Men on a mission

Published 12:00 am Tuesday, January 28, 2003

Being a member of the Church of Latter Day Saints is not easy. Elder Johnson, from Aurora, Colo., and Elder Lowe, from Orlando, Fla., spent time this past fall in Austin as missionaries.

Male missionaries that are sent out to spread the word of Jesus Christ are usually between the ages of 19 and 26. Female missionaries are between the ages of 21 and 31.

A missionary pays for his two years of service himself. The two young men worked and saved money before embarking on their mission. The money they raised is given to them as a stipend during their two years to pay for rent, food, clothes and transportation.

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The male missionaries are not hard to spot because they dress in dark suits when they are out in public. They are required to have two suits when they embark on their service.

"Before we are sent out we went to a training center in Provo, Utah. Here we went through on the job training to prepare us for our mission work," Lowe said.

For two years these men have direct contact with their families only twice a year by phone calls. The rest of the year they rely on e-mail and regular mail for family contact. They make sacrifices by not listening to the radio, watching television or going to movies during these two years.

"We did go to the SPAM museum. It was great," Lowe said. "We have to stay in the Austin area. We can play sports and do physical exercise. We cannot date but we can shake a girl's hand. We have to stay focused on what we are here for."

Lowe said their mission work consists of three principles:

n Spreading the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Gospel.

n Learning about families; why they are happy or unhappy.

n Learning to live on your own, talking with other people and finding yourself.

A typical day for the two begins at 6:30 a.m. when they read the Book of Mormon and the Bible. They leave their apartment at 9:30 a.m. They do a lot of walking and knock on doors to spread their message and visit with people. They travel to the rural towns in Mower County and they have been well-received, Lowe said.

"We support each other. I have been on mission for three and a half months while Elder Lowe has been on mission for 17 months," Johnson said.

New missionaries are paired with someone who has been out on mission for more than a year. The state mission president gets inspiration on deciding who gets paired with whom. There is a network of members that check on the young men each evening at 9:30 via the missionary president of Minnesota to see that they are safe.

"My 17 months have gone fast. I want to go to college when I quit and get my associates degree at a junior college in Idaho. I hope to eventually get my Master's Degree in Business

Administration," Lowe said.

Johnson is hoping to go to Brigham Young University in Salt Lake and is thinking of becoming an RN.

The two have learned a lot being on their own. They have gotten support from the Church of Latter Day Saints in Austin. They have had to cook their own meals and Lowe said he is the more creative cook.

"We have been invited to some family homes and have gotten some financial support. It is hard at times when we need a little extra money because we don't have paying jobs. We learn to get by," Lowe said.

Mormons are family-orientated. The two missionaries encourage people to be baptized in the church, but they must believe that the word of Jesus Christ is true and that Joseph Smith restored the church. Another belief is that the Church of Latter Day Saints is the only true church.

"We encourage people to read, pray, listen and ask God what is true. We guide people, that's our mission," Lowe said.

Sheila Donnelly can be reached at 434-2233 or by e-mail at newsroom@austindailyherald.com