Well hello everyone, I am a 19 year old male who attends BYU-Idaho. I have a strong testimony, a wonderful family, and wonderful friends. When I went to have my final mission interview with my Stake President in Rexburg, I felt very prompted that I was forgetting something. In the interview, the Stake President told me to come back in a couple weeks because I hadn't been praying about the choice to go on a mission. I thought that was a very odd thing to pray about because prophets have instructed us to go when we become of age without question, but I prayed anyway. My answer was a pit in my stomach followed by confusion. "Woah, what?" ~ You-all out there After more prayer and studying the scriptures that terrible, "You're forgetting something", feeling came back. My mind began to dwell on how ineffective tracting is becoming, which I didn't understand, but it came back to me again and again anyway. I didn't understand why I was getting these feelings so I asked my roommate for a priesthood blessing. I kept him informed later through my story. I later prayed for a long period of time in my room and in my prayers I asked to know why I have received these answers. That night, I dreamt that I was sitting in mission prep and the class had finished. When I stood up to leave, a man stopped me and I had never meet him before. He said: "You're [My name here], I know who you are. You are a gifted individual. I want to show you something." He pulled out a tablet computer and showed me visitor statistics on websites I've built. I build websites, and I'm very good at it. I have spent a good portion of my life practicing and honing this talent. He then said: "This is a project that you have yet to start building" Then he showed me another visitor statistic that was well into the millions. He said: "You have been blessed with gifts and talents, which you will use to touch the lives of millions." At this point in my dream I hadn't realized that it was a dream. I knew I had a class in a few minutes so I tried to wrap it up with the stranger and go to class. He again stopped me and said: "[My name here], did you really believe your gifts and talents are for your own benefit." The rest of the next day I walked through my classes feeling like the oh-so-popular poker face meme. I knew that the night before I had prayed to know why I was receiving answers I didn't understand. This lead to another problem though: What happens when I don't go on a mission? What will people think? I feel like this is a very spiritual experience and not one that I would tell freely, so I can't tell them this story. I tried to explain it to my dad but he cut me off and told me that I had received false revelation. He did advise me to talk to my bishop about this experience. So I did, and my bishop told me about someone he knew that didn't go on a mission even though his Patriarchal Blessing said he would. He said that he is serving his mission now in his home ward because of his member missionary efforts. He encouraged me to cut my parents and others out of the decision to serve a traditional mission. I followed that council closely. When the world wide training was broadcasted, they spent a long time talking about member missionary efforts and how missionaries are now to use the internet as a tool for teaching. I knew that I wasn't crazy. I haven't felt the spirit like that in a long time. The semester ended and I went home to a place where I wish I had stayed in school. My families disappointment is aversive, and they spend a great deal of time trying to talk me into going on a traditional mission, but I know that I have received an answer to my prayers. When I went to church here in my home ward, I got called into the bishops office and he told me that I was going on a mission and that's final. He said he had prayed to know if everyone should go on a mission and received an answer. My parents have become more critical of me and my flaws and the bishop here at home isn't helping like the one in Rexburg did. I know what the lord has asked me to do (which is a longer story), but I would like to know what I should do about my family being so critical and disappointed in me. My options are: Go on a mission anywayGo back to RexburgMove into my own apartment here in DenverTL;DR Boy prays about the choice to go on a mission, receives answer that directs another action. Parents don't approve of Boy. Boy dreads waking up in the morning.
