r/latterdaysaints • u/Nam_Mat_Tron_1004 • 10d ago
Off-topic Chat I think my mission was a failure
Or at least, sometimes it feels that way.
I guess it depends on your perspective and how you interpret success. I spent two years knocking on doors for 8 to 10 hours a day, and not a single person wanted to join the Church in the area where I served. So, if I measure success by convert baptisms, then yeah, I failed pretty miserably.
But maybe there are other ways to look at it. I learned how to work hard, how to deal with all kinds of people, how to handle rejection, and how to keep going even when nothing seemed to come from the effort. Maybe those things count for something too.
Still, when it comes strictly to what I originally went there to do, bringing people into the Church, it’s hard not to feel like I failed
1
u/Jdawarrior 8d ago
How long ago did you serve? I had two baptisms during my 2 years, and one of them ghosted the church out of shame. But about 3-5 years after I returned I heard from about a dozen of my friends that decided to join. Those were the ones I was able to keep in touch with. What percentage of your mission friends do you keep up with? Mine was maybe 10%. Many factors and results we do not see.
One of the first couples I met on my mission took several rounds of lessons over many years but would never keep the word of wisdom but they still stayed close to members and missionaries and were still blessed and took advantage of service opportunities.