The Apostle Paul was a great missionary for the Lord. His mission was very demanding; it covered many countries and traveled many menacing miles. His ministry began on the day that the resurrected Lord Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus. While preaching the gospel to King Agrippa, here’s how Paul recounts the story of his conversion:

“Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.”

“But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me” (Acts 26: 12-18).

Key elements in Paul’s conversion story are worthy of note:

1) Paul was “called” to the ministry; he was “sent” by the highest Authority–being “sent” is the hallmark of all true missionaries.

2) The mission to which Paul was called, was to turn people from “darkness to light” from “Satan unto God” by seeking “forgiveness of sins” through “faith that is in [Christ].”

Some observers might imagine that if Christ could only appear to them in great glory, then they would become a great missionary like Paul. But this is not necessarily true! It is not a glorious appearance from God that changes hearts and minds (though such is a compelling invitation), instead it is answering the Lord’s call and humbly yielding to that call that is the tipping point of conversion.

Many people have been visited by angels, and yet failed to heed Heaven’s call–Laman and Lemuel are prominent examples from Book of Mormon history (1 Nephi 3: 31). And besides angelic visitations, even more people have seen mighty miracles, and yet failed to follow God’s mighty call–Pharaoh and his court saw dozens of miracles and their hearts were not softened (Exodus 7: 8-10).

Thus, it is possible to disobey the call of angels and deny the call of miracles; further, the harsh reality is that denial and disobedience to spectacular manifestations is the more probable trend (Matt. 7: 13). Now, consider the gentle call of the “still small voice” (1 King 19: 12), and how often this call goes unheeded. As it is for all, the tipping point for Paul’s conversion was the choice to hear and heed the call:

“Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision” (Acts 26: 19).

Paul’s mission call was not an easy one. His labors for the Lord led him through much trial and tribulation:

“in labours more abundant, in stripes I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches” (2 Cor. 11: 23-28).

So goes the life of a missionary–its hard work. And while shipwrecks and stonings are not the common cross to bear for most missionaries, still there are many hardships to endure. But through them all, we have the opportunity to reflect upon the suffering of our Savior and know that our burden is light compared to His. Because Paul was keenly aware of the Savior’s suffering (Philip 3: 10), he saw his own plight as a “light affliction.”

“For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4: 16-18).

Any church that claims to be Christ’s Church must necessarily be an organization dedicated to doing missionary work. The Savior said:

“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matt. 24: 14).

By the “still small voice” a call is sent to the hearts of all humanity, to take up the cross and follow Him (Mark 8: 34). And to follow Him faithfully, we must all heed the call to be missionaries.