Visiting Teaching

Last week someone asked me how long we've lived in our current neighborhood. When I responded just under two years, I realized that we have lived here almost half our marriage and the longest of any place we've ever lived.

And, although I love change and thrive for meeting new people, I am sad that we're moving because it means visiting teaching will change.

In my faith, each woman (or sister as we refer to ourselves) has two other women assigned to visit her monthly. It is an opportunity to serve, to teach, to listen, to befriend. Over the past year and a half, I have been blessed with amazing visiting teachees and an amazing visiting teacher.

Julie and Karin have helped me better learn the gospel, serve, and have been such incredible examples. Likewise, Angela has been such a sweetheart! In fact, this is the first time in the past eight years since entering Relief Society that I have felt that my visiting teacher genuinely cares about me and about my family. I feel very blessed.

This month's message was about how to be a good visiting teacher and I hope as I continue to be invovled in this great program that I can better follow the counsel to...

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  Pray daily for her and her family.
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  Seek inspiration to know her and her family.
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  Visit her regularly to learn how she is doing and to comfort and strengthen her.
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  Stay in frequent contact through visits, phone calls, letters, e-mail, text messages, and simple acts of kindness.
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  Greet her at Church meetings.
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  Help her when she has an emergency, illness, or other urgent need.
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  Teach her the gospel from the scriptures and the Visiting Teaching Messages.
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  Inspire her by setting a good example.
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  Report to a Relief Society leader about their service and the sister’s spiritual and temporal well-being.