LDS Missionaries Laura And Mitch Gillins Return Home To Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, Discuss Their Missions With The Local Media

The Beaver Dam Daily Citizen recently reported on the return of local residents Laura and Mitch Gillins from the missions they served for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Laura and Mitch Gillins are brother and sister. They received their mission calls about the same time; Laura, who is older, was sent to the Spokane, Washington area, while Mitch was sent to the Salt Lake City area. They kept in contact, and bucked up one another when one was down in the dumps. They strove to keep each other's faith at critical mass. Some quotes:

Laura: “Missions are very hard. You have people who slam the door in your face, who spit on you, people with knives and guns, just people threatening you"..."Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were always there. They were always our rock, and we could always look to them for strength and comfort. And sometimes they would send comfort through other people; your companion or your mission president.”

Mitch: “The Lord has his hand in everything we do . . . you’re probably going to get discouraged, but don’t get depressed, because when you’re depressed you don’t get any work done.”

This brother and sister bring the number of missionaries from the Gillins family to four, while a fifth, brother Adam, is preparing to go out. Laura will be going on to college at BYU-Idaho to study health science, while Mitch will attend BYU-Idaho to study auto mechanics. Many missionaries look forward to "decompressing" after completion of their missions, but in a Mormon Times article, BYU professor Randy Botts urges them not to decompress, saying that a mission is a pre-game warm up for life, not just a brief spiritual intermission. "You don't go to school to get you bachelor's, master's and doctorate to walk away and say, 'Ok, it's done, I can forget that stuff now...' How stupid would that be?", asked Botts. He wishes missionaries would remember, and more importantly, use their spiritual knowledge and good habits when in school and throughout life.

But better yet, read former Church President Harold B. Lee's advice to returned missionaries, posted HERE.