Missionary Work and the Sons of Mosiah

In his account of how Alma found the sons of Mosiah who were traveling towards Zarahemla, Mormon recorded this summary of their mission to the Lamanites: “They had been teaching the word of God for the space of fourteen years among the Lamanites, having had much success in bringing many to the knowledge of the truth; yea, by the power of their words many were brought before the altar of God, to call on his name and confess their sins before him” (Alma 17:4). It is hard to imagine spending fourteen years as a missionary without returning home! Though it is possible that they did travel back and forth during the mission, the text never said that they did and clearly here with Alma it was their first meeting since the start of their mission. It seems mostly likely that they never returned to the Nephites and to their home for the full fourteen years. The sacrifice and devotion to missionary work among the Lamanites was simply incredible. Ammon summarized their labors in these words: “And we have entered into their houses and taught them, and we have taught them in their streets; yea, and we have taught them upon their hills; and we have also entered into their temples and their synagogues and taught them; and we have been cast out, and mocked, and spit upon, and smote upon our cheeks; and we have been stoned, and taken and bound with strong cords, and cast into prison” (Alma 26:29). They taught just about everywhere, suffered just about everything, and gave all their time for all those years to bring the Lamanites the gospel.

               Given that great sacrifice on their part, I was impressed even more as I pondered again today what they did after their mission to the Lamanites. Many of us who serve 18-month or two-year missions come home and feel like we have “done our time” and in our minds move on a bit from missionary work. We may have a hard time continuing to do member missionary work as our lives get busy and we move on to other things. For the sons of Mosiah who spent fourteen years doing missionary work, surely if anyone was justified in such an attitude it would have been them. But that is not what they did. A few years after their return—and it is likely that they spent those three years helping the Lamanite converts who came into the land of Jershon—they again set out to perform missionary work. When Alma went to go preach to the Zoramites, “he took Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner; and Himni he did leave in the church in Zarahemla; but the former three he took with him” (Alma 31:6). Mormon didn’t record anything about their direct contributions among the Zoramites, but when they left they went to the land of Jershon and there undoubtedly helped to get the people of Ammon to accept the rejected righteous who were kicked out of Antionum. Two years later Mormon mentioned Ammon and his brethren again, saying, “Yea, and there was continual peace among them, and exceedingly great prosperity in the church because of their heed and diligence which they gave unto the word of God, which was declared unto them by Helaman, and Shiblon, and Corianton, and Ammon and his brethren, yea, and by all those who had been ordained by the holy order of God” (Alma 49:30). They just kept preaching and apparently never considered that they were “done” with their missionary labors. We don’t know when they died, but surely they just kept preaching the gospel until they no longer could. Theirs is an inspiring example of the attitude we should have towards missionary work. As President Ballard said several years back, “I would like to let you in on a little secret. Some of you have already learned it. If you haven’t, it’s time you knew. No matter what your family needs are or your responsibilities in the Church, there is no such thing as ‘done.’ There will always be more we can do.” This is surely true for missionary work, and Ammon and his brethren lived according to that their whole lives.