“I believe, my friends, that the cause we have the honor to represent is that kingdom which shall stand forever.” Gordon B. Hinckley.

What a powerful obligation we have representing Heavenly Father’s kingdom as Home and Visiting Teachers. Time and time again, we have seen testimonies rejuvenated, repentance transpire and families strengthened as a direct result this divinely inspired program. Our service undoubtedly contributes to building the kingdom, one visit at a time.

Meaningful HT/VT experiences can touch lives in countless ways. Here are three ways we can build up the kingdom as Home and Visiting Teachers:

1) Make it a daily concern, not a monthly duty. Are we visiting because of a sense of duty or because of love? How many times do we get our monthly visits done and then think “Whoa, glad that’s done! I can cross it off my ‘To Do’ list!” Home and Visiting Teaching are never finished. So now you might be thinking, “I don’t have time to make it a daily calling.” Of course, making a daily phone call or visit would not only be inappropriate, but also insincere. But a daily prayer on behalf of those you teach to seek inspiration regarding their needs would certainly be appropriate. If your daily thoughts are turned towards this divine calling, you will hear the still small voice even when it is very still and very small. Then act upon your prompting.

2) Seek to understand, not to be understood. When seeking inspiration for your Home and Visiting Teaching visits, keep in mind that understanding the needs of the family/sister come first. This concept is one of the best tidbits of marital advice I ever received. How well it applies to Home and Visiting Teaching! Have you ever been visited and the teachers kept talking and talking and trying to drive home a point from the lesson without any interaction? As we are preparing our lessons, keep this in mind. Only when we first understand the needs of those we serve, can we expect our lessons to be understood.

3) Share the divinely inspired message & teach with the Spirit. When making your visits, share the designated monthly message. (Unless you have been specifically instructed by your local leaders to not share a message.) While building and maintaining friendships are an integral part of the program, be careful not to let the visit be purely unreleated. In addition, simply reiterating the message is not enough. We need to be guided by the Spirit, teach from our hearts, and motivate our brothers and sisters to apply the message to them individually.

Brothers and Sisters, the impact of our Home and Visiting Teaching callings are far reaching as friendships are built, lives are touched, and hearts are softened. When guided by the spirit, we do represent eternal truths. This is the Lord’s work. Let us go forward with prayer to serve those we love and build His kingdom, one visit at a time.

Marti Walker
Shepherd’s Editor

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Do you have any families or sisters that you visit who have wandered off and are lost? Chances are you do. Most people are good and desire to know more and experience more of the gospel light. The majority of baptized members are able to get on the path that leads to the tree of life. But navigating takes care and caution. It’s easy for anyone of us to veer off course and find ourselves on a strange road.

“And it came to pass that there arose a mist of darkness; yea, even an exceedingly great mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost.

“And after they had tasted of the fruit…they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost.

“And it came to pass that many were drowned in the depths of the fountain; and many were lost…wandering in strange roads” (See 1 Nephi 8:23,28,32).

As home and visiting teachers we have a responsibility to watch over our sisters and families and ensure they do not wander off on strange roads. How do we do this? How will we know? Is it really possible for anyone of us to help steer the course of another? In the next several months I will explore this topic with you, and see if and what we can actually do to help those we watch over.

“For what shepherd is there among you having many sheep doth not watch over them, that the wolves enter not and devour his flock? And behold, if a wolf enter his flock doth he not drive him out? Yea, and at the last, if he can, he will destroy him” (See Alma 5:59).

Of all the many principles the Savior taught, the most important one to us as shepherds is the principle of ministering. The Savior comforted, healed, blessed, and took a personal interest in the lives of those around him. How can we possibly know if a family or sister of ours is struggling unless we *know* them and have taken the time to show genuine compassion and love to them?

When I was an Elders Quorum president, the most effective thing I did to affect our retention and reactivation of the brethren was weekly ministry visits. Every Thursday my counselors and I visited three to four brethren and their families. Some were inactive, some were active, some were struggling, and some were in crisis. Most of the time we would of never known of the struggles or crises without the visits. We always prayed before the visit that we would have the spirit of discernment to discern the needs of the brethren and their families as we visited them.

On one Thursday evening in particular we visited the home of an inactive brother in the quorum to find a young mother of three alone and without food. This was a week before Thanksgiving. The husband had left the family and this mother was too embarrassed to ask the ward for help as they had not been to church for years. We left the home after a call to the Relief Society President, a blessing upon the mother and a promise that two dedicated home teachers would be there the next day.

“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;

“Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God” (See 2 Cor. 1:3-4).

One of the greatest examples of ministering is found in Chapter eleven of third Nephi where Christ visited the Nephites at the temple. In verse 14 it describes how Christ invited the multitude to, “Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel…”

Two things stand out to me. The first is that Christ didn’t raise his hands to the multitude and say *look* at my hands and my feet. He said come here and *touch* my hands and feet so that you may *know* that I am Christ. He personally ministered to each and every Nephite who witnessed this event.

The second thing that impressed me was that there were 2,500 people present (see 3 Nephi 17:25) and the scriptures say that “…the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had *all* gone forth, and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know of a surety and did bear record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should come.”

That had to of taken a long time and to think that the Savior thought it was important for *every* man, woman, and child to feel his wounds impresses upon me the importance of home and visiting teaching.

May we each ensure that our sisters and families know we care about them because we are personally involved in their lives. Ministering is much more than the half hour monthly visit and lesson. It is *practicing* Christlike love.

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My stake president recently received an honorable release after serving for nine and a half years. The stake was formed in August 1992 and he has been the first and only stake president. Now another brother received a call from the Lord to serve in this capacity. This process was fascinating to watch, and has prompted Brother Cahoon to start writing a series of articles on effective church leadership.

When Elder Gary Stewart, an Area Authority Seventy, announced the name of the new stake president, there were many audible “who is that?” comments throughout the congregation. Few in the congregation knew who the new stake president was, but the one person who did know him inspired Elder Stewart and Elder William R. Bradford, of the seventy, to extend a call to serve. Elder Bradford shared his comments about the process of selecting a new stake president. He arrived in town Saturday morning and proceeded to interview the priesthood leadership of the stake, which consisted of the bishops of the nine wards, the members of the high council, members of the stake presidency, and other stake leaders. The new stake president wasn’t one of the brethren he interviewed initially, but based upon recommendations from those he did interview, and the inspiration of the Spirit, he called our new stake president to come in for an interview.

Elder Bradford told us that when the new stake president walked into the room, Elder Bradford not only knew he was the one the Lord wanted to be the new stake president, but the brother that is our new stake president also knew he was supposed to be the new stake president. Elder Bradford also shared with the congregation that as he interviewed the stake leaders, he had impressions on who should be the new counselors, and the new stake president chose exactly who Elder Bradford thought he would choose.

We have a number of very capable brethren in our stake, all of which could have been called into these callings. Why these men? The Lord, who knows the end from the beginning, knows the needs of the members of my stake, and knows that these brethren must have certain talents and abilities that He wants them to share with stake members at this point in time. The new stake president, during his comments, suggested a “theme” for the stake, and it is that no matter how great this stake is right now, it can be better, and it can be better in the things that matter most, increased spirituality in the lives of the stake members, which will affect the neighborhoods and communities that we live in for good. He said that it doesn’t matter where we are on the gospel road to heaven, what matters is that we are moving forward, making significant spiritual progress each and every day.

One of the wives of a counselor who was released made probably the most profound comment during the entire meeting: “Our service in behalf of others will bring joy into our lives.” That will be my theme running throughout this series of articles on effective Church leadership. As we serve others, we will increase in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man, and we will find true joy. This joy comes only because we are not thinking about ourselves, but because we are focusing on the needs of others. Christ must have felt this joy often during his ministry because He was totally focused on doing the will of His Father in Heaven.

These newly called brethren will have the opportunity to serve and bless the lives of others, just as we do in our various responsibilities, whether it is a stake president or a nursery leader. And we can feel the same joy as we serve just as these brethren will feel. It is in meeting the needs of others that our own needs, wants, and desires can be fulfilled.

Larry Beck

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Our second year of publishing Shepherds came to an end on March 8, 2002 and we began our third year without any fanfare. In fact Kim and I didn’t even realize that eventful date had come and passed. It’s hard to believe that Shepherds has been feeding the home and visiting teachers of the church for two years.

You have probably noticed that we have been struggling with Shepherds over the past 4 months or so. Kim has been heavily involved in his work as a Webmaster for a University and in volunteering in his community. His family obligations have increased this past year and he ran for office, which absorbed all of his free time. Running KZION, which has evolved into something much bigger than I had anticipated, eats up what free time I have.

Kim and I are fortunate to have found four very dedicated volunteers who have been invaluable in keeping Shepherds filled with spiritual nourishment for home and visiting teachers. Gail Requa (AKA Sister Cahoon) and Larry Beck (AKA Brother Cahoon) have been writing the Cahoon columns since we began Shepherds and have never missed an issue. I know that they spend much time in prayer and thought prior to writing their columns. They also understand that what they write is food for thought and not doctrine or a replacement for local priesthood and relief society leadership counsel. How blessed we are as readers to have these two contributing their time to help us look at situations in a different light. Perhaps giving us a new perspective.

Jane Dumont (AKA Jane’s Brain) and Corinne Spicer (AKA Ensign Summaries) have been writing for Shepherds since September of 2000. Jane and Corinne have done a terrific job in helping us to digest and then give interesting and thought provoking lessons to our families and sisters. I know that these two sisters also spend time on their knees preparing their articles.

Nancy Sont has recently joined the Shepherds team of columnists. Sister Sont uses such terrific imagery to teach the gospel. She brings us into her world and helps us to see the obvious yet often overlooked basics of the gospel. We appreciate her willingness to share her talents.

Shepherds, I’m sorry I missed your birthday. But writing this column has renewed my enthusiasm and caused me to consider what a blessing Shepherds has been in my life. I realize what a wonderful two years it has been. I have met so many people from around the globe and have developed some wonderful friendships. I am also grateful for the 9,000+ of you, Shepherds subscribers who take their stewardships as home and visiting teachers seriously. You are the doers of the Word. You are the glue that helps to keep testimonies from falling apart. You are the angels that so many prayers are pleading for. We, your faithful volunteers, will continue to provide you with a shoulder to lean on if you will continue to serve faithfully as home and visiting teachers.

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“And I leave this message with you in the name of Jesus
Christ. Amen,” concluded Brother Johnson.

Brother Taylor added in right on cue, “Is there anything we can do for you Brother and Sister Smith?”

The Smiths looked at each other, then Brother Smith assured them there was nothing; that everything was fine.

“Great,” Brother Taylor exclaimed. “Well, then may we leave your home with a prayer?”

Does this sound familiar? Have you seen this scene played in your own home? Have you been one of its actors during your own visits? Ever felt like it wasn’t effective?

It seems odd in a funny sort of way that many of us who have served full-time missions and were encouraged to ask such thought-provoking questions as “What is resurrection?” rather than easy-answer questions as “Do you know what resurrection is?” come home and start asking those yes-or-no questions all over again when we go home teaching.

It seems just as odd that for those who are “to watch over the church always, and be with and strengthen them”, we aren’t too intent on doing so.

My article this month is brief; its message simple. If nothing else, we need to show our intent to serve and strengthen with our language; we need to show our genuine concern for their needs by illustrating our observances through our words.

For example, if we walk up the sidewalk and notice the lawn is a bit straggly, then we recognise something’s amiss - a broken lawnmower, a busy schedule, no money for gasoline - and reflect that by replacing the usual “Is there anything we can do for you Brother and Sister Smith?” with “On our way up the sidewalk this afternoon, we noticed your lawn was a bit longer than usual. What can we do to help you?”

And for those other visits where the needs seem less apparent, perhaps a better question would be, “What can we help you with this month?”

Providing our families with an opportunity to talk rather than answer may be just what we need.

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I’ve tried many methods over the years to get the most out of the time I spend studying my scriptures. I’ve done a chapter a day; thirty minutes a day; a different topic a day. The problem is that none of them ever worked to the degree I wanted.

I even followed the example of Bruce R. McConkie and once summarised every verse of the Book of Mormon on paper while I commuted to work in downtown Vancouver each weekday. That method helped me more than any other I had used.

Earlier this week, I was inspired with another method. I spend every morning reading between three and five verses. However, I mull over them, read the cross-references, pick out gospel principles and relate them to other passages I had read earlier. This has opened my eyes to an entire new world of scripture study.

In fact, in my scripture study (2 Ne. 5) this morning, I came to an interesting conclusion that I felt I would share with the Shepherd readers. Actually, it was two conclusions.

Firstly, I realised that “the cursing” referred to in verse 21 (after cross-referencing to 2 Ne 1:17-18) was not the commonly thought of blackness, but actually being cut off from the Lord’s presence; the blackness was only a sign of the curse. So often LDS tradition creeps into LDS doctrine and blurs the line between the two.

Secondly, and related to the first conclusion, verse 24 says that “because of their cursing…they did become an idle people”. This really stood out to me. The Lord withdrew His presence (that is, the Holy Spirit) from the Lamanites as a curse because of their wickedness. In response to this, they became idle and lazy.

After I read this, I remember something I had read only a couple of days earlier in verses 15 and 17, and after I compared these verses as well as Mosiah 13:17, I came to the conclusion that having the Lord’s presence in our lives encourages us to be hard workers, while not having His presence in our lives encourages us to be idle.

The Lord doesn’t want idlers in His Church; He wants hard workers; He wants those with put-back shoulders and strong back; He wants grounded noses and greased elbows. After all, these are the people who will be carrying on the work in the millennium. And what a work it will be.

This is not just referring to physical labour as well; spiritual labour (labour for the worth of souls) is just as important. It is easy to go to a job every day; after all, it’s a habit.

The real test comes when we are called upon by the stake missionaries to share the gospel with our friends; when we are assigned a home teaching family that refuses to answer their phone; when we get that two-in-the-morning phone call asking for assistance in a priesthood blessing.

Are we being idle in our spiritual work? Is the Lord’s presence with us in our spiritual lives as well as our physical lives? Perhaps now is as good a time as any to sit back and do an accounting of our labours.

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Football games,
Fortune, fame,
TV shows,
Rakes and hoes,
Dirty car,
Cookie jar,

Busy day,
Movies play,
Lots of school,
Swimming pool,
Chatting now,
Milking cow,
On the phone,
Grandma’s home,
Son’s farewell,
Cake to sell,
Part-time job,
Am a slob,
Open shop,
Cannot stop.

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I think I have read the second chapter of the Epistle of James many times, especially during and since my mission. One of the most popular quotes from this chapter is that faith without works is dead. However, for me two weeks ago, reading this chapter once again opened my eyes to something new, some further insight into the inspired mind of an apostle of God.

James, in the second verse, begins his dichotomous lecture, comparing a rich man and a poor man. He then goes on to show that we have a tendency to prejudge people on their outward appearance. We give the best chair to the best dressed, so to speak.

Further, James reminds us that God has saved the poor for His special purposes and as His special heirs; that we are responsible for loving all our neighbours. A powerful lesson in itself, James’ comparison holds not only so much more, but holds so much applicable in our day in so many ways.

Have you ever walked down the street, just fresh from family prayer where you asked for a missionary experience? On this walk, have you ever passed a sloppy man with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth; a scantily-clad woman; a loud-mouthed, music-playing teenager? Did you see spiritually goodly apparel or a spiritually vile garment?

Have you ever gone to a house of a newly assigned family only to have someone bark obscenities in your face and then slam the door? Did you think you wanted this person in your best chair or under your footstool?

It is so easy to be caught up in our earthly experience that we forget our spiritual experience; so easy to neglect the balance that should exist between temporal and eternal; so easy to act out the natural man and not act like the Saviour; so easy to bypass asking ourselves, “What would Jesus do?”

Each person is of great worth to God; each his child. We have a responsibility to treat all equally. We love the hateful, serve the selfish and hope for the hopeless. We accept equally all visiting assignments from our leaders; both those who come to church and those who do not; those who answer our calls and those who do not; those who love us and those who do not.

Let us each strive to improve ourselves in these things.

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Right around the time I turned fourteen, I started home teaching; at least in the loosest sense of the word. For the most part, I usually tagged along, sitting quietly in a corner, as shy Aaronic Priesthood holders are apt to do. It wasn’t until I became a part of the elders quorum, however, when I really started to understand what home teaching was all about.

I was ordained an elder about a month before I left on my mission, but for a few months before that I attended the elders quorum meetings on Sundays. I, of course, have been a home teaching companion before this (in fact, I was companion to former BTO guitarist Tim Bachman), but I still had that young man tendency to sit in the corner and hope I didn’t have to read anything.

After I began attending the elders quorum, my home teaching route was changed and my new companion was Eden Engen, the elders quorum president. Little did I know how he would not only help me prepare for my mission, but how he would prepare me for home teaching. Having an elders quorum president as a companion can be like having President Hinckley as a travelling companion; you are always on the go and there is always lots to do.

The first night, everything seemed to go quite normal. Eden did most of the talking at our appointment and gave the lesson. Nothing seemed different. As part of his lesson, he wanted to share a related scripture. That is when the normalcy began to fade away. He asked me to read the scripture – something I do not remember ever doing in the five years previous. To top it off, he asked me to expound on the scripture I had just read and how I felt it related to the message.

When we returned to the car after our visit, he handed me a sheet of paper on which he had written down the five birthdays of each member of that family. I was now responsible for remembering their birthdays. He also handed me the Ensign with instructions to prepare the message for our visit with the next family later in the month.

What a responsibility. Eden understood what a companionship is all about. It is not all about one person dominating every visit. It is not about one person sitting in the corner dreaming about girls and his upcoming mission. It is about teamwork and co-operation; and he was making me a part of the team.

However, that was not it for the night. Eden was going to show me what elders quorum president work was. After we left our visit, we stopped by a few homes where the occupants were no longer active in the Church or whose spouses were not members of the Church. We visited with each of them; we talked, shared stories, offered encouragement, and left commitments. I went home feeling like I had magnified a calling for the first time in my life. Each day we went out was similar.

It never ended there though. Eden offered me uplifting and inspiring experiences from his own mission less than ten years previous. He spent time with me outside of our visits to get to know me and strengthen our companionship. We watched movies together, and played computer games together.

Little did I know that just four years later I would be taking all these things he had taught me and applying them to a similar situation.

It was I now who was the elders quorum president; it was I now who had an 18-year-old home teaching companion. He was a companion who really needed some direction and support. He was already unsure if he should serve a mission and the added pressure he received from his parents and young men president did not change his mind any.

I never did get a chance to talk to Joe before I moved to see if the job I was doing positively affected him. I never had the chance to ask him if his feelings toward home teaching had changed. I never had the chance to ask him how he viewed me as a companion.

I guess I will never know if I was like Eden that year, but I know I tried.

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One of my favourite parts of the Bible is the first few verses of the third chapter of Acts. In my opinion, this is the point where the readers can see the contrasts between the post-Crucifixion Peter and the pre-Crucifixion Peter; between the Peter of power and purpose the Peter of question and qualm. To me it is the pinnacle of Peter’s full conversion to Christ’s cause.

The chapter begins with Peter and his counsellor John walking toward the Jerusalem temple for the 9:00 morning prayer. Right before they stepped into the temple, a lame man sitting by the temple gate called to them, asking for alms.

This is where we see Peter’s power and authority shining through. First he calls upon the man to look upon them. The man, of course, expected - as I’m sure has happened countless times before - to receive some sort of offering.

Peter recognised the thoughts which must have been going through this man’s mind and addressed them with “Silver and gold have I none.” But before any disappointment could settle into the eyes of this man who had not walked since birth, Peter gave him a gift without price.

“In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.”

What faith this must have taken. Here we have Peter - a lowly fisherman who not many months before doubted many doctrines introduced by the Saviour; who shortly after the Crucifixion went back to fishing instead of preaching - realising the true purpose of the authority he held; realising the potential of the keys he had received from angels; realising the apostleship he had received from the Saviour.

But you know what the most intriguing part is? What he did after the command for the lame man to walk. In what really is a shining reflection of the Saviour’s life, Peter didn’t just stand there as the man struggled to his feet; he reached out his hand and he lifted him up.

Oh that we had the faith and the compassion of Peter. How often do we encourage those we visit to keep the commandments; to say their prayers; to read their scriptures; to implement the Holy Spirit in their lives? And how often do we go one step further and help them accomplish these things.

Does a shepherd yell to his sheep to get in the pen and then go home to watch TV, or does he guide them in, showing them, loving them, teaching them? Does the potter spin the clay expecting it to shape itself, or does he caress the clay, moulding it, guiding it, shaping it? Does the gardener throw down her seeds and then go to a football game, or does she watch her tender plants, watering them, weeding them, strengthening them?

We too must be like Peter, preaching but helping.

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