I was once one of those young men in a shirt and tie for two years in Michigan. Give them courtesy, let them share the message, ponder it, and ultimately you decide if you want to hear more.
The church has always been called The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Mormon's became a nickname due to The Book of Mormon, which is another testament of Jesus Christ. The church has pushed to not use the term Mormon, because of the confusion it has caused among non-members. Many, not of the faith, never even realized that we are a Christian faith. But it's always been in the name and belief of the church.
My wife and I have discovered the blessings of hosting the LDS missionaries in Carlsbad for a while now. It started with a quick visit with my wife while she was out working in the yard early this past spring. She invited them to come back when I was home and they did so.
They shared the Book of Mormon with us and that began a continuing conversation about Christ that continues today.
We have not converted to the LDS church, never will, and have made that plain to them. Personally, we don't believe that the Book of Mormon is true, but we can agree that Christ is our Savior, that His Life, Death, and Resurrection changed the world, and that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.
They come over at least once a week, most times we feed them, and we discuss the Bible and matters of the Christian faith. For the most part, they are very knowledgeable in the Bible, moreso the New Testament, and are eager to learn more about Christ and share what they have learned about Him.
They are remarkable young men, with a very tough assignment, and every one we have met has a servant's heart.
Think about being 18 years old, shipped off to a strange area, walking or biking a town, talking with complete strangers about a very sensitive and (mostly) private subject while having to bear the sometimes extremely harsh responses of both non-believers and other supposed "Christians". Limited to a very small stipend to live on, forced to wear a uniform and a badge that proclaims them to be "elders", being moved around to different towns several times during their two year mission, working alongside different "companions" on each change of locations, and learning to not take things personally, meeting each person where they are in life.
The body of LDS missionaries in this area has turned over several times since early Spring and we try to keep the continuity going with each new transferee. They are treated like our sons just as we hope that someone would treat our own kids if they were to travel to a strange town on a difficult job.
Ed
