If you're happy and you know it, take the Happy Missionary class.
Chris and Cami Sainsbury, a married couple from Elk Ridge, Utah, started the Happy Missionary to empower future missionaries and young adults with tools that will help them be successful.
A powerhouse couple from Elk Ridge, Utah, is the force behind a new missionary training service called The Happy Missionary. Chris and Cami Sainsbury have teamed up to build a specialized training program designed to prepare future missionaries.
The Sainsburys started the Happy Missionary because they wanted to empower students with tools that would help them become successful missionaries and future leaders.
“The Happy Missionary offers so much more than regular leadership classes. It covers the emotional, mental, physical and spiritual areas of growth, progression and awareness,” Chris Sainsbury said.
The Happy Missionary is a full day of training offered to anyone in Utah County. The next Happy Missionary training session is on April 18. Students can register for the class at happymissionary.com.
Chris Sainsbury started The Happy Missionary shortly after earning his MPA from BYU in 2013. While starting up a nonprofit business, he prayed for direction for his growing family and the business he was creating. Immediately, he felt a strong impression to stop the business and instead help the missionary preparation effort. His vision quickly became the inspiration for a full-day confidence and nutrition class.
“I saw a clear picture in my mind of myself teaching large groups of preparing missionaries,” Chris Sainsbury said.
Chris Sainsbury teaches The Happy Missionary students tools that will help them better face the challenges that they experience in life.
This vision became the inspiration for the Sainsburys' desire to help future missionaries, and The Happy Missionary was born.
“We’re trying to help add to the church program missionary work,” Chris Sainsbury said. “A high percentage of missionaries come home early, so we want to help future missionaries become more mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually prepared for missionary work.”
Chris and Cami Sainsbury focus on different tools during their class. In his training, Chris Sainsbury teaches students how to effectively increase confidence while removing fear and homesickness. He offers tools students can use to increase their self-awareness.
“Whenever we know more about something we are going to face, we will be better able to face the challenges that come with that experience,” Chris Sainsbury said.
Cami Sainsbury spends a portion of the training informing students of the importance of proper nutrition and how and why food is spiritual. She shows her students how to make quick-and-easy recipes that missionaries, who often have to eat on the go, can make.
A few years ago, Cami Sainsbury faced severe sickness where her body shut down. Terrible rashes, swollen joints and adrenal gland fatigue were just a few of her symptoms. She visited countless doctors and tried multiple remedies, but nothing worked. In desperation, she knelt down in prayer and asked God for help. Instantly she was inspired to reflect on the food she was eating.
Cami Sainsbury emphasizes the importance of food and healthy living in missionary work. She teaches her students how to make quick and delicious recipes that are also healthy and nutritious.
“I was led and guided to look at my food,” Cami Sainsbury said. “I knew that great promises of health were promised in the Doctrine and Covenants.”
Cami Sainsbury quickly changed her eating habits. After beginning to eat healthier foods, all of her symptoms disappeared.
“As I strictly and diligently followed close to the Word of Wisdom, I witnessed miracles of healing,” she said.
Cami Sainsbury's miraculous recovery is the inspiration she draws upon to help The Happy Missionary students realize the importance of eating healthy on their missions.
“Food provides a gateway to healing not only on a physical level but on an emotional, mental and spiritual level as well,” Cami Sainsbury said. “I focus on food, because it is powerful and spiritual. One of our greatest accomplishments is to overcome the natural man with all of his appetites. Shedding the natural man gives us the opportunity to let the Spirit be in charge.”
Students pose for a picture with the Sainsburys after taking The Happy Missionary training session.
The husband-and-wife duo has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from students. BYU freshman Kaiya Casuga attended the most recent The Happy Missionary training day in March. She is planning on serving a full-time mission after her freshman year.
'I absolutely loved this workshop,' Casuga said. 'Chris and Cami have great stories and beautiful testimonies. I have felt the Spirit throughout the whole day, and I truly have grown from this experience.'
Chris and Cami Sainsbury will continue The Happy Missionary training each month to ensure that all young people who are interested have the chance to learn.
“We just want to help students learn how to effectively increase confidence and passion while removing fear, anxiety and homesickeness,” Chris Sainsbury said. “The tools and skills learned are universal and can be applied to any situation, which makes this a perfect class for anyone.”
The Happy Missionary teaches tools that are applicable to all young people, regardless of mission prospects.
“Whether you are thinking about going on a mission, not thinking about going, have a mission call, no matter what your circumstances are, this workshop is for you,' Casuga said.