Perhaps you can relate to this experience. You are working at home some afternoon and are interrupted by an unexpected knock at the front door. You open the door and two smiling young men greet you. They are wearing suits, ties and name tags and politely explain that they are with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. At this point responses vary. Some people slam the door, some respectfully decline, some spit and hurl insults, and a few listen.

Wondering what motivates these missionaries, I decided to knock on their door and ask them. First, I called the office of the Portland LDS mission. The director referred me to my area's mission team, Elder Rogers and Elder Christensen, and I arranged an appointment at their home.

At their apartment building, I climbed the steps and knocked. Elder Rogers opened the door, introduced himself with a handshake and invited me in. As I walked in, the first thing I noticed were the marker boards covering every wall. Written on well-organized charts were the names and addresses of at least 100 individuals. I kept glancing at the boards during the introductions to see if anyone I knew was listed.

The rest of the apartment was a busy place. While it was cleaner than most bachelor pads, it still had that functional design that young men prefer. Mismatched sofas and chairs constituted a conference area in the living room. I noticed the absence of a television set.

Elder Rogers introduced me to Elder Christensen who rose to shake my hand and asked me to be seated. Both men were young, 20 or 21. Elder Rogers was boyish looking with fair features and a quiet voice. Elder Christensen was a larger fellow (he had played football in college) with dark hair and eyebrows and a much more animated voice. They both were remarkably at ease as they told me about the life of a Mormon missionary.

Both men explained that not all members of the LDS church go to the mission field. Only about 33 percent respond to the call to serve. Today about 60,000 men and women, including the elderly, work all over the world. When all arrangements have been made--trip to the doctor and dentist--and final approval comes from the president of the mission program, the new missionary heads to the mission training center in Provo, Utah.

From this point, training centers on the person of Christ and seven presentations or discussions missionaries use in proselytizing. Also, missionaries in training learn basic communication skills and codes of conduct, behavior as basic as proper table etiquette. In comparison to Christian missions, the actual training requirements are remarkably light. When I explained this to Elders Rogers and Christensen, they were surprised that people attending my college generally needed a four-year degree in missions before being accepted on the field.

After three weeks in Provo, missionaries are sent to their "stake." Training from there on is hands-on and in the field with a senior partner.

The LDS church has broken down geographic areas into stakes, wards, zones and districts. Each district has three to four missionary teams working in it. The missionary teams usually consist of a junior and senior partner. To become a senior missionary, a junior partner completes a number of tasks such as memorizing 50 key passages from the Bible and Book of Mormon and gaining proficiency at teaching the seven discussions.

The missionaries are not assigned to one district for the duration of their mission. They move around inside their zone every two or three months, changing homes and partners in the process. The call to move is abrupt, with usually one day's advance warning. When teamed with a partner, the missionary will spend almost every waking hour working with that individual.

Some pairings are more stressful than others, as Elder Christensen described: "I've had three really hard partners," he said. "One was really depressed and drug me down, too. Another fellow constantly butted heads with me. You have to learn to work with people, to talk to them and love them. I'm told it's really good training for marriage."

Both men shared that they would be moving to new districts in a few days. They were excited about meeting new people. They also mentioned that rural assignments were generally more fulfilling than urban ones.

Along with all the regular commandments of their faith, the missionary teams have to follow a strict code of conduct. Their routine starts at 6:30 a.m. with team devotions and personal prayer time. After breakfast, they proselyze until noon and eat lunch. They continue proselytizing until dinner and finish at 9 p.m. They participate in required periods of fasting each month, as well as fast individually for personal communion with God. The missionaries follow this regimen six days a week with the exception of church services and one eight-hour block of personal time they use for shopping, laundry, cleaning, writing home and relaxation. Restrictions include television watching, computer use, e-mail correspondence and dating. The "no dating" policy can be hard, both men said. Almost all of the missionaries get a "Dear John" letter from their girlfriends at home after a year or so.

"The point is to surround yourself with good things," Elder Christensen said, "to have the Spirit 24 hours a day." They explained that these tools of edification are necessary to keep them going day in and day out with their task.

"There is a whole lot of rejection going door to door," Elder Rogers said. He said that the success ratio is only about one in 1,000 when going to doors. He described what they commonly experience: "People drive by and spit and throw stuff, they slam doors, cuss you out. A lot of them try to tell you what to believe. They think they know what you believe; you try to tell them it's not true, and they yell and slam the door. One guy threatened to blow my head off just for saying hi."

Elder Christensen added, "Some nights you get home and just cry for a couple of hours; it gets you so down. That's when your partner steps up and helps you get back in focus."

Elder Rogers said, "The successes, they keep you going. You see the gospel change people's lives; you see it bless them. One time I talked to a lady who was going through a mid-life crisis. The first time we met she wasn't interested, but we came back and we had a powerful discussion. The Spirit was really strong, and she said she would read the book and pray. Well, she received her answer and became a fireball and very happy. She hadn't had a very happy life before that."

The men told of receiving a special impulse from the Spirit to witness to hurting individuals in need of the gospel. They also shared of leading people to baptism with tears and joy. "The neatest thing about missions is putting your faith on the Lord, trusting him. You lean on him and see miracles. This has been the happiest time of my life. It is two years to do my best to do what the Lord would have me to do," Elder Rogers said.

"I've learned love," Elder Christensen said. "I've learned more about who the Lord is, to lean on him, not the arm of the flesh. I have seen a lot of miracles, experienced the gifts of the Spirit, where God told me to step back and his word flowed through me. I can testify of it; it was the Lord. Also to have the Spirit testify to you that you are right in the eyes of God. These have been the best, worst years of my life."

After the interview, I listened to the recording of the team's mission song that they had sung for me. "Sharing, ever-caring. Touching hearts with gospel light. Shining, souls-refining. Planting seeds of truth and light. Leading and succeeding. Working hard in rain or sun. Sure love you, we're happy to be here 'cause Portland's No. 1. Success."

All missionaries have to pay their own way, a flat fee of $375 a month, in order to serve. When they finish their mission, they will move home, go to college or get jobs and slowly integrate back into everyday life.