Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Should RM's be "normal?"



What is normal? Too often I hear people say to Returned Missionaries... “Give it a few weeks and then you will be back to normal.” Do I want to be normal though?  I mean after all the scriptures do tell us that the Lord's covenant people are a “peculiar people.” Now if you are referring to normal as... keeping covenants with Heavenly Father... staying active in the gospel... not giving into the natural man and getting ensnared back into the ways of the world... or perhaps applying ourselves after our two year sacrifice to the Lord... then great! Call me “normal.” But in fact I don't think this is what most people mean. It may not be intended to come off as a negative connotation. You may just be meaning, “Hey! You just got back from your mission! It may take awhile to adjust to your next stage of life! You will do great though because of the knowledge you have gained these past 2 years!... and even though life will be different I know you will keep that fire that I see so many RM's have!”  Coming home from a mission is like running a marathon or some other strenuous race. You are running and running and running and giving your whole heart and soul!... and then when you are done it feels like the ground is still moving! It takes a while for you to realize that this is in reality the world that you now live in... and that you are a part of it.
By no means am I saying that you can't say “normal” because believe me I know that we RM's are in a state of “shell shock” when we get home. I am just saying to think about what we RM's are going through.... and remember that when missionaries get home they are NOT to adjust themselves back into the ways of world! The world, in fact, should be adjusting their standards to that of a missionary!

Friday, December 2, 2011

The first shall be last and the last shall be first

I've never written a blog before.  I figured it would be a good way to keep a journal.

Exactly 6 weeks I have been back from my mission... that's a whole transfer!  Whoa!!

My goal with this bloggin'... if that's even a word... is to post things that are good... that are spiritual... that are full of life learning experiences...

So here we go...