Mission Call!

After it's long anticipated arrival, my mission call finally came on December 18, 2014.  Needless to say, I was pretty excited to open it!

Dear Sister Patterson:

You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.You are assigned to labor in the Canada Calgary Mission. It is anticipated that you will serve for aperiod of 18 months. 

You should report to the Provo Missionary Training Center on Wednesday, February 11, 2015. Youwill prepare to preach the gospel in the English language.  

You have been recommended as one worthy to represent the Lord as a minister of the restored gospel. You will be an official representative of the Church. As such, you will be expected to maintain the highest standards of conduct and appearance by keeping the commandments, living mission rules, and following the counsel of your mission president. As you devote your time and attention to serving the Lord, leaving behind all other personal affairs, the Lord will bless you with increased knowledge and testimony of the Restoration and of the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Your purpose will be to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. As you serve with all your heart, might, and strength, the Lord will lead you to those who are prepared to be baptized. 

The Lord will reward you for the goodness of your life. Greater blessings and more happiness than you have yet experienced await you as you humbly and prayerfully serve the Lord in this labor of love among His children. We place our confidence in you and pray that the Lord will help you become an effective missionary.

It is a privilege and a blessing to accept the call to serve as a missionary. Words cannot express the joy I felt upon receiving that letter; what it represents is a long, difficult process, one in which I have had to come to know my Savior and discover what He wants for my life. As I have prepared to serve, He has blessed me with faith, hope, and confidence in the righteousness of my decision, and for that I am forever grateful. In answering the call to serve, I hope to fulfill my potential as an effective missionary in the Lord's kingdom.