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All I Ever Needed To Know I Learned On My Mission

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At the time he wrote this 2001 book, Jeff Skousen was "a West Virginia University professor, (who) has served the Church as high councilor, bishop, and in many other positions, including scouting."

He wrote in the Preface, "The idea for this book came to me while listening to a good friend... who was speaking in sacrament meeting at his daughter's missionary homecoming. As I listened to the speakers that day, I realized that many of the most crucial and profound things I knew in my heart were things I learned on my mission. Therefore, I have attempted to include some of the most significant experiences of my mission and explain the important principles and life-changing lessons I learned from the experience."

Here are some quotations from the book:

"One elder ... became concerned that he was telling people that the Book of Mormon was true and that Joseph Smith was a prophet, when he did not know for himself... his companion challenged him to follow the counsel he was giving investigators: read the Book of Mormon and pray with a sincere heart. He read and prayed daily that he would know the truthfulness of the message, but nothing happened..." (Pg. 4)
"I decided to read more of the New Testament and the Book of Mormon, and try to understand whether I got the same feeling while reading the two books... Soon I realized that the Book of Mormon and the New Testament were both testaments of Christ. The feelling was the same! I had kept the anti-Mormon book and began to flip through the pages ... As I did so, I noticed a distinct dark spirit again closing in about me and causing me to become sad and discouraged. This was my answer! I now knew which books were true and which one was false." (Pg. 14)
"Anti-Mormon books, or anti-anything books, are written by mean-spirited individuals who are full of criticism." (Pg. 15)
"The one aspect about transfers that bothered me was going to a different apartment. If missionaries had lived there for awhile, the apartment was usually filthy and disgusting." (Pg. 31)
"Missionaries never win arguments about religion, nor should they participate in them, because contention is of the devil. I continue to avoid contention to this day." (Pg. 39)