Summary: When missionaries are in the right place at the right time, they will have the Spirit of the Lord with them which will bear testimony that what they are teaching is true, a crucial element of the conversion process.
The principle of being in the right place at the right time applies to all of us. It means to do what the Lord expects you to do at the time the Lord expects you to do it. It applies to missions, temple marriage, and everyday opportunities to serve our fellow beings. For today, I’d like to focus on what it means for young men and all missionaries to be in the right place at the right time.
The Right Place for Young Men is on a Mission
First of all, for young men in their late teens or early twenties, the right place to be at that time in your life is on a mission. The prophets have long taught that every young man should serve a mission. Recently, at the October 2012 General Conference, President Thomas S. Monson said, “We affirm that missionary work is a priesthood duty—and we encourage all young men who are worthy and who are physically able and mentally capable to respond to the call to serve.”
It was in that same talk that President Monson announced the reduced age for missionary service for young men to be 18 years old. Said Pres. Monson, “I am not suggesting that all young men will—or should—serve at this earlier age. Rather, based on individual circumstances as well as upon a determination by priesthood leaders, this option is now available.” The prophet has never said that young men need to leave on their mission right at age 18. He gives young men the flexibility to find a good time to go, to wrap up school or work or athletics, and then go on a mission. But certainly by the time that young men reach their early twenties, if they are going to school or working or involved in athletics instead of being out in the mission field, they are not in the right place at that time in their life. The age limit for men to serve a mission is 25, so for young men in their early 20s, the right place to be at that time of life is on a full-time mission.
Following the Missionary Daily Schedule
The second aspect of being in the right place at the right time that I would like to discuss is about mission life, obeying mission rules, and doing the things you are supposed to do at the times you are supposed to do them. Mormon missionaries are expected to work hard, be obedient, and keep a strict schedule. Here’s a quick overview of the daily routine:
- 6:30 a.m. Wake up, pray, exercise, eat breakfast, and do other preparation for the day.
- 8:00 a.m. Personal study: the Book of Mormon, other scriptures, chapters from Preach My Gospel, etc.
- 9:00 a.m. Companion study: share what you have learned during personal study and prepare to teach.
- 10:00 a.m. Begin proselyting: teaching appointments, finding people to teach, etc.
- Lunch and Dinner: You may take an hour for lunch and an hour for dinner at times that fit best with proselyting.
- 9:00 – 9:30 p.m. Return to the apartment and plan the next day’s activities. Write in journal, prepare for bed, pray.
- 10:30 p.m. Go to bed.
- This schedule may vary a little in some countries and missions. For example, in the Rosario Argentina mission, where I served from 1995 to 1997, we were expected to be out proselytizing by 9am and we had our companionship study after lunch.
Even when it is hot, or snowy, or rainy, or cold, it is important for missionaries to keep this schedule. The schedule helps you as a missionary be in the right place at the right time, and as you do so, the Lord will bless you. It is important to be out of your apartment, meeting people, and sharing your testimony at the most opportune times. If it is mid-morning, 10:30-ish, and you are still in your apartment, then you are not in the right place at the time time. If it is mid-morning and you are knocking doors, meeting people, and sharing your testimony, then you are in the right place at the right time. If you have been lingering at a member’s home after a dinner appointment and you have been there for over an hour, then you are not in the right place at the right time. If you keep your dinner appointment to under an hour, thank the members for their hospitality, and then you get on your way to your next teaching appointment, then you are in the right place at the right time.
You get the point. Keeping this schedule is an important component of being obedient to the mission rules. And as you are obedient to the rules you are asked to live by, you will have the Spirit in greater measure. You will be guided by God and be more successful in your missionary labors.
Examples of Missionary Success By Being in the Right Place at the Right Time
Virtually every family I taught and baptized was a result of being in the right place at the right time. I know that had I not been obedient to the missionary daily schedule, then I would have missed out on many opportunities to meet families, and eventually see them join the true Church of Jesus Christ. Here are some examples:
- Finding Juan Carlos Lopez. I had just been transferred to the area and it would have been easy to justify lingering longer in the apartment to unpack my suitcases. But it was 9am, and we knew we were supposed to be out working. And it was that morning that my companion and I ran into Juan Carlos Lopez, who eventually got baptized.
- Reconnecting with a Family in Rosario. We had taught a family in the city of Rosario and they had been progressing well, when all of a sudden they lost interest in meeting with us. We didn’t see them for a few weeks, but one day when we were out working, we happen to run into them on the sidewalk and we resumed the discussions. They got baptized soon thereafter, and this wouldn’t have happened if we hadn’t been out working at the appropriate time.
- Finding teaching and baptizing the Lescano Family wouldn’t have happened if we hadn’t been in the right place at the right time.
- Also, meeting and getting an appointment with the Godoy family is another example to led to a family being baptized.
- The examples could go on and on.
“I, the Lord, have suffered you to come unto this place…for the salvation of souls”
The Lord spoke to the prophet Joseph Smith about being in the right place at the right time in order to bring about the salvation of souls. In D&C 100: 4- 8, the Savior says, “Therefore, I, the Lord, have suffered you to come unto this place; for thus it was expedient in me for the salvation of souls. Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men; For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say. But a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall declare whatsoever thing ye declare in my name, in solemnity of heart, in the spirit of meekness, in all things. And I give unto you this promise, that inasmuch as ye do this the Holy Ghost shall be shed forth in bearing record unto all things whatsoever ye shall say.”
Future missionaries, you will be called by God as a missionary and sent to the place where the Lord would have you serve. There are people in that area that need the gospel and need you to bring it to them. Please be in the right place at the right time in order to do the work and bring the blessings of the gospel to the people of the world according to your call from God. Be where you are supposed to be. Do what you are supposed to do. Open your mouth, preach the gospel, bear testimony of the Savior, and teach by the Holy Ghost. The Spirit will testify to the hearts of the people that what you are teaching is true and you will have more power to convert. I know that as you do this you will be blessed and you will be an instrument in the hands of the Lord in bringing to pass much righteousness.
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