Chances are, if you are visiting one of the buildings at the worldwide headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah, you will be greeted by several smiling elders or sisters ready to answer your questions or take you on a tour of the facilities. They’re happy to help because they are Church-service missionaries serving as building hosts and guides.
Take, for example, Sister Jennifer Wheeler. Sister Wheeler has been serving as a host in the Church Office Building for three years, and her smile is genuine because she couldn’t be happier with her experience.
A few years ago, Sister Wheeler was released from a demanding calling and wanted to find a way to continue giving meaningful service. When she heard about a need for Church-service missionaries to serve as hosts, she felt prompted to learn more. After working through some logistics with her bishop and the Public Affairs Department of the Church, she began her Church-service mission, working two 4½ hour shifts each week.
And the experience has blessed her life in two distinct ways.
First, Sister Wheeler loves sharing light and truth with people from around the world without leaving the building. While the hosts who give tours of buildings at Church headquarters don’t teach lessons about gospel doctrine—a responsibility reserved for the full-time sister missionaries on Temple Square—they do answer general questions about the Church. And the hosts often refer individuals to visit with the full-time missionaries if they are interested in learning more.
For Sister Wheeler, it’s a way to be involved in planting seeds that visitors from around the world can take home and think about. When Sister Wheeler shares how early Latter-day Saint pioneers were similar in many ways to modern immigrants and refugees or how Jesus Christ is central to our lives just as He is central in the mural in the Church Office Building lobby, she is testifying to the world, one guest at a time.
But Sister Wheeler has discovered another treasured blessing through her service. She shares, “I feel like it’s made me become a better version of myself, and I like who I am more.” While she has always had an abiding love for the Savior, her mission has given her something more: “I think I use the Atonement in my life more than I used to,” she explains. Like He does with every missionary, the Lord has shown her things that she needs to work on to be more like Him. And along with that insight, He has strengthened her and helped her improve. Through the Savior’s Atonement, she has witnessed miracles in her life.
As a Church-service missionary, Sister Wheeler is reaching the world, and the Savior is reaching her heart.
There is a need for Church-service missionaries to serve as building hosts and guides. If you are interested in learning more, you can explore opportunities today.
