Prayerfully study this material and, as appropriate, discuss
it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your
sisters and to make Relief Society an active part of your own life.
Special Needs and Service Rendered
The needs of others are ever present,” said President Thomas
S. Monson, “and each of us can do something to help someone. . . . Unless we
lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives.”
1
As visiting teachers we can sincerely come to know and love
each sister we visit. Service to those we visit will flow naturally out of our
love for them (see John 13:34–35).
How can we know the spiritual and temporal needs of our
sisters so we can render service when it is needed? As visiting teachers, we
are entitled to receive inspiration when we pray about those we visit.
Maintaining regular contact with our sisters is also important.
Personal visits, telephone calls, a note of encouragement, e-mails, sitting
with her, a sincere compliment, reaching out to her at church, helping her in
time of illness or need, and other acts of service all help us watch over and
strengthen each other.2
Visiting teachers are asked to report the well-being of
sisters, any special needs they have, and the service rendered to them. These
kinds of reports and our service to our sisters help us demonstrate our discipleship.3
From the Scriptures
John 10:14–16; 3 Nephi 17:7, 9;
Moroni 6:3–4
Faith, Family, Relief - From Our History
Serving one another has always been at the heart of visiting
teaching. Through ongoing service we bring kindness and friendship that go
beyond monthly visits. It is our caring that counts.
“My desire is to plead with our sisters to stop worrying about
a phone call or a quarterly or monthly visit,” said Mary Ellen Smoot, the 13th Relief
Society general president. She asked us to “concentrate instead on nurturing tender
souls.” 4
President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) taught, “It is
vital that we serve each other in the kingdom.” Yet he recognized that not all
service need be heroic. “So often, our acts of service consist of simple encouragement
or of giving . . . help with mundane tasks,” he said, “but what glorious
consequences can flow . . . from small but deliberate deeds!” 5
NOTES
1. Thomas S. Monson,
“What Have I Done for Someone Today?” Liahona and Ensign, Nov. 2009, 85.
2. See Handbook 2:
Administering the Church (2010), 9.5.1.
3. See Handbook 2,
9.5.4.
4. Mary Ellen Smoot,
in Daughters in My Kingdom: The History and Work of Relief Society (2011), 117.
5. Teachings of
Presidents of the Church: Spencer W. Kimball (2006), 82.
What Can I Do?
1. Am I seeking personal inspiration to know how to respond
to the spiritual and temporal needs of each sister I’m assigned to watch over?
2. How do the sisters I watch over know that I care about
them and their families?
For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org
Suggested handout Download English file here
The file will download automatically and is 6x4 suitable for a photo print if you wish
The file will download automatically and is 6x4 suitable for a photo print if you wish
Also available in Chinese Download Chinese file here
Some other sites to check
My happy tribe
Still looking for ideas? Try Google and look for 'Visiting Teaching message handouts September 2012'
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