LDS Mission- MTC

My LDS Mission

The Mission Training Center

Wednesday at the MTC is real-life 'Fear Factor'

By Doug Robinson
Deseret Morning News

Wednesdays at the MTC aren't the easiest day in the lives of LDS families. Wednesdays are the worst — and, later, the best. Wednesdays are the day dozens of new missionaries report for duty and say goodbye to parents, brothers, sisters and childhood. <more....>

About the MTC

At the Church's Missionary Training Center (MTC) in Provo, Utah, young men and women as well as retired men and women from around the world come together to prepare to serve the Lord. The purpose of the MTC is to provide an atmosphere of peace, love, trust, confidence, and respect in which missionaries can prepare for missionary service. <more...>

One of the challenges that are handed to us at the MTC is to read the entire Book of Mormon in while living there. For those who attend for only 3 weeks this is truly a challenge. Every minute that the missionary is not in class or otherwise busy is taken up by reading. I accepted that challenge and met it.

We were placed in 'Districts' with other missionaries leaving at the same time, but for various similar missions. The district I was in also had my 'companion' Sister Folsom and 10 Elders. We went to all our classes together, we studied together, we ate together and got to be good friends in such a short time.

One day toward the end of our stay in the MTC our district was waiting in our classroom for our instructor to show up. While waiting we decided to sing. We chose to sing 'A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief' written by James Montgomery. We sang all seven verses of that wonderful hymn. This was a favorite hymn of the Prophet Joseph Smith. He had John Taylor sing that hymn as they sat in a jail in Carthage, Illinois moments before he was murdered by a mob from the outside of the jail.

We sang this song with no accompaniment and as we sang the final two verses the room felt to us as if it were floating and not a dry eye could be found among us.

"...My friendship's utmost zeal to try, He asked if I for him would die. The flesh was weak; my blood ran chill, But my free spirit cried, 'I will!'...

"Then in a moment to my view The stranger started from disguise. The tokens in his hands I knew; The Savior stood before mine eyes. He spake, and my poor name he named, 'Of me thou hast not been ashamed. These deeds shall thy memorial be; Fear not, thou didst them unto me.'"

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