Well I can’t believe it finally happened. It’s been exactly a year since I came home from Minnesota! I swear, if life continues to move this quickly then I quit. I’m done. I’m going home!
Our Work and Our Glory
My last night in the MTC was spent amid the flames of the wrath and love of Jeffrey R. Holland. That was one of the most powerful nights of my life! I remember distinctly some counsel he gave that I can never forget.
“When your two years or eighteen months are up,” he said. “I don’t ever want any of you to say to yourselves: ‘Ok, now back to real life!’ In mortality, this period of your life spent in the service of the Lord is as close to real life as you’re ever going to get!”
This statement went through my heart like a javelin.
It brought to life what Moses 1:39 says so clearly, that it is the Lord’s work and glory “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” If that is the Lord’s work, and is to be our eternal destiny, then isn’t that what “real life” is? Truly, when laboring in the Lord’s service, we are laboring to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of everyone we come in contact with, and are thus closer to “real life” than we ever will be again on this fallen earth.
After a short year of being in this counterfeit life, I still miss the feeling of being in the Lord’s service. Yeah it was hard! I’m not going to lie to you - there were times when all I wanted to do was return home to bed. Yes, it was cold, it was harsh, it was sometimes hurtful and even lonely - but just like any returned missionary, I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world.
I remember meeting my family at the airport, and being consumed by their hugs and screeches (yes, screeches). I remember going with them to lunch, and getting humored looks as I offered to say a blessing over the JCW’s we had just ordered. I remember bearing my testimony in the Stake President’s office with my loving family, and being able to see just how real the Gospel is. Least fond of all these memories is when I took off my name tag for the last time.
“Dying” was a sober experience.
Because no matter how much you love your family and friends, no matter how much you’ve missed them, no matter how much you want to catch up and write new adventures with them, they were never there with you on your mission. They never knew you only as Elder Yorgason; they never stood at a doorstep and testified to a closing door; they never cried with you at your bedside as you sought the Lord’s pavilion.
The mission is a sacred experience. Truly, it’s many of our personal sacred grove! It’s between you and the Lord. As much as we try, we will never be able to communicate in simple words the “unspeakable joy” (Helaman 5:44) that comes when an investigator prays for the first time, receives an answer in the Book of Mormon, feels the power of coming to church, or weeps at the pronouncement: “receive the Holy Ghost”. We just can’t! Weekly emails simply aren’t enough! I’m sorry Church HQ, but they’re just not adequate.
Several weeks after I came home, I penned the following:
“I loved seeing all my friends and family the night I came home, but there was something off about it. For two years nobody had called me by my first name. I had been Elder Yorgason. But that night, there were these loving people, throwing “Taylor” out there like some kind of lot to be cast!
“As Taylor stood in the living room and hugged the long unseen guests who were arriving, Elder Yorgason quietly snuck, unobserved, to the opposite end of the room. There he leaned against the wall, and watched the celebrations and how-de-doing with an understanding but still lonely feeling, knowing that these people, though they loved Taylor, will never truly know Elder Yorgason or what he experienced.”
Take note, friends: the often posed question to a missionary: “How was your mission?” simply does not even begin to cut it.
Let me clarify: this is not to say that I did not intend to remain changed by my mission! But there was a distinct sadness as I realized that I was no longer a full-time missionary. I realized that I was done! I was home! My mission had taken an abrupt 90 degree turn, and I suddenly had to deal with this fake life around me.
And I still don’t know how to deal with this fake life around me, believe me. However, there are some key practices that definitely get you through it!
Tips For the Returning Missionary
One year ago today I passed beyond the veil and re-entered this fabrication we call life. I have not done as well as I could have! I’m not a perfect member missionary, or a perfect RM. But just as on my mission, I’ve done my best, and that’s all I can expect from myself.
Having reviewed the last 12 months since coming home, I’ve discovered a few eternal truths that RMs should follow. And do you want to know what I’ve discovered? It’s just like being a missionary.
1. Stay Organized
The first withdrawal I went through was not having a planner. I just could not help but feel all the time like there was something else I was meant to be doing at any given time! At the same time, I felt overwhelmed because of all the things I had to do to get settled into home life. So keeping track of all my obligations was huge for me, and a planner is very helpful for that.
2. Scripture Study
The first habit to decline when I got home was effective scripture study. I lasted about a week with an hour long study time, but shortly after that I began reading at night again. Reading scriptures at night is probably the worst thing a RM can do. We like to get our eight hours, so if it’s too late, study time gets reduced. Set time aside (at least 30 min) in the mornings to read, and stay consistent. I recently got back into this habit and it’s blessed my life immensely!
3. Consult With the Lord in Everything
This is more than praying a lot! I missed no opportunity in asking Heavenly Father what He wanted me to be doing, and I don’t regret it. Turns out He had a lot of opinions! He got me a job, a car, a laptop, and into college, among many other things, both luxury and necessity.
Okay, the job and the car came from my parents, but who was it that softened their hearts to help me out with those things? :) I directly attribute all of these blessings to the hand of the Lord. He takes good care of His returned missionaries! And these things all came about because I took literally everything to Him.
4. Good Media
I don’t care if we don’t have a Missionary Handbook anymore, RMs are still very sensitive to the Spirit, and there are certain types of media that definitely drive it away. Movies, tv, music - continue to participate in uplifting media! Continue to listen to mission music if you can! I still rock out to Battle of Jericho. As for video games, I would just avoid them altogether if you can…but that’s just me. :)
5. Get Into College Soon
It took me six months, which was way too long. Just trust me, you’ll want to get into school asap! Just do it.
6. Weekly Temple Attendance
7. Don’t Get Discouraged
Guess what. Just because you’re a returned missionary doesn’t mean that the adversary doesn’t have any influence over you. This frustrated me a great deal because I felt so looked to by others as an example, yet I was still struggling with being a mortal! Why? I thought I was an awesome RM!
Well it so happens that we all fall short. Shocker. Just continue to be patient with yourself and continue to apply the Doctrine of Christ just like you did on your mission! Missions don’t teach you how to be perfect - they teach you how to repent! Press forward.
8. Continue to Share Your Testimony
I don't pretend to be the guy who shares the gospel with all his nonmember friends, but I can think of way too many talks, books, and quotes that tell us to do this. Let's all get better at this ok? I'm trying to be better, and we all need to! If nothing else, find someone who you can talk to regularly about the gospel - it's ok if they're a member. Talking about the gospel is still the most refreshing topic I can talk about! Find someone to talk to, it'll do wonders.
9. REMEMBER.
It seems like the longer you’re home, the harder it becomes to remember. Even coming off the plane or walking into your house for the first time makes you feel almost as though it had never happened! It’s hard to reconcile the universe of the mission field with the universe of home.
This is why it’s so easy to slip back into old habits so quickly. We sometimes fault returned missionaries for becoming lazy or losing habits of diligent scripture study or the like, but the sad reality is that because you’re home, it sometimes feels as though the mission never even happened. The most important thing for RMs to do is to remember their mission as often as they can.
In Closing
And of course, don’t forget to have fun and be happy. To put it into the words of Gordon B. Hinckley, life is to be enjoyed - not just endured! Continue to love and serve others - especially family.
Okay! Fine, okay, okay, I’m done. I’ll stop patronizing you all. There's way too much to say about this. Let me just say this before I get off my soap box though: To sum all this up, just be a missionary, dangit! Because that’s what we’re going to be doing for eternity anyway! Might as well get some good practice in. Live like a missionary, brothers and sisters. In an ideal world, there would be no missionaries, because there would be no need! We would be doing all the work. So let’s do our best! Live like a missionary.
I know I'm getting wordy, but I want to take a paragraph to express to everyone in Minnesota my love for you, and how much I miss you! I think about you guys all the time and hope you're still going strong. :) The Gospel is real! Christ came to Atone for our sins, and to bring families together for eternity. It's our responsibility and privilege now to take advantage of those blessings and share them with others. I love Christ. I love my Father in Heaven, and I'm so grateful for all those amazing (and sometimes scary) experiences they allowed me to have on my mission! Again, I wouldn't trade it for the entire world. Not a chance.
The church is true, everyone. And let’s not forget - the book, as always, is so blue it's ridiculous! I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
The church is true, everyone. And let’s not forget - the book, as always, is so blue it's ridiculous! I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Thanks for reading! God be with you till we meet again.
Sincerely,
Taylor, a dead missionary
PS - Shout out to all my fellow RMs who died on this day - happy deathday! Love you all too. :)
PPS - Long live District 26-A!
PPS - Long live District 26-A!
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