting campaign,
To scorch in the sun or get wet in the rain.
If you get up the courage to call at a place,
The door may be opened and slammed in you face.
When your temper is up and your courage is gone,
You want to go home, but you have to go on.
So you keep up the good work of saving more souls,
Till your feet are all blisters and your stockings all holes.
You hitchhike the highway for miles just to talk,
Your thumb may be handy, but mostly you walk,
When you get back home, starving, discouraged and blue,
There’s dinner to get and the dishes to do.
You open some cans and grab something to eat,
Then doll up again and preach on the street.
You anxiously speak to the tolerant few,
When you finally get back, there’s washing to do.
Dirty shoes to be shined, broken buttons to sew,
There’s socks to be darned and some pants with a hole.
And when you get through with this mending
You count up your money to see what you’re spending.
A daily report and a diary to write.
Then perhaps you may really turn in for the night.
In a jiffy you’re dreaming of home and the farm
Of some sweetheart you left, then that dog-gone alarm,
Brings you back to the present and up with a jerk,
For a quick bath, shave, and another days work.
There is breakfast to get and the dishes to wash
A speech to prepare and the ironing by gosh.
You always go out in your Sunday best pressed
For there’s lovers to marry and babies to bless.
There are books to distribute and songs to be lead
There are sermons to preach and prayers to be said.
You are called without warning to any position.
From the Women’s Relief to the head of the Mission.
For two solid years you will publish salvation.
And broadcast the truth to a stiff-necked nation.
Of course, in the meantime before you get back,
Your girlfriend will be Mrs. Bill, Jim, or Jack.
And don’t be surprised if the same
Has Mrs. and mother attached to her name.
But what will you care about who married who
For after two years that means nothing to you.
But a load off your mind as by that time no doubt
There’s a girl in the mission you are crazy about.
And the rest of your life after your mission ends,
You will brag of these years to your family and friends.
You may fail or success, but whatever you do,
"The worth of your mission is all up to you."

-Unknown

TWO SHORT YEARS

Where you are now
Seems so far away. And the emptiness I feel
Grows more with each new day.
I often smile and reminisce
Through streaming salty tears,
Of all the times we laughes and cried;
And all those perfect years.
Sometimes it seems unbearable
And the pain just aches inside,
But tonight as I knelt on my knees,
I found someone in whom to confide.
God was listening closely
To my every pleading word.
I wept with Him and spoke to Him,
And knew that He had heard.
His comforting arms did not attempt
To take all the pain away.
But He patiently took my hand
And helped me through the day.
He knew that I would miss you,
But it was all part of His plan.
And even though right now it's hard,
He helped me understand
That we had the years before,
And we'll have those times again,
But for two short years, all He asks
Is that you'll go and teach His children.

-Shalynn Wilson

Courage, my son, and don’t forget,
That God is with you at every step
You take for Him in a righteous cause,
Such as teaching His sacred and Holy laws.
There are souls out there waiting to hear
The message you carry of faith and prayer;
Of a God who dwells in the heavens above,
And rules the worlds with the Spirit of Love.
Forget all worries and earthly care,
And put your soul in the message you bare.
Discouragement is always the devil’s tool,
But show him quickly that you are no fool.
Get down on your knees in humble prayer;
God’s encouraging Spirit will meet you there.
There are souls out there in the mist and fog
Who are waiting for you and your message from God;
For He has love for each child that he owns,
And He wants them back in His heavenly homes.
Be not discouraged, no matter how hard the way,
But deliver the message God wants you to say.

-Author Unknown