Last Updated on November 23, 2017 8:28 pm by Steven
When the Church came out with the Standard Missionary Questions for the Youth last month, I became very excited. I had asked many times over the years what the standard was for the Youth to go on a mission. I was generally met with mumblings of being temple worthy, or the missionary will know if they are ready.
I was at times referred back to October 2002 Priesthood session where Elder Ballard talked about raising the bar. This is a great talk, with a lot of vision on how the church expects missionaries to prepare and act on their mission.
What the communication has lacked thus far is a set of standards that all missionaries will be judged against. We have them now!
Questions
1. Do you have faith in and a testimony of God the Eternal Father; His Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost?
Without faith in and a testimony of God and Jesus Christ, why would a missionary want to go serve Lord? I believe all of these questions where well thought out and placed in a specific order purposefully.
Question numero uno! I’ve seen too many missionaries struggle for the first part of their mission just gaining a testimony of God the Father and Jesus Christ. As this is the foundation of the Gospel and the Church and missionary service, this should be the first question that the Youth work on. There are two parts and three personages with this question.
The two parts are
- Having Faith in the Godhead
- Having a testimony of the Godhead.
The three personages are
- God the Eternal Father
- Jesus Christ the Son
- Holy Ghost
Without a faith and testimony foundation set on the Rock of Jesus Christ, missionaries will waver and not succeed on their mission. This should be the first principle that parents and youth work on. It needs to be more than the primary faith – this needs to be the faith of Alma. Successful missionaries will have the faith found in Alma 32:43 “…ye shall reap the rewards of your faith…waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you”
Having a firm understanding of the Godhead – God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are also necessary.
2. Do you have a testimony that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God and the Savior and Redeemer of the World? Please share your testimony with me. How has the Atonement of Jesus Christ influenced your life?
Building off of Question #1, we now get to the core of the Plan of Happiness (or plan of salvation, or life’s purpose, or whatever you call the purpose of life). Some of the questions missionaries need to think about how they would answer:
- Why does Jesus Christ being the only begotten Son matter?
- Why does the World need a Savior? Why do I?
- Why does the World need a Redeemer? Why do I?
The Atonement is the core of the Gospel. Every missionary needs to understand how the Atonement helps them and can help others.
Many missionaries do not understand the Atonement until after they are part of the way through their mission. I did not. I was one of the lucky ones that got a great understanding of the Atonement while in the Missionary Training Center (MTC), then I used that experience to help the people I was teaching.
3. What does it mean to you to repent? Do you feel that you have fully repented of past transgressions?
The next step is applying the Atonement into our lives by repenting of our sins. This question is worded in a way that assumes that the Youth have made mistakes. It helps the Youth focus on the repenting of the sins and changing to become a better person.
Missionaries need a sure foundation of repentance and applying the Atonement. Only those that have gone through the process can truly help others go through the same process. The Lord expects his missionaries to have made mistakes (and even really screwed up) – the Lord then expects them to use those experiences to help our Fathers other children return to Him.
4. Will you share your testimony with me that the gospel and Church of Jesus Christ have been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith and that [current Church President] is a prophet of God?
Building on the foundation questions of 1 – 3, the missionaries are now asked about their testimony of Joseph Smith and the current Prophet.
Having a strong testimony of Prophets, both living and dead, is another foundational aspect of the Gospel.
How many of us have heard stories of missionaries getting to the MTC and not having a testimony of Joseph Smith and prophets? I know that I have, and I talked to some while I was at the MTC.
The MTC is NOT the time to gain a testimony. It is better to postpone a mission by a month or more in order to be fully prepared when you leave. This will allow missionaries to ‘hit the ground running.’
5. Full-time missionary service requires living gospel standards. What do you understand about the following standards?
I would have thought that living gospel standards would be a given. The more that I work with the Youth, sometimes they (and all of us) need a reality check. This set of questions helps them understand what they will be required to do, and give them the opportunity to repent and change anything in their life that is amiss.
a. The law of chastity
In reference to the law of chastity, have you always lived in accordance with what has been discussed? If not, how long ago did the transgression(s) occur? What have you done to repent?
I believe that the Law of Chastity is the first on the list because as humans, we are sexual beings. Being chaste is on the mind of EVERY single youth! Sometimes it is at the front, sometimes at the back, but it is there.
The sub-question assumes that there will be mistakes, but it gives the Youth hope that they can repent. This should be the focus when discussing this question with our Youth – they can become clean if/when they make a mistake. I love how this question sets the stage that they can repent – and that time plays a role in repentance and forgiveness.
b. Avoiding pornography
No discussion today about the law of Chastity can be complete without a discussion of pornography. Read the question carefully and you can see that the brethren assume that EVERY youth have viewed pornography! The question is not have you ever looked at porn? The question is… how are you avoiding pornography? Underlying this question is the realization that the youth need systems in place to help them deal with the pornography plague that is across the entire earth.
c. The law of tithing
How many of our Youth have trouble paying Tithing? Do we as parents talk to our children about finances? Do we budget with them? Do they know that we pay our tithing? Have we taught them how to pay tithing?
During their first job do we help them understand and let them make the choice of paying tithing?
These youth will ask people to pay 10% of their income to the church – they need a testimony of it before they can teach it.
d. The Word of Wisdom, including the use of drugs or abuse of prescribed medications.
The policy of the Word of Wisdom found in D&C 89 is very clear on what the missionaries are expected to do. They are expected to live the Word of Wisdom.
The addition of “…drugs or abuse of prescribed medications.” indicates to me that there is a problem inside the church. I have seen this personally in my life. Abuse of prescribed medications is an epidemic inside the Church. Just because a member can convince a Dr. to write a prescription does not shift the blame of the abuse to someone else.
e. Keeping the Sabbath day holy
How are we training our Youth to keep the Sabbath day holy? Showing them by our example is the best way. They need to understand and learn how to keep the Sabbath day holy now, not on their mission.
f. Being honest in all you say and do
It should go without saying, but it is always a great reminder that we should always be honest in all that we do.
Have you lived in accordance with all of these standards? Are you now living in accordance with them? Will you live in accordance with them as a full-time missionary?
Another reaffirmation that mission life might not be as easy as believed.
Questions 6 – 11 deal with ensuring the missionary is physically and legally prepared to serve a mission.
6. Do you have any legal actions pending against you? (If yes, ask the candidate to explain in details possible legal or financial obligations. See Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops [2010], 4.4
If a missionary has any legal actions they might be distracted. Keeping out life in order is a requirement of a missionary. Legal actions become a distraction.
7. Have you ever committed a serious violation of criminal law, regardless of whether or not you were arrested, you were convicted, or the record was expunged? (If yes, ask the missionary candidate to explain in detail what happened, the outcome of any criminal charges, whether there are criminal or other legal requirements that have not been completed, and what he or she has done to repent. See Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops [2010], 4.5.2)
The key word here is “Serious” – I would say this would be a felony in the United States – or something similar in other countries. Although all crimes should be repented of and fixed, if possible, this is not what the question is asking. Attitude is everything here, and what damage or harm was caused to others. We are a law-abiding people. Just because you were not caught, convicted, or there is no record, does not mean that no sin was committed.
All sins need to be repented of. This allows for a conversation to ensure that there are no lingering criminal sins that need to be taken care of legally before the person serves a mission.
8. Have you ever sexually abused a child in any way, regardless of whether or not you were charged, you were convicted, or the record was expunged? (If yes, and the abuse has not been reported, See Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops [2010], 17.3.2, for instructions. If the abuse was previously resolved, see Handbook 1, 4.4, for direction.)
Because child sexual abuse is such a great sin and crime – there is one question specific to it. Legal standing here does not matter. The church needs to protect those under its care.
Saying yes to this question does not automatically disqualify someone for mission service. This starts the repentance process to become clean and ready to serve a mission.
As parents, we need to teach our children and Youth what sexual abuse is. Do not leave it up to the Youth leaders or school teachers. Be frank, honest, and direct. Your kids know more than you think they do.
9. Have you ever committed any other serious transgression or misdeed that should be resolved before your mission? (If yes, ask the candidate to explain in detail what happened, the outcome of any criminal charges, whether there are criminal or other legal requirements that have not been completed, and what he or she has done to repent.)
This question seems almost a repeat of question 7. However; it is important enough that it deserves repeating. Also, something might be legal, but a transgression.
Again, a key word here is serious. We are not talking a quick kiss after a date. It is the parents’ responsibility to teach the youth plainly (and with examples) what serious transgressions are.
10. Do you support, affiliate with, or agree with any group or individual whose teachings or practices are contrary to or oppose those accepted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?
For those who have had a Temple Recommend Interview – this question is very familiar.
This is not asking if you have any LGBT friends, or if you enjoy hanging out with the gay couple that lives across the street from you.
This question is asking if the missionaries actively support with money, time, effort, etc. people and groups who fight against the Church.
11. Do you have any unpaid debts? How will these debts be paid off before your mission or managed while you serve a mission? (See Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops [2010], 4.4)
If a missionary has debts, he can still go. However, the missionary needs to be prepared to cover the debts while they are gone.
Best case is to just pay the debts off so you don’t have any!
Questions 12 – 16 deal with missionaries emotions and learning disorders.
12. Do you currently have or have you ever had a physical, mental, or emotional condition that would make it difficult for you to maintain a normal missionary schedule, which requires that you work for 12-15 hours a day, including studying for 2 – 4 hours a day, walking or biking for up to 8 – 10 hours a day, and so forth?
Working very long days (12 – 15 hrs) is something new for all missionaries. Most of the new missionaries have never had jobs where they were required to work 60 – 80 hrs a week. It is very emotionally, mentally, and physically draining. You have to have the ability to dig deep when it is time to just keep going. There are many, many long days were you see no or little progress in the people that you are trying to help.
This helps sets the expectations for missionary work. It is work. In walking & biking areas the missionaries do a LOT of walking and biking. I do not believe 8 – 10 hours a day of walking & biking is an exaggeration. Missionaries need to be fit enough when they leave.
13. Have you ever been diagnosed with or received treatment for dyslexia or other reading disorder? If so, are you comfortable reading the scriptures and other documents aloud? Do you believe that you could memorize appropriate scriptures and other information with the assistance of your companion? In what ways do you now compensate for this disorder?
Dyslexia and reading disorders can affect how well a missionary performs. If they cannot read aloud – it will be difficult or impossible for them to teach from the scriptures.
The blessing of this question is the missionary is being prompted to show how they have compensated for this disability. Everyone wants missionaries to succeed – and having tools available to compensate for disabilities will help them succeed.
14. Have you ever been diagnosed with or received treatment for speech disorder? If so, are you comfortable speaking in front of others? Do you feel that you have adequate tools to help you learn, teach, and communicate?
Similar question to #13 – except this one is about speech disorders. If you are comfortable speaking in front of people and have adequate tools available to help you learn then you are good to go!
15. Have you ever been on medication or otherwise treated for any of the following conditions: attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), or autism spectrum disorder (including Asperger’s)? If yes, please explain.
Again, similar question to #13, this questions is asking about other disorders that would affect a missionaries success. Having these disorders does not disqualify a person from missionary service. However; there needs to be a realistic plan in place in order to ensure success.
16. If you were being treated for one of the conditions and discontinued treatment, did you do so under a doctor’s supervision? If not, why did you stop? How well have you been functioning without treatment or medication? When was the last time you were on medication for these issues?
And finally, a few followup questions if the missionary has answer questions 12 – 15 yes. This question is worded in a way to help the missionary understand that just because they have had issues in the past – the important thing is that they are managing it – or if they have discontinued treatment – that everything is under control.
Conclusion
I love having these questions open where everyone can see and read them. Bishops understand what the Youth need to prepare for. The Youth understand what is going to be required of them.
I encourage everyone to have their youth read these questions – even years before they are able to serve a mission.
Please comment and let me know how these questions have helped you prepare your Youth (or prepare yourself) for a mission.
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