Right, so my new calling is Visiting Teaching Coordinator. I have a whole new respect for anyone who has ever had to do this calling. It's no fun! I don't mind the technical part (typing, printing, etc) and all of that, because that delves into my love of organization and especially MS Excel. However, the hunting down people and tracking the numbers part really sucks. I feel like the most unpopular person in the ward right now. Not that church is a popularity contest, but I feel like people see me coming and are groaning inside. I try not to ask in a way that makes them uncomfortable... but really, aren't they supposed to be doing VT anyway? It's not like I personally am asking them to do it. UGH. I am not enjoying this at all.
Well I made this chart for our RS. It will track the total number contacted for each month through the year. I am trying to do something that will inspire them to do their VT. I am hoping that if they see how few sisters are being visited, it might motivate them to do their VT. Last month we were just over 50%. So far this month, I have 14 visits and 5 calls out of 67!! So sad. I think that most people think, "Oh, if I don't do mine this month, no big deal." But what they don't realize is that everyone else is thinking the same thing. Then no one ends up being taught. In our ward there are about a dozen faithful women who just DO IT every month. Those are the ones keeping it alive. Then there are the others who look at me with this blank stare when I ask them about their VT... It's kind of uncomfortable. I wish people like that could just say, "No, please do not assign me visiting teaching."
Sorry to moan and complain. I just find it hard to have a calling like this. I am trying to be optimistic and think about what I can bring to this calling that someone else can't. I mean, there must be a reason I was called, right? But what is it?! Please give me any suggestions you might have. What have VT Coordinators in your ward done that you liked?
As I have been preparing for a VT workshop we have to do next month, I have come across some good quotes:
"I believe visiting teaching is the heart and soul of Relief Society, and because of this, we will encounter opposition." Bonnie Parkin
"You and your forebears have walked in the light of the Lord. From the beginning it has been your most important responsibility to see that no one goes hungry, to see that no one goes without adequate clothing, that no one goes without shelter. It has been and is your responsibility to visit your sisters wherever they may be found, to give encouragement as they may need it, to assure them of love and concern and interest." President Hinckley
"Our assignment is not only to make visits but to consistently carry the Spirit into homes, to bless families with the pure love of Christ, to inspire, encourage, lift, and fortify. Every home is in need of additional support. Visiting teachers bring that blessed reinforcement. It is a sacred trust we have been given. We can overcome the obstacles." Bonnie Parkin
10 comments:
I don't envy this calling, but I think you're the one for the job. I'm a little shocked by the low numbers and the apathy the women there are showing. What's up with that? I think your chart is marvelous and will show the women in a new way just what happens when they don't visit teach. I also really like the quotes you have for your lesson.
My only suggestions are to stress the point that we are the Lord's servants and that the church is set up beautifully and that if we all did our part everyone would be taken care of--who wants to be the weak link in the Lord's work?
You should also read Laurie's blog (she's a friend of Amie's sister), she posted a great thing yesterday about opening your heart and trying an experiment for a week to see what happens. I think it would go well with your visiting teaching situation.
I'm also thinking that the women who have really inspired me spiritually always seem to be "on fire" with enthusiasm and a testimony of what they're talking about. So, maybe you personally need to dig deep for your own thoughts and feelings about visiting teaching so you can inspire them to be like you! I think finding great stories about good visiting teachers is always helpful too.
I'm starting to think I should have just emailed this response because it's long, but oh well. I hated visiting teaching when I first got married. I didn't feel like I connected with all the "moms" in my new ward, and I didn't see the point of going and listening to them talk about their kids. Now I know that visiting teaching is a Divine program and that our negative feelings and lack of enthusiasm is heartbreaking for the Lord. Tell the women to "consider the source" of their feelings and not to give in to them. Visiting teaching changes people's lives.
Kristi wrote not too long ago about a visiting teacher of hers that made all the difference in her life. She mentioned that she didn't think she had ever just sat on her couch and given her a lesson, she was always helping her. Reading about that inspired me to want to do a better job. I always go, but I have a hard time finding ways to serve the women I teach. Maybe if you told inspirational stories about visiting teaching really accomplishing something, that would motivate them. No one wants to feel like it's just a job to check off.
Hi Robyn! I'm the Laurie who Jill was referring to. I noticed you had a baby back in Feb. I had a little boy that same week! So regarding visiting teaching - I wonder if VT stewardship interviews would help. We did them in my last ward and in my current. It's a chance for the VT coordinator and RS pres and/or presidency to meet w/ sisters one on one to see how things are going - if they have concerns about their assignment, see how the sisters they are visiting are doing. It's typically done 1x/yr or as needed I would guess. We've done them for 5 minutes/person right after church. You could make a point to have the RS pres meet with the ones you know are having problems. Sometimes it might be as simple as finding out that they are having too much trouble coordinating with their partner and would go if they could visit on their own. This works for us. Not sure if it would apply for you, but it's a possibility. I find that it's so much easier for me to do my visits b/c I don't have a partner right now. Coordinating 3 people's schedules can be so tough.
My visiting teachers have done things for me like lending me baking supplies when I am out in the middle of making a recipe or bringing me something for my birthday and throwing me a shower when I had my baby. I suppose these services have meant more, and we've gotten to know each other well this way. It reminds me that visiting teaching is there so we all have someone we can rely on and someone cheering us on. Perhaps some of the sisters would have more fun if they looked for some fun ways to serve their sisters instead of thinking of it as a dull visit??
And perhaps you could launch some sort of "open heart" experiment with the sisters in your ward. Challenge them to pray that their hearts will be opened to the needs of their visiting teaching sisters. The book I'm reading and talking about on my blog this week does seem applicable. I'll share more info on my blog tonight or tomorrow.
My name is Julie and I used to work with Jill at Covey. I used to be the apathetic sister who didn't like Visiting Teaching. But, I moved into this ward and I had a great companion who kept me going until I was "converted" to visiting teaching and its importance. I really feel at home in this ward more that any I've ever lived in. It has been hard because I am shy and somewhat of a recluse. I would much rather solve my own problems, than ask for help. But, we have a daughter who has a lot of health problems and so we have people coming into our house every day to help with her therapy.
The other day someone made a comment about the scripture, "If you've done it to the least of these my bretheren you have done it unto me." She used my daughter as an example. She said that if Jesus were to come to our neighborhood tomorrow for 20 minutes, we would all make time to be there to see him. But there are many of us who can't take the time to serve "Jessica" (my daughter) with her therapy because our lives are too busy and we have too much to do. This was an interesting thought because according to that scripture we are helping Jesus when we help others. And I think this especially applies to visiting teaching. There are many who have problems, that they are not willing to share openly, but in the close relationship you might have with your visiting teachers you might open up and therefore the visiting teachers can report and you can receive the help you may need.
Also, at the judgement day, how would you like to have to answer for not visiting someone whose life you could have made a difference in.
My parents were converts to the church and one day my mom's friend said, I have to tell you I had a dream last night that I died and went before the judgement bar and was asked how my life was on earth and I said "well I did pretty good, and tried to keep the commandments." Then she was asked, what about the Johnson's? And she replied, they were our best friends. He then said, well why didn't you tell them about the church? This made a big impression on her mind and so the next day she did. She said I don't want to offend you, but I need to tell you and I understand if you don't want to be friends after this. Of course, that didn't happen they are still best friends to this day, and it wasn't long after that they started investigating the church.
Sorry I'm kind of rambling, but I hope these stories help you get some thoughts together.
This would be a very tough calling, not to mention to someone who is new in the ward and will not know most of the woman.
I wish I could be more of a help, but honestly I have never really had a great testimony of VT. I have never in my life had a VT come on a regular basis to my house. I've never felt the love so unfortunatly I have given the same. I am greatly ashamed by this and know it will probably come back to haunt me. I know I have missed out on blessing and the judgements I put on myself are great. I suppose all i can do is try to be better and I am. Actively.
I was once a visting teaching supervisor, and I felt like you. I was amazed at the things women would say, who they would and would not visit. I was my visiting teachers supervisior, every month I would call knowing they had not seen me, but find out that they had always visited the other sister. One day she said to me "I don't worry about you leaving the church." The funny thing is that I was in marriage counseling at the time, yeah I might not leave the church, but I also could have been in the midst of a divorce.
We had to do a skit for vt conference. I played a young mother who was overwhelmed with her children. It showed two women talking on the phone they were partners. They talked about being end of month, that they had the feeling to go and see me, but just well too busy. Than to me, where I am praying to heavenly father to just let me know he heard me, just a piece of chocolate cake. Than the sister calls the other back about feeling like she should bake a cake. They decide to come and visit me. Now I had a pretty bad day myself, so as i prepared to tell these sisters went this meant, my real tears fell. I felt the spirit so strongly. Than they did a clip of them visiting an older sister and helping her do chores, and than a women who works. our vt went up that month.
I think for me, I had never had great vt, but than I had just one, and than myself praying and understanding what a wonderful program it is. It is not about the lesson or the number, and when we make the sisters feel like this, than I would rather they not come. But it is about doing the little things, talking about the things that need to be talked about.
I have a great testimony of vt, I have not always been the benefactor, but I decided that I could be the one to do it. Our vt coordinator passed around a thing of chocolate the middle of the month, that you could take if you had done vt, if not it was a reminder, that was fun.
Good luck, I think it would be hard, because you are seeing all the negative attitudes of vt.
I keep thinking about this. Sorry to overload you. I was thinking a questionnaire (with their name on it) might accomplish the same as the interviews and allow you to collect feedback from them before or at the conf. I'm also thinking that many people in the church were not reading their scriptures until Pres Hinckley issued the BOM challenge last yr. Granted, he's the Prophet, and that's a whole different thing, but perhaps launching an experiment or a challenge would spearhead things. I read about a RS posting hearts or hands as they did service or received service. Perhaps you could have a box of them that people could post on a bulletin at church. Perhaps they all get gardening gloves or a trowel or something representative to remind them to dig in and sow the seeds of love and service or something at the conf and then it ties in with posting something that the whole RS can build on. Just brainstorming. Perhaps these ideas are too juvenile, but maybe they'll cause you to think of something better!!
OK now I'm really spamming but I do love visiting teaching. Maybe to be more budget friendly the take home is a cinnamon or orange roll all tied up fancy and you send them with a message about the important "roll" they have in the lives of the sisters they visit teach. Understanding that it really is an important role in God's work (as Jill said) and not just an assignment can be impactful.
Hey Robyn, I'm back and have loved reading all these great comments. I've also been thinking about this all day after reading your post this morning, and just feel like I want to come rile up the sisters in your ward. It's kind of horrifying that their attitude about visiting teaching is so bad. Maybe you can challenge them to develop a testimony of it themselves. I know I was anti-visiting teaching for quite awhile and then was eventually converted and now I'm militant about it. I'm actually becoming a big of a hugger (gasp) towards the sisters I visit teach and truly feel like I need to take care of them. They're strong in the gospel already, but you just never know if they need the visit, the humor, the friendship, the interaction, the comment you make, the reassurance about something they're feeling, or just need to witness an example of obedience. If we can't do something as simple as this, what are we telling the Lord?
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