I'm an RM who served in the Australia Sydney south mission from 1995-1997 so to get straight to the point I will say this. DO NOT GO!!! You will lie to people. You will be held accountable for what you did in every minute and every hour of the day to your District leaders your zone leaders and at times even to the APs and the MP. When you get into leadership positions DL and ZL you will be under pressure to perform. I remember being a companion to a Zone leader and he used to hate going to what they called ZLC(zone leaders council) where they would be ripped for companionships that were not teaching enough discussions and baptising. I remember when that meeting was over and on our way home in the car he used to just sit there looking all quiet and sad.Before your mission you will think that all missionaries are angels haha yeah right, the mission field is almost like high school you have the cool Elders and sisters that break the rules and call each other apostates lol and you got the nerdy missionaries that everyone hates. You even have what I used to cal "the kiss butts" who kiss the presidents ass so they can become a ZL or DL and even an AP haha I could tell you more but three words for you young bucks, DO NOT GO!!!!!!

If you convert only one person you will be sick about it later.

If it turns out, years later, you learn that both you and the mish who baptized you have left the church, you can celebrate by drinking some good wine and telling funny stories about your sordid Mormon past.

Once I got up my courage and told him I had left the church, he lit up like the proverbial Christmas tree, and said he had, too, and he had been wanting to apologize to me for years because he had baptized me into the "cult" and was so sorry. I told him no harm done, it was where I needed to be at the time, and also about RfM, which he didn't know about.

His companion, on the other hand, remains material for an Ensign cover. Married to a charming lady who has a BYU degree in "Early Childhood Development," they have 6 kids, who are all bright and very likable. I've never had the nerve to tell him that I have left the church.

Wasted days and wasted nights...sleep will become your most cherished friend.

Save yourself

In the past, my husband always said that he regrets what he taught on his mission, but he didn't regret the experience because of how it changed him. It turned him from a shy boy, to someone more confident and willing to talk to people. Recently I asked him if he would have gained the same thing from a summer stint selling pest control/ security systems/ whatever with a good sales training program. Absolutely! Would have taken a lot less time and he would have been making money instead of spending it.

I agree with the OP.

I do understand why teenage boys, even non-believers, feel so pressured to go. Whatever decision you make, it'll be tough. If you don't go on a mission, your parents will be extremely disappointed, all your church leaders will make you feel guilty about your decision, you'll feel terrible, like you're worthless, and you let everybody down.

But people need to stand up for what they really believe in. For me, I temporarily cut myself off from my parents and all mormons for quite a while, which made it easier, as I didn't have to face all the guilt and disappointment.

But I would really advise anybody who's having doubts about whether to serve a mission, to not go. Wait a while, eventually you'll be 100% sure one way or the other whether you want to go.

If you don't want to go, the money you're saving up for a mission, use it to move out from your parents (and outside your ward boundaries), or go to college/university.

All that advice will most likely fall on deaf ears, as they say, if the young person (male or female) planning on going on a mission is dedicated and excited about going as a believer, as well as, family and friends supporting them. This is particularly true if they live in a strong Mormon community.

If they have any concerns and are wavering, not yet committed, it might be just what they need to hear to solidify a decision not to go.

Generally, those I know personally that are no longer believers, that served a mission, have no regrets. They made the best decision with the information they had at the time, in addition to retaining positive experiences that have enriched their life.
They look back with a positive approach. And one of gratitude.


If they are like me, preaching a religion is about accepting a metaphysical, visionary, supernatural claim by faith, typical of most of them. It's a true religion based on a God Myth like thousands known to mankind throughout their history. Dozens of them still alive and well after hundreds of years. There are universal truth within all of them, many are the same concept.
Religions today, can on many levels, be compared to the Greek and Roman myths of times past, for instance. Some are even very similar.

And so we find that each person views their mission differently.
My husband served in the 50s which was much different that today. He remained a believer to his death, with a powerful spiritual witness that never wavered.

SuzieQ: I agree with you. I served in the 70's in a foreign land with a culture completely different from my own. I will always be grateful for the non-church lessons I learned and the non-church experiences I had. The living conditions were tough which I think makes be a better American citizen today. The church was weak with the avg missionary maybe getting 1-2 baptisms for the 2 years. The MP was a GREAT guy. Never chastised us for no baptisms and not working hard enough. The rules weren't as cult like back then. The MP realized that we had it a lot tougher than most missionaries so he cut us a lot of slack on the rules. I understand trying to dissuade a kid from serving today. It's just that I can't use my experience as an example. I does break my heart when I see those kids out and about today. They don't know anything. A couple of them came up to me a few weeks ago. I told them I hadn't been to church in 14 years. They wanted to know if they could set up a time to meet. I told them if you hadn't been to the temple before 1990, I don't even want to talk to you. <crickets and deer in the headlight stares>



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2013 12:45PM by misterzelph.

misterzelph Wrote:
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> The crickets and deer in headlight stares sum up some of my experiences with those youngins!

Learning a new language has been a great benefit for some I know also, plus the appreciation of living in the USA!

I know many nonmos who speak languages they learned in school and through non-mission travel.

Mishies spend their time interrupting lives, spreading lies, and have to live under a microscope and in squalor to do it.

Anyone with doubts, "Don't go."

Instead, get a job, a girlfriend, and go to college or learn a trade.