Sunday thoughts

So, I was asked to give a talk on home teaching. I immediately came up blank on that, but with a little help from lds.org (and Jill's dad!), I came up with some material. And, as usually happens, I was scrambling to finish in a timely manner and had to leave out much of my talk.

The highlights:

-- The bishopric member I spoke with on the phone said, "You just can't be a member of this church and be a hermit." This actually gave me pause and I thought about it for a couple of days. Because I am a hermit! Or at least, very hermit-like. I have determined that it is a very good thing I have church callings, or I might truly never get to know anyone in the ward. Who are we kidding? I might never leave the house. And I am thinking that moving to Paris is probably a really good thing for me as well -- talk about going outside of my comfort zone.

-- Home teachers support and serve all members of the families they visit. They nurture the friendship and respect of these members, showing genuine concern and love for them. They become acquainted with each member's interests and needs and recognize special events in their lives. (Church handbook)

-- "To perform fully our duty as home teachers, we should be continually aware of the attitudes, the activities and interests, the problems, the employment, the health, the happiness, the plans and purposes, the physical, temporal, and spiritual needs and circumstances of everyone - of every child, every youth, and every adult in the homes and families who have been placed in our trust and care as bearers of the Priesthood and representatives of the bishop. This is literally the Lord's way to watch over his flock." (David O. McKay)

-- "In this world of gluttony and greed, there is a certain satisfaction that comes from rendering service to others purely because of love and not for pay. I think the Apostle Peter felt that same exhilaration when he wrote:

Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; (1 Peter 5:2)

"I recognize that it takes time to develop the discipline and desire to prioritize concern for others ahead of one's personal interests. That ennobling transition begins when one makes the baptismal covenant:

Now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light;
Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things...

"Home teaching opportunities provide a means by which an important aspect of character may be developed: love of service above self." (Russell M. Nelson)

-- Above all, be a genuine friend to the individuals and families you teach. (Ezra Taft Benson)

-- I talked about how I have been given a visiting teaching assignment multiple times where I didn't think I had anything in common with either my companion or one of the sisters we were to visit. Without fail, I learned to love those sisters -- usually very quickly. I quoted one of my former companions who said, "I love it when the Lord chooses my friends!"

-- President Faust related an incident that happened to him as a young boy. His father found a lost lamb in the desert and brought it home. He was given the charge to care for the lamb. He fed it out of a bottle, played with it, named it, and generally considered it his pet. One stormy night, he forgot to put his lamb in the barn. He could hear it bleating outside, but he didn't want to get up out of his cozy bed. In the morning, he saw that his lamb had been killed by a dog. He said:

"My young heart was broken. I had not been a good shepherd or steward of that which my father had entrusted to me. My father said, 'Son, couldn't I trust you to take care of just one lamb?' My father's remark hurt me more than losing my woolly friend. I resolved that day, as a boy, that I would try never again to neglect my stewardship as a shepherd if I were ever placed in that position again."

-- "Anyone serving in any capacity in the Church in which he is responsible for the spiritual or temporal well-being of any of the Lord's children is a shepherd to those sheep. The Lord holds his shepherds accountable for the safety of his sheep." (Bruce R. McConkie)

-- "Miracles are everywhere to be found when priesthood callings are magnified. When faith replaces doubt, when selfless service eliminates selfish striving, the power of God brings to pass His purposes. The priesthood is not really so much a gift as it is a commission to serve, a privilege to lift, and an opportunity to bless the lives of others." (President Monson)

Evidently we as visiting teachers are under the same obligations as the home teachers. That quote about anyone serving in any capacity in the Church is pretty clear. Can you imagine how many burdens would be lifted if all home and visiting teachers took their duties seriously to be shepherd of the Lord's flock? I know I'm inspired to do better.