I love missionary work.  I served as a missionary in Argentina about 15 years ago (ack!) and I still think of my mission on most days.  It was such a wonderful time of personal development, growing in my testimony and my personal relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, and learning to love so many people.  Some of the missionaries I served with were the stalwart faithful kind that Elder Yamashita describes in this talk, and I still hold them in the highest respect. I saw how Heavenly Father can take young, inexperienced men and women and make them powerful tools in His work if they are faithful and obedient to the calling they have been given.

“Your attitudes and the love that you show toward others are very significant messages. Even though I didn’t immediately grasp all the doctrines that the missionaries taught me, I felt of their great love, and their many acts of kindness taught me important lessons. Your message is a message of love, a message of hope, and a message of faith. Your attitude and your actions invite the Spirit, and the Spirit enables us to understand the things that are important. What I want to convey to you is that through your love, you are imparting the love of God. You are a treasure of this Church. I am so very thankful to all of you for your sacrifice and your dedication.”

What points stood out to you as you studied this talk?  What did you learn about what we can do to prepare our children for missionary service?  Share your thoughts and insights in the comments below.

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