The purpose for me writing all of this is simply so those who are preparing to go on missions can see what we talk about in some of our training meetings. It is not definitive doctrine or counsel for anyone but missionaries in my mission, perhaps even for only me. Still, I hope it will be informative to everyone who wants to know about the inner-workings of a mission. Also, after reading through my notes, I can see a lot of application to regular members of the church. So a secondary reason (or perhaps it should be the primary reason?) is to allow the Spirit to teach you something as you read those things that the Spirit touched me to write.

 

Just a quick note, before I get into the other stuff - Having a study journal has been one of the smartest things I could have done. It has been so beneficial to go back and look at my (meticulous, I almost transcribed General Conference :P) notes. I would highly recommend purchasing a high-quality notebook for you soon-to-be missionaries.

 

With the age change, a lot of new missionaries are coming out. In my mission alone, we are getting an addition of 90 missionaries, 45 of which are sisters. Why? As Elder Holland stated in a press conference "The Lord is hastening the work." However, as we have found in our mission, the areas which have many  missionaries don't necessarily have the most baptisms. So, there is little to no correlation between number of missionaries and baptisms. However, the Lord is preparing people. The example was given of Cornelius in Acts 10:1-21. He was not a Christian. But he was praying, and living a God-fearing life. He was ready for the Gospel.

The main theme of this training was Finding the way the Lord wants us to find, as part of our vision of missionary work: Find, Teach and Rescue. That phrase used to end with "Baptize," but the Brethren decided that our purpose is also to bring back the lost sheep who have wandered away. In Preach My Gospel, our purpose is defined as being to "Invite others (that is to say, everyone) to come unto Christ"

If I were to ask you to visualize the question "What does it mean to find people to teach?" you would probably think of two guys, bundled in coats in the freezing cold knocking on doors or in the city square running down people passing out pass-along cards. At least, that's what I visualize. And that isn't a bad thing - many people have been found and taught in that way. But, we are also looking for real growth - Converts who stay faithful, serve steadfastly, and obtain the blessings of the temple. How do we find people who will do that? The biggest contributing factor is member connections. If a person already has a connection with the church in some way, they will be more likely to learn and stick with it. But, in a recent Mission President's seminar, the presiding General Authority said "Unless you change the way that you find in your mission, your missionaries will never feel that sweet affirmation from the spirit that they have done the best they can." So, we were invited to ask ourselves at the end of each day "Did I find everyone today who the Lord prepared for me to find?" If we can answer "Yes," then we have done our very best and have that 'sweet affirmation' that we did all we can.

The Mission President borrowed my planner and looked at my weekly goals. Because we had no intentions of baptizing anyone this past week, the goal for baptized and confirmed was 0. "If you don't intend to baptize anyone, do you think you will?" Good question, President. He gave the example of a gentleman who served his mission and in faith felt like he needed to set a goal to baptize someone during a day when they had nobody ready to be baptized in their teaching pool. Guess what? It happened. Twice. It can happen to us, if we choose to baptize, and set a goal to reflect that choice.

Faith is the most important part of finding people to teach and, eventually, baptizing (rescuing too). If you don't believe you are going to find someone prepared for the Gospel, chances are you won't. Sad, but true. It goes for all miracles. Look at the miracles of the Savior. In a lot of cases, such as the water changing to wine, feeding the 5000, or raising Lazarus. What did Jesus do? What did the others do to help facilitate the miracle? We have a big part in the miracles which the Lord performs on our behalf, so we have to do the best we can to do our part. Like Paul said though, we aren't to take any pride to ourselves, but recognize that God allowed the miracles to happen on account of our worthiness and faith.

One thing that was emphasized: Talk with people, not to people. Talking to people is selfish and one sided. Talking with people is charitable. Another thing that came up - this Gospel message is amazing. It's incredible. And it's natural for people to want to share it, even if they haven't heard it. When it says in Preach My Gospel "Ask EVERYONE for a referral," it's serious. Do it.

 

Things to quit doing: (our mission president said some of these might shake our testimony, but they are all true)

Quit baptizing less-active people. That is to say, don't baptize people who won't stay active in the church. Get people involved and baptize them only when they are ready.

Quit praying that the Lord will give us investigators. Pray instead for the ability to recognize opportunities to share the Gospel, and whom to share it with. Quit asking the Lord to do something He is already doing.

Quit relying on active members for referrals. Instead, rely on EVERYONE for referrals.

Quit hanging out. Keep the purpose of a visit in mind, and be on time to all appointments.

Quit choosing not to baptize. Set goals to baptize, and watch the Lord bless you.

Quit relying on the Spirit for everything. In other words, don't be commanded in all things.  (Don't take this one wrong, read the quote by Elder Oaks in Preach My Gospel page 101) Instead, talk to everyone.

Quit teaching eternal investigators. If they aren't progressing or keeping commitments, drop 'em. Harsh, but true. Sometimes we hope they will eventually catch on, but what will help them catch on faster, being with the missionaries that they are used to being around, or being without the missionaries and realizing how much they miss the Spirit that they bring and the Gospel they teach.

Quit answering questions. People get hung up on the littlest things. Answering every question is not needed. The only question that needs to be answered is "Is the Book of Mormon true?" With that knowledge, everything else falls into place.

Quit scheduling time to find. Don't plan to tract. Make it a lifestyle. If you get a referral, knock on the doors nearby. If you are walking somewhere, talk to the people on the street.