June 4, 2018 ~ A Letter to Prospective Missionaries (Week 47)

(Teresa’s Note: Last week was a rough one for Sister Brooks. One of her good friends in the mission went home due to mental health issues--One of six in the last few weeks.

Recently, Sister Brooks was asked to write a letter to prospective missionaries and she asked that I post the letter on her blog this week.

She wants to re-emphasize that the sole purpose of the blog and in sharing her story is to help others and to invite all to Come unto Christ.)

Dear Future Missionaries,

For those of you who don't know me, my name is Savanna Brooks (Hermana Brooks).

I am currently serving a mission in California, and I have been out for about a year. I have been asked to offer you all some advice, as well as share with you some things to expect, to help you prepare for the mission field.

The first thing I want you to know is that you will never regret your decision to serve.

There is something so exciting yet terrifying about turning your will over to the Lord. There truly is no other time in your life where you will have the opportunity to devote 2 years or 18 months solely to the teaching and saving of souls. You will have the opportunity to be set apart as a full-time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

You will have the opportunity to leave behind everything that is comfortable and dive into everything that isn't. You will have the opportunity to learn to call a new place home; you will have the opportunity to call strangers family.

You will have the opportunity to see lives change through the gospel of Jesus Christ, including your own.

You will have the opportunity to strengthen your testimony of Jesus Christ and the testimonies of those around you.

You will have the opportunity to learn a new language (maybe), eat new and diverse foods, and experience a new culture.

You will have the opportunity to learn, love, laugh, sing, cry, pray, walk, teach, and eat more than you ever have. 

You will have the opportunity to be a full time representative of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

How great is your calling, and how great is your opportunity!

In order for you to effectively represent the Savior in the way the church and Heavenly Father know you can, a few prerequisites are necessary. These are not to categorize you or filter out the weak (which is what I thought they were for prior to starting my mission). They are simply to help you enjoy your mission to your utmost ability, through being an effective representative of the Savior.

So, when it comes to the paperwork that you are required to fill out and submit, do it honestly. If you have some medical conditions, let them know. If your mental/emotional health isn't strong, let them know. The church and Heavenly Father know that if you are not where you should be physically, mentally, or emotionally, your mission experience will be miserable rather than enjoyable.

I know, because I can speak from experience.

My entire life, I struggled with anxiety and depression. I never admitted to it, because I considered myself as "tough". 

I enjoyed sports...

...and being social and from an outsider's perspective, I'm sure it seemed as though I never had any issues. For this cause, I failed to get help; I didn't want to ruin my reputation or be seen as weak. This continued into college (where my anxiety and depression got much worse), and even as I prepared for my mission.

(I'm on the left.)

I was afraid to admit to struggling with anxiety/depression in my mission paperwork, because I had never been properly diagnosed. I was afraid that if I admitted my struggles, I wouldn't be able to leave when I wanted to leave or I wouldn't be able to serve where I wanted to serve. I told myself that because I had "dealt with it" my entire life, I would be fine in the mission field. I failed to see that the church is adamant about awareness of mental illness because they know how hard serving a mission really is. Because I wasn't completely honest on my application about anxiety and depression, the first part of my mission was spent in therapist/doctor's offices. I wasn't able to fully enjoy my mission experience because I had to take care of the mental health issues that I had failed to address beforehand. 



Do yourself, the Lord, and the people with whom you will be serving a favor- 

BE COMPLETELY HONEST!

You know yourself better than anyone else and you know whether or not you struggle with this sort of thing. 

If you don't struggle with anxiety or depression or any other sort of mental illness, great! I don't want you to freak out or assume that everyone who comes on a mission has depression, because the majority don't.

But you WILL experience stress and sadness. WHEN (not if) you feel these emotions, be prepared to properly cope with them in such a way that you can still remain with your companion and obey mission rules.

Read Adjusting to Missionary Life from the Gospel Library and refer back to it often throughout your mission. 

You will no longer be in high school, so don't assume you will be. You will arrive having no former reputation, so make your new one a good one. There will be no time for putting others down, so don't allow it to happen.

You will be expected to act like an adult, speak like an adult, and manage money like an adult. 

Be prepared to listen to people who "have authority over you" but who are your same age.

Be humble, be open to correction, and be ready to do what you are asked to do by priesthood leaders- even if you don't want to do it. There is so much for you to learn.

Keep your mind and heart open to advice, and always obey your mission president.

My next piece of advice is something that I'm sure you expected at one point or another: If you are not worthy, get worthy. You know whether you are or not. Wear the Saviors name upon your chest with respect. You will teach repentance on a daily basis.

Do not mock the Atonement of Jesus Christ by refusing to accept His sacrifice and pain that He went through specifically for you.




Do not reject His love by choosing not to partake of His healing and cleansing power.

It may seem painful to admit your sins prior to leaving on a mission, but it is more painful to go home to do so. Allow yourself to be clean, so that you can feel the true joy that comes with helping others to be as well. 

You cannot hide your sins from the Lord, so don't try. 


When you come to the field completely clean and worthy, it enables your mission experience to be enjoyable.

Things I wish people would have told me before I entered the MTC: Start reading Preach My Gospel now. (specifically the lessons in Chapter 3). It doesn't hurt to have a head start. 😃 Start praying for your trainer and the people you will teach, now. If you are learning a language, start doing Duo Lingo when you have some free time. Recognize when you get stressed and learn coping strategies; practice them (breathing exercises, in-home workouts, etc). Print off the talk "Missionary Work and the Atonement" and read it often throughout your mission. (also, the talk "The First Great Commandment" is incredible. Both are by Jeffrey R. Holland.) And trust that you have been assigned to serve in the place where the Lord feels you are needed most in the world. He definitely knows what He's doing!! 😊 

Serving a mission truly is the most incredible opportunity you will ever take part in. Let yourself enjoy it! Yes, it is hard. Yes, you will feel sad and stressed and homesick and get in fights with your companions. Yes, you will get angry when the investigator you've been teaching for 4 months says they don't want to be baptized. Yes, you will have doors slammed in your face and mean things yelled at you while you walk down the street. And yes, you will probably have a breakdown or five. 

I won't sugar coat it, because it's reality:

Missions aren't easy!

But somehow, through it all, you will never feel happier.

You will never get tired of hearing someone say, "yeah, I actually have wondered what happens after we die", or "yeah, I have wondered how there are so many churches and which one is true."

You will never get tired of feeling the spirit testify through you, as you hear yourself say words that you didn't know would come out of your mouth.

You will never get tired of seeing the chills on people's arms as you recite the First Vision, or hearing someone say, "I feel peace" when you ask them how they feel during a lesson. 

You will never get tired of seeing someone you've prayed and fasted for, walk in the doors of the church.

You will never get tired of seeing someone you've come to love thank you for helping them find the truth.

You will never get tired of seeing tears stream down someone’s face as you showed up right when they needed you. 




You will never get tired of helping random strangers.

You will honestly never feel happier than you will while serving the Lord and your brothers and sisters. Let them change you and let them teach you, because you will be led to them for a reason.

I didn't know that happy tears were a thing until I came to the mission field. I didn't know how much the Savior loves us, until I felt that pure love radiate through me for someone else. I didn't know what it felt like to experience real joy, until I felt it in my heart and saw it grow within the hearts of those I have taught. 

I didn't know how enabling the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ really is, until I testified of it with all of my being to someone who felt they had no hope left in this life.

I didn't know of the power of the Book of Mormon, until I saw it change someone's life and family.

I didn't know that the remission of sins was so real, until I saw someone I loved, dressed in white, come out of the waters of baptism with a smile on their face while saying, "I've never felt so clean."

I didn't know how simply God hears and answers prayers, until I saw someone humbly kneel and receive an answer that this is the true church.

I didn't know that I could care so much for the salvation of others, until I met people that chose NOT to be saved.

I thought I knew how true this gospel was before I came here, but I didn't know just how much until I saw people learn it for themselves.

I mean it when I say you will never regret your decision to serve. Let yourself learn and let yourself love. There are so many good things in store for you!

"You will come to know that what appears today to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment you will ever make".  (Gordon B. Hinckley)

"Lift up your heart and rejoice, for the hour of your mission is come; and your tongue shall be loosed, and you shall declare glad tidings of great joy unto this generation." (D&C 31:3)

You represent the Savior and His message. Allow yourself to be an instrument in His hands. I know that He trusts you. If he didn't, he wouldn't have called you as an 18 or 19-year old, to bring His children back home to Him.

He knows what you are capable of and He knows how strong you really are.

He loves you. Make Him proud. 💜💜💜

Love, Hermana Brooks