Whitney’s Story: Advice For Future Missionaries

Embark on an emotional expedition with Whitney from Your Mission Mentor as she recounts the trials and tribulations of her missionary service in Portland, Oregon. Her story isn't just one of faith and endurance; it's about harnessing the depths of personal despair to find a greater capacity for empathy and love. Through Whitney's eyes, we traverse the poignant landscape of loss and the art of turning grief into a tool for healing others, all while battling the inner demons of self-doubt with the shield of self-love and positive affirmations.

The reverberations of a mission don't cease at its conclusion; they ripple through the choices and paths we tread thereafter. I lay bare the profound shifts in my life's trajectory post-mission, weaving in how the transformative experiences on the field have sculpted both my career and personal evolution. Amidst tales of overcoming the sorrow of losing loved ones, we also draw parallels with the pivotal film "The Shack," threading the complex tapestry of loss, forgiveness, and the alchemy of our pain into purpose and compassion.

Before one embarks on such a life-altering sojourn, preparation is a keystone to the architecture of their mission experience. We delve into the spiritual fortitude gained from the scriptures, with the Book of Mormon lighting my way, and share insights for those standing on the precipice of their missionary calling. Whitney and Tresden chime in with pearls of wisdom, reminding us that love, trust in the divine, and finding joy in the journey are the hallmarks of not only a successful mission but a life well-lived. Join us as we reflect on these narratives, savoring the gratitude and discoveries that come when we walk in faith and service.

Follow Whitney on Instagram 
@your.mission.mentor

Don't forget to follow us for updates and more uplifting content
@remember.podcast



 The Inspiration by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/ 

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:23

Hey, what's going on everybody? Welcome back to the Remember podcast. I'm so happy to be here. I am your host, dallin Buechler, and we've got an amazing episode prepared for you. I'm joined with my amazing co-host. I say amazing, I do this every time Tresden but I've got Tresden here with me. He's amazing, everything's amazing, the world is amazing, and we have an amazing guest with us today. Her name is Whitney and she runs a page Hold on. It slipped my mind, but I can look it up in like five seconds your mission mentor, right? Yeah, she's giving me the nod, all right, so Whitney's amazing. We had a minute to sit and talk and she's a great person, so we're excited to hear your story. Take it away.

Speaker 2: 1:11

Awesome. Thank you so much for having me and letting me come on here. Just a little bit about myself. I'm from Lehigh Utah. I've grown up here for a little bit. I'm currently in school. I served my mission in Portland, oregon and my primary site was the Temple Visitor Center and I absolutely loved my mission and the journey leading up to it, and so that's kind of where I got my inspiration to start this page and just trying to help missionaries feel more comfortable and confident as they go in the mission field. It's been amazing. And just a little bit more about me.

Speaker 2: 1:45

I feel like growing up in the church and having the idea of going on a mission as a sister is always a little bit different. It's kind of more of a decision. Not the elders can't decide, but for sisters it's not as required, and so thinking about if that was for me was really like a big decision point. It was something that I wasn't always sure that I was going to do, especially with the age being 21 when sisters left, and leading up to that, when the when the mission age changed, it was a big deal for me. I was like I feel like I could actually go and something I want to go and I only wanted to go if God wanted me to go. I was not someone who was like I really want to share, because I am a more introverted, like quiet, type of person, not that I can't be outgoing, but I prefer to stay with my group of people where I'm more comfortable. And God really helped me see that every type of person is needed in the mission field and I had a lot of beautiful experiences leading up to knowing that I needed to go and that this was something that God wanted me to do. One experience in particular I received a blessing from my dad and it talked about who I was in the pre-, in the pre pre earth life, which I haven't really heard about, you know, just kind of briefly stating like I helped encourage and influence a lot of people and hearing that I felt like I needed to use those gifts and talents to go help in the work. And so I went forward with that and figuring out when to go is always tricky, like if I should go to college or if I should go right after high school. And again, that took a lot of prayer and just time with God, but he ultimately just showed me that I needed to go after high school. So the fall after high school I left on my mission and that was perfect timing for me.

Speaker 2: 3:49

My brother, actually, he died shortly before I left and it was something that was very unexpected for me. He passed away by suicide and so, not knowing that was going to happen, I had no way to really prepare myself. Not knowing that was going to happen, I had no way to really prepare myself and I remember my parents told me they actually told me the day of my farewell he had died the night before and so I had my farewell and then my mom sat us all down and let us know like my brother had passed away and I was speechless. I was kind of mad at him because I was like this is my day. As selfish as that sounds. I was like how could you do that to me? Like I'm about to serve the Lord, like how could you think that's okay, selfish take. But that was my reaction and I I just had to decide if that was still going to go on my mission and I again knelt in prayer and asked God like, should I wait, should I go? And ultimately I felt like I still wanted to go and still needed to go and I felt like he told me like I be with you, you're gonna be okay, and it was something that I was like okay, god, I'm gonna go, you better take care of me, you better catch me if I do this. And he did like there were a lot of experiences where I felt like my brother was serving with me on my mission. He I felt like I was never alone. I felt like I had guardian angels, like I don't know. Maybe most people feel that on their missions, but for me I really felt so close to heaven and like I was able to grieve with people who had lost someone. If I hadn't had that experience with my brother, I wouldn't have been able to help the people that I did. Like my first transfer, I met like three people who had someone pass away by suicide. Like I don't think that's just a coincidence, I think that was definitely divine, like God using my experiences to help others.

Speaker 2: 5:57

And on my mission, I also really struggled with like just feelings of self-worth and like feeling like I was enough to serve God, to serve in that capacity, and I honestly had a lot of self-hatred that I had to work through and it was really beautiful to see how God helped me nurture that and helped me develop greater self-love and understanding of who I am, and he helped me have better thoughts, better self-talk. Like I feel like we beat up on ourselves so much and, looking back, I was able to do hard things, like when I was like, oh, I can't talk to people on a mission, I can't teach good lessons, I can't be a good companion. Those are the thoughts that I had. I can't be a good companion, those are enough that they can't go out and help in the work because they're not a certain type of missionary. And so throughout my mission I really had to grow with that and I made a lot of good friends and I saw that I could do the things that I didn't think I could do.

Speaker 2: 7:23

I was able to be God's hands and that was just so beautiful and life-changing for me that I feel like not enough people talk about the goodness of a mission. Not enough people talk about the miracles and really the joy. Like I feel like it's so focused on how hard a mission is, but it's actually so much fun too, like I had so much fun with my district and with my companions and members, and so I guess my story is that, like you can overcome anything, you can do the impossible with God and you can become something you didn't think possible with God by your side, and so that's really what I try to live by now and I try to encourage people along the way. So that's kind of my story with missions. If you have any questions, let me know.

Speaker 3: 8:13

So, leading into that, what you're doing now and you know, being that mission mentor, what I mean you we mentioned this a little bit before we popped on the podcast and started talking but for the listeners out there, what kind of led you to that decision and the things that you know you're doing with that page now?

Speaker 2: 8:34

Yeah, so for the page, I reflecting on my mission and seeing how much it changed me and how much it helped me and the impact it made, I wanted to share about that. My younger sister started her own page about like mental health and like getting to share about that, and so it just made me stop and think like what could I share, what could I contribute, and that my mission is something I could talk about all day Like I loved it so much.

Speaker 3: 9:00

It was such a big impact that I just felt like this pull to share more about it and to help other people you know, I just had a question about um, about something, and then, as I like, hit that unmute button, it totally slipped my mind. Um, but it's funny. I was like I have like a little bit of a comment that I'll just kind of ramble on for a second while I try to remember that. Um, but it's funny because there's like a lot of individuals who can just talk about their mission forever. I totally could, because I can talk about anything forever. But it's very interesting just because of the experiences that we've had just with this podcast and some of the experiences that I've had, just being able to share testimonies with friends and people like in my life who are struggling.

Speaker 3: 9:42

I've, you know, there have been so many things that I've had, just being able to share testimonies with friends and people like in my life who are struggling. I've, you know, there have been so many things that I've noticed after my mission that have been just as impactful, that have been just as influential as being a missionary actually was, and I think it's really cool to like realize, because I think there's a lot of people that go on their mission and they're like oh cool, I was like super fun, like you said, it was like you know, it's that it's a lot of people talk about how hard it was. It's like oh, it's the hardest thing I ever did. But you know, it was like awesome and I grew so much and then they just kind of like stopped. They're like the next goal that they have is like okay, I gotta get married.

Speaker 3: 10:21

And then like cool, I've got the checklist done. And then it's like no, like there's so much awesome things that you can do and continue to be a missionary as you fulfill those covenants that you made at baptism. You know there's so many different missionary moments, even if you choose not to go on a mission, even if it's something that you don't feel like is for you, and so obviously I'm sure this page that you've started has brought a lot of miracles. But that ties into the question I just got it back what kind of miracles have you seen since your mission that you know either you can attribute directly to your mission experience, or something that is just, you know, completely different, that's just led you into having those experiences after your mission?

Speaker 2: 11:06

That's a good question. I have a lot of thoughts on that. I feel like miracles since my mission. There's been like I feel like I've just been so guided in my path, like the jobs that I've been able to have and the people I've been able to meet, and just like who I am I can attribute to, to my mission. Like the way that I carry myself is from my mission. Like the one thing you get to take home is who you became when you're out there, and so getting to have that now and getting to like continue to build on what I found in my mission is probably the greatest miracle. Like getting to overcome struggles and things like that.

Speaker 1: 11:48

I love that. I've got a lot of thoughts. I always do. Let's see where to start. First off, I think that's amazing. What you're doing is amazing, and I think I've kind of people saying, oh, my mission was great. And then I got on the mission field and, as it sucked, I was like this is terrible, man, why did nobody warn me how awful this is? But no, like disclaimer, like my mission was great, it was perfect for me. But, um, so I just thought that was funny.

Speaker 1: 12:34

And there's so many experiences, like just like what you were saying with your own life so many experiences that I've had since my mission that I would have never even been able to imagine if I never served, and so it was so important for me to serve. I'm grateful for it. But I love, I want to go back to before your mission. Um, can we talk a little bit about maybe not talking about your brother's suicide, but like the experience of it. So my, my father passed away when I was 14 years old, so I know a little bit of it. It was very sudden, he passed away in a semi-truck accident, big semi-truck crash, and you know, things like that really rock your world losing someone, losing a loved one, but and I can relate to you on this it felt like my dad. It feels like he's with me today, feels like he's with me right now.

Speaker 1: 13:37

But boy did I feel him. I felt his presence on my mission. He was an amazing mentor, amazing teacher. He was just an amazing guy. He could tell stories like you wouldn't believe and he would get so wrapped up into him. It was awesome. But he could tell stories like you wouldn't believe and he would get so wrapped up into him. It was awesome. But he could fix things.

Speaker 1: 13:56

And there were so many service projects that I had on my mission that, like I had no idea what to do. And then also the thought comes to mind I'm like, oh, okay, let's try this and I fixed it, I solved the problem, and like things like that. I know come from my father, who is in heaven. Yeah, that was hanging out with me and I wanted to really drive home the point that you made that God used your circumstances to help others. I love that. So anybody that's going through a hard time right now take a little bit of comfort in knowing that it's preparing you. But I want to really like I don't know what's the word I'm trying to say. God didn't cause it to happen, people's agency or bad things just happen. Yes.

Speaker 1: 15:03

But mostly, in most cases, people's agency just cause them to happen. Yes, commit suicide, and that was probably his choice. But God is amazing at using people's agency, or the bad things that come from it, for our good. He is perfect in this and I'm going to have to tell my buddy that I'm telling this story. But because he'll laugh my buddy his name's Diego, he's the best he told me about a movie called the shack and I he's like you should watch it, you should watch it. I was like no, like nah, like I'll put it off, put it off, and I kept putting it off, but I finally watched it the other day I think it was last week and the shack is about a man whose daughter is murdered and then, like a year later, you know, a little bit later, he gets a letter so his daughter was murdered in a shack. And then later he gets a sorry, a train just went by. He gets a letter in the mail saying hey, I, you at the shack. And he's like what is this? This is stupid, like somebody's playing a stupid joke, like he's super angry. But he goes. He goes to the shack on the specific day that it gives and the people that there's three people that's waiting for him. It's god, jesus christ and the holy. He meets the entire Godhead and he talks to them and he learns about them because this man was losing his faith and he's so consumed with anger for this man that killed his daughter, and I love, like God.

Speaker 1: 16:51

This is a long story for something really short, but God, as God is depicted in the movie, it's a woman and she explains to him that she doesn't cause those bad things to happen, but somebody chose to do that. That man chose to murder his daughter and maybe he didn't even choose to. It was, you know, his father, raised him in an abusive way and she showed him the murderer when he was a kid and he was, you know, his father was this awful person. And then she showed his father before that and he was an awful person and his father, like it, was just a family lineage of just pain and misery and putting that on others. And then she said I don't cause this, they cause this, but I turn it into something good. If we choose to forgive and move on and use it for our good, god will just work miracles through us.

Speaker 1: 17:54

And I think in referencing that or going back to. You know preparing to serve a mission if you have had something bad happen in your life, or you know you've sinned, or you know committed. Whatever you've done, whatever you know, that's between you and God. But get past that before you go out on your mission, because sins have a habit of coming up or coming to light when you're on your mission. And so figure that out now before you serve, so that you can bless so many more people while you're in your service.

Speaker 2: 18:31

Yeah, I agree, I feel like with all I love what you said. I feel like all of that was so like beautiful for missionaries and just in general, and I feel like losing someone, you're able to relate to people a lot easier, like you mentioned your dad, like that's different than a brother, but like the same grieving process and something like you can understand. And for missionaries, I do think especially it's important to understand that you don't have to have the ideal circumstances to serve. You don't have to. I've had a lot of people talk about I'm a convert. Should I serve? And I'm like you especially should serve, like we need converts because you understand what it's like to talk to people and to convert and to go through this process. And like I feel like with my brother and the whole grieving part of my mission, like I'm not going to lie Like there were days that were so hard, like days that I was like why am I here?

Speaker 2: 19:28

I am so grief ridden, like Like I can't do this anymore and I feel like God finds the little ways to take care of us and to bless us and I feel like sometimes we don't even feel the blessings. I'll share about my first day in the mission field. I was terrified. I was, like, you know, your first day a little missionary. It's really hard. It's a lot to like take on at first and I me and my companion we went over and we visited the Relief Society president and I ended up becoming pretty good friends with this sister, like she was just super sweet, always willing to help and like our kind of go-to member, and we kept in touch after I left the area.

Speaker 2: 20:10

So it was like the last transfer of my mission. She emailed me and she let me know she's like StumerDoc, I'm so happy Like I was able to meet you, you're such an amazing missionary. And she shared something that I didn't even know until, like when she emailed me. She talked about how the first day she met me she knew there was something different about me because she felt like there was another presence with me and that, like when she told me that, I cried. I was like that was my brother, like there's no way that was anyone else and I was so touched to like getting to see that and then getting to share that with others. And so I guess, to sum it up, like the hard things that you take into a mission might still be hard, but, like God is really, he's going to get you through it, he's going to bless you and he's going to allow you to learn from it. And I think that's the coolest part is getting to learn from our tragic experiences, but also having an eternal perspective, knowing that this isn't the end.

Speaker 1: 21:11

Yeah, I share a quick scripture. Yeah, well, it's kind of long so maybe not so quick, but it's uh, in doctrine and covenant, section 122, and this is what it says and this is talking about. Uh, this is god speaking to joseph smith as he's in um, what is it liberty? Jail, I think so. Was liberty, where he died. Yeah, okay, this is liberty. He didn't die here, but he's like in the basement. His life is miserable.

Speaker 1: 21:42

The church is kind of going through a lot of structure problems and you know, things are just really bad. And so this is god speaking to joseph smith, after he cried out asking where art thou? It says, and if thou shouldst be cast into the pit or into the hands of murderers and the sentence of death passed upon thee, if thou be cast into the deep, if the billowing surge conspire against thee, if fierce winds become thine enemy, if the heavens gather blackness and all the elements combine to hedge up thy way, and, above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wider after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give the experience and shall be for thy good. The son of man have descended below them all. Art thou greater than he gosh. I love that. I'll just continue, just because it's so great says therefore, hold on thy way and the priesthood shall remain with thee, for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known and thy years shall not. I love those verses because it's just like I know life sucks, it's miserable, it's painful. I suffered that. I, god, suffered so much pain and affliction. I know what you're going through and it's going to be okay. All of these things will give you experience. I'm not going to let it kill you and you can go forward and help and bless and do so many amazing things with your life. Your days are not numbered, or your days are numbered, but no years shall be taken. He's saying I know how long you're going to be here and you have so much more to do. You're fine, like the little pat on the head, like you're going to be okay.

Speaker 1: 24:06

And I think if I really understood the atonement when my father passed away, it probably would have helped me. But what's amazing about the gospel is not knowing what I know now when my dad passed away. That's what gave me the desire to learn. It's hard things when they're happening. If we choose to turn to God, he will show himself and he will just. You know, the wonders of the world will just come before us and we can learn all these amazing things about the gospel, about God, about who we are, and then carry that throughout the rest of our lives and continue to grow and to help others.

Speaker 1: 24:46

And we might be kind of stretching a little further away from the topic, but I think that's something that I really wanted to focus in on a little bit is from the topic, but I think that's something that I really wanted to focus in on a little bit is that God is good even though these bad things happen, and I've heard of so many people on their missions. There's a kid that I was serving with. He had a couple family members you know, immediate family members. I think it was like his sister and brother or something they passed away while he was serving. And for a lot of people it's like well, hang on, I'm out here doing this amazing thing like for God, like he should be blessing me, yet you know, there's more that's being taken away from me. All things will be for your good. And then later in that kid's mission he met somebody that he could touch in ways that no one else could because of that experience. So basically what we're saying to anybody that's getting ready to serve a mission like crap's going to happen.

Speaker 2: 25:50

We're sorry, but it's going to all work, work out and it will be amazing, yeah, and I feel like not everyone has like big life events that occur, but there are going to be, like unknowns, there are hard things on a mission and I think just having that foundation of like God has got me, no matter what and like everything will give me experience. And, like Nephi talks about being highly favored of the Lord, like how, like having these afflictions does not mean that you're anything less or that God is neglecting you. It's, and sometimes it's just the hand you're dealt. I don't believe that we're given trials. I think life just happens. I don't know, I have different thoughts on that, but I think his promise of like I will get you through anything, like we can do all things through Christ, is what I like to hold on to, and so like going into a mission is a big act of faith and I feel like focusing more on him and less on the worries and the stresses of life will get you that much further.

Speaker 3: 26:56

I think I love that scripture that you shared, dallian, and I love what you just shared Whitney, because like it ties the two ends together of what I was going to say and that's, if you're looking to serve, just be grateful extent. You have that belief that God is there and he's looking out for you and just carry that with you. And I wish that's something that I had from the get-go, because I had like a lot of surrounding mind. Like this was, you know, back in the times where everybody was getting their mission call in like less than a week, and then it took me a month and I was like yo, what's going on? And I get a call from my state president saying, hey, can you come in, and it's 10 o'clock at night. And then he says I got your mission call here.

Speaker 3: 27:44

I don't know what this means and I'm like what, and it was just, you know, maybe when I'm older I can go and do something. But to be able to take advantage of this while I'm, you know, young and have all this strong faith, like so I just got to power through it. And I don't know if I've shared this specifically before I'm on the podcast, because I just go, I kind of pick and choose the parts of my machine because I only like to share things that I can continuously be applicable with, which is, you know, if it comes up in conversation. You know, obviously I don't want to discount a mission in any way whatsoever, and especially the things that I learned from mine. But you know, I found that as I was just kind of hanging out one night getting ready for bed doing some scripture, scripture study, I was reading through a journal that I had with me that I'd written in a little bit through high school, and I realized that like every single day when I was in here in high school I would pray for the hardest mission I could get. I was like Lord, just give me the hardest mission. And I'm like thinking you know what, maybe I'll go like I don't have to leave the states but but maybe like the Bible belt or like you know, somewhere where church and state is kind of like pretty, like separated or like really together, like you know, either someplace like the UK or, you know, the Balkans like, where it's just something where I can use the things that you know I've learned.

Speaker 3: 29:14

I've always been good at talking to people and listening and, you know, debating a little bit. You know you don't necessarily want a Bible bash as a missionary, but I mean it can be fun if you got that personality type. But I was like. You know I understand all the like, all sides that everybody has to. You know a faith, especially something as crazy as a 14 year old kid being given the. You know the light being given, the things that he needs to bring the church back to its full light. And, um, you know, the church is an institution. Sure, it's flawed, but you know we have that perfect gospel and that understanding, we have those beautiful keys.

Speaker 3: 29:51

But that first half of my mission I didn't have that full understanding of everything and so I was just like man, this really sucks. I'm in utah like everybody already knows it or hates it, like I don't know what I'm doing here. And I remember waking up one day and I just had an epiphany and I was like man, everything that's like bad is actually good, like it's. If something bad has happened to me, I can learn from it. And you know, I spent years and years going through high school listening to emo music, thinking that I was sad and I was like no, I was just letting myself believe that, just because the music was really good, I wanted to relate to it, I guess, like I don't know what it was, but I was like you know what I'm not. I wasn't actually feeling the things that I thought I was feeling. I was just letting myself be lost and not letting myself seek the comfort that I actually needed.

Speaker 3: 30:38

And it, you know, a really, really difficult mission and a solid chunk of that mission, to be like, oh, all these things that I thought were bad have benefited me in ways that are so unbelievably miraculous that only God's hand and the direction that I've received from him can, you know, not only teach me with but can bless my life with.

Speaker 3: 31:05

You know, without these things I wouldn't be where I am, I wouldn't get to where I was going, and it was so cool to just wake up and have that thought and be able to, you know, finish the rest of my mission.

Speaker 3: 31:14

It's like, man, this is so cool, like to be, you know, excited to get on with my life but sad to leave, um, and so it's one of those things that I've been able to take with me and, especially as things get really hard, I just kind of like, you know like, oh, this is stressful, but things kind of have a habit of working out for Tresden, so I'll just try to be faithful and it's.

Speaker 3: 31:35

It's one of those things where it's something that would have made everything so much better and I could have put so much more practical use to being a missionary and to helping others, especially when the world got all weird and people were struggling finding food and toilet paper of all things. I really could have been much more of an instrument had I have humbled myself a little bit sooner and much more of an instrument had I have humbled myself a little bit sooner. And so, on the subject of mentoring, you know, young missionaries or prospective missionaries, be thankful for everything you have in your life. Be thankful for all the good, be very explicit for that. But if something bad is happening to you, if something feels unfair, be so grateful for what you stand to learn from that yeah, I love that.

Speaker 2: 32:25

Sorry to have a comment on gratitude like that was the thing that got me through COVID on a mission because, like a lot of people around me were kind of crumbling like serving during COVID and like struggling to be motivated to get up and to like appreciate missionary work, and I studied gratitude a lot during that time and I implemented that. Like I would wake up and I literally say three things I was grateful for and that's like what got me through it. So I I'm with you that gratitude and being thankful for like even the little things goes a long way and will help you in the hard times there's.

Speaker 1: 33:03

I don't really know if I have like any questions for you, um, but like I've got a lot of thoughts for any listeners, um, like advice that I would want to give and things like that, um, and I'm debating whether or not I should like share all of them, because I could talk for forever. But I think we've talked a lot about things that can go wrong in life really, but wrong in missions, things that can be kind of tough. But I think another aspect that we could definitely talk a little bit about is when things go really easily and like life is good. And I think my mission, like looking back on it, like like I agree with Tresden, like it was, I hated it so much because it was so difficult, but then, like looking back, it was so, so easy. Oh my goodness, like I was in COVID, I was sitting in a house, like that's the easiest thing to do, but you know, you go stir crazy and all that. But, um, you know, being a farm kid like I, I go crazy being inside. But what was so amazing about my mission, um, wasn't like any difficult uh moments that I had or really any of that. It was the amount of time that I had to sit with my Savior to get to know Him and by taking that time, to really get to know Him.

Speaker 1: 34:36

Because, like I had never read the Book of Mormon before my mission, I, like you know, read it with my family. I watched, you know, the Book of Mormon videos. I knew the story, ish, or like I knew all these stories and I didn't know how they were arranged. But, like, the first time I sat and read the Book of Mormon it was such like read it all the way through. It was such a spiritual experience for me because I knew the church was true and that the Book of Mormon was real, that it was true and that, if that was true, Joseph Smith is a prophet of God, jesus is the Christ. All these things that I've grown up learning, since you know, birth. It's my entire life. Up to that point, All those things are true and I need to share this with people. And so it gave me this, this drive to kind of like share that and all these things. And I don't really know where I'm going with this, but like, sometimes, like, life goes really good and it's great, it's awesome, it's fantastic. Don't forget the important things that matter, such as your savior and for me on my mission, like things were going so good, I created problems and so you know, kind of like Tresman was saying, like listening to emo music trying to, you know I'm sad, yeah, it's like we humans do that and it's so funny to me. But we can't just sit and enjoy things, we have to cause problems. But I feel like that's.

Speaker 1: 36:14

You know, a lot of my mission was that it was like things were, everything was so easy and you know we've got all this technology, we can just reach out. You know the gospel was spreading across the world as if it were a flood which was prophesied, by the way, and it was such a like I had such a hard time mentally because I wasn't like sitting there like being grateful gosh, where am I going with this? I had a whole thought process in my mind and I just threw it out the window. Train went by, I got distracted. But I am so grateful for my mission and for the opportunity that I had to get to know my Savior and to really understand the gospel and how it applies to me. All my life I thought my patriarchal well, ever since I got my patriarchal blessing not all my life. But ever since I got my patriarchal blessing I thought it talked all about my mission and on my mission it talked all about my life.

Speaker 1: 37:16

And so if there's any advice that I would give to anyone that's preparing to serve a mission, take this time to get to know your Savior and get to know yourself. Learn who you are to your Savior. I know I am a child of God and he loves me. I know this because I put in the work on my mission to learn that. And believe me when I say this, there have been times when I thought I wasn't and those are dark times. But I know I am a child of God and he loves me. And if you're going to serve him, focus on the two great commandments Love the Lord, thy God, and love thy neighbor as thyself. If you can focus on those two great commandments, you will learn of him and serve him perfectly, not because you are perfect, but because he is perfect. So if anybody who is preparing to serve a mission, or even if you're not preparing to serve a mission, if you're living life, live those two commandments, everything will work itself out.

Speaker 1: 38:31

It's easy to become a strickler for the rules on the mission. It's easy to do all this and that Don't forget what you're there for. You're there to serve. Don't forget what you're there for You're there to serve Love the Lord by loving your neighbors, and your first neighbor is yourself. So love yourself. All right, that's all my advice that I would give Whitney. Go ahead and share some advice. Tresden, share some advice and we'll close this up.

Speaker 2: 39:00

No, I love that advice. I think, adding to everything we've said. A mission is not about skill Like you learn how to teach, you learn things but, going off of what you said, it's learning to love people, it's learning to put the Savior first. So my advice for a mission and clearly we all have had different experiences, like you guys have explained that it's a little, it was harder than you thought, it was not the best time and for me, I would agree there were points that weren't my favorite, but it was a lot of fun. It was. Everyone has their own unique experience and my advice would be just go in, trusting God and just trying your best. Like, just just try. Stay focused on the work and your time will end. If you hate it, you can come home and never do that again, but, like, I don't think you'll hate it, but please know that we, we need everyone in the work. So if you want to serve, you have the desire to serve. Please consider it, um, and just trust god along the way.

Speaker 3: 40:03

I was I've got I mean I shared my piece which is you know, if anybody was to come up to me off the street and, just you know, shove a microphone in my face and ask me, you know, it's just like I said, just be grateful first.

Speaker 3: 40:17

But I think one of the biggest ones I'm gonna echo I think it was Jeffrey R Holland. I could totally be misquoting, but this is like one of the best possible things to hear either dream or before a mission. And that's, if you're not having fun, you're not doing it right, like it's like it's supposed to be hard work. It is supposed to, you know, test your faith. It is supposed to be, you know, your biggest convert on a mission should be yourself, and it's supposed to test your faith and it's supposed to give you experiences to help others, you know, and through that it's supposed to help you. But if you're not having fun with that, then I can tell you one thing is you're probably not being very grateful and you're really doing yourself a disservice by not giving your thanks and your gratitude to the Lord for having the opportunity that you have and the experiences that you had to be able to go out there and share those with the people that God is putting in your direction to help. So that's my advice.

Speaker 1: 41:25

Beautiful. This has been an episode that's actually been requested by quite a few of our listeners to talk about. You know, preparing ourselves for missions. And I think my final thing that I'd like to say which is actually where I was trying to go before, but I completely spaced it but don't try to be perfect Now. We're all imperfect. Heck my grandpa, who's, like you know, in his 70s or 80s. He's imperfect. He's had a lot more time to work on himself than I have. The only person that's perfect is your Savior, jesus Christ. So involve him as much as you can in everything that you do. And we talk about serving a mission like it's the final thing. You know. It's like, oh, I went and I served my mission and then that's it.

Speaker 1: 42:23

A mission is a place of preparation. My mission has prepared me to be the man that I am today, just as Tresden's has, and Whitney has prepared. It's prepared her to be the woman she is today. It's an opportunity to prepare you for the work that God has called you on this earth to do. Take advantage of it.

Speaker 1: 42:50

I firmly think that everyone should serve a mission if they're able. It was such a wonderful experience. I talk about it as if I hate it and I kind of did, but it was such a wonderful experience. I talk about it as if I hate it and I kind of did, but it was such a wonderful experience for preparing me to be the man that I am today. This podcast wouldn't exist if it wasn't for my mission, but I got to know myself and I got to know my Savior, and that's all. At the end of the day, that's all you really need and with that, thank you so much For everyone who has listened to the end of this episode and listened to me ramble. My thoughts have been very crazy today, which is a bummer, but thank you so much, whitney, for coming on and to leading this discussion. It's been awesome to hear your story and I'm sorry to hear about your brother, but I'm sure everything that has happened will be for your good. I hear that from a very reliable source.

Speaker 2: 43:56

Yeah Well, thank you so much for having me. It's really been a joy to talk with you guys tonight. Yeah it, you so much for having me. It's really been a joy to talk with you guys tonight.

Speaker 1: 44:01

Yeah, it's been an absolute pleasure. And, whitney, if you want to take a second to give your Instagram page, or whatever you have going on, give that a shout out. Let everybody know where they can reach you.

Speaker 2: 44:15

Yeah, you guys can reach me on Instagram at your missionor and I just post inspiration and advice and tips, so feel free to follow if you want.

Speaker 1: 44:26

Awesome. Well, it's been such a pleasure to have you. It's been such a pleasure to have our amazing listeners. Yeah, if you haven't followed us on Instagram, it's at rememberpodcast. Give us a follow. That's where we post uplifting content. We'll post updates about the podcast and we would love to hear from you guys. Put a review on the episode, on this episode, on any of the episodes. Put out a review, let us know how we're doing. Give us some helpful tips, because we're a bunch of poor college students that don't know what we're doing, so we would love to hear in ways that we can improve. So let us know. If you guys have an amazing story and would love to share, go ahead and DM us, reach out to us, get on our calendar. Michaela handles all that. She's amazing at it. We do have an Etsy store. Go see if there's anything you like. It would support the work that we're trying to do and thank you so much again to our amazing listeners. Thank you, whitney, thank you Tresden Always a pleasure and remember him. Thank you.