New VoIP service sends out automated reminder calls on last Sunday of the month to all Elders/High Priests and Relief Society sisters reminding them to get out and complete their visits. If visits are completed, home teachers or visiting teachers then can press 1 on their phone or 2 to leave a message on when they plan to get out. System generates a detailed PDF report that can be given to bishop at PEC meeting.

We belong to a busy church. A typical Ward makes hundreds of phone calls per month (see below). This service is designed to simplify your life and help you become more effective in your church calling by removing the burden of making phone calls to remind ward members of meetings, activities and assignments. Let our system do all the calling for you. All you do is record your message, and we call all the people you select and play your recorded message to them.

www.LDSReminderCalls.com

Posted by John in General, Home Teaching, Visiting Teaching, HT-Leader Resources, VT-Leader Resources

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Gary Phelps wrote his masters thesis on the history of home teaching. The 175 pdf is available for download from:

Home teaching : Attempts by the Latter-day Saints to establish an effective program during the nineteenth century

UPDATE: The link above appears to be dead. Here is an updated link

http://patriot.lib.byu.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/MTNZ&CISOPTR=10574&REC=16

When you click on the above link, look to the left hand side of the page and click on Printable Copy for a PDF file of the entire program.

Posted by John in Home Teaching, History of HT

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The Wyoming Ward of the Grand Rapids, Michigan Stake found a new program was needed it to lift its home teaching into a more successful mode. This power point program introduces the program. The program consists of a written report form which is completed in the last 10 minutes of the opening exercise on each fast Sunday.

The PPT presentation explains how the “Return and Report” report system works. Reports are reviewed in PEC the following Sunday. The HPG Leaders and EQ Presidency make written comments and initial each report. The Bishop does the same to provide encouragement, suggestions and feedback. On the 3rd Sunday, the reports are handed back to the home teachers for them to use in follow-up.

This provides rapid and specific feedback on each family. It gently requires accountability. It allows the PEC to act in concert to meet the needs identified by the home teachers. It creates a tendency to plan ahead and avoid procrastination of the brethren. This power point presentation was introduced to the entire assembled priesthood. If other units can benefit, feel free to adapt the slides to your specific unit.

The Power Point presentation is available in the downloads section.

Also, you will need the Monthly Home Teaching Report.

Posted by John in HT-Leader Resources, Downloads

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Since the holidays are coming up, many home and visiting teachers like to give gifts to the families they teach. Here is a list 200+ very inexpensive gift ideas I’ve compiled

Ideas for Small Gifts

I also have a FHE in a Jar printable PDF that makes a good gift for families you home or visit teach here

FHE in a Jar

I hope they are of some use to some of you! Happy Holidays!

Posted by jenny in HT-Ideas, VT-Ideas

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“I hope that home teachers and visiting teachers will experience two things: first, the challenge of the responsibility that is in their great calling, and second, the sweetness of results from their work, particularly with those among us who are less active. I hope that these teachers will get on their knees and pray for direction, and then go to work to bring these wandering prodigals back into the fold of the Church. If home and visiting teachers respond to this challenge, I honestly believe that they will taste the sweet and wonderful feeling which comes of being an instrument in the hands of the Lord in leading someone back into activity in His church and kingdom.

“I am making a plea for us to reach out to our brethren and sisters who have known the beauty and the wonder of this restored gospel for a brief season and then for some reason have left it.

“May all home teachers recognize that they have an inescapable responsibility to go into the homes of the people and teach them to live the gospel principles more faithfully, to see that there is no iniquity or backbiting or evil speaking, to build faith, to see that the families are getting along temporally. That is a very serious responsibility; it really is. But it is not a heavy burden—it just takes a little more faith. It is worthy of our very best effort.” (Instruments of the Lord,” Ensign, March 1997.)

Posted by John in Home Teaching, Visiting Teaching

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Home and Visiting Teaching Pyramid - A fun diagram depicting our Home / Visiting Teaching relationships.

Posted by John in Home Teaching, Visiting Teaching

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When there are children in the family that are to be Home Taught, point the lesson towards the children, and keep the lesson short. Children have attention spans of about five minutes. Also, keep the birthdays of everyone in the families you Home Teach on a calendar and mail birthday cards to them. Also forward cards appropriate for any ocassion for that family.

Submitted by Jeffrey C. Apparius

Posted by John in Home Teaching, HT-Ideas

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In 1965, when I was in the bishopric of the Alhambra Ward, our Bishop was inspired to introduce and implement just one procedure with the home teachers that doubled the Sacrament attendance. It had been running in the high “30’s” (38% and 39%).

After the procedure was introduced, weekly reports from the priesthood quorums were really effective. The specific: “if you do not see the family you are home teaching at Church, you are to telephone them before the day is over and inquire if they were sick or had some problem.” Just a phone call to obtain a reason. Then tell them you missed them and will see them next week!

After weekly phone calls, the percentage began to rise rapidly within three months. Before the year’s end, it was in the 70th percentile. Just concern and contact, showing love, week-after-week. Yes, the home teachers had to be encouraged, but the first few minutes of priesthood meeting were spent asking, “Brother Goddard, were all your families at sacrament meeting last week? Did you call the ones who were not? Will you call them today if you do not see them?”

Of course, this also put extra incentive on the Bishopric also to make certain that the members were “fed” when they came; that the sacrament meeting speakers were the best in the ward, stake and area; and that the members of the stake presidency were asked to speak in the ward within the first three months. Members came just to see if the stake president’s visit meant that other changes were being made!

The premise was: if the members do not attend, how can you feed them? How to remind of the Sacrament covenant? How to encourage the covenants already made? Well, it worked.

Drew Goddard

Posted by John in Home Teaching, HT-Leader Resources

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Do we as home teachers understand what the priesthood is and how it may bless the lives of those over whom we have stewardship? to bless one another with the priesthood we must continually strive to be worthy.

Spencer W. Kimball teaches us that “the priesthood is the power and authority of God delegated to man on earth to act in all things pertaining to the salvation of men. It is the means whereby the Lord acts through men to save souls. Without this priesthood power, men are lost.” From President Kimball we learn that the Priesthood is primarily comprised of two things, Power and Authority of God.

First, let me explain the meaning of priesthood authority and then attempt to explain its power.

AUTHORITY

We have been enormously blessed as members of the Church to have God’s Priesthood restored to worthy men on the earth today. By way of Joseph Smith and his association with John the Baptist, Peter, James and John we rejoice in having the authentic priesthood of God with us today. Man cannot assume this authority without being properly called and ordained by the laying on of hands. “And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron” (Hebrews 5:4).

POWER

In a common dictionary I often use at home, I discovered eleven definitions to the word power. Allow me to share a few of them with you while focusing on our callings as teachers.

The ability or capacity to perform or act effectively.
A specific capacity, faculty, or aptitude.
Physics define it as: The rate at which work is done, commonly measured in units –Those perennial monthly reports.
A measure of the magnification of an optical instrument.
You may, as I did, see a few key words that we use in describing the priesthood or callings which we hold.

After thoughtfully considering these definitions of the word power, I understood why it is important to have a positive attitude, carry out our callings effectively, and measure or account for our actions. I assume a lot of you have experienced each of these definitions of power in the priesthood. What I am suggesting is that we try to consistently possess each one of these definitions in our visits so that we might bless and save souls through this privilege of priesthood we enjoy. I believe the correct authority to act in God’s name is among us today and it is now our individual responsibility to develop priesthood power to bless one another.

Orson Pratt taught priesthood holders that “there is a difference between priesthood authority and priesthood power …all of us who hold the priesthood have the authority to act for the Lord, but the effectiveness of our authority — or if you will, the power that comes through that authority — depends on the pattern of our lives; it depends on our righteousness.”

During our lives, we should feel honored to be entrusted by the Lord and deemed worthy as a delegate to assist Him in His work. When living righteously, we will receive feelings of encouragement, motivation, confidence, humility, and an increased desire to bless others.

Remember, it is not necessarily difficult to receive the priesthood. It is, however, a challenge to live worthily each day and to continually develop priesthood power. One of the best ways we can do this is to be consistent and sensitive to our callings as home teachers. We must apply prayerful work and effort.

Tracy L. Stanger lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, with his wife and two daughters. Recently released as Young Mens president, he is now a patient Sunday school teacher for the 15-year olds in the Valley View 8th Ward, Holladay Utah North Stake

Posted by John in Home Teaching, HT-Ideas

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Consider Mosiah 4:26 - “And now, for the sake of these things which I have spoken unto you–that is, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, that ye may walk guiltless before God–I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants.”

There are several reasons why we might home teach:

Desire for praise or other earthly reward.
Good companionship
Fear of God’s punishment or Church censure.
A sense of duty. We’ve been taught to fulfill our callings and keep our covenants.
Desire for heavenly reward.
Love of those to whom we are assigned.
(The reasons listed above were adapted from Elder Dallin H. Oaks book, “The Pure in Heart”, pages 39-49. It is one of my favorite General Authority books.)

None of these motives is bad but surely love or charity is the purest motivation. How do we develop love if we don’t feel it now? We serve and grow to love those we serve. So if you are a Priesthood Home Teacher or a Relief Society Visiting Teacher and don’t feel motivated to fulfill that calling, just do it. You will become motivated by the purest of motives as you do.

– Terry L. Broadbent

Posted by John in Home Teaching, HT-Ideas

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