How I became a Missionary

Lately I've been thinking a lot about my mission, and so I thought I would share the story of how I became a missionary.

Several months after my 21st birthday I hit a barrier in my life. I was stressed, confused at where to go next, and started praying for guidance. That's when thoughts about serving a mission entered into my head. I had always said that when I was 21, if I wasn't dating anyone I would go, but I never really thought that I would go. That was the thing every young woman in the church was saying. So, when these thoughts entered my head I immediately pushed them aside. I didn't think much about it again for at least another month. It then seemed that every sacrament meeting, sunday school or relief society lesson was on missionary work. Everywhere I turned there it was! At my Sam's wedding reception, many people asked when I was going to tie the not, and I just laughed. But then, Diane Young, someone who I respected a lot came up and asked, "So, when are you going on a mission?" I looked at her, laughed and said, "I'm not." I just kept pushing the feeling and thought out, and it eventually stopped...until that fateful day in September, when I decided to go to a fireside with Becca. Elder Holland was the speaker and for some reason his words about missionary work spoke to me. All of those thoughts and feelings came back to me and I started to take it into consideration. (I later printed off that talk and discovered it wasn’t about missionary work at all) After the fireside Becca mentioned that she would like to take Mission prep, just for fun. Something inside me sparked, and I got really excited, told her that I would like to take it too. As soon as I got home I changed my clothes and hopped in my car to go and talk to my Grandpa, who I always go to for advice. My grandpa sat me down for two hours and gave me advice, and I listened. He talked about his mission, some of the answers he recieved and how important the scriptures are. I went home that night, kneeled down and began a fast. I asked my Heavenly Father if I was supposed to go on a mission (althought I was certain the answer was yes). The next day I went to work at the church offices, I took my scriptures and began to read them. Then some advice that my grandpa had given to me popped back into my head. He had said that many of the answers he had recieved as a missionary, was just opening the scriptures to any random spot, pointing and reading. So, I decided to give it a try. I opened, pointed and read about faith. I knew that I needed to have faith, no matter what happened. I opened and pointed again and I read in Alma 26:3, "Behold, I answer for you; for our brethren, the Lamanites, were in darkness, yea, even in the darkest abyss, but behold, how many of them are brought to behold the marvelous light of God! And this is the blessing which hath been bestowed upon us, that we have been made instruments in the hands of God to bring about this great work. "
It was then that the spirit touched my heart, and I knew I wanted to recieve the blessing of being an instrument in God's hands to bring about his great work.