on june 21, 2016 i was set apart as a missionary for the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints. the next day my mission began as I entered the Missionary Training Center. it was a beautiful day. a day i had looked forward to long before i opened my call assignment. and a day I'll always treasure.
the moment i put on my name tag, i was filled with peace. "sister pratt". and below that written was "イエス キリスト", jesus christ in large katakana characters. i was a true representative of my savior, jesus christ. the days following were beautiful. well, everyday following was beautiful really. it's a special thing to have the Savior's name right beside yours and to put on that name tag each morning.
the name "ellie" was long gone and "pratt shimai" took its place. after nine special weeks, fifty of my newly best friends and i boarded a plane to japan, each of us with "イエス キリスト" written on our hearts.
my first area was miyakonojo. my trainer was sister shimauchi.
we slept on futons and ate rice every meal. we prayed on our knees together. we worked hard together. we rode our bikes one behind the other. two by two we went out to share the good news of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
it's been over a month. my heart still breaks.
i've had so much time to think about my mission. it meant so much to me. even if it was shorter than i wanted, it was what i needed. i know God tailors each mission experience perfectly for us. if I never get the change to return, I'll forever be thankful for the experiences the Lord allowed me to have.
