I served for two years as a Mormon missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormon Church) in Mississippi and Louisiana. It was the greatest experience of my life. I loved sharing the gospel with the people of the South because so many of them have deep faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. They were very kind to us missionaries coming to their door. I cannot count the number of people who let me into their home, as a complete stranger, to share what I believe. I learned that “southern hospitality” is very real and I believe it is because the people have good Christian values. There were also many people who turned us away but even this was usually done politely.

I was asked many times by the faithful people of the South why I was trying to convert people who are already Christian. Many are living very honorable lives and serving their fellow men as they put their trust in Jesus Christ. They would ask why we don’t send our Mormon missionaries to other parts of the world where people don’t know about Jesus Christ. I would explain that we do. We have missionaries all over the world speaking almost every language. We also have Mormon missionaries who are devoted to humanitarian aid. We try in every way that we can to help God’s children and bring them back to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ.
They would still wonder why they as Christians needed to talk to me. As I pondered this question, the answer came to me very powerfully in the form of a question: “Why would any Christian not want to know that Jesus Christ has restored His church to the earth, the very church that we read about in the New Testament?” I would simply explain to those who didn’t understand why I served in the South, that the message that we bring is from God and that He sent us out to share it with everyone.
Our message is very simple and extremely important. God is our Father in Heaven, and He loves us very much. By sinning we cut ourselves off from His presence and He has prepared a way for us to return to live with Him (John 3:16). Throughout all of time God has called prophets (See Amos 3:7) to teach us that this way is through His Son, Jesus Christ (John 14:6). Jesus Christ truly suffered and died for our sins that we might be forgiven and He was resurrected so that we will all live again. These prophets that teach of Jesus Christ hold the authority of God to lead us and keep the doctrines of Christ’s gospel pure. Jesus Christ himself taught His gospel when He came to the earth, and He established His church on the “foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20).
God is a God of order and the Church that was established by Jesus Christ was very well organized. He called apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers and others to help build up the Saints and bring everyone to a “unity of the faith”. The church was established to bring everyone to “a knowledge of the Son of God” (See Ephesians 4:11-13).
Sadly, before everyone could be brought to a knowledge of the Son of God and be brought to this unity of faith, Jesus Christ and the leaders of His church were killed. The Lord prophesied that this would happen. He said to his disciples on the Mount of Olives, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:9-11).
This prophecy was fulfilled. The very foundation of Jesus Christ’s church was destroyed, and the followers of Christ were left to interpret things on their own. Without the authority of God, or the priesthood, men interpreted the scriptures in many different ways and started the many different denominations that we see in the world today. The unity of the faith that was to be established was not achieved and we now have many different religions with highly varying beliefs.
I loved serving in the South because, in sharing the creation of Jesus Christ’s church and the following apostasy or falling away, many people came to understand something that they had been trying to figure out for a long time. I met so many people that had attended many different churches and couldn’t understand why the teachings were so much different and why the churches competed so much with each other. I loved being able to explain that Jesus Christ had established His church but that it was lost.
I was then able to explain the answer to the question I was asked so many times: “Why was I talking to people who were already Christian?” I was able to explain that Jesus Christ didn’t want His church gone forever and that He has restored it to the earth to prepare the way for His second coming. Because they could see the results of the confusion that had resulted following the apostasy, many of the people of the South recognized the need for this restoration of Jesus Christ’s original church.
The Church was restored through the prophet Joseph Smith. Much like the people of the South that I was talking to, Joseph had seen the confusion of the many churches in New York as he was growing up. He searched long and hard trying to find out which church to join. He did what all of us must do to find answers from God. He studied his scriptures and he prayed. In the spring of 1820, he went to a quiet grove of trees near his home and prayed vocally to our Father in Heaven. He prayed to know which of all the churches he should join. He had an incredible experience in which he saw God our Father and his Son Jesus Christ.
He said of this experience, “I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me . . . when the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!” (Joseph Smith History 1:16-17)
Joseph was called as a prophet, and Jesus Christ established His church again on the earth in these last days through him. I loved being able to share with the people of the South that the Mormon church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is the Lord’s church again established on the earth. I saw people’s lives change as they came unto Jesus Christ and lived by His teachings. It was an incredible experience to see someone recognize that the Lord didn’t stop speaking in ancient times but that He has again called prophets and apostles to guide us in these troubling times.
There were also many people that didn’t believe what we taught. I had never had so many people question my beliefs from every angle. This caused me to study my scriptures more and pray to my Father in Heaven to know what was true. I found from God through the power of the Holy Ghost that the message that I was sharing is true. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and that He is leading His church today through a modern prophet and twelve apostles. As my knowledge and testimony of this grew stronger and stronger, I would say to people, “I’m here to tell you that this is true. Your neighbor will tell you something else is true. You can ask me what is true. You can ask your pastor what is true. You can ask anyone what is true, but I don’t want you to get your answer from any of us. I want you to get your answer from God through prayer and scripture study. That is the only way that I know for myself.”
Even though many didn’t believe what I taught and even heavily questioned my beliefs, I was amazed at the kindness that they showed to me and the other missionaries. I have some great friends that I still keep in touch with that are active members of other faiths. These friends include pastors and leaders of other churches. It is one of our articles of faith in the Mormon church that “we claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.” (Articles of Faith 1:11).
As Mormons, we believe in allowing others to believe as they desire. We still try to share our beliefs with everyone and when I am asked why I share my beliefs with other Christians I will continue to respond with the question, “Why would any Christian not want to know that Jesus Christ has restored His church to the earth, the very church that we read about in the New Testament?”