Making Growth As A Visiting Teacher

Objective:
1.  Identify a strength you have in regards to Visiting Teaching.
2.  Identify one aspect of Visiting Teaching you’d like to improve.

A.  What can motivate us to visit teach?

“Home teaching and visiting teaching are inspired programs.  They are designed to reach each member of the Church each month, both the active and the less active.  Please give home teaching and visiting teaching an increased emphasis.”	Ezra Taft Benson

“Visiting teaching gives us an opportunity to learn how to follow the Savior.  As we extend love and unselfish service, we become instruments of the Lord, helping in times of physical, emotional, and spiritual need to touch hearts and change lives.  Visiting teaching is the very essence of the gospel and gives us the opportunity to practice the principles found in Mosiah 18:8-9: ‘willing to bear one another’s burdens, . . . willing to mourn with those what mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need to comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times. . ., that [we] may have eternal life.’ “	 	Barbara Winder

B.  What are the purposes of Visiting Teaching?

To bring to pass the salvation of His children.  The Lord will lead the work if we have faith in Him and put forth the required effort.  	
Elder Rodrigo Myrrha, Area Seventy, Brazil South Area

“To learn of the spiritual and temporal needs of the sister and her family” and to “give spiritual instruction through a monthly message.”  		Church Handbook of Instructions

Whenever I think of visiting teachers, I think your duties in many ways must be like those of the home teachers, which briefly are “to watch over the church always”—not twenty minutes a month but always—“and be with and strengthen them”—not a knock at the door, but to be with them, and lift them and strengthen them, and empower them, fortify them—“ and see that there is no iniquity. . .neither hardness. . . backbiting, nor evil speaking.”  (D& C 20:53-54)
Spencer W. Kimball

“We must seek out those among us with need and, using our God-given talents for charity and our means for relieving others, coordinate the two.  This has been the charge from the beginning.  It is the charge today.  We should go personally into each other’s homes, and we should tune our souls to the point that we may find those in need and offer friendship, help as needed, and courage to meet each day’s challenges.”		Barbara B. Smith

C.  What is the significance of the message?

“Don’t let us be satisfied with just visits, with making friends.  Friendship, of course, is important, but how better can you make a friend that to teach somebody everlasting principles of life and salvation?”		Spencer W. Kimball

D&C 38:23-24, 26-27	

Prepare each visiting teaching message as carefully as you would prepare a lesson for a church class.
Simply reading the lesson manual before time is not enough, until I feel that I have a message to give. . . I am not prepared as the Lord has asked me to prepare when he calls upon me to give his word.  		David O. Mckay

D.  With what attitude should we visit?

There can be no force used in this program as I understand it.  It is a work of encouragement and love.	Spencer W. Kimball

“We talk about duty–but we have already lost the enthusiasm, the discernment, and the objective when we say, “I must go this morning and do my visiting teaching.”  Rather it could be:  “Today is the day I have been waiting for.  I am happy to go into the homes of my sisters and help lift them to new heights.”		Spencer W. Kimball

“He which soweth sparingly,” said Paul, “shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully”   (2 Cor. 9:6).  We don’t get anywhere by just saying words.  We have to put our heart in the words, and we have to plan and prepare our minds.  I wonder if there are any sisters that ever fast, maybe the morning they are going visiting teaching.  I don’t know that it is required.  There are a lot of things in the church that are not required, a lot of things we would like to do.  The one who goes just to visit homes, to knock on doors, to pass the time of day, and then goes back to make the report is a little bit like the one whom Paul speaks of who is “fighting as one that beateth the air,” (1 Cor. 9:26) and not making any progress. We need to go forth and do our job as we should do it.  		Spencer W. Kimball