As early as age 18, many members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints begin to prepare for missionary service. Church leaders continue to encourage young men and young women to embark on serving a mission for the church between ages 18-24.

For those of you who are preparing for a mission, have your call or are still in the decision phase, you may be wondering what to expect. 

Here is some advice from returned missionaries and students at BYU-Idaho about how to get the most out of your missionary service and experience.

Using the Book of Mormon

Rychen Jones, a freshman studying software engineering, returned from his mission in Fort Worth, Texas in July. Jones emphasized the importance of using the Book of Mormon as the primary tool of conversion.

“Don’t underestimate the importance of the Book of Mormon,” said Jones. “Being in Texas, one thing that I fell into is trying to use the Bible too much because you think it’s common ground, but it’s battleground. The Book of Mormon is what you have that’s new, and it has a very powerful spirit to it as well.” 

Archibald Herring, a sophomore and major in civil engineering, said that the best way to go about studying the Book of Mormon is to seek answers to questions.

“Compile a list of maybe two to four personal questions that you genuinely have for your own life,” said Herring. “Things that you want to know, and read the Book of Mormon looking for answers to those questions.”

Herring served his mission in Manchester, England, and returned home in October 2024. He said that having personal experiences is key to bearing testimony of the Gospel.

“There was a general authority that visited my mission when I was about six months in, and he used the phrase real, raw and relatable,” Herring said. “We have to be those things if we want to bear a powerful testimony to someone, and something that allows you to do that is having very real, personal experiences with the Savior and His teachings.”

Herring said that the way to have these personal experiences is by studying the Book of Mormon.

“We use the Book of Mormon for our own lives, experience the power for ourselves,” Herring said. “And that allows you to just have so much more influence as you are teaching and testifying both with people that you meet out and about or with fellow missionaries.”

Missionaries have a scheduled one hour of personal study each day. This is an important part of the day, but it can be hard to know how to use that time.

“Take personal study seriously,” Jones said. “Study from the Book of Mormon and Preach My Gospel primarily.”

Dallin Lewis, a junior studying communications, served in the Washington Kennewick Mission.

“Dedicate at least one hour of your day to just studying the gospel,” said Lewis. “Whether that’s the scriptures or a general conference talk.”

Lewis also said that the time before your mission is the time to familiarize yourself with the Book of Mormon.

“Don’t hesitate to share your testimony and always follow the Spirit,” Lewis said. “And make sure that you’ve read the Book of Mormon before your mission.”

Serving with companions

Serving a mission brings several different challenges which may be hard to anticipate. Lewis said that he had trouble getting along with companions. Missionaries don’t get to pick their companions, so they have to learn how to work with one another.

“There were some companions that I just did not get along with very well,” Lewis said. “It just took quite a bit of patience to overcome that and eventually get along.”

Learning to get along with your companion is vital for missionary work.

Christina Stark, a sophomore and special education major who served in the Salt Lake City Temple Square Mission, said that new missionaries should expect their companions to be different than them but to love them anyways.

“Try to understand people’s hearts and your companions, because I think when we have companions, we think that they have be just like I am, but that’s not true,” said Stark.

The Missionary Standards for Disciples of Jesus Christ says that companions should “help each other learn, grow, and develop Christlike attributes.” Companions act as support for one another.

Elin Schmid, a freshman and a psychology major, served in the California Fresno Mission before being reassigned to the California Modesto mission when mission boundries were split. She said one of her biggest challenges was talking to people, but she was able to overcome that with help from her companions.

“I had trouble talking to new people everyday, and also I had trouble adjusting to the missionary life,” said Schmid. “I had some really good companions who had also struggled with that, they gave some really good tips, and had quite a few priesthood blessings as well. Those were a big help for me.”

Patience with others and yourself

Serving a mission is stressful. Missionaries have a lot of hard work to do every day. Returned missionaries say the key to avoid burnout and maintain a positive attitude is to have patience, both for others and yourself.

“In the mission, you learn a lot, and there’s a lot of things that are going to be expected of you to know, but just be patient with yourself as you learn,” said Moroni Montoya, a sophomore and computer science major.

“There will be times where you feel like you have no idea what you’re doing, but if you’re patient with yourself you’ll eventually get it down.”

Montoya served in the California Los Angeles Mission speaking Spanish until March 2024. He said that one challenge he faced was learning to be patient with himself.

“I have always been a very patient person, but I realized in my mission that I wasn’t patient with myself... I had these super high standards and expectations for myself that sometimes were not even realistic. Whenever I didn’t measure up I would feel like, ‘Oh I failed. I messed up, I blew it,’" Montoya said.

Similarly, Archibald Herring faced challenges on his mission. He said that he had difficulty doing missionary work. He felt that he was failing and because of that, he felt that he didn’t love God enough.

One day while studying the scriptures, Herring came across the account of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane in Mark 14, Verse 36, which shared details of Christ suffering in the garden.

“And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.”

Herring still remembers how he felt when he read that account.

“I realized, the Savior had a very hard thing to do in front of him, and he openly expressed in prayer to his Father that he didn’t want to do it,” Herring said. “That was a very powerful moment to me. He lived a perfect life, but he didn’t want to do something that needed to be done. I was like, ‘Oh, I could do that too.’ That defined the rest of my missionary service. I was like, ‘This is hard, but nevertheless, not my will, the Lord’s be done.’”

Herring and his family had always been very involved with the church while he was growing up, but he had to learn that he still needed to improve.

“I was not expecting to learn how imperfect I really am,” Herring said. “And how much growing I can and need to experience for me to be the kind of man and live the kind of life the Lord wants me to.”

Christina Stark served her mission in Utah, exclusively assigned to serve on Temple Square for the majority of her mission.

“The first part was me struggling because of me learning how to talk to people, which the Lord helped me with,” Stark said. “The biggest thing that was hard was probably rejection for me, because I love people, and so it was hard. I learned that it’s not me they’re rejecting, they’re rejecting the Lord.”

Stark said that she struggled with talking to everyone, which is something that missionaries are expected to do as part of their purpose. Prayer helped her get through this.

“I was able to pray about it, just have an eternal perspective and just keep talking every day to be able to overcome those things,” Stark said. “Because we need experience and help from our Heavenly Father.”

Elin Schmid said that one thing to do when you feel down is to go back and read the blessing given by the Stake President when you are first set apart as a missionary

“Look back on the blessing that you got the day you were set apart, because there are lots of promises that are involved in that blessing,” Schmid said. “It can be a comfort for you anytime you feel overwhelmed or stressed.”

Rychen Jones said that it is important to understand that there are always new ways to learn and grow within the gospel.

“There’s always more to grow in the gospel,” Jones said. “You’re never at a satisfactory point, and as soon as you think you are you’re at danger of slipping away.”

According to Moroni Montoya, he learned that he didn’t just need to have patience with others, he needed to be patient with himself.

“I learned a lot about patience and how it is a Christ-like attribute,” Montoya said. “Part of it is also being patient with yourself as you grow and as you learn, you have to be patient with not just others but yourself.”

Trust in the Lord

Proverbs 3:5 sums up what it means to “trust in the Lord.”

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding.”

Being on a mission is an ultimate exercise in faith. In order to do your best, you’ll need to put all your trust and hope in the Lord.

“Just trusting that the Lord, He put you there for a reason, He trusts in you,” Schmid said. “Just find comfort in that.”

For a while Schmid felt upset and even questioned if she should be out on a mission. One day she went to the temple on a preparation day and received an answer to her question.

“I was just praying, asking if this is where I’m supposed to be, and the Spirit told me that I was," Schmid said.

Montoya said he had to adjust to the daily missionary schedule, which tends to fluctuate as the day goes on.

“I like for things to go the way I plan them, and in the mission that doesn’t really happen ever,” Montoya said. “Something I learned on my mission was to trust in the Lord, trust in his timing and trust his ways, because you have to be flexible in your mission and adjust to changes all the time.”

They advise those preparing to serve a mission to not expect the mission to be easy all the time: You won’t always know what’s going to happen, but keep working, keep trusting the Lord, and you’ll be fine.

Service missions

“I didn’t know I was going to do a service mission,” said freshman and social work major Bryce Fisher. “Some people do, but for me I was expecting a teaching mission like all my friends were doing.”

Fisher served a service mission in Boise until he finished in May. Service missionaries don’t teach the lessons like teaching missionaries do, and they tend to stay at home. They have less restrictive rules but they are still set apart as missionaries with specific assignments.

“Service missions are still kind of fairly new, so a big challenge I faced was just certain members of my ward…they didn’t understand the mission fully,” Fisher said. “It’s a new thing, so it’s just going to take time for everyone to understand it, and that’s perfectly ok.”

Fisher said he was able to have a few leadership opportunities, which allowed him to get to know many fellow service missionaries.

“I loved the missionaries, and so I would take time to individually get to know each of them,” Fisher said. “The biggest lesson I learned is you can learn something from anyone.”

Fisher said he met a few missionaries who were skilled at things like social media and gardening. Any skills like these can and will be put to good use for a service mission.

“It’s very unique,” Fisher said. “It's very individualized to the missionary. If you have a talent or skill you can use, do it.”

Fisher said he spent time teaching in schools, subjects like math, English and a fishing club. He also spoke in 65 wards and served in the temple, which was a big part of the service he did.

“A big thing you’ll expect on a service mission is to serve in the temple,” Fisher said. “They love to have service missionaries serve in the temple.”

Fisher said that new service missionaries should “be willing and open” to what God has planned for them.

“That’s something that can help you in your mission but also anywhere in life,” Fisher said. “Is just being able to find out what God has planned for you and being able to accept that even when it’s not what you expect.”

Fisher shared the service missionary purpose, which is to “Help others come unto Christ by serving with loving kindness as the Savior would. Minister in His name to the one through the power of the Holy Ghost and live as an example of faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, covenant keeping with God, and enduring to the end.”

Fisher said that this purpose should guide service missionaries even before their mission begins.

“If you can be doing all of that before your mission, you’ll be set,” Fisher said. “If you can love as the Savior and if you can live as the Savior, you’re good.”

Learning a new language

Moroni Montoya was already fluent in Spanish before serving his mission in Los Angeles, but there were still things he needed to learn. At the same time, he had several companions who had to learn Spanish, which he said they were able to learn rather quickly.

“I had to study the scriptures again in Spanish, so it wasn’t something that I was used to,” Montoya said. “It was very interesting to see, especially missionaries who didn’t know any Spanish, and just to see how quick they would learn it and pick it up. It was honestly a miracle to see that.” 

Learning a new language as a missionary isn’t easy, but it is possible. If a missionary is called to serve in a language other than their native tongue, they can expect to spend about six to nine weeks studying that language in the Missionary Training Center before arriving in the mission field.

Porter Mitchell, a senior and supply chain management major, spent six weeks learning Spanish before his mission in Summer 2021.

However, he started his mission during the pandemic, so he spent those six weeks at home for online MTC. COVID-19 shut down the Provo MTC in 2020, and it only began to re-open in 2021.

Mitchell was called to serve in the Nequen Argentina Mission, but was reassigned to the Sacramento California Mission for three to four months because of COVID-related travel restrictions.

When Mitchell eventually did get to Argentina, he found a few key differences between Spanish in California and Argentina. People in Sacramento could still speak English, so he was able to communicate with them much easier. That wasn’t the case in Argentina. In fact, Mitchell’s first companion in Argentina could only speak Spanish.

“I couldn’t depend on English to get me out of situations, be it at the store or in a lesson,” said Mitchell.

Chapter seven of Preach My Gospel is all about learning your mission language, and it gives several tips on how to best learn your assigned language.

“Everyone has their own learning style, but I did really well with the grammar book that the MTC gave us,” Mitchell said. “The missionary standards…give you an hour language study every day, so I’d say taking that hour every day for the whole two years was one of the best things I did.”

According to Mitchell, the best way to use language study is to focus on learning the grammar, and then practicing what you’ve learned out in the street.

“Focus on grammar and the structure of the language during your study time, and then carefully listening and speaking out in the street,” Mitchell said. “If you’re working on past tense, study during your study time how past tense works as it’s written, as it’s spoken. Then when you’re out in the street try to tell more stories where you’re using past tense.”

Mitchell also said that it’s important not to lose focus. Missionaries who are learning a new language need to study it, no matter how good at it they think they might be.

“I feel like a lot of missionaries feel the temptation to not have to practice anymore once they feel like they can get through all their lessons,” Mitchell said. “They go, ‘I could speak Spanish, I don’t need to study anymore.’ But it’s not true.”

Overall, Mitchell said that new missionaries shouldn’t be afraid to be a beginner: you won’t be perfect at speaking the language right away, but it will come over time.

“There’s nothing wrong with being new,” Mitchell said. “Everybody starts somewhere, everybody’s terrible at something in the beginning, so just accept that and don’t let it bother you.”

Additional advice

Serving a mission is hard work. Not only are you spending 18 to 24 months away from family, possibly in a country you’re unfamiliar with, but new missionaries are expected to work all day, every day.

You’ll be busy, you’ll even be worn out sometimes. You’ll have to engage in conversations with strangers, some of whom just won’t like you. The trick is to just not be afraid. Remember that the Lord is on your side, he can and will help you when you put in the work.

“Don’t be afraid to talk, even when it’s really scary, because sometimes when we’re new missionaries we think a lot of things and we think that it’s scary,” Christina Stark said. “But don’t be afraid to open your mouth because the Lord can use you.”

Montoya said that missionaries should “enjoy learning,” and that it’s important not to compare yourselves to others.

“It’s very easy to compare yourself to some missionaries who have been there for a long time,” Montoya said. “You look at them and you’re like, ‘they’re the best. But just don’t do that.”

Elin Schmid shared an example from the Book of Mormon. In Alma chapter 48 verse 17, Mormon explains the characteristics of Captain Moroni.

“If all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.”

We can’t all be like Moroni. Just two verses after this, Mormon mentions Moroni’s fellow commander, Helaman.

“Now behold, Helaman and his brethren were no less serviceable unto the people than was Moroni; for they did preach the word of God, and they did baptize unto repentance all men whosoever would hearken unto their words.”

Some tend to be more like Helaman than Moroni, and these verses teach that those contributions are “no less serviceable.” Everyone has an important roles to play.

“Even though Moroni gets all this praise for all the hard work, these people are still being acknowledged for what they’re doing. They’re doing their part,” Schmid said. “Don’t focus on your weaknesses. Just remember that you’re doing the Lord’s work.”

Mitchell said that for those who are debating with themselves on whether they should go on a mission, the answer is simple: just go. You don’t have to feel perfectly ready yet, you’ll get there soon enough.

“Just do it,” Porter Mitchell said. “I think a lot of people psych themselves out with, ‘Am I ready, am I not?’ Just go. It’s one of those things where you show up and you figure it out as you go.”

Serving a mission is definitely a leap of faith. Whether that’s a teaching or a service mission, whether you end up in California, Utah, England or Argentina, you’ll be diving headfirst into the deep end. Enjoy the journey, accept help from others and do your best. You won’t always know what will happen next, but you can know that no matter what, you’ll be where God needs you to be.

If you ever feel like you’re overwhelmed, that missionary work is just too hard and you’ll never figure it out, just know that you’re not the first person who has felt that way. It will get better. Just remember the words of Nephi, memorably recorded in 1 Nephi 3:7.

“I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.”