I love this religion, but not this individual place of worship.


jonathan909817
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The ward i go to is filled with amazing people, the only problem is that it is so unorganized! For example, our last scouting trip- We were going to camp out on the Bishops private beach, so we al met up at church to wait for the scoutmaster. He arrives and guess what he says?= " we need rides to get there". What the heck? He should have asked a week earlier and found us rides, but he didn't, and it wasn't the first time that he has done it. Also, things like church partys and extra meetings aren't ever told on time, and everyone is just totally mixed up. And worst of all, it's the only place around, and i just can't see myself going here if things never work out like they are supposed to. Honestly, i don't know what to do....

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Your Bishop has a private beach? Like a secluded cove in the Florida Keys or a little bay on the coast of Northern California? You live somewhere with a beach at all? And the scouts were going camping on it? It's 20 degrees here and they canceled church this morning because of the snow on the ground and you get a beach.

I was annoyed when I first returned to church about much the same thing. It only took me several years to mostly get over it...I suppose it's possible things got better as leaders rotated out. But I assure you, it's not just your ward, nor is it personal.

Imperfect people are called to lead. You can do like I did and grumble to yourself about how you'd do it better, and why can't so and so learn to read a clock/calendar or realize they might need transportation before there's a handful of scouts standing around in the parking lot. Or, knowing that the leader has an issue in areas, you can fill in the gap to make sure he's covered. That's how we are supposed to treat people in general, not to point out what we see as flaws, but to support them by making sure they're covered. Every week in Priesthood, when an activity is announced for the youth or adults, half a dozen people are asking about location, time, rides, refreshments, ect in order to make sure everything is taken care of instead of assuming the person in charge has thought of everything. The church runs entirely on volunteer leadership, seldom do we have leaders who were trained to their calling. While it's possible the leader is a complete incompetent oaf, I've found it's better for my attitude to assume they've had a horrible week at work, the kids have been acting up all week, the dog died and their house burned down. I've found that really reduces my stress over other people's administrative abilities.

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The ward i go to is filled with amazing people, the only problem is that it is so unorganized! For example, our last scouting trip- We were going to camp out on the Bishops private beach, so we al met up at church to wait for the scoutmaster. He arrives and guess what he says?= " we need rides to get there". What the heck? He should have asked a week earlier and found us rides, but he didn't, and it wasn't the first time that he has done it. Also, things like church partys and extra meetings aren't ever told on time, and everyone is just totally mixed up. And worst of all, it's the only place around, and i just can't see myself going here if things never work out like they are supposed to. Honestly, i don't know what to do....

Me too, I didn't get my eagle scout because the ward was messed up. Still makes me mad. :mad:

If a particular activity is important to you, offer to help or help plan it out. Nothing you can do about them. You can only control you, so do all that you can to make it work. If nothing else it'll make you a better person.

I griped for years, guess what? I got called to positions that required I be organized. It's not easy. Stuff falls through the cracks and it takes a lot of dedication and effort to make an activity happen. Even the basics like keeping Home Teachers assigned is crazy cause people keep moving in and out.

I don't know what else to say except plan for it and be prepared. You can have fun where ever you are. Bring a book to read, surf the web on your phone, bring playing cards, etc.

Hang in there and good luck!

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The problem comes when the leaders do everything, and the boys do not take responsibility and lead themselves. If a scouting program is failing, then you are part of the problem. Sit down with the scout leader and patrol leaders and discuss using the patrol method (as explained in the Scout handbook). The Scout leader is only there to assist. The Patrols are to plan and accomplish the program itself. If you are unsure what to do, ask around your stake to find a well-trained Scouter. Ask him if he wouldn't mind assisting your troop in learning how to manage itself.

Why is it the Scoutmaster's fault that there weren't enough rides? Perhaps the Scouts should have asked about this ahead of time, or asked their fathers to come with them on the trip, etc. If a scout activity fails, it isn't just the Scoutmaster's fault. It is also partially due to the boys not taking charge of their own program!

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We just got a Scoutmaster called in our ward. I don't think he's ever done any scouting before in his life! You know what the parents of the scouts did? Helped him out. A LOT. Half the scout leaders are wood badge holders, half can barely remember the scout pledge. So, everybody who knows what to do just goes ahead and pitches in to get activities running.

So yeah, the ward is only as good as the charity of its members. Maybe you can think about what you can do to fire up some of the members to uphold the ward callings that need help. I'm fairly certain with the way you described your ward, that there are quite a few of you that are not happy with the way things are being run. So, yeah, gather them up, list out some ways you can make things better then ask the Bishop to treat you to a swim in his private beach in the middle of winter for an incentive. :) Somebody has to step up first... and it's better it be you than nobody at all... It only takes one really cool person for everybody to get fired up to do better!

want to go to the beach bad...

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Guest mormonmusic
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I can walk to about a dozen wards (I live in SLC) but I can belong to only the one I'm "in." This strikes me as a severe misfeature. If I could choose, I might find one that suits me better than the 11 others.

Interesting thought! I'd never thought of breaking the geographical assumption, although geography-less membership is normal in other Churches.

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I can walk to about a dozen wards (I live in SLC) but I can belong to only the one I'm "in." This strikes me as a severe misfeature. If I could choose, I might find one that suits me better than the 11 others.

It is our responsibility as members of His church to build up the kingdom where we live. How can we do this if we are out there cherry-picking which ward to belong to? There are very few reasons why a person should be in a different ward. Not liking how and by whom it's run is not one of them.

Growing up I was a member of a Spanish Branch that barely had 50 members. We were constantly moved around without a home to have our meetings. We stuck with it (mainly because my dad was the president) and it is now a flourishing ward that out baptizes the whole stake. My parents are still in that ward (they haven't moved in 4 decades)

My ward is considered the "ghetto" of the stake (believe me, I've heard and overheard plenty). But those who are in our ward has helped it become a wonderful place to be. Especially for this dude (me) who is struggling to come back into the fold. Even as I am not technically a member, I try to pitch in to do my part, within the limitations of my situation. And I'm always made to feel welcome by a majority of the members.

So pitch in and help out. Stay and say positive things. Feeling the spirit is not dependent on what the talk is, or who's there. It is dependent on ourselves.

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I'd like to share a little more on this from my own perspective. I have worked in Scouting for six years now with the local council. I've worked at camps, in the Scout Shop, and with registration/dealing with boys and leaders.

I really have some issues with the Church being so involved in Scouting. I love the Church and I love Scouting, but when the Church is using the BSA as its youth program, you run into some issues.

People are called into it. They are sometimes people who hate Scouting and/or don't know a thing about it.

Because it's a calling, some people don't think they have to do much for it. There have been so many ward units that never, ever, ever turn applications and Scouting information into our office because they assume that because they are an LDS troop they are "special". Then they complain when people are not registered, ranks have not been filed, etc.

There have been multiple times when some guy has told me "I don't have to get trained. It's an LDS troop."

My reply: "The BSA doesn't care."

:disclaimer:

And it keeps happening.

:banghead:

Now, a few years ago when I went to Colorado to be trained as a BSA Aquatics Director (yes, I can certify you as a BSA lifeguard) a non-LDS guy there said the most impressive troop he ever saw happened to be an LDS troop.

But so often the wards just call people who have no interest in Scouting, people who are too lazy to deal with the high demand Scouting requires, people who are only involved because "it's just a calling".

Now I'll admit, BSA is driving me crazy because it keeps wussing out on making sure everyone is trained, but I've seen too many people who refuse to get fully trained because "they're LDS".

Then there's the uniform. What is it with the LDS view on not requiring full uniform? Apparently it's "too expensive" but other kids in any other kind of troop will happily do whatever it takes to get the full appropriate uniform. Are LDS people that much poorer? :viking:

Sorry for this rant, but it seemed appropriate here and shows my LDS Scouting issues.

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All well and good, SJ, but maybe my ward is too easy. I like the bishop -- he lives kitty corner from me and accepts my nudism. But I haven't seen ward teachers in more than a year and this is an "old" ward. Maybe I need the challenge that a not-so-nice ward would bring. Maybe I'm sour apple picking.

Just saying.

Isn't committing and trying to live all the commandments of God challenging enough?

*boy, I'm sounding like a fresh RM*

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Sorry for this rant, but it seemed appropriate here and shows my LDS Scouting issues.

Thank you for bringing back bad memories of dealing with parents when I was an Assistant Scoutmaster in charge of the 11 year olds. But at least over half of my boys (10 of them) went on to become eagles.

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