Young men and women from the Brambleton Virginia Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints got a glimpse of missionary life at last month’s MTC Night and gained confidence in their ability to share the gospel with others.
Nearly 60 youth from the Brambleton and Tall Cedars wards attended on March 15 to learn from full-time missionaries and members of the mission presidencies from the Washington, DC South Mission. Ward and stake leaders were also in attendance.
Erek Dunn, 18, from Brambleton, said the activity had brought him closer to his Savior, Jesus Christ.
“I think this work has really opened me up to more truly and fully embrace the name of Christ, rather than just hiding behind the scenes and not being able to act upon invitations,” he said.
Phoebe Brown, 15, of Tall Cedars Ward, said the night taught her about the hard work and blessings of being a missionary.
“MTC Youth Night really opened my eyes to the powerful happiness of sharing the gospel,” Phoebe said. “I have two brothers who are currently on missions, and I now understand a little more about what they do, how they bless others, and what it feels like to witness every day.”
“We were actually learning how to be real missionaries.”
Stephen T. Funk, second counselor in the Brambleton Ward Bishopric, said both ward bishoprics and Young Women presidencies planned and coordinated together.
The ward sent out a “mission call” inviting youth and invited each youth to attend a night of companionship.
When young people arrived, they were met by a full-time missionary and given a name tag, a copy of Preach My Gospel, and an index card with their assigned mission, companions and rotation schedule, Funk said.
The evening began in the chapel. Dan moderated the meeting and was impressed by how many young people not only attended from both wards, but stayed with us throughout.
“I felt a sense of warmth and solidarity,” he said. “We were all together and doing everything together. In a way, it felt like we were actually learning how to be missionaries, rather than just a mock activity.”
Funk shared his experience as a convert to the church and testified that there are others just like him who are waiting to hear the gospel.
“To reinforce that message, I invited Brother Mike Owen, one of the missionaries who taught me, to attend the event and then as a ‘friend’ during the teaching effort. It was a powerful moment for young people who saw the lasting impact of missionary work, even nearly 30 years later,” Funk said.
The missionaries talked about how to teach gospel discussions, and then the youth took turns in three 20-minute experiences: a missionary question-and-answer session, language training, and an actual teaching schedule.
President Mark Thomas, the first counselor in the Washington, D.C. South Mission Presidency, led a question-and-answer session with his wife.
“It was great to be able to join so many wonderful young people,” President Thomas said. “They were obviously excited about the opportunity to serve in a mission.”
The young people came with questions, doubts and concerns about what would happen during the mission and whether they would be able to cope and cope well with it.
“What impressed us was how we felt the Savior’s love for them as we answered their questions,” President Thomas said. “That was evident from the powerful Spirit and emotions we experienced.”
He said the youth’s coming to the event was a “clear sign that they know where they want to be” and helped them understand that they are courageous, watched over and blessed through their covenants and righteous aspirations.
Increased desire to accomplish the mission
Esther Fenimore, 15, from Brambleton Ward, said her favorite part of the night was the opportunity to ask questions of the President and Sister Thomas and learn from them.
She said she felt spirits as people gave testimonies during the evening. She learned that there are many ways to build her own testimony, improve her scripture study, and learn more about the Savior.
“I always wanted to serve a mission, and this made me want to do more missions,” Esther said.
Phoebe enjoyed learning about other people’s mission experiences. Although I found it difficult at first to practice teaching others, I learned from full-time sister missionaries how to talk about the gospel, refer to the scriptures, and share my testimony.
“My confidence in serving a mission has grown, and I even want to serve more missions. I could see that the sisters were happy,” Phoebe said. “It made me feel closer to Jesus Christ because this is God’s work that we are doing on earth.”
Belle Price, 16, from Brambleton, said she felt the activity was extremely successful. There she served as a mission president and enjoyed working with the missionaries.
“We were learning languages and teaching people the gospel. I learned French, which was great. And I learned how to better teach people about Christ, like missionaries do,” Bell said.
Dan said he also enjoyed the night he spent learning the language of his host country, Germany.
“I took German in high school, so it was really cool to learn about the actual missionaries who went to Germany,” he said.
Dan plans to serve a mission, but said before going to the MTC night, he felt nervous and anxious about serving because of the unknown. However, this activity helped me gain a deeper understanding of what evangelism looks like, especially during my rotation where I practiced teaching someone about the gospel.
“It really gave me a feel for what it’s really like, and it really changed for me,” Dunn said. “Knowing that, I feel more confident. I don’t need to know what’s going to happen. I don’t need to know all the exact details because I know the Holy Spirit will guide me through those times.”
Bishop Casey Kanekoa of Brambleton Borough took part in one of the educational experiences. He said two of the young women in the ward taught about the nature of God, and they gave sincere and authentic testimonies of eternal truths.
“I know that the young women, the role players, and I felt the Spirit speaking to us. I know that feeling this in the role play shows the level of support and confidence our youth have as they prepare to become full-time missionaries,” Bishop Kanekoa said.
