Open Your Mouth

So this week was awesome! We had another exchange with the other sisters in Prague. This one was really fun though because it was our first overnight exchange! And it was with one of my MTC sisters! I love Sister Rosenvall and I'm glad she is serving in Prague. Plus we taught our very own lesson with one of our investigators. I know I shouldn't have been scared becuase we are both in our third transfer and her Czech is really good, but I was a little nervous without Sister Bateman. The lesson went by so smoothly though. We talked about baptism and he said that if he came to know it was true, he would definitely be baptized. YUSSSSS. Way cool.

 

Conference was awesome. SO AWESOME. We just barely watched it this past weekend though because we had to wait for it to be translated to Czech. Thankfully we got to watch it in English... I'm not sure how much I would have understood if it had been in Czech, but we had to wait so that the branch could watch it in Czech and we could have the English in another room. There are actually a lot of members here in Prague that speak english, or some other language besides Czech. My favorite talk was by M. Russell Ballard who told us to OPEN OUR MOUTHS. He was really speaking to full-time missionaries and really speaking to me! Sometimes it's really hard to be brave in a place full of people who think I don't know what I'm talking about, or think that our message isn't important, but hearing that talk gave me the faith and courage to open my mouth and talk to people. The worst they can do is say no. And that is a little devestating, but with time, they'll come around!

 

I hope all of you had wonderful conference weekend as well (even if I am 2 weeks late) And I hope you are thinking about the person that you can refer to the missionaries! I know that they would really appreciate it! (The person and the missionaries) I love you all and I hope you are all happy and healthy and loving life!

 

s laskou

Sestra Bruno

Elder Ballard Advises MTC Missionaries to Smile

This week was pretty much the same. We study all day long and have class and eat and have class and eat and study and eat! I think I might puke we eat so much! But the MTC is still amazing I met some people this week from England and Italy and a couple of other places. I also met an elder going to Africa who speaks Portuguese, random I know right!

So this week we heard from Elder Ballard! This is the third week in a row that we have heard from an apostle, so basically that's the good thing about being in the MTC for so long. Elder Ballard talked about becoming a master communicator.He also said the most powerful thing we have is our smile. And that we need to have confidence in our message.

M. Russell Ballard Fires Up the Brussels Belgium/Netherlands Missionaries

Elder Ballard with  Netherlands Missionaries (courtesy Jillian Fritz

Last week on Tuesday, 9 September 2010 and 10 September 2010 Elder M. Russell Ballard accompanied by his wife Barbara were in Brussels, Belgium for church meetings.  Elder Ballard addressed the Belgium Brussels/Netherlands missionaries on both days.  On the  first day the Lille zone of missionaries from France Paris Mission, who border Belgium and the Brussels Zone from the Belgium Brussels/Netherlands Mission came on Tuesday. The next day the rest of the missionaries from the Belgium Brussels/Netherlands Mission went to be instructed.

The missionaries also got to hear a few other general authorities including:  Elder Gerard Causse who is the second French General Authority, Elder Ronald A. Rasband who is in the Presidency of the First Council of the Seventy, as well as Bishop Richard C. Edgely of the Presiding Bishopric, and Elder Jose Teixeira of the Seventy. Several of the brethren's wives accompanied them.

M. Russell Ballard's Son-in-Law Brad Brower Stokes Up Missionaries in Canada Toronto West Mission

President and Sister Bradley James and Tamara Ballard Brower

I see that my old friend Brad Brower and his wife Tamara Ballard Brower are pumping up the missionaries in the Canada Toronto West Mission.  He is a chip off the old block returning to our old mission field and getting the missionaries cranked up like his father-in-law and former mission president Elder M. Russell Ballard.  Elder Ballard used to do the same thing saying that he would wind us up and then we would be good for the six weeks between zone conferences.  He trained Elder Brower and his daughter Tammie well. Now the missionaries have to be wound up longer as zone conferences are changed to every three months.  Brad Brower has always been an impressive person so I am sure he will have success at keeping his missionaries all stoked up.  One of his missionaries shares how motivational he is.

O, That I Were an Angel!: New Media for Mormon Missionary Work (Blog of the Month)

This past couple weeks I have been receiving emails from Gideon Burton, an English professor at BYU who specializes in rhetoric particularly relating to online blogging.  He and I agreed to collaborate on identifying good missionary blogs that he can use as examples for his students and for prospective future missionaries and their families. Today to my surprise I came across his newest blog O That I Were An Angel: New Media for Mormon Missionary Work that he has put up since our emails began. The blog is really graphically pleasing and has some really good insight in to the topic of missionaries using the new media. In his new blog, that has been active for only one week, Burton has already put up five posts.

2010 Mission Presidents' Seminar: A Comprehensive Synopsis

Richard Holzapfel, a former BYU religion professor and newly called mission president to the Alabama Birmingham Mission,  gave a brief  overview of what transpired in his blog:

We entered the MTC on June 23, 2010 for the New Mission Presidents' Seminar (Photograph taken in front of the Wilford Woodruff Administration Building at 9:00 am on June 23). Some 114 new presidents and their wives gathered in Provo for the five day training. They came from across the world, including Europe, Pacific Islands and Pacific Rim, North, Central, and South America. The Missionary Department announced changes in dress for sister missionaries, interview and zone conference schedules, and a new simplified teaching/training plan. It has been a wonderful experience!

The 2010 Mission Presidents' Seminar and the M. Russell Ballard Connection

This coming week in the Church News will be the account of the addresses received by the mission presidents and their wives at the 2010 Mission Presidents' Seminar.  I thought it would be interesting though to show a few behind the scene activities to whet your appetite for my post next week. So in this post I am featuring some old dudes I served a mission with back in the mid1970s and their connection to M. Russell Ballard.  The first part of the post shows my old buddy Richard Holzapfel with whom I went to BYU and he gives us an overview of the seminar followed by the M. Russell Ballard connection.

Richard Holzapfel, a former BYU religion professor and newly called mission president to the Alabama Birmingham Mission,  gave a brief  overview of what transpired in his blog:

We entered the MTC on June 23, 2010 for the New Mission Presidents' Seminar (Photograph taken in front of the Wilford Woodruff Administration Building at 9:00 am on June 23). Some 114 new presidents and their wives gathered in Provo for the five day training. They came from across the world, including Europe, Pacific Islands and Pacific Rim, North, Central, and South America. The Missionary Department announced changes in dress for sister missionaries, interview and zone conference schedules, and a new simplified teaching/training plan. It has been a wonderful experience!

M. Russell Ballard has a great influence on the missionary work in the twentieth and beginning of the twenty-first century.  He has been involved with missionary work full-time going back to 1974 when he was called as mission president in the Canada Toronto Mission.  A few of his missionaries have followed in his footsteps. All of them were mission leaders in the CTM being former zone leaders and mission assistants.

In the Hot Seat

I thought I would share with you a few things that have lingered with me about my mission thirty years later. When I served a mission it was during the time of memorization of the seven rainbow discussions. My mission president M. Russell Ballard was a fire breathing dynamic man who established some hard mission rules. He liked to pride myself on the fact that none of his missionaries went home dishonorably. He had a favorite black leather wing chair that sat in his office in the Toronto Canada Mission home. He called it his hot seat. He liked to have you sit in the seat then he would give you some very straight hard direct advice. He later told us that he was working us over for what we were suppose to be six months in the future but had not yet attained. He prophesied to me that my mission would be a mini-example of what the rest of my life would be like. Since I never quite measured up to his expectations and he was constantly transferring me I imagined that I would be a divorced person with multiple wives.

After about a year I decided to buckle down and learn the discussions. I had passed off three one by one in Italy where I had served prior to being transferred to Toronto. My mission president in Rome Italy claimed I would be his assistant one day but since I was transferred that never happened. For two weeks I buckled down and learned all seven discussions. I went one day to meet with one of the assistant's to the president to pass off my discussions. I breezed through six of the seven discussions. We finished the meeting. He was laughing and having a good time with me. Then as we were walking out he says by the way we missed a discussion give me a certain concept then I will pass you. I knew in that moment that no matter what I did he was going to flunk me. I knew I could be a good missionary and baptize people even if I didn't ever pass off the discussions so I never tried to pass them ever again. I subsequently baptized more people than even that assistant. I taught 25 people who joined the church. True to my mission president's word I remained a junior companion my whole mission. I wondered if I would never hold a significant church calling because my mission was supposed to be indicative of my life.

It wasn't hard for me to baptize people since I used the Spirit in my approach. My best companion was Elder Andy Bavelas who followed a similar approach. We had unbelievable success stopping when ever we felt a strong impression. I prayed every day that the Lord would lead me to the honest in heart. Prior to my mission I covenanted with the Lord that I would be like John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff. I fully intended to baptize hundreds of people. One month I read Alvin R. Dyer's The Challenge. "How wonderful it is to be with you this evening before we leave tonight we would like to set the date for your entrance into Christ's true church." That approach stayed with me my whole life.

I was assigned to a companion who was the ultimate party animal. He had a radio which he listened to every day. He bought the newspaper from the Becker Store in front of our apartment. He would stand outside our apartment and say to any attractive girl who came by, "There is always room for jello." His idea of teaching was playing ping pong with investigator families. He didn't have a clue about how to commit anyone to baptism but he was a nice guy. Any way I decided to try out the challenge as his companion. I issued the challenge to the Burchardt family. All four accepted baptism. Next we went to a Mrs. Lewellwyn and she and her daughter accepted baptism. We even began teaching her husband. Within a couple of weeks I was transferred again down to Royal York with my buddy Harry Lodholm. I challenged a little old white haired man to baptism and he accepted. I ended the month with eight baptisms. I learned that even ping pong could be a valuable missionary tool.

After my mission I went to BYU where I occasionally I saw my old mission president when he would speak at the Y. I have worked my whole life to have his acceptance. I even compiled the Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson because I knew it was something he would approve of since it helped build the kingdom. The missionary section was my strongest section because I knew it was something both Elder Ballard and President Benson had a love for.

When I went to work for two years at BYU Hawaii. I was able to become the missionary preparation teacher. I taught over one hundred perspective missionaries. I pushed them hard. I set the bar very high. I taught them how to dress, how to memorize the scriptures. I thought of the hot seat and where I wanted them to be in six months. I told them they would be District Leaders and Zone Leaders and even Mission Assistants. I knew from my failures in the hot seat what they needed to do so they wouldn't end up like me. I even established an island-wide mission fireside inviting seven former mission presidents and the area seventies to come and address hundreds of Polynesians kids. I remember seeing it done in Provo when I worked at the BYU Religion Department by John Fugal and patterned ours after his.

This blog is a life-time work that is mostly motivated by the fact that I am still sitting in that hot seat. I have devoted thirty years to studying this subject. My missionary quote book is dedicated to those men who have made me who I am today. I hope each person who has served a mission has similar tales of sitting in the hot seat. Please feel free to share any you care with the rest of us positive or negative.

2009 Mission Presidents' Seminar: A Comprehensive Synopsis

The Church News is one of the few sources for finding out what the general authorities say at the mission presidents' seminar each year in June at the MTC in Provo, Utah. The Saturday, 4 July 2009 issue was full of brief reports of the key talks from the Thursday, 25 June to Monday, 29 June 2009 five-day mission presidents' seminar. Jason Swensen and Shaun D. Stahle gave us fine synopses with a few pictures. I have tried to get the full talks in the past but was rebuffed by J. Roger Fluhman, secretary of the Twelve, who sent me a standard form letter not to bother the Twelve. I feel that any address delivered by the general authorities to mission presidents and missionaries should be reported in a paperback edition like BYU Speeches of the Year for general member reading. The best we can find are brief summaries in the Church News and an occasional Ensign or Liahona complete talk.

This year has exceptionally good quotes and it was good to see it was conducted at all despite the swine flu epidemic that had spread rapidly through the MTC and is barely winding down. Swensen, Stahle and photographer Scott G. Winterton put their health on the line to report for the Church News as did the general authorities. It is not as dangerous for young people as more mature people so it showed their mettle. This week a missionary reported the no handshaking ban has been lifted as the swine flu is starting to abate but that is since the seminar.

Not only the 100 mission presidents and their wives were in attendance but all the members of the 12 and many seventies as well as a member of the Presiding Bishopric to show members the brethren walk the walk and how safe it is to be at the MTC. One mission president reported instead of shaking hands mission presidents and general authorities rubbed elbows suit coat to suit coat. I like to see the talks in sequence so I have arranged them in to one post and found the following in chronological order in the Church News. Enjoy!

Jason Swensen reported on M. Russell Ballard's 25 June 2009 talk Elder Ballard speaks about purpose of missionary work:

Photo by Shaun Stahle

Missionaries training at the Provo MTC pause while crossing campus to greet their new mission presidents who are also being trained.

Elder M. Russell Ballard anchored his June 25 counsel to participants at the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar on the purpose of missionary work.

A member of the Quorum of the Twelve, Elder Ballard began by quoting "the purpose of missionary work" found on the opening page of Preach My Gospel (a guide Elder Ballard played a pivotal role in developing):

"Invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end."

That purpose statement, he said, reflects the focus and desired outcomes of every one involved in missionary work.

The lessons taught in Preach My Gospel were prepared under the influence of Heaven.
"Thousands of hours were spent by the faithful staff and General Authorities to create the guide — including the purpose statement. This purpose statement is inspired," said Elder Ballard.

When missionaries understand their purpose, they understand they are primarily to find, teach and baptize. Some missionaries regularly stand up in zone conferences and recite their "purpose." But Elder Ballard said living that purpose is far more important than recited words.

"There is a big difference between the ability of missionaries to recite and their commitment to live and practice on a daily basis. They must stay committed to this objective."

Elder Ballard said it is the duty of a mission president and his wife to help the missionaries internalize their purpose to find, teach and baptize.

The missionaries must possess a deep desire to fulfill that purpose.

A missionary's success will be directly proportionate to their preparation, their obedience and their ability as a teacher, he added.

It's important that elders and sisters understand that it's all right to enjoy being a missionary and find joy in their work.

"One of your many challenges is to kindle the fire of a positive attitude and a desire in your missionaries and to keep it burning all the time. When a missionary knows how to teach, all he or she will want to do is teach," said Elder Ballard.

The Church leader said when missionaries teach with understanding and are filled with desire, the great work of preaching the gospel can be accomplished.

"All over the world, even in those areas where baptisms are not anywhere near what they ought to be, there are people who want to know who God is and what the relationship between themselves and our Heavenly Father is," said Elder Ballard. "They seek to know; they just don't know where to find this knowledge."

Jason Swensen reported on President Henry B. Eyring's 25 June 2009 talk Love of God motivates missionary service: Feeling the love of God crucial to missionary work:

Photo by Jason Swensen

President Henry B. Eyring speaks to new mission presidents at the Provo Missionary Training Center on June 25.

The love of God must permeate all missionaries in their charge to take the gospel of Jesus Christ to all people.

That was the message President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency, shared June 25 with those gathered together on the opening day of the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar.

"Love unfeigned must motivate all we do in missionary service," he said. "It must lead us in our efforts to find people to teach. It must be in our voice and in our manner as we visit with bishops about their opportunity to lead their wards in missionary work. Our love of the Lord and the love of people must be communicated in every lesson we teach. It surely must be behind our invitation for investigators to make a commitment to repent and do what will lead to their happiness."

It was the Savior who promised rest to all "that labor and are heavy laden." That loving invitation, added President Eyring, runs through all the instructions the mission presidents have been given about how to do missionary work and how to lead.

"Your missionaries will feel drawn by the Lord's love. Love begats love. The missionaries and you will feel His love as the Atonement works to change our hearts. Our love for Him will increase. We come to know the Master as we serve with Him. As we know Him better we love Him even more. That will be true for your missionaries."

Mission presidents can teach their missionaries how to know that their offering of labor is approved of the Lord.

"If the Lord sends them the Spirit to carry their message into hearts with increasing power they can know He loves them and is giving His approval," President Eyring said. "When the Lord increasingly softens the heart of a missionary to love the people he or she can know that God is not only accepting their sacrifice, but sanctifying it to them."

The Church leader instructed the mission presidents and their wives to help the missionaries see signs of the Lord's approval. Always look for ways to build and strengthen them. Repeatedly express love and confidence in them — and help them see evidence of the Lord's love for them. Help them feel that they can succeed.

President Eyring asked how missionaries and their leaders can feel a love of God and for all men, whatever their circumstance or calling.

"First and foremost," he answered, "there is the sure promise that as the Atonement of Jesus Christ works in your life, and the lives of your missionaries, the love of God comes as a crowning gift." Faith begats obedience which then begats charity, the pure love of Christ. Charity allows one to see another as God sees them.

"I have learned to pray for discernment to discern as much as I can what God has seen in the life of the person before me and to feel what He feels for them." Indeed, a valuable gift of discernment is to feel what God feels about people and what He wants for them. It is to know something of their future if they choose the right.

God lives and loves all His children, President Eyring testified.

"He hears every prayer. He loves every one you will ever meet. He knows their hearts and your heart. He has gone before your to prepare the way. He beckons for you to follow."

Shaun D. Stahle reported on Jeffrey R. Holland's 26 June 2009 talk Divine companion Teaching by the Spirit:Key to missionary work is the 'ultimate teacher':

Photo by Shaun Stahle,

Speaking to missionaries and new mission presidents during the New Mission Presidents Seminar June 26, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said, "You can't go forward in this work without 'the ultimate teacher.' "

"My assignment tonight is to address the very broad subject of the role of the Holy Ghost in missionary work, with special emphasis on 'teaching by the Spirit,' " said Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve, speaking to nearly 600 missionaries in the Provo Missionary Training Center, and another 100 mission presidents and their wives attending the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar, June 26.

Photo by Shaun Stahle,

Nearly 600 missionaries at the Provo MTC assemble to hear Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, who welcomed them to the "work of angels."

"I have entitled these remarks 'The Divine Companionship,' " he said.

"My point tonight is to stress that the Spirit must be with you and you must teach by it when you teach because that is the way the lesson ceases to be your lesson and becomes His, becomes under the power of the Spirit a vehicle for lifting your investigators out of the temporal world.

"We are charged with the responsibility of getting people out of their ruts and routines, out of their problems and their pain, out of their earthly little arguments and ignorance and sins, and take them to the Gods — to the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost — ultimately we are to take them toward their own Godhood. In short, we are to take them to the divine. And the Holy Ghost is the connecting link which the Godhead has agreed to give us here in mortality for that heavenly connection. …

"You can't go forward in this work without 'the ultimate teacher.' He must be part of your companionship. … Don't ever forget that the Holy Ghost is the key to that knowledge."

Turning to the mission presidents, Elder Holland said, "You and we have the monumental task of taking these young, bright, willing hearts and minds, and turning them into teachers — teachers whose duty it is to teach, making sure that when they do teach, it is by the Spirit. …

"Teach the missionaries that second only to the responsibility they have to listen to the Spirit is the responsibility they have to listen to the investigator. They must have the patience, sincerity and ability to go where the investigator is, spiritually speaking, before expecting the investigator to come where they are, spiritually speaking. But people won't just leap there simply because the missionaries want them to. The missionaries have to go prayerfully and lovingly out into the highways and byways of these people's lives seeking to discern their challenges and concerns. …

"Once we have found these people, once we know our investigators, then we can find out what they believe and what they enjoy and what they hope for, as well as what they fear and anything they are struggling over. Then we must take them by the hand and lead them with 'that portion that shall be meted unto every man' as the scriptures say (Doctrine and Covenants 84:85). If we will listen with spiritual ears just the way we must see with spiritual eyes, the investigators will tell us what lessons they need to hear! …

"Missionaries today have to study harder, pray more earnestly, plan better, be more pure and teach with more focus and power than they ever did in my day as a young elder." Elder Holland said the discerning missionary will know that his teaching is having the desired effect when one or more of these things happen.

The missionary hears himself saying something he didn't plan to say and learns something from his own instruction that he did not know before.

The Book of Mormon is a pure vehicle of the Spirit because it is the pure word of God. Missionaries must use it in their teaching as often as possible.

The piercing flame of the gospel is felt in the missionary's and the investigator's heart every time a particular point of truth is made.

The investigator honestly admits that "this is a good seed being planted, that he already feels a swelling growth" (Alma 32:28).

There is an awareness by the investigator, spoken or unspoken, that the lesson is showing him a "more excellent way," and that repentance of less noble and less spiritual habits is in order.

Investigator asks soul-searching questions, usually out of this new sense of awareness.

Spirit will prompt testimony and an invitation to be baptized. There comes such joy and peace in the room, such a near-tangible atmosphere of divinity, that neither the missionary, nor the member, nor the investigator experiencing such a moment would choose to be anywhere else in all the world at that time. Sometimes tears will be shed. Always great love will be felt. It is then that the veil is thin, that the Godhead is making its presence felt, and no other time or place would be appealing to those so privileged to be experiencing this. When that moment comes, … the missionary then invites the investigator to be baptized.

"The Godhead will bear testimony of you and your companion — frail, little uncelestial souls that you are — when you have earnestly tried to become part of the Divine Order. You have prayed and studied and fasted appropriately, and have always exerted great faith. You have been obedient to the commandments, to the rules of the mission, and to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. You have kept yourself morally clean in thought, in word, in deed, and have helped your companion do the same. You have tried to develop Christlike attributes, have worked diligent hours and have tried to be a witness of God 'at all times and in all things and in all places' (Mosiah 18:9).

"If you try to live this way — try with all the best that is within you — the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost above you will smile and say, 'It is enough. We will let these missionaries and their investigators feel a portion of the power of heaven. We will let them feel the touch of our unity and our divinity. …'

"Welcome to the work of angels," he said in closing. "Welcome to the work of divinity."

Jason Swensen also reported on L. Tom Perry's talk 26 June 2009 talk Missionaries are truly 'their brother's keeper':

Photo by Shaun Stahle

After nearly a month of training at the Provo Missionary Training Center, these missionaries will soon be serving in the Utah Ogden Mission.

When unity is found in missionary companionships, the Spirit is enabled to guide missionaries to find people to teach and enjoy the guidance of the Holy Ghost. Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve emphasized this principle June 26 in his remarks at the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar.

Missionaries truly are "their brother's keeper," he said. Sharing the gospel "two by two" is a spiritual and temporal principle that has been a part of Christ's church for ages.
"The principle of companionship is an eternal one. It is a critical element of a missionary's experience."

Elder Perry said he recently spoke about the task of assigning companionships with his son, President Lee T. Perry, who presided over the California Roseville Mission. President Perry told his father that the importance of deciding on companionships "was near the top of his list because so many important aspects of a missionary's development depends on companionship relationships and what missionaries learn from their companions."

Mission presidents should place high priority on identifying strong trainers for new missionaries because they can help a new elder or sister start their missions off right, said Elder Perry.
He added that presidents should enlist the counsel of their assistants regarding transfers — but to never surrender the sacred decision process of assigning companionships.

Elder Perry shared this companionship/transfer counsel from his mission president son: "First, block out sufficient time so that you avoid feeling pressure. Second, start on your knees, end on your knees, and when you get stuck, get on your knees."

Have faith, and the answers about transfers will come."

Elder Perry spoke of the pain he and his fellow General Authorities have experienced when they have heard accounts of missionaries who failed to protect their companions from serious transgressions. "If we never again listen to such reports, we would indeed feel blessed."

A missionary should be both a "bodyguard" and a "spirit guard" to his or her companion. It's vital that missionaries alert their president if rules are not being obeyed. "Threats of all kinds can be neutralized when companions understand this key responsibility," he said.

Elder Perry told the presidents to teach the missionaries to humbly seek the Lord's help in strengthening their companionships.

"They should repent of companionship failures just as they would other failings," he said. "What better preparation for a companionship of marriage then to learn that life's challenges are always best met when you seek the Lord's help."

Weekly companionship inventories are also essential to help missionaries build their relationships in a frank but gentle manner.

Strong, unified companionships are blessed with the power to find people to teach, he added.
It is vital that missionaries have as many opportunities to teach as possible. Practice role-playing and utilize service opportunities to help build relationships with others that might provide teaching opportunities.

Jason Swenson reported on President Dieter F. Uchtdorf's 26 June 2009 talk 'You will succeed':

President Uchtdorf uplifts new mission presidents:

Photo by Jason Swensen

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf speaks to new mission presidents during a seminar, sharing with them the opportunities that await them as they serve in their fields of labor..

In his June 26 remarks during the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the First Presidency, spoke of the blessed opportunities awaiting those recently called to lead the missions of the Church.

"Presidents and sisters, isn't it great to be part of this divine and sacred work?" he asked. "You will be wonderful. You are not called to fail; you will succeed because God is with you. You will have great and wonderful experiences as leaders in the Church, as missionaries, and especially — the two of you — as a very unique companionship."

The Church leader told the mission presidents and their wives that, yes, their calling is to increase the number of new members. "But it is also to assist local Church leaders and members in establishing and strengthening the Church. These members represent a vital source of strength for you and your missionaries."

The fruits of the labors of the new mission presidents and their wives will be seen and felt in the lives of their own families, in the lives of their missionaries and in the lives of families and individuals in their respective missions.

"Please help your missionaries to understand that the fruits of their labor will reach far beyond their present horizon," said President Uchtdorf. "Generations to come will be grateful and bless their names for their faithfulness and dedication. As these noble missionaries endure rejection, loneliness, self-doubt, homesickness and exhaustion, the Refiner's fire will purify their souls. They will increase in wisdom and grow up in the Lord, and their confidence will wax strong in the presence of God."

The Church leader reminded the mission presidents to never underestimate their influence on the Lord's missionaries. Mission presidents are teachers and trainers who instruct their missionaries through their examples, through interviews, through effective mission training plans and by applying the proven approach of Preach My Gospel.

Enlisting his experiences as an aviator, President Uchtdorf said that a powerful jet reaches its true potential in the air only after the landing gear and takeoff flaps are retracted. Missionaries might experience a similar experience in their labors.

"[The missionaries] may arrive in the mission field a little clumsy, timid or even cocky, but as you help them to get rid of some early drag, as you guide them to develop some added acceleration and extra lift, they will discover their true potential and become what they were meant to be. They will become true servants of the Lord, following His promptings and magnifying their callings — climbing during their mission to greater spiritual heights and reaching out to faraway divine goals."

President Uchtdorf then shared five observations that can help mission presidents and their companions bring about such spiritual transformations in their missionaries.

1 — What is important to you will become important to your missionaries.
2 — Be an example of Christlike love, and express that love frequently to your missionaries, to the members, and to others with whom you come in contact.
3 — Emphasize that the first principles and ordinances of the gospel are the foundation of conversion, retention and activation.
4 — Point your missionaries toward the Savior and His Atonement.
5 — Your primary source of support is from on high.

"One of the great gifts you will give your missionaries, a gift that will stay with them for the rest of their lives, is to teach them how to be close to the Spirit," he said. "Through the Spirit, they become self-motivated and self-directed, and they find joy and satisfaction in continual growth."

Jason Swensen reported on Quentin L. Cook's 27 June 2009 talk Book of Mormon plays vital role in the work:

Photo by Shaun Stahle

Mission presidents and their wives, like young missionaries, spend time at the Provo MTC where they receive training in missionary work.

It is vital that missionaries know that their president is committed to and has a testimony of the Book of Mormon, said Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve.

"They must know this first to be effective missionaries, but second, and even more important, they must know it as a fortification for life," he said June 27 at the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar. "It must be so deep in their souls that they can withstand the vicissitudes of life. In a world that is in commotion, they need the protection and armor that comes from a testimony of the Book of Mormon."

Elder Cook anchored his instruction on the vital role the Book of Mormon plays in missionary work. He quoted from Preach My Gospel, saying, "The Book of Mormon is powerful evidence of the divinity of Christ. It is also proof of the Restoration through the Prophet Joseph Smith."

Mission presidents should teach their missionaries to use the scriptures when they speak.

"Some are quoting from Preach My Gospel when they could and should use the scriptures," he said. "No one loves Preach My Gospel more than I do, but it is not a substitute for the scriptures. They should particularly quote scriptures relating to the Savior. The Book of Mormon is truly a second witness of Jesus Christ."

It is the Book of Mormon that answers the questions of the soul: Is there really a God? Did I exist before I was born? Will I live after I die? What is the purpose of life? Is Jesus really the Savior?

The Book of Mormon, he added, also provides answers to the temporal questions of the day.

The power to convert is found in the pages of the Book of Mormon.

"You are all familiar with the numerous accounts of the Book of Mormon being passed from hand to hand and converting many who read it," said Elder Cook. "One of the most compelling is Samuel Smith, brother of the Prophet Joseph, who had nothing but the account of the Restoration and the Book of Mormon to share.

"As a result of his missionary service, future Church leaders Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball came in contact with copies of the Book of Mormon left by Samuel and were baptized."
Elder Cook said he received a personal confirmation that the Book of Mormon was true through prayer when he was 15 years old. "As a missionary reading the scriptures, my testimony of Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon was immeasurably enhanced. As I have studied the Book of Mormon throughout my life, the Holy Ghost has continuously borne witness to me that it is true."

Jason Swensen also reported on Bishop Richard C. Edgley 27 June 2009 talk Missionary couple:

Capable people who can provide answers to many challenges:

Bishop Richard C. Edgley, first counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, spoke June 27 of the pivotal role that missionary couples can play in establishing the Church.

"These qualified, dedicated missionary couples will be the answer to many of your challenges," he said. "Most of your missionary couples have grown up in the Church. They understand Church government. They understand Church policy. They are good teachers and they have strong testimonies.

"These are capable people."

Missionary couples can provide far-reaching leadership and training in a mission, he added. Their duties can range from holding local leadership positions and assisting in the mission office to serving as examples and a source of support to the young elders and sisters.

"They can make a difference in your missions."

Bishop Edgley said some couples might not fall under the direct supervision of the mission president as they fulfill assignments in the Church Educational System, the temple or perhaps in an area office.

"However, all should have a spiritual mission," he said. "To the extent their other assignments will permit, you can enhance their missions by utilizing them in teaching, reactivating, bearing testimony and building the Church."

Unfortunately, not all missionary couples feel they are being appropriately utilized and thus do not have worthwhile or wonderful missions. Bishop Edgley offered several suggestions on how mission presidents can better communicate with couples while identifying assignments that will help them contribute and find joy in their service.

"I can personally testify that the great majority of our couples have wonderful, spiritual experiences," he said. "That is why they keep coming back, and back and back — making great sacrifices to serve."

Jason Swensen summarized President Thomas S. Monson remarks during a special Sunday, 28 June 2009 Mission Presidents' sacrament meeting talk Build mission spirit, Pres. Monson urges: Love, motivate sacred charges, new mission presidents told:

Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News

President Thomas S. Monson addresses more than 100 mission presidents and their wives during the annual seminar at the MTC in Provo.

The 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar offered scores of new mission presidents and their wives a priceless opportunity to come together and receive four days of training prior to embarking on their three-year assignments.

The days were filled with instruction at the feet of apostles and other Church leaders. (See accompanying stories.) The seminar concluded with words of encouragement and counsel from President Thomas S. Monson, himself a former mission president.

The Church leader spoke for almost an hour in a special June 28 sacrament meeting. There he offered the mission presidents and their wives practical direction on how to love and motivate their sacred charges — the full-time missionaries.

"The tears come easily to me when I realize the calls that you have, the experiences that you will have and the influence that you will have," said President Monson, looking out upon a congregation of mission leaders hailing from all corners of the globe.

"I know that you are dedicated to the work of the Lord and to the spreading of the gospel of Jesus Christ," he said. "I also know that the missionaries who will serve under your direction will be loved and guided by you."

The missionaries, he added, represent "the flower of the Church." They represent the hopes, prayers and dreams of their parents. They represent sacrifice, he said.

President Monson enlisted equal measures of common sense and personal experience in offering counsel about motivating missionaries.

"First, your missionaries can be motivated through your personal interviews with them," he said.
That first contact that a missionary has with his or her president is all-important. President Monson counseled the presidents to greet new missionaries at the airport or train depot. Welcome them "to the greatest mission in the world."

Interview each of the new missionaries and learn about their background, their families and their objectives. Take careful notes.

Those interviews that a mission president has with elders and sisters already serving in the field can also inspire and motivate, he said.

"My observation is that a proper interview should take place at about six to eight week intervals," President Monson said. "If you have them more frequently than that, you will find they become too commonplace. If you wait a more lengthy period, you will probably miss some of the things that otherwise could be learned in an interview."

Interviews should be positive, he added. "My suggestion is that we provide help — that we love, not scold."

The missionary transfer period also offers a mission president a special opportunity to motivate. President Monson reminded his audience that only the mission president transfers missionaries within his mission. Beware of the temptation to delegate that sacred duty to zone leaders or assistants to the president, he continued.

"Every missionary has the right to expect his mission president, on bended knee, to seek inspiration concerning where he should be and with whom he should serve," he said.

President Monson promised that mission presidents would witness the hand of God at work as they seek inspiration in transferring missionaries. As a mission president in Canada, he was once inspired to assign a missionary to an area where a large number of Italian immigrants resided.

President Monson did not know that this particular elder had learned Italian from his mother — or that his language skills would bless the lives of many immigrant families investigating the Church in his new area.

President Monson encouraged the mission presidents to resist the urge to transfer the missionaries too frequently. Be judicious and allow the missionaries to remain in areas long enough to build essential relationships with members and investigators, he advised.

The Church president also said the work of sharing the gospel is best served in areas where the Church is already established. "Put missionaries in areas where there are established branches where we can move from the centers of strength outward.

"In that way, we have access to proper fellowshipping in an established unit where we will hold the fruits of our labors rather than losing them as fast as we gain them."

The personal letters that missionaries write each week to their president and parents can also help motivate the elders and sisters, he said.

"Every missionary should have the privilege of personally writing a letter to the mission president and knowing that the mission president is reading that letter."

He indicated the weekly mission president letter can provide a mission leader with invaluable information with regard to the well being of missionary companionships and the proselyting work in a particular area.

President Monson also stressed the importance of each missionary writing his or her parents every week. He said lives can be forever changed and blessed when elders and sister missionaries dutifully communicate each week with mothers and fathers about their missionary activities.

President Monson also commented on the proper use of preparation day in motivating missionaries. Make certain "preparation" day does not become a "diversion" day that puts missionaries at physical or spiritual risk, he cautioned. "Do nothing on preparation day that would rob [the missionaries] of their spirituality."

Remember, he added, all evenings should be "proselyting evenings."

He emphasized that preparation day ends at 5 p.m.

The missionary meetings are also ideal forums to motivate missionaries, he said. "Let the missionary meetings be meetings which build and uplift and inspire." He urged the mission presidents to utilize zone conferences and other meetings to demonstrate finding and teaching skills, indicating that "show how" is more effective than "tell how."

He encouraged them to share successes and testimonies.

President Monson also spoke of the value of involving members in missionary work. "The greatest single thing that you as a mission president can do to increase the effectiveness of your missionaries and their productivity is to ensure that the proper relationship is maintained with ecclesiastical leaders in the areas where the missionaries are proselyting," he said.

He admonished the mission presidents to build up the mission spirit. "Presidents and their wives can instill in a missionary the feeling that he or she is serving in the best mission in the Church," he said.

President Monson concluded his remarks by testifying again of the influence mission presidents and their wives will have for good in the lives of their missionaries and the members.
"God bless you," he said. "It's a delight to be with you in the service of the Master."

Jason Swensen reported on Boyd K. Packer's 29 June 2009 final day talk Church advances as missionaries perform labor: To establish the Church, begin with family in the home:

Photo by Jason Swensen

President Boyd K. Packer tells new mission presidents that if there are congregations attending meetings and the gospel is being taught, then they have done what they were called to do.

During his June 29 talk at the 2009 New Mission Presidents Seminar, President Boyd K. Packer marveled at the growth of the Church he has witnessed since he served as a mission president more than four decades ago.

"When we were called on our mission, there were 30-some missions," said President Packer, who serves as president of the Quorum of the Twelve.

"There were seven mission presidents that went out at that time. We had what was called our seminar over in the Relief Society Building. Most of the instruction centered on how to keep records. And yet we went into a mission and into a world greatly different from what we have now. That will be your lot."

At the time of President and Sister Packer's mission, the Church was just reaching the 2 million member mark. Now the Church is moving toward 14 million. There has been a great proliferation of wards and stakes across the globe.

"It is a new thought to us across the Church that we are not to be duplicating the Wasatch Front out there with the number of buildings and the congregations and the large audiences and activities that go on and on," he said. "We are to establish the gospel."

President Packer counseled the mission presidents not to be unsettled if they do not, say, bring a new stake into the Church during their tenure.

"If you have congregations of people in branches, and the gospel is being taught, and they are understanding it, then you have done what you are called to do. Building the Church seems to center around buildings and budgets and programs and procedures, but somewhere in the midst of it the gospel is struggling for breath. Get that fixed in the minds of your elders."

New mission presidents go out into a world that has become toxic and poisonous to the Spirit.
"Teach your missionaries that they need not be ashamed to be different from … the general population," said President Packer. "If they are decent, they will stand out."

The Church, he added, will move forward when the missionaries "do what they ought to do." It moves forward through the Spirit.

"If you want to establish the Church, the place to begin is in the home with the father and the mother and the children. Respect them for what they are and what they have. You will be blessed, and they will be blessed, and the Church will grow."

President Packer reminded the new mission presidents and their wives that the Lord would guide them in their sacred duty.

"If you know that, you will not make any mistakes dealing with members, with the Church, with the administration, with anything else, because you are ordained now to have that power with you.

"So we will not worry about you. We will send you out there with impossible circumstances, sometimes dangerous, but the Lord will be with you, and you will be all right."

Even though this seems like a duplication putting it all in one place helps you get a comprehensive feel for the messages and emphasis being placed on missionary service. It must be an exciting calling to be a mission president. If you want to learn about being a mission president I suggest you read the side bar of this blog and see the dozen or so mission presidents and their weekly happenings on their blogs.

Missionary Letter: M. Russell Ballard Counsels Beware of Anybody Whose Says You Won't Baptize

I received the notes from my daughter who is attending the MTC of M. Russell Ballard's 17 February 2009 Missionary Devotional:

News papers ask "Why are you perceived as not being Christian?" Response: don't understand that Church is named afer Christ. Belief came from our disbelief in the Nicene Creed. We believe we are spirit children.

They don't believe we are Christian because:

Bear testimony that God and his Son appeared to Joseph Smith and they spoke to him.

People don't know who God is.

Reality is clear to our primary children. Sad world don't know who don't know Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and Holy Ghost.

53,000 men and women trying to teach gospel.

There are 129 temples.

World thinks we are secret closed society because temples closed.

Apostles inviting media to go through temple to show we aren't secret society.

People really are in spiritual darkness.

Become master Preach My Gospel Lesson 3 and you will be successful missionaries.

Maintain a positive attitude. Absolutely essential to success.

People's first impression will be of you of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Converting people is by what they feel not what they know.

This is His Church.

I Feel converts people.

You have to believe all of the time and trust in Jesus Christ.

Counsel: Beware of anybody who says: "You won't baptize a lot." Don't believe that if you allow yourself to believe that Satan gets you. You can find teach and baptize everywhere you are going.

Internalize message of restoration and everything people teach at the MTC and in Preach My Gospel. Treasure up and learn how to present gospel. Own It...so you know you can teach any principles at any time to any situation.

Be master teachers. So he could throw any one of us to Washington Post and let us answer.

There are people who will respond to our message. You will make a lot of friends. You will sow a lot of seeds, but don't let it get into your mind that you are here for any other reason than the work.

Believe and trust in the Lord.

Moroni: who so believe doubting nothing, granted.

Preach to every creature. Believe in Christ's name often! Despair and wonder not (Mormon 9)

Alma 29: Wants to be an angel. vs. 9 I know that which Lord command. Glory In? Lord commands. This is my joy glory in God.

We are in a hurry to find Father's children.

Thanks for willingness to accept calls. Thank parents, family.

The Twelve sends us forth as ambassadors...with testimony burning in our hearts. He'll be as close as we allow him.

Excited! Upbeat!

Mosiah 2, Enos 1: Pray about it. Why should I pray to air? How do I know some divine being he speaks or would answer? How would praying help strengthen my family? Why doesn't my first baptism matter? Why would God let this happen to me if he loved me? 2 Nephi 2, Alma 60:13.

May parents and siblings be blessed.

May heavens inspire, enlighten and bless.

Greatest opportunity of our life to be servant and declare his message. May fire of testimony burn in your bones.

M. Russell Ballard Foretold Dramatic Growth in West Indies Mission that Brings About New Stake

This weekend will be a momentous occasion for the West Indies Mission. During the past two years the West Indies Mission has had dramatic growth under current mission president Reid Robision baptizing over three thousand members. This growth has put them in line for the creation of the first Trinidad stake on 1 March 2009.

The earliest records about Trinidad indicated that missionaries from the Venezuela Caracas Mission came to take care of a few referrals in March 1975 and November 1976 and finally January 1977. The first two missionaries actually stay in Trinidad came at the request of Liz Rogers Dopson to then President Spencer W. Kimball from the Venezuela Caracas Mission. In November 1976 a set of missionaries came but were deported. Then in January 1977 Elders K. Don Bigalow and La Mae Olds came and got started as full-time missionaries on site staying a few months at a time. Interestingly the first baptism on 22 June 1977 Lucy Josphine Payne, an Afro-Caribbean member, was confirmed by Hartman Rector's son Daniel Rector, a missionary in the Caracas Mission.

In 1983 the West Indies Mission was created and included Jamaica, the Bahamas, part of Haiti, the Lesser Antilles, Barbados, Trinidad, and Tobago with headquarters in Barbados. In 1991 the West Indies Mission was realigned with headquarters in Trinidad. The West Indies Mission includes the remaining islands in the Lesser Antilles and the neighboring South American countries of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana.

In 2007 the Ensign reported the mission would revert to the Trinidad and Tobago Mission but it was decided to retain the name West Indies Mission in the end.

The current West Indies Mission will remain headquartered in Trinidad and will be renamed the Trinidad and Tobago Mission. It will cover French- and Dutch-speaking countries and islands in the Caribbean Area and will continue to oversee English-speaking Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent, and the Grenadines.

The French-speaking areas are Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, and St. Martin. The Dutch-speaking areas include Suriname and the northern islands of the Netherlands Antilles, including St. Maarten, St. Eustatius, and Saba.

In 1980 a missionary couple Elder and Sister Richardson came and lived to try to get official recognition for the church but were unsuccessful. It almost a decade to get official recognition and entailed the efforts of many men.

The first chapel in Trinidad was built in 1995 in the Port of Spain Branch on the very spot of the dedication. It is interesting to note that M. Russell Ballard dedicated the region for the preaching of the gospel on 22 February 1990 and later in 2005 as executive director of the missionary committee called President Robison from Ontario, Canada the very mission Elder Ballard presided over as mission president. So there is a Toronto Canada Mission connection at work in the Caribbean. The people of the region are very deserving of to have a stake in their midst.

In the Ensign in 1990 recorded the events of the dedication by Elder M. Russell Ballard at Port of Spain, Trinidad:

Late in February, Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve dedicated Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago for the preaching of the gospel. The first three countries are on the north coast of South America, and the two-island republic of Trinidad and Tobago is located just off the north coast of the continent.

Elder Ballard was accompanied by Elder Charles Didier of the Seventy, President of the South America North Area.

Trinidad and Tobago was dedicated February 22 at the proposed site of a meetinghouse in Port of Spain, Trinidad. Guyana was dedicated February 23 in Georgetown. Suriname was dedicated February 24 in the city of Paramaribo. French Guiana was dedicated on February 27 at a spot about five miles from Kourou; Elder Didier translated Elder Ballard’s prayer into French for the members present.

In the dedicatory prayers he offered, Elder Ballard asked the Lord to bless the leaders of governments in the countries involved. Members were promised that the Church would grow steadily, that there would be wards and stakes presided over by local leaders in their areas, and that their countries would help in the work of the Lord by sending missionaries to other nations. The Church has been established for less than two years in each of the four countries.

Noting that his grandfather, Elder Melvin J. Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve, had dedicated South America for the preaching of the gospel sixty-five years earlier—in 1925—Elder Ballard commented that it was a “warm and beautiful experience” to take part in the four dedications.

The actual words of Elder Ballard's prayer are recorded here:

Our beloved Heavenly Father, we thy children, meet here in the name of thy Beloved Son Jesus Christ, and humbly present ourselves before thee for the purpose of dedicating the land of Trinidad and Tobago to the building of the kingdom of God among these good people, thy sons and daughters. We count it a great privilege, Holy Father, to be assigned by the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles, to fulfill such a sacred responsiblity.

In the name of thy Beloved Son, we ask thee to stay the influence of the evil one, that he may not have power over the honest in heart that dwell here upon this land. Bless thy children as they come in contact with the missionaries and the members of the Church, that they may be nurtured and cradled by the spirit as they are taught the saving doctrines and receive the ordinances of thy church and kingdom here upon the earth.

We pray, Heavenly Father, for a blessing to be poured out upon the heads of the national leaders, those who preside in important offices in this country, that thy spirit might touch their hearts and enlighten their minds, that they may know that we come in the name of thy Son and that this is thy Church as it has been restored to the earth in these latter days. We pray for the Prime Minister and for the parliament and for others who have responsibility at local levels, any who make decisions for permits or clearances that thy church may require. May they be blessed to give governmental approvals. We ask thee to walk before the face of those who have responsibility within the Church that they may be inspired to know what to say and what to do to bring about the legal recognition to carry on the affairs of thy church and kingdom.

We invoke, Heavenly Father, a blessing upon the people, the fathers and the mothers, the children, the boys and girls. Wherever they may be living in Trinidad and Tobago, may they be blessed with a desire kindled in their hearts to know the truth. May the missionaries, particularly, be inspired and enlightened of thee to know how to approach them and teach them so that the spirit and power of the Holy Ghost may abide in the teaching process and truth might be transferred by those who are blessed to hold it to those who are seeking to know the truth.

We pray, Heavenly Father, for the local leadership of the Church. We ask thee to watch over the branch presidencies, the leaders in the branch, the mission presidency, and particularly President Jeffs and his wife. We invoke a special blessing upon them of protection as they travel among these islands for which they are responsible.

Now, Holy Father, in the name of thy Beloved Son, and by the power of the Holy Apostleship vested in me, I turn the key and unlock the door and open this land to an increased outpouring of thy spirit for the enhancement and development of the church and kingdom, that by thy spirit, Holy Father, the work will progress. We ask thee to watch over these lands, keep them safe from untoward natural disaster, calm the winds, calm the storms, give them what they need, Holy Father, in the way of rain to raise their crops, but stay anything that would devastate the land or harm the land. Bless the people, Holy Father, as we have asked, with every blessing they desire in righteousness. Cause thy spirit to fall upon thousands of thy sons and daughters who are honest in heart and seek to know the truth. Open up opportunities, Holy Father, for exposure of those who are honest in heart to the members of the church and the missionaries.

Now, we are grateful for the priesthood that we bear, that has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and we acknowledge, Heavenly Father, that this priesthood has the power to perform miracles in these lands. Bless the leaders and the missionaries that they will raise up local men, that they will teach them, and magnify them to honorably and powerfully use their priesthood to the blessings of thy sons and daughters. Bless them that they may heal the sick, that they may grant blessings of health and strength, of counsel, of direction, in the lives of they sons and daughters.

This is our prayer, Heavenly Father, as we dedicate this land unto thee, placing a priesthood blessing upon the land at the direction of the President of thy Church, the Prophet of God. We do this in deep gratitude and in humility and all in the sacred and beloved name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen.

The words of Elder Ballard have realized prophetic fulfillment after a nineteen year period as the four countries membership has grown steadily particularly the last five years. It is fascinating that he predicted thousands would have their hearts open to the gospel.

The first President to visit Trinidad was Gordon B. Hinckley who stopped over in May 2002 after dedicating temples in Brazil and Paraguay when he met with the prime minister Patrick Manning.

On Saturday, 14 February 2009 Dr. Diane Robison, wife of the mission president wrote:

Conference for the Creation of the Trinidad Stake

That is so nice to type!

Here are the details on the creation of the first stake in Trinidad (and in the entire West Indies Mission):

Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Presidency of the Seventy will create the stake on March 1, 2009 in Port of Spain Trinidad. He will be accompanied by Elder Francisco J. Vinas, second counselor in the Area Presidency.

There will be a Priesthood meeting from 3:00-5:00 p.m. and an adult general session from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 28. The Sunday session will be from 10:00-12:00 a.m. on March 1. The meetings will be held in the chapel in Port of Spain.

We are looking forward to that momentous weekend.

It approximately nineteen years since the country was dedicated and brings to fruition the first stake in the mission. Her husband Reid Robison is ecstatic when the announcement was first made to him on 12 February 2009 as his missionaries realized a goal of 2008 baptisms in 2008 which gives them the necessary members and leadership to support a stake. Just as Elder Ballard predicted thousands of people have been blessed at the hands of the missionaries with the creation of this new stake this weekend.

Working Smarter Not Harder

One of my mission president's favorite things he liked to tell us was to work smarter not harder. He told us that we wasted a lot of time on nonessential things. That we needed to get the members to give us referrals since tracting wasn't as efficient and effective in terms of convert baptisms.

He continually told us to use our time more wisely that we needed to keep tract of converts more effectively by using our convert checklist. They had developed the early forerunner to the convert form that is now used throughout the world. In a few of my areas we actually had notebooks with tracting records and notes about the person living there. I read a few where they told how unresponsive the person contacted was. I usually disregarded them since I had a different personality from the other elders who made the initial assessment. In fact those were the very people I thought we should follow-up on. Most of my companions disagreed but I felt in these cases since they had such a strong opinion that we shouldn't return that they would want to engage us in conversation.

My mission president discouraged us from working too long with those who weren't progressing since we were there to find the "elect." It took me a while to get over my backward thinking as exhibited above. I learned from Bruce R. McConkie and Joseph Fielding Smith that not only are we sent to gather in the elect but we are sent out to warn the nations. Since my mission president was opposed to contending it was better to keep moving along. We found a lot of receptive people by just following the spirit.

I think if a person has progressed in the past that sometimes it is good to come back to them from time to time to see how they are doing. One of my favorite things to do was to get referrals from them. President Ballard taught us that many times they would refer you to a friend just to get rid of you. So I scrupulously employed this method of referral. I would ask you were interested in the gospel do you have any friends you think might be interested. I improved on the method by asking them to write on a slip a paper the name of the friend. I would then show the slip of paper to the friend and say "Hi, Jeff Jones sent us to see you. I would say you do know Jeff Jones?" They would usually respond Yeah. I would say could we come in and speak to you briefly. Most let us in. A few times we got results.

When I was a ward mission and missionaries would say they didn't have enough referrals. I would say come with me elder. I would take them to a less active family I might be home teaching. I would say Sister Smith do you know any friends or relatives that might be interested in hearing from the missionaries. She would give the name of three or four people. I would say could you write a small note saying I am sending the missionaries to talk to you. Usually she would write a couple lines saying that exact thing. The missionaries would later tell me these were some of their best contacts. I learned it all from M. Russell Ballard on how to work smarter not harder.

Other than this aspect I never could figure out just what he meant. We worked sixty-five hours a week. Some of the things he had us do were to go to grocery stores and offer to take out people's groceries. We had a yellow button with a black question mark we wore. If people saw it and asked us what it meant we would say, What do you know about the Mormon Church and would you like to know more? We only got limited success from the button.

We did enjoy hearing about how Elder Franklin D. Richards would go all over and ask people the questions. I wish we had served in areas with more buses since a bus or subway is a great place for those to work. You need a large mass of people. We were also encouraged to give a few hours a week in service.

When I was a library director I would encourage the missionaries to come shelve books. I would tell them you can't actively proselyte but I will let you wear your name tag. A lot of times later when they were contacting a person would say I remember you from the library and let them in. Sometimes little things can return good results. Sometimes we are too impatient to realize we need to try a lot of different approaches.

I think M. Russell Ballard needs to do a talk called working smarter not harder so he can more fully expand what he means. I never fully understood what he meant when I served under him. Most business types are always referring to time management when they use this term. I think he knew from his experience what he meant but I was a little inexperienced at the time to fully understand.

When a person says you should work smarter not harder they usually mean we not waste time. We should keep phone calls or emails short and to the point. That we maximize our time such as staying on task. Missionaries should keep their dinner appointments to the one hour allotted. They should go out on time and go home on time. Their white handbooks outline their activities for the day. Just doing the work doesn't always produce results. Missionaries in order to think smarter need to think outside the box. They should try a few creative approaches. I guess that is why you need the spirit in missionary work. The spirit is the wild card in working smarter.

The biggest thing I came away from Elder Ballard saying this to me was to stay focused on missionary work. When you are young you tend to have attention deficit problems it is hard to sustain your effort because missionary work is hard repetitive work. You are like a mail person whether rain or snow or sleet nor ice you are out there on the streets teaching the gospel.

Above All Else Let Us Think Straight

When I was a missionary in the Toronto Canada Mission my mission president M. Russell Ballard used to talk to us in zone conferences about the importance of missionary work. The goal of every mission president is to get their missionaries to use their time wisely and effectively to teach, testify and bring souls to Christ.

I can still remember on at least three zone conferences when he shared with us some counsel. He even told us that he was giving us counsel. One one occasion he stood up and said "He wished he had a magic wand so he could tap each missionary with it. So that you could wake up."

He then would quoted to us 2 Nephi 1: 13, 23

13 O that ye would awake; awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.

23 Awake, my sons; put on the armor of righteousness. Shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust.

He would tell us that we were in a deep sleep and that we needed to break out of Satan's grasp so that the work could go forward in Ontario and Canada.

He liked to use his grandfather Melvin J. Ballard as a talking point. One of his favorite stories was to tell us Melvin J. Ballard's death bed experience which illustrates how to be an effective missionary. Elder Ballard shared that experience in a 29 November 1983 BYU devotional six years after his mission:

In my office I have a little plaque that reads, "Above all else, brethren, let us think straight." These were the last words in mortality spoken by my grandfather Melvin J. Ballard. As I understand the circumstance, Grandfather, after the very grueling experience of preaching the gospel all through the eastern part of the United States, drove his car from New York to Salt Lake City. When he came into the driveway of his home at 80 North Wolcott Avenue in Salt Lake City, he collapsed. He was rushed to the LDS hospital, where he was found to have acute leukemia. He never came out of the hospital. He went in and out of a coma. As I have had it told to me by my father, who was there, Grandfather pushed himself up in bed, looked into his hospital room as though he were addressing a congregation or a group, and said clearly, "And above all else, brethren, let us think straight." Then he died. I don't go into my office any day of the week that I don't see those words, and I find that they help me a great deal.

He would then tell us that as missionaries we needed to think straight. He told us as straight thinking missionaries we would put away foolishness such as worldly distractions like thinking about girl friends or home or goofing off. Instead we would put our mind, heart and souls on bringing to pass righteousness. Translated that means we were to get to work and teach and baptize. We were sent on missions to be hunters and fishers of the elect of God.

I believed every word the man said. I would come away motivated to bring more people in to the Church. On a different occasion he told us that we were like wind up toys. When he would speak to us we could sustain our efforts for a few days or a couple of weeks but most of us missionaries couldn't keep it up for the five or six weeks between zone conferences.

When he would give us the "talk." I would do what Elder Ballard suggested and "brainstorm" with my companion. We used a method called brainstorming in the CTM. Wikipedia gives a good description of it but doesn't see much value other than as a team building exercise. Mind Tools is a little more complimentary of the process:

Brainstorming is a useful and popular tool that you can use to develop highly creative solutions to a problem.

It is particularly helpful when you need to break out of stale, established patterns of thinking, so that you can develop new ways of looking at things. This can be when you need to develop new opportunities, where you want to improve the service that you offer, or when existing approaches just aren't giving you the results you want.

We used it in the CTM as a way of coming up with fresh ideas for finding and teaching people. I think it had limited success but it reminded us to try different ways of proseltying. Elder Ballard coming from a business perspective used it in his businesses. I think the reason we didn't see as much success with it was that we only heard it described and not modeled. Also many of us were too lazy to even read the handouts.

I only had one companion who used it and that was Elder Lodholm. As a junior companion I seldomly did anything other than what I was told and none of my companions ever took out the handout and discussed it. Being a convert I usually practiced mindless obedience since I didn't know any better than that since I was only a member one year and didn't know jack about missionary work let alone the cultural mores of the church. Elder Ballard beat it in to our heads that we needed to be united and good leaders would follow their brethren. I learned that we don't have to like them just follow them.

There are some that would question my quality of obedience because I slept in on occasion and didn't master the discussions one hundred percent word perfect. But the truth is I followed my companions around like a lap dog. I spoke when called on and gave my limited concepts that I knew. As a junior companion for almost two years I prayed for them and lent my support whenever possible. I was never pressed too hard and usually was called on to bear testimony, to pray or to support what my companion said. I never contradicted them even when a few times they said things that just weren't true. Being a junior companion for two years prepared me for future church callings were men with limited gospel mastery who had never served missions would be my leaders. I learned discipleship.
I know that Elder Ballard was just trying to get us to focus on the missionary work. Missionaries get easily distracted. I think that is why he would tell us not only to think straight but to work smarter not harder. I will address the latter in my next post.

Mission President Styles

I had a couple of elders over from the Columbia South Carolina Mission for dinner. Just as we were starting dinner another Spanish-speaking elder called who had left his laundry at the two missionaries apartment. I said he is lucky he didn't lose it at a commercial laundermat, no telling what could have happened then. The elder said: "yeah especially since he washed his garments but since he did it at our apartment he should be fine."

Then he told me an urban tale that he claimed was true. He said there were a couple of elders in Georgia or South Carolina who were at a commercial laundermat who were jumped by some guys who sprayed painted their garments. One of the GA's who he thought was Thomas S. Monson dusted them. The laundermat burned to the ground in a couple of weeks. When they rebuilt it after the fire it burned down a second time. My wife and I said it sounded like a Mormon legend but the elder swore it happened.

During dinner we got to talking about our mission presidents. The two elders were in a joking mood and one said "my mission president claimed he could look in to my soul." He claimed he was able to tell when an elder wasn't reading his scriptures or praying. He would look at the elder and say "You haven't been praying, have you Elder?" He said, "I bet you think your mission president did the same thing. All missionaries think their mission presidents can look in to their souls."

His companion turned to him and said "you will never guess who his mission president was?" The elder responded Thomas S. Monson. I said you guessed the right mission anyway. His companion said "Bro. B's mission president was M. Russell Ballard." The elder said "what does the M. stand for?" I said Melvin. He said "No wonder he uses the M. instead of his real name. I said "that is not the reason he goes by Russell and to close friends Russ. His father and grandfather all had the same first name so they chose different names."

He said, "How many mission presidents did you serve under?" I said, "Three." He said, "That is quite a few, that must have been interesting. Was your mission president tough?"

My wife said, "His mission president used to poke the elders in the chest and had a hot seat that he would put them in when he inerviewed them."

I told him my mission president liked to pride himself on the fact that Thomas S. Monson created a stake and he did the same and that Thomas S. Monson never sent a boy home dishonorably and that he was able to do the same.

The elder then told me his mission president was even tougher than Elder Ballard. In fact his mission president learned everything he knew about missionary work from Elder Ballard who spoke to him every week. Elder Ballard usually called him to check on the mission or he would call him. I knew Elder Ballard was the head of Missionary Executive Committee and wondered if he called all 350 mission presidents each week or just a few. The said that President Brailsford and Elder Ballard were close friends.

The elder told me that his mission president led his missionaries by fear and intimidation and he was the most successful mission president in the history of the Southern States Missions in the twentieth century. At first I thought I misheard him so I asked him "What do you mean your mission president led by intimidation?" I am planning on writing a blog called "Mission President's Styles from what you just said." He said that is okay but don't tell my name but his mission president kept missionaries in line by saying he could send anyone home in only three days."

He explained that his mission president demanded complete obedience. He told the missionaries that he would send one home in under three days for disobedience. I said he actually sent missionaries home. Both elders said yes. I said do you have a problem with his being so hard. They said no his success came from the fact that he didn't put up with elders being disobedient. It helped them to live the rules to the letter and they were blessed with 116 baptims. My wife said "Your mission president did the same thing." I said, "No he didn't. He said that the grasp of Satan would be broken if we ever passed 100 in a month. But a couple of months when we could have passed it he didn't feel the candidates were taught sufficiently so we only had 98 or 97 a couple of months."

One missionary said that Elder Yoshihiko Kukuchi had prophesied that the Columbia South Carolina Mission would have 200 baptisms and that President Brailsford having 116 was a fulfillment of that prophesy." I asked them if he shared the story of the missionary when he was mission president in Hawaii that had 1,000 baptisms. I told them I had a small part to play in that elder having such success. He was serving in Laie when I worked at BYU--Hawaii. I made a copy of Alvin R. Dyer's The Challenge and gave it to the kid telling him the time I baptized eight people in one month and told him if he used it he would baptize dozens of people. He went on to become a traveling assistant. My wife replied "Sure we know Elder Kikuchi he married us."

I told them to be careful using the challenge since I shared the same thing in the San Diego Mission with a zone leader in Calexico who had 79 baotisms. His mission president thought he was an arrogant young man and busted him down. The amazing thing was that all the missionaries he trained continued being successful for weeks after he was gone and every missionary wanted to be in our ward where I was ward mission leader. The elders told me they challenge every person on a first discussion before they leave. I told them I would challenge the person first thing then say "How wonderful it is to be with you this evening. Before we leave tonight we would to welcome you to entrance in to Christ's true Church. I am not asking for your response now but before we leave." I told them you had to depend on the spirit after that.

My wife shared the style of her mission president who had been the head of housing at BYU. He was used to dealing with college students who were more mature. He trusted in his elders and sisters to live the mission rules. Unfortunately his trust was misplaced as the sisters and elders sometimes did things like hold dances together. He learned to be tougher as a mission president as a few of them ended up marrying each other. She said for a while they called her mission the Canada Marriage Mission.

I asked the two elders if their new mission president was anything like their last mission president. They said they didn't know since they had only one zone conference to compare them. I said if President Stephen L. McConkie were anything like his father or his brother Joseph Fielding he was probably pretty tough too.

I told them they should try him out next time they saw him. I said Joseph Fielding like to trap return missionaries in the religion department at BYU by asking "How are you, elder?" If you replied, "Good." He would laugh and say "My father says there is only one good man that has ever walked this earth. You know who that is don't you elder."

As I think back over the three mission presidents I served under Leopoldo Larcher, M. Russell Ballard, and Raymond Russell all three men were quite different. President Larcher was a young man who was idealistic but a very caring and loving man. He was in to building the elders and the church but in that order. Elder Ballard had a tough demeanor and concentrated on building the kingdom and was a no nonense kind of mission president. He had a soft side but he didn't let anything keep the work from progressing. He felt if missionaries obeyed the rules they would be successful and the Lord would bless them. A few including me came close to going home but he succeeded in saving just about all of his boys. Raymond Russll was more of a people person who was in to maximizing your potential. He felt if he built the elders they would then have success. All three men had success but each in a unique way. I bet there are all kinds of styles among mission presidents.