Some Day My Prince Will Come...

Banter time!

So I asked on the "interwebs" or the "www's" (whatever you desire to call it), what topic should I do for a late night rant/banter? And a dear friend of mine who I aspire to be said, "Waiting For A Missionary."

Ooooooh boy. Hold on to your seats, folks. I have A LOT to say about this.

I used to think waiting for a boy was TOTALLY fine. I really didn't have an opinion on it till I was like 16 (maybe that's because boys got super interesting at that age). I'm the type of girl who LOVES boys, but is a "tom boy" herself. I like to be around boys. Does that make me, excuse my French, a "slut" (as some whippersnappers call it these days)? No. Not at all. But I am a girl, I still get twitterpatted and I easily start to like a boy if the opportunity comes up - which, in my opinion, is completely normal when it comes to girls.

As I started going into Seminary, marriage and dating became a BIG topic. One day at the beginning of class during my Junior Year in high school, my friend Jacob Peterson was giving the devotional (which is a mini MINI lesson on a principle/doctrine before the teacher teaches the BIG lesson). He decided to talk about "waiting for missionaries." He told a story of a couple and the boyfriend was about to leave for a mission. The girl promised to wait for him...but she ended up dating and getting engaged to another guy. She "Dear John-ed" the Missionary boyfriend and went on with her life. BUT lo and behold, the marriage was STOPPED and when the Missionary boyfriend got home, they got married! NOW PAY ATTENTION. THIS IS RARE. If you are going to "wait" for someone, don't expect a "happily ever after" with this specific person. (the truth hurts!) It's nice to think of, BUT REMEMBER. It's the Lord's way and that's that. Don't spend the whole 18 months-2 years, being a hermit and not going on dates. You'll be surprised that the person you said you'll "wait for", isn't your eternal companion. It'll also sting more when you and what you thought was your future companion, break up. Yes, "Dear John-ing"/"Dear Jane-ing" is hard to do and even harder to receive. But we're here on this Earth to find out eternal companion, have a celestial marriage so we can receive the bountiful amount of happiness prepared for us in Heaven. Support the missionary by helping focus on his mission. He/She shouldn't be on his mission thinking of holding your hand/kissing you/marrying you. He/She has a HUGE job to do and it's INCREDIBLY important that they focus on:

1) Loving/Serving the People in their area.

2) Being Obedient to the Mission Standards.

3) Having the Spirit with them 24/7. If they don't have the Spirit, they will NOT function.

4) Using the Atonement on a DAILY basis.

If you are writing your missionary and all you can talk about is marrying them? STOP. They are not able to function correctly with a boyfriend/girlfriend on their mind. They only need to be thinking about the people and the work they need to do. And if you don't want to do this, all I can say is, I feel sorry for you.

"Aubri, do you have a missionary?" No, I do not own a missionary. Is there a missionary out there that I'm interested in? Yes. But that is private. :) I have not told him how I feel and I plan to keep it that way until we're both back from our missions/if we're available. I will NEVER forgive myself if I distracted this person while they are on their mission. If he is already married when I get back, I will support him in that as well. Of course, it will sting for a bit but I'm human...and that just means my body is working. It also means there is some hunka hunka BURNIN' love out there for me to find.

 It makes me incredibly sad when I hear of girlfriends who are sending pictures of wedding dresses/colors/decorations to missionaries currently in the field. You are distracting them from the work! YOU ARE. If you can't take the wait and if you cannot be patient, you are going to struggle in any marriage as well and you will live life in regret.

So Sisters, save yourself from the pain and regret. Don't wait for the missionary (unless you know FOR SURE he is the one), support them and love them for what they are doing.

Banter, COMPLETE.