Future Missionaries Success Tips

There are so many young people getting mission calls! I LOVE IT!!! 

 The end of the school year signals the next best step and for so many youth, their next best step is preparing to serve a mission.

 A couple of things to understand about upcoming missions:

 1. The excitement usually has a shorter life span than the mission. 

 Let me explain. When something super exciting happens in our lives, like a mission call, our level of excitement is heightened to help us gear up for the changes ahead of us. 

 Just so you know, the newness and the thrill lasts about 9 months. Then those feelings taper off and you may be left wondering why you aren't as excited as you used to be about your mission. 

 Some missionaries can feel like this means something has gone wrong. 

 A different way to interpret this feeling is to understand that you've been in training for 9 months and that has prepared you to really be able to press forward in the work of spreading the gospel. 

 By this time, you are proficient in the language, you understand the culture, you know the people and have become a strong tool in God's hands in guiding people to the gospel.

 To be able to keep feeling the "higher level" of excitement for you mission, one good practice is to implement TONS OF GRATITUDE! The gratitude you feel increases your awareness of the GOODNESS OF GOD and will uplevel your mission.

 2. Homesickness is made manageable as you focus on serving.

 Homesickness comes to most missionaries. For some, they can become consumed by their yearning for the comforts of home so much that it can impact their ability to serve. Some mission presidents have even sent missionaries home (almost without warning) from being too homesick.

 Again...Understand that with homesickenss, NOTHING HAS GONE WRONG. You are meant to face these times. It will strengthen you to go through them. Your feelings are brought on by your thoughts always. 

 Challenge the thoughts that challenge you. Decide on how you want to feel about your mission, and find the thoughts that keep you in that place.

 This is also where "forget yourself and get to work" fit in. It's harder to be homesick when you are focused on serving others. 

 Also, look for the hand of God in your day and see that He is guiding you and helping you. This will comfort you so that you will be able to continue each day. Intellectually you can know that serving can help you, but until you are actually experiencing homesickness for yourself, it's harder to comprehend the feelings. 

 If you want more help preparing for your upcoming mission, come to a free mini-session and learn about my 6 week program. It's awesome! and I would love to share it with you.

 Book your slot at https://www.facebook.com/LornaOlsonCoaching before they're filled. 

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