10 Tips for Feeding the Missionaries!

Feeding missionaries can be daunting; so here are 10 tips to help your dinner appointment with them run smoothly!

1. Find out what they can’t eat and don’t like before the dinner appointment. It’s pretty pointless for you to make chicken curry and to then find out one of the missionaries is vegetarian when they arrive.  You don’t necessarily have to cater for all likes and dislikes as many missionaries end up liking foods they didn't like before they left for their mission. It is just courteous to find out and assist in any way possible.

2. Don’t force food into their mouths. Let them dish out their own food. Yes, missionaries are very busy and normally extremely hungry. But they know how much they want to eat so shouldn’t be forced by you. They accept the second offerings because it is polite but sometimes would prefer to use the rest of the food for lunch the next day.

3. Have the food ready for the time you said it would be ready. Missionaries only get an hour/hour and fifteen minutes for their dinner appointments. They have to fit a spiritual message into that time too.

4. Ask them what they would like to eat. Give them choices. Most of the time they will say that they are not bothered, but sometimes they may like a choice. Once again, I think it is courteous. Yes, we are serving them by feeding them; but they have given up 18 months/2 years of their life to serve us, other members of the church and the world.

5. Make healthy food! When they do not have dinner appointments they have to make their own food; and especially with Elders these can be interesting concoctions. Sometimes they will just long for a healthy salad or fresh vegetables.

6. Ask them if they have an appointment after your dinner appointment, and what time they need to leave by. It is important that they are on time to their appointments and as the evening is generally the best time to meet people at home, they may have a tight schedule. This leads on to...

7. Don’t rush them out! If you have something to do or somewhere to go, let them know nicely when they arrive. Don’t make them feel like they have outstayed their welcome.

8. Accept the challenge in the dinner appointment message they give you. The challenges are there to help you and them.

9. Remember you can talk about yourself and non missionary things. They like to hear about your life!

10. Have fun! I have the most fun when feeding the missionaries. It is such a rewarding act of service that is so easy to do. 


Think of feeding the missionaries in this way... Imagine your son, daughter, best friend or whoever is close to you has gone on a mission. Think about how you would want the members in their ward to treat them. Treat the missionaries in your ward in the same way you would wish your son, daughter, friend to be treated. It's a simple as that.

For 10 things members can do to assist missionaries, see Sister Berati's post on Member Missionary Work!