Sending missionaries

One thing we learned when we sent Johnathan on his mission is that whatever cost estimate you've heard...double it! About 2 weeks before we were taking Johnathan to the MTC the van broke down. We ended up replacing the fuel pump at the tune of $800. This time we had to call a repairman to fix the fridge. Fortunately, it didn't cost $800. When we realized there was a problem we moved all the freezer items to the food storage freezer, and the milk and cheese into a cooler filled with ice. The problem was the fan had broken down...$148 plus half a gallon of milk.

Another thing we learned was that as soon as Johnathan was set apart, the blessings of having a missionary started kicking in. From that point on and for the next two years, things seemed to last longer and run better. We had a few break downs and repairs (the biggest was crushing my foot and Tom's fall off the ladder), but all in all things went rather smoothly...until Johnathan came home and things started breaking down.

While we were getting Johnathan ready I heard so much about the "sacrifice" a mission was. The boys sacrificing time, schooling, money and jobs. The parents sacrificing money, time, support and their child. I couldn't see it as a sacrifice. I served a mission and I knew the blessings Johnathan would be receiving. I knew they outweighed anything he was giving up. I saw it as a priviledge for Johnathan and for us. It's an amazing opportunity to serve the Lord, serve his children and the blessings received are amazing.

I knew that our family would be blessed for having a son/brother serving as a missionary. As far as I'm concerned the greatest blessing I received was the knowledge that Heavenly Father loves me. He knows me and loves me no matter what, no matter how imperfect I am. I didn't know that before. I'm excited to see what blessings Tim's mission brings.