Remembering

Last night I attended the baptism of a friend. I met her about a month ago at a YSA bonfire. She met with the missionaries and new the Church is true, and got baptized last night. The baptism was amazing - the Spirit was so strong. I listened to a darling friend give the talk on Baptism and she talked about the freedom that baptism, and membership in this Church, provides us. She was so right - this Church does provide freedom. Freedom from addiction, freedom from sin, (we all still sin, but we know how to repent and be clean), freedom to return to our Heavenly Father and Savior. There are so many ways we are free because of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I let a few tears slip out as I watched the Elders get up while we were waiting for the baptizer and baptizee to return from changing. The Elders were teaching us a first lesson - it was obvious which one was the senior companion and which was the junior. One confidently looked out at the crowd and spoke without notes, going back and forth between the well-marked scriptures in his Book of Mormon, the other a little less-confident and relying on his notes. They did a beautiful job of keeping and magnifying the Spirit who was already present. I ached to pull out my Preach My Gospel and get up there with them and teach. I miss that feeling so badly.

I realized, yet again, how much I miss the mission. It made my heart ache to go back and put my nametag on. I wanted to be back at the MTC teaching and basking in the Spirit that the humble, new missionaries bring with them when entering and studying at the MTC. Why does life get so complicated after coming home from the mission? Life was so simple and perfect on the mission... and thoughtless. I had one purpose and I worked on that purpose everyday: 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.

That was my purpose. I guess I could say my purpose is still the same, now that I've been home a year and nine months, but my time commitment is a lot less. Wish it wasn't a lot less - but what can you do?