These practices—called “self-mortification”—have no official place in our Church, but missionaries can be susceptible to that kind of thinking. On a mission, desires that were once normal for teenagers—to want to sleep late, watch movies, hang out with friends, date, or wear jeans and other casual clothes—are suddenly inappropriate and can feel unrighteous. In this environment of self-denial, young missionaries can wrongly believe that the Lord will not love them unless they are suffering.
