The Mission Miracle

One of many miracles in Mom and Dad’s life happen in 2004.  Dad’s company was struggling and Mom had just passed her 5 year mark of being cancer free.  One Sunday Dad was teaching a lesson in High Priests when he received a very strong prompting that he and Mom needed to go on a mission and they needed to go “now.”  They did not know how they could do this because they each had parents who were getting older and needed their help, not to mention the several grandchildren they did not want to leave. Without hesitation they put their finances in order and put their mission papers in.

They were told by several people that they should ask to go to a certain place or go to a certain type of mission that they would enjoy.  I will never forget Dad telling me, “Teague, if the Lord is inspired to call you to a certain place when you are 19, why would he not be inspired when you are older?” So they put their papers in with no requests.  I was at their house the day they opened the call to the Geneva, Switzerland Mission to work with the Young Single Adults in the Institute.  Years later we met a person who served on the committee to assign missionaries.  He told us that he remembered when Mom and Dad’s name came up because there was an unusually strong spirit in the room and there was no question which mission they were supposed to serve in.

They served in the institute in Lyon, France.  Lyon and its suburbs have a population of about 3,000,000 people. They had an incredible time and met amazing people (young adults and other missionary couples).  Some of Mom and Dad’s children and grandchildren were able to visit and feel of the great work they were doing.

The Church wants a person to be cancer free for 5 years before they will consider them for a mission.  Mom was barely 5 years cancer free so they could not have gone before then.  Here is the Miracle.  There has not been another 18 month period that they could have served in.  As we look back over the last several years, there has been some big event that would have made it impossible for them to serve.  If they did not heed the prompting and go exactly when they did, they would have not been able to complete their mission.

Here are a few pictures of their mission.

People gather for a party at the Institute in Lyon, France



Dad on a bridge in beautiful Annecy, France

Mom, Dad, Caitlin, Zak, and Josh at the Switzerland Temple



Dad and Zak at Chateau de Gruyeres Castle in Switzerland

Mom and Dad on a beautiful street in Gruyeres, Switzerland