Signs of Obedience - Yay!
President Quinn and I, as mission leaders, desire that our missionaries know we love them. We also want them to know that because we love them, we have high expectations for them. One of the key values in our mission culture, along with high love, is to serve meeting the high expectations the Lord has set for His disciples.
High expectations includes each missionary being obedient to the “Missionary Standards for Disciples of Jesus Christ,” When missionaries are obedient marvelous things happen! The Lord can trust them — we can trust them! They feel their sense of purpose as a missionary. They are more confident. They are more effective. They teach with the Spirit. They are humble and work hard. They get along better with their companion. They are happier. And when obedience is high we see miracles happen in their service and in their lives!
I find it interesting that the word obedience comes from the Latin word ‘obedire,” meaning, “to hear and to harken.” When we obey the commandments of our Father in Heaven, it is a sign that we hear and pay attention to Him. It shows that we put our trust in Him to know what is best for us. I know that as I align with and act on God’s will, I see goodness and blessings in my life! Yay for obedience!!
It warms my heart when I see signs of obedience from missionaries. Here are some photos showing those signs!
Below you see two phones on the floor in a hallway outside a bathroom at church that I came across. One of our safeguards and rules for missionaries is to not take their phones into the bathroom with them. This is so that they are not tempted to waste time scrolling or are not tempted to go to unapproved sites. Yay for obedience!
Signs of obedience - two phones left outside of a bathroom
Our missionaries are asked to look professional by not wearing open toe shoes and sandals. Here are two sister missionaries who have found some cute shoes for the summer and are being obedient to the dress standards. Yay for obedience!
Signs of obedience - closed toe footwear for the summer!
We ask our missionaries to go early to church and greet members as they arrive for meetings. As President Quinn and I attend different wards throughout the mission, we see our missionaries arrive early to greet members. Yay for obedience!
Signs of obedience - Elder Wiley and Elder Poulsen greeting members in the Rincon Valley Ward.
Our missionaries are asked to dress up with suit coats and ties for the elders, and dresses for the sisters, whenever they attend zone conferences, district counsels or for interviews with President Quinn. Yay for obedience!
Signs of Obedience - missionaries in Vacaville dressed up nicely for District Council.
Our missionaries are asked to be nicely groomed and to display their name tags at all times. Yay for obedience!
Signs of obedience - Hermana Miles, Sister Smart, and Hermana Roberts beautifully groomed and showing their name tags.
Our missionaries are asked to love and watch over each other. Here are the Fairfield missionaries at a zone council meeting and lunch this past week. Yay for obedience!
Signs of obedience - Fairfield zone enjoying friendships during lunch together.
I am so grateful for obedient missionaries who love and trust the Lord and are willing to sacrifice for Him. The Lord is certainly blessing the California Santa Rosa Mission as I see miracles each day in the service of our missionaries.
