Elder Kenneth Lee, Chua Choa Kang Ward
“Time transforms in regret or gratitude by the way we use it. Use time wisely!” was the counsel an Elder at the Missionary Training Centre (MTC) gave to 37 new missionaries at a testimony meeting. It has been a constant reminder to me of how sacred my calling was as a missionary on the Lord’s errand.
My decision to serve a mission began as a young child in Primary. I often pondered and remembered singing the words of the Primary song “I hope they call me on a mission”. The words go like this:
I hope they call me on a mission
When I have grown a foot or two.
I hope by then I will be ready
To teach and preach and work as missionaries do.
My desire to be a missionary deepened as I observed the examples of the full-time missionaries in my growing years. My brothers and I would always be excited about our future missions whenever we heard our father share stories of his own mission. My desire to serve a mission was galvanised when I came across Doctrine and Covenants 39:11.
“I have prepared thee for a greater work. Thou shalt preach the fulness of my gospel, which I have sent forth in these last days, the covenant which I have sent forth to recover my people, which are of the house of Israel.”
When I pondered on this scripture I could not bear to think that any one – a brother or sister – should miss the opportunity of learning the gospel and to return to live with God with their families. Although as a missionary I would be away from my family for two years, I knew that I was helping others to be with their families forever. I knew that the Lord wanted me to preach His gospel.
My preparation for my mission took on many forms. I felt that my spiritual growth in the gospel was one of the most important preparations. Seminary and Institute greatly shaped my spirituality. They helped me to develop the habits of daily personal and family prayer and scripture study. These habits helped me to draw closer to Heavenly Father. Although I had to make many sacrifices to attend those classes by waking up early in the morning, it was worth it. I know that Seminary and Institute are inspired church programs that have helped me gained a greater understanding of the scriptures, and was also what Heavenly Father expected of me.
As I drew nearer to my mission, I made Preach My Gospel an essential part of my gospel study. Preach My Gospel has enabled me to become an effective advocate and messenger of truth. As I applied the principles from Preach My Gospel, it deepened my conversion in Jesus Christ and equipped me with the necessary skills and knowledge to teach.
For most male Singaporeans, it is a blessing to perform National Service. The allowance I received has financially prepared me for my entire mission. The physical rigor helped me to meet the physical demands of my mission. For most of my mission, I had to either travel on foot or cycle. The rigid schedule in the military prepared me to follow my mission’s busy schedule.
I’m grateful for the many opportunities that I had to accompany the missionaries to find, teach and serve their investigators before my mission. These opportunities, be it from the Young Men Annual Mini Mission or occasional splits with the full-time missionaries have helped me to develop the ability to confidently talk with everyone during my mission.
Time has flown by so quickly and two years has gone by already. I’m grateful that in these two years God has shaped and refined me for the eternities. These two years have been the “best two years for the rest of my life.” It has taught me how to recognize the Spirit and strengthen my relationship with Heavenly Father. It has given me the opportunity to love, serve and teach people about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It has prepared me to be a father, a husband, a worthy priesthood holder and a member missionary.
At a Father’s day sacrament meeting on my mission, a father gave a profound advice to parents – “When we’re at home, be at home.” He helped me to understand the importance of not bringing work home so that he could spend quality AND quantity time with his children. As missionaries we were often invited to member’s home for meals. It gave me the opportunity to observe how parents raised their families. One of the fathers always complimented his wife’s cooking while another father shared family responsibility by doing the washing with his children after each meal. Another took the lead in Family Home Evening. I must mention the example of a wonderful and loving husband – my mission president, President Rasmussen. He would never fail to compliment his wife for her support whenever the missionaries were present and always opened the car door for Sister Rasmussen to alight or board their car. The wonderful examples of many husbands and fathers on my mission have taught me how I can be a good future husband and father.
I visited with many investigators, less-actives, part member families and widows throughout my mission. These visits taught me how to love people, understand their needs and serve them. Furthermore, serving alongside with members and church leaders have provided me with invaluable experiences to continue to help these people effectively. I have learned firsthand what James 1:15 taught, “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
In many ways, the church is organized very similarly to other organizations in the secular world. Throughout my mission, the opportunities to serve with different people from my missionary companion to my mission president and other church leaders have prepared me to work with people from different levels of any corporation in my future career.
Although I’ve completed my 2 years of missionary service, there is still work to be done. It has been a joy to love, serve and teach members, and those who are not yet members of the church. As long as we have desires to serve God and share the gospel, the Lord will open to us opportunities to share His gospel. I testify that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored in its fullness to bless families and that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. May we reach out to our brothers and sister who look to us from the outside for the truth. I bear witness that these things are true, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.