Guest Blogger: My Missionary Opportunities

The theme for August is Missionary work. I've asked several of you to write a little about your experiences or feelings.

- What are some specific ways you can share the gospel?
- What works for you that could work for others?
- Tell a story about a time you have shared some aspect of the gospel with others. 
- Share your testimony of missionary work.

Here's Cheryl's answers...

Guest Blogger: Cheryl Wentzel

I have to say that one of my greatest tools for missionary work is Ava. She is so friendly and will walk up to anyone, anywhere and introduce herself and everyone with her. This has opened up many a discussion at the park or playground. Conversations have begun around the swings and slide that have led to an invite to church, not always but when the moment seems right. I will say Kellen is much better at this than I am. I have even told neighbors about our great activities and women's organization that gets me out of the house for an evening now and then.

I have the opportunity to spend time at the doctor's office quite often. Every time I see a new doctor and my history is discussed, the fact that I have lived in Utah and that I have family there comes up.  This invariably brings up the Church. Most often that means only the question, "Are you Mormon?"  With my response a simple, "Yes". This ends the verbal discussion but I feel that my actions then become a missionary tool because how I conduct myself is a reflection of how I live my religion.
 
Kellen has a co-worker who we have spent a lot of time with their family. We have been able to share ideas about the gospel and learn about what each other believes. We are both Christians but the differences stand out. I've had the chance to tell her what an eternal marriage means to me and how important the temple is to creating a family that will last beyond this life. I hope that this has made a lasting impression with her. I hope she can see how I interact with my husband and children and feel how much family means to us. As our friendship grows I hope to be able to share more with her.

Having served a full-time mission and depended on members to support the work we did, I know how important it is to be involved with sharing the gospel and helping the missionaries in our area. I also know how hard it is to find the time with everything that occupies our time. I do know that when we ask the Lord for help to guide us to use the time we have to be examples and share in simple principles that can add meaning and depth to our friends and acquaintances lives.

When I was first asked to write for this blog I thought they picked the wrong person because I just stay at home and really don't know anyone outside the ward. But as I thought more about it I was surprised at the many ways open to share the gospel and be a missionary in everyday situations. We just need to be more alert and open to the promptings we are given.

Cheryl

5th Sunday Lesson Recap

For our 5th Sunday Combined Priesthood/Relief Society lesson this month, we were privileged to have President Brown from the Stake Presidency come and speak with us.  His lesson and comments were about how we can prepare our youth to become better missionaries and better all-around future leaders in the church.  Other than the 9 principles discussed in the scriptures and Preach My Gospel (Faith, Hope, Charity and Love, Virtue, Knowledge, Patience, Humility, Diligence, and Obedience), he specifically addressed four additional areas for our youth to strengthen that were told to the Stake Presidency by our previous mission president, President Murray. Whether we are parents of youth, leaders of youth, or cheerleaders of youth, we each play a part in preparing our Young Men and Young Women to become upstanding members and leaders in the church.  These four areas can have practical application in their lives for years before they are old enough to serve missions, and if we concentrate on these things early on, our youth will be even better prepared to serve.

1) Work - Our youth need to be taught that work is not always fun.  President Murray mentioned that there were many times that missionaries got into the mission field and were surprised by how much work there was to do, and that it wasn't just having fun all day.  Tracting, teaching, and searching for new investigators from 9:30 am until 9:30 pm isn't easy, and when we teach our youth to work hard (both at home and in the workplace) before their missions, they will be better prepared when the time comes to jump right into the work there is to do.

2) Worthiness - almost all of the missionaries that go into the field will have faced many temptations in their lives, and there are always some missionaries that begin their missions with some worthiness issues that take time away from their service while they are trying to resolve them at the time.  President Brown commented that a great deal of those issues stem from problems with pornography.  We discussed some ways as a class on how we can better help our youth to battle these issues, which are so widespread in the world today.  Some of these ideas were to: talk openly with our children about the prevalence and content of pornography and how they can try to combat it, limit and watch over technology centers and availability, get to know your children's friends and let them know your standards, and teach your children that they will need to choose for them selves to stay away from these negative influences (because it will be their choices that make the difference).  

3) Independence - Helping our youth to learn to think and act for themselves is an important part of their preparation for being an adult.  As leaders and parents, we can teach our children to take care of themselves and their needs (laundry, cleaning, personal hygiene), and we can also help them to learn to be proactive and to be able to converse with other adults.  Doing everything for youth is only going to be a hindrance on them when they get in the real world and are not able to do the things that they are suddenly required to be doing.

4) Teaching with the Spirit - There are still youth who do not correctly recognize what the spirit is when they feel it.  First, we must make sure that our youth understand that they have had spiritual experiences during Sacrament meeting, YM/YW lessons, Youth Conference, Trek, Seminary, and many other times in their lives.  Once they learn that they do indeed feel the spirit, they need to be able to begin to teach with it.  We need to give our youth more opportunities to bear testimony, teach in Family Home Evenings, and teach and share messages in church settings so that they are familiar with it and will be able to implement that in their lives as missionaries and with anyone interested in the church.

Between all of us -- leaders, parents, and cheerleaders -- let's help our youth by giving them the skills and experience they need to get a head start in the world.

Image from Gospel Art Book at LDS.org

Pool Party Pictures

We had a great time at our Quarterly Activity at the Wolf's house.  Here are some of the pictures we took of the evening.  Fun times were had by all, and the devotional portion was wonderful!  Thank you to Dominique C, Christine G, Cheryl W, and Charity W for providing such a great spirit with your comments and/or music that was shared.  We had a great time, and we missed everyone who couldn't make it.  Hope to see you all next time!

Guest Blogger: My Grandmother, My Sons, My Testimony

The theme for August is Missionary work. I've asked several of you to write a little about your experiences or feelings.
 
Guest Blogger: Sheryl Jackson

My grandmother
My first touch of missionary work was from my grandmother.

Without her I probably would not have become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When I was a young child she was a wonderful example and answered my many questions.

Then as I grew up I attended church because I felt in my heart the love the Lord had for me. I gained a testimony and was baptized at the age of eight, but in my late teens became inactive, and then reactivated in my mid-20’s.

I have re-gained a stronger testimony, and look forward to each Sunday, to partake of the sacrament and fill my spiritual cup so I can go out into the world for another week.

My sons
As a mother, it is the richest blessing to have your sons go on missions, because they want to. Each son was not sure if missionary work was for him, and flip-flopped back and forth, going—not going. Every mother will tell you how their son (or daughter) had changed sometime while they were serving.

Missionary work for our son Rob started with his birth and his pediatrician. My obstetrician, who was a member (stake president when my husband went out on his mission) delivered our son Rob, who was premature. Rob's left lung collapsed, so with a group of non-member medical staff watching, my doctor and husband gave our son a blessing and then the staff whisked him off to another hospital. Rob’s pediatrician, who witnessed the blessing, was baptized six months later along with her husband, daughter and son. Her husband served as branch president and their son served a mission.

What I do
What I do to be a missionary is: pray, be myself, have a testimony and be PROUD of it, and set a good example of a Christ-like person. I am never perfect, but when I do my best, to follow the word of wisdom, keep the commandments, and follow the spirit, it is noticed by nonmembers and members, children, youth and adults.

I like Proverbs. It tells us the difference between being learned and wise. I teaches us that if we are learned we have knowledge, and if we are wise we are teachable (well that is what I get from it). As missionaries we should always be teachable, because the knowledge we need will come from what we have been taught. Faith brings action, action brings good works.

My testimony
I am always a missionary in the world, but mainly in our home. Our children, active or inactive, always watch and learn from us, and teach us—to be like little children, to have faith, to believe and to LOVE each other and Jesus Christ, and how to have a happy home.

If I could do anything over again it would be to read my scriptures when my children were awake and could see me, to say my personal prayers when they were also awake and could see that I did pray each and every day. As a busy mother I should have put those things first (to be an example).

I love our children and know in my heart that they will reach out and grab the gospel again in their lives and learn of the happiness they have been missing in their lives.

Sheryl

Guest Blogger: Accepting an Invitation

The theme for August is Missionary work. I've asked several of you to write a little about your experiences or feelings.

Guest Blogger: Reylyn Checketts

I wish I had some wonderful story to tell about how I have helped someone enter the waters of baptism. I don't :(

I'm basically pretty shy and I don't "open my mouth." I've always justified that by saying to myself that I would just try to set a good example and that would be how I would share the gospel.

Well, after we had been in the Valley Forge 1st Ward for just a short time, the sister missionaries called to see if Alan and I would be available to visit Sister Shirley Jones with them.

We were able to and that was actually the first opportunity I have had to do that.

We were in Sister Jones home for about an hour and as I sat there I felt so grateful to the Missionaries for giving us the opportunity to meet and visit with Shirley.

I can tell you I learned much more from Sister Jones than she could or would ever learn from me. She is such a Christian person and she KNOWS her scriptures. She is so full of the spirit and she radiates love.

By the time we left that evening I felt like I had known her all my life. I'm just amazed at how she just seems to absorb gospel principles like she does.

I've been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints all my life, but I honestly think Sister Jones understands the gospel better than I do.

So those are my feelings about missionary work.

Turns out missionary work has benefited me more than I have benefited the missionary effort.

Lesson: The Lord's Covenant People

Gospel Principles, Lesson 15,
The Lord's Covenant People
By Margie Clark

What is covenant?
Within the gospel, a covenant means a sacred agreement or mutual promise between God and a person or a group of people.

Why are Latter-day Saints called a covenant people?
When we are baptized into the Church, we enter into the covenant the Lord made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The Lord promised Abraham that through his descendants the gospel would be taken to all the earth. We are fulfilling this responsibility through the full-time missionary program of the Church and the missionary work done by the members. This opportunity to preach the gospel to all the world belongs only to the Lord’s Church and His covenant people.

What are the blessings and responsibilities of His covenant people?
As the Lord’s covenant people, we should keep His commandments.

If we are obedient, we inherit the blessings of that covenant. We have the right to receive help and guidance from the Holy Ghost. Worthy males have the right to hold the priesthood. Families can receive the blessings of the priesthood. We can gain eternal life in the celestial kingdom. There are no greater blessings than these.

As we keep our covenants, our Heavenly Father promises us that we will receive exaltation in the celestial kingdom.

The commandments He gives are for our benefit, and as we are faithful we may forever share the blessings and beauties of heaven and earth. We may live in His presence and partake of His love, compassion, power, greatness, knowledge, wisdom, glory, and dominions.

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Guest Bloggers

YOU!

I've added a permanent page to our blog...Guest Bloggers.

I've gathered together the blog posts you have written over the last couple of years, for your reading pleasure.

You can access it anytime through the navigation bar at the top of the blog.

You are wonderful women with great insight into the joys and trials of life as an LDS woman.

The goodness should continue, don't you think?

So, look for an e-mail in your In Box inviting you to be a guest blogger soon.

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CNN Picks up BYU Video Parody

 BYU media department did a parody video on the new Old Spice commercials.

CNN picked it up.

See it on YouTube. It has about 2,000,000 views so far.

More behind-the-scenes footage here.

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Must-See Baby Pictures

Sabrina and Brooks Tingey have posted baby pictures of Benson, their second son.

He was born July 31, 2010, at 5:50 pm, weighed 9 lbs. 2 oz. , 22 inches long.

He's adorable!

Summer Salad

Our Summer Relief Society Activity "A Light in the Darkness" was a good success. We had time to talk and get to know one another better, to relax, to have fun in the pool and to reflect on our gifts, our sisterhood, and being a light to one another.

The food was also terrific! Below is Cheryl's recipe for Cashew Cabbage Salad. If you brought a salad or dessert, please send me your recipe and I'll post it.

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Cashew Cabbage Salad

Step 1
1 head cabbage, sliced thin
1 bag salad greens
1 bunch green onions, sliced

Mix in large bowl and put in refrigerator to keep cold.

Step 2
½ cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashews
1 package Raman noodles, crumbled

Saute in 2-1/2 Tbls. butter, then add between 1/3 to ½ cup brown sugar to pan as needed to coat nut mixture.  Continually stir over medium heat until nuts are a nice golden brown.  Set aside to cool.  After cooled add on top of greens.

Step 3
½ cup sugar
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup oil
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper

Combine sugar and vinegar in a small sauce pan over medium heat to dissolve sugar.  Add salt and pepper.  Remove from heat place in a shaker and add oil.  Chill and shake together to pour over salad just before serving.

( You can put the steps in any order you want.)

Cheryl Wentzel

Lesson: Priesthood Organization

Gospel Principles, Lesson 14, Priesthood Organization
Taught by Marie Tiller

The Priesthood is on the earth today

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is governed by the priesthood. The priesthood, which is always associated with God’s work, “continueth in the church of God in all generations, and is without beginning of days or end of years” (D&C 84:17).

It is upon the earth today.

Men young and old are baptized into the Church, and when they are judged worthy they are ordained to the priesthood. They are given the authority to act for the Lord and do His work on the earth.

Where can you find such a body of men

Where on earth can you find a body of men who unitedly espouse chastity before marriage and complete fidelity after marriage, who abhor pornography, abuse, and denigration of women, who love their wives and want to have children, who share in the burdens of home-life including child-rearing and housework, and who seek to follow the example of Jesus Christ and bless the lives of others through their callings and by the power of the Priesthood?!

Here in the restored church of Jesus Christ. It is the best, most blessed place to be as a woman today.

Those who hold the Aaronic Priesthood have authority to administer the outward ordinances of the sacrament and baptism.

Those holding the Melchizedek Priesthood have the power and authority to lead the Church and direct the preaching of the gospel in all parts of the world. They administer all the spiritual work of the Church. They direct the work done in the temples; they preside over wards, branches, stakes, and missions. The Lord’s chosen prophet, the President of the Church, is the presiding high priest over the Melchizedek Priesthood.

It is a blessing to have this order and organization in our homes and in the church. It is how the Lord accomplishes the great work of His church at this time, and around the world.

[If you are new to the church or need a refresher, please review the offices, duties and special callings in the Priesthood at the lesson link above.]

The Relief Society is an auxiliary of the priesthood
All organizations in the Church work under the direction of priesthood leaders and help them carry out the work of the Lord. For example, the presidencies in a ward’s Relief Society, Young Women, Young Men, Primary, and Sunday School organizations serve under the direction of the bishopric.

These organizations are called auxiliaries to the priesthood.

They bless the lives of each member according to their needs.

Through the organization of the Priesthood we have the opportunity to invite God's power into our lives through our own faith, by worthy men who seek to bless our lives, and through the ordinances and covenants of the gospel and the temple.

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Turn Your Life Over to God

Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. 
He will:

• deepen your joys
• expand your vision
• quicken your minds
• strengthen your muscles
• lift your spirits
• multiply your blessings 
• increase your opportunities
• comfort your souls
• raise up friends
• and pour out peace.

Whosoever will lose his life in the service of God will find eternal life.

~Ezra Taft Benson,
The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson (1988) p 361.

How Americans View Mormonism

This news article is a must-read.

Especially since we just talked about some of these ideas last Sunday in our lesson on missionary work.

I listened to the FAIR conference talk this week with my husband, given by Gary Lawrence. Two years ago, his Orange County, Calif., polling firm conducted a survey among 1,000 randomly chosen American adults, asking about their view of the LDS Church. He tells what he discovered and what we can do about it.
 
While Mormons think they are known to the public, "37 percent of Americans do not know a Mormon, and 55 percent never met anybody like you," he said, presuming most of his listeners were active Latter-day Saints.

"We tend to think people are not beating a path to our door, but they respect what we Mormons are trying to do," Lawrence said. "Baloney. They don't."

He found that Americans have a 37 percent favorable and a 49 percent unfavorable impression. By contrast, Jewish people have almost a 7-to-2 positive-to-negative ratio, and the proportion for Catholics is almost 2-to-1 favorable.

Lawrence identified the cause as an "approach-avoidance" situation in which many people are "cross-pressured."

"It's a love-hate relationship," he said. "They'd like to believe certain things about us, but they hear other things about us."

Fifty-five percent of those polled said they believe Mormons are seekers of truth, "which means that 45 percent don't even believe we are seeking the truth, let alone have entertained the thought that we have the truth," Lawrence said.

"A lot of this comes with a misperception of what is known as a faith community," he said, explaining that many people confuse the church with schismatic groups that practice polygamy.

"They do the same thing to us that we do to other religions," Lawrence said. "How many of you make a distinction between, say, a Southern Baptist and an American Baptist?" It's up to Latter-day Saints, he said, to let people know there is a distinction between the LDS Church and the more than 150 splinter groups.

He suggests we can do something about it:

• Get out into the community but not with "an agenda." Rather, "simply because we believe in our cause and what we are trying to accomplish.
• "And we make friends, not because we are trying to lead them to the waters of baptism, although it would be wonderful if we could do that, but simply to be their friend," he said.
• The immediate goal of church members should not be referrals and baptisms, Lawrence said, but rather spreading information, correcting distortions and improving others' understanding of Mormonism.
• Cut the jargon..."We claim to be the re-established, original Christian church.' Even an atheist can understand those words."
• Use contrast. Our fellow occupants on this planet inherently want to know differences.
• He suggested that church members replace the traditional three-step paradigm of conversion (find, teach and baptize) with a more realistic six-step model: awareness, awakening, curiosity, interest, investigation and conversion.

Read full article at Deseret News.

Read more excerpts from the book How Americans View Mormonism, And What We Can Do About It

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Upcoming Activity: A Light in the Darkness

A Light in the Darkness
We can Light the Path for One Another

August 11, 2010, Wednesday
At the Wolf's home
221 Hopwood Road
Collegeville, PA

7:00 Food, Swimming, and Fun!
8:30 Short Devotional (at dusk)

Bring
•  A salad, snack, or dessert

•  A beach or camping chair
• Your visiting teaching sisters
• Your swimsuit (or wear it!)

Summer is not just for kids!

Supporting the purposes of Relief Society:
Increase faith and righteousness  •  Strengthen families and homes  •  Seek
out and help those in need

Photo credit

I Love the Hill Cumorah Pageant

Did you get to go this year?

I didn't, but there are some great pictures from the Hill Cumorah Mission President's blog: Mission Musings

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Photo credit

Of Course, We Never Doubted

Philadelphia Inquirer full article: After dispute Mormon Temple will be built in Philly

After months of uncertainty as the city threatened to seize the land, construction of a $70 million Mormon temple near Logan Square will not only proceed but will help make the Parkway "one of the most incredible boulevards anywhere in the world," Mayor Nutter said Monday.

The 68,000-square-foot Philadelphia Temple at 17th and Vine Streets will create 300 building jobs and 50 permanent jobs, and attract 400,000 visitors a year, bringing "tens of millions of dollars of additional spending" to the city, Nutter said at a news conference.

A coworker sent me this link!

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Invite the Sisters Missionaries In...This Week!

Sisters,

Our sister missionaries are running on low on appointments. So, they'd love to meet with YOU!

Please invite them to your home for dinner and a short message. Plan on them being there about an hour.

And even better, they tell me, have neighbors, friends or family over at the same time.

Call them this week: 610-710-1950

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Photo credit

Lesson: Joy in Missionary Work

Do you want to be happy?
Forget yourself and get lost in this great cause.
Lend your efforts to helping people.
...Stand higher, lift those with feeble knees,
hold up the arms of those that hang down.
Live the gospel of Jesus Christ.
~ President Gordon B. Hinckley ~

Joy in the Scriptures
If you take a look through all the scriptures in the Topical Guide on joy you'll find they fall into 4 categories. Here are a few, for example. Joy...

1. Relating to the plan of salvation: 2 Nephi 2:23-25, Alma 4:14, Job 38:4, 7 
2. After we feel God’s Love for us: 1 Nephi 8:12, Mos 4: 20, Alma 36:20-21, 3 Nephi 17:17-18 
3. In righteousness: Mos. 2: 41, Matt. 25:23, John 15:10, D&C 59:13
4. As a result of seeing others embrace the gospel: Luke15:7, Alma 19:6, Alma 29: 9, 13, 16, Alma 22:15

What holds you back?
So if you know there is this potential for greater joy in your lives, what keeps you from doing more missionary work? Is it lack of opportunity, fear, pride, shyness, time, an attitude of 'not my job', lack of motivation, too distracted by life, or just being forgetful? Ponder which it is for you and decide today that you want more joy in your life.

It starts with our own conversion

1. When we are converted we want to convert others. When we feel the joy of the Spirit and of the Gospel we naturally turn to share it.

Think of Lehi’s dream. He had progressed along a path with an iron rod and made it to the tree and tasted of the fruit or the love of God. As Lehi did in his dream, when we feel God’s love for us and the joy the plan of salvation and righteous living bring, we naturally turn to beckon others to come especially our loved ones.

Remember the Sons of Mosiah. When they were converted to the Church, their hearts were filled with compassion for others. They wanted to preach the gospel to their enemies the Lamanites, “for they could not bear that any human soul should perish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure endless torment did cause them to quake and tremble” (Mosiah 28:3). As the gospel fills our lives with joy, we will feel this kind of love and compassion for our brothers and sisters. We will want to share the message of the gospel with everyone who desires to listen.

Examine our own conversion first. It starts with our own testimony and feeling God’s love for us. The motivation to share the gospel may come from the feeling of commitment we made to God at baptism to take the name of Jesus Christ upon us and always remember Him. It comes from realizing that your life is a gift from Him and in no way can you ever repay but to devote your life in service to Him. It comes from humility born of hardship or sin and experiencing his saving grace and the redemption of the atonement. It comes from realizing God’s opinion of us is the only one that matters. It comes as a gift of the Spirit, energizing us, inspiring us how to use our time, who to talk to, how to use our own particular gifts and personality.

D&C18:15 [If you] bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!

That one soul is you. You start with yourself. Your own conversion. Maybe your goal this week is to work on that.

It goes on to say...16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!

2. The Lord has prepared ways for us to share the gospel.

We know that the prophets have told us we are all missionaries.

We know that the Lord never gives us a commandment without preparing a way for us to accomplish it (1Nephi 3:7).

What are some different ways that the Lord has prepared for us to share the gospel?

• Nations have been opened. - I remember when the Soviet Union was closed. Then a temple was built in East Germany. Then the walls came down.
• Inventions and Technology - In my lifetime television, satellite broadcast, personal computers, internet, blogs, Twitter, computerized scriptures, mobile apps
• Mormon.org profile - 2,000 profiles and 15 videos you can share with your friends. Add your own profile. I told a few of my interests, answered an FAQ, told a personal story, and about how I live the gospel everyday. Easy!
• Missionary social networking pilot - Missionaries tell about their experiences on Facebook, blog, or comment on sites that talk about mormons during down time or in the mornings.
• These are just a few. The Spirit will whisper what you can do with your opportunities and talents.

3. Choose to do something this week.

What are some specific ways you can or have shared the gospel? What works for you that could work for others?

Time. On average we spend 12 hours a day information gathering! 5 hours for TV, 2 hours on the computer, two hours for radio, one for gaming, 36 minutes with print media and 27 for recorded music. Do we really need 34 gigabytes of information a day?!

Sign up to go with the Sisters on an appointment! No preparation. Just go and be real. Tell how the Holy Ghost works in your life. Share something you learned from your prayers and scripture study in the last week. Sympathize with someone who is struggling with doubt.

Get a babysitting buddy to trade off so you can go.

Make a commitment - once a week, twice a month, once a month. On the calendar. Just do it.

Call and invite the Sisters to dinner and a brief lesson. Get them in your home. Get to know them.  You make time to eat every night, right?!

Exposure. Half of all Americans have never heard of the Mormons. Many people are just curious so prepare for that.

Remember Elder Ballard, Faith Family Facts Fruits conference talk? Prepare some simple facts and help those who are curious to know a little about the Church.

Family home evening topic. Raise hands...who had family home evening last Monday? What was the topic? Could your neighbor use the same help with her parenting? Open your homes.

With other parents in the park. “Hey there’s a women’s group at church and we get to talking and I can ask 'hey is your child doing this or that', and I get a lot of help. My church helps me be a better mom.”

At work. It's Friday and your coworkers ask, “Got any plans for the weekend?” “Yea, my church is pitching in on a service project. We’re meeting at a local park to help clear some brush and plant some gardens. It’s kinda fun to work as a group.” Or, “how was your weekend?” Tell them about your family and your church activities.

At home with small children. Blog about your study, how your family lives the gospel, not just the cute or not-so-cute things they do, but what they are learning about prayer, for example. Wear your religion on your sleeve.

There are opportunities in everyday living!!!!

Finding people. The amazing PMG manual is not just for Missionaries. Read the chapter How do I find people. Headings:

• Develop more faith to find
• Talk to everyone
• Teach when you find, find when you teach
• Talk about the importance of the family
• Work with members
• Use media
• Talk about Family History
• Former investigators
• Find through your own efforts
• Go about doing good
• No effort is wasted

Speaking of members
Dallin Oaks, in 2003 wrote in an article titled Strengthening and Nurturing New Converts: 

Among those converts who fall away, the attrition is steepest in the two months after baptism. When a convert is baptized, there is no time to lose. Fellowshipping efforts must begin well before baptism and must increase in intensity in the months following baptism.

Our experience has shown that members can have a powerful influence in this process in three critically important ways:

1. Modeling gospel living by providing practical, persuasive examples of the joy we receive from living the gospel.

2. Teaching the gospel informally by explaining Latter-day Saint doctrines and practices, answering questions, and helping investigators and new members resolve concerns.

3. Helping investigators and converts become fully integrated into the community of Saints.

When members see themselves as gospel nurturers, as the prophet has invited us all to be, we will be well along toward our goal.

There is work enough to do. So let's get busy!

My testimony

I love missionary work, but am hot and cold sometimes. And that’s okay, because life gets real sometimes. Missionary work is the reason we, and many of you, moved here...to have more opportunities. And we've had a hand in some baptisms...Wade’s coworker, then her boyfriend (later her husband, then married in the temple), a couple of Carrie’s school friends.

I love the missionaries, love to be with them; the more I am with them the more I want to help them. Invite them to your house for dinner and get to know them.

I promise you will feel the more of the Spirit and more joy in your life. You will feel more included at church. I promise again that you will feel the joy and it will become a positive cycle. You will want more of it.

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