Home teaching

[Mojomanny]

I am an investigator. I have been investigating seriously since last June. I am working with the Missionaries and have spoke with the Bishop. They all know that this is a long term investigation and I will not make a decision to convert or be baptized for another year at a minimum.

I have been asked to help with Home Teaching and have accepted.

My questions are pretty basic:

what should I wear (Church clothes or business casual or less formal)

How should I prepare (what should I study or read....)

What will I be doing?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[Palerider]

Lots of us have opinions on this. I would ask your home teaching companion what he was going wear bad base your choices off that. As for myself I rarely wear a white shirt and tie when I go home teaching.

[Just_A_Guy]

I am an investigator. I have been investigating seriously since last June. I am working with the Missionaries and have spoke with the Bishop. They all know that this is a long term investigation and I will not make a decision to convert or be baptized for another year at a minimum.

I have been asked to help with Home Teaching and have accepted.

My questions are pretty basic:

what should I wear (Church clothes or business casual or less formal)

How should I prepare (what should I study or read....)

What will I be doing?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Home teachers are usually asked to base their lesson off the First Presidency Message from the current edition of the Ensign. I personally try to keep the "lesson" very short--five minutes or less. But a visit will usually take half an hour or so--just making small talk, seeing how the family's doing, seeing if there are any needs that I or the Church can help with, that kind of thing.

[Anddenex]

what should I wear (Church clothes or business casual or less formal)

When considering what we should wear as home teachers an important principle to remember is that we are representatives of the Lord. How do you think the Lord would have you dress when representing him? For me, this would be a white shirt, tie, and slacks.

How should I prepare (what should I study or read....)

This question is dependent upon the purpose and importance of the visit. When working with a family you may recognize something, or feel inspired by the spirit to share something, which may require more spiritual preparation like fasting, praying and actually studying the topic you feel impressed to share; however, a typical home teaching visit the individual that is sharing the lesson reads the First Presidency message, or something they feel inspired to share, and then shares the lesson.

What will I be doing?

The best way to truly understand the responsibility we have as home teachers is to actually become acquainted with the Church Handbook of Instructions regarding home teaching.

Note, I have never met a member who performs this responsibility to a perfection as outlined in the Handbook...doesn't mean we shouldn't strive to better ourselves in following the counsel.

This is a great beginning to review, "Home teaching is one way Heavenly Father blesses His children. Home teachers “visit the house of each member, exhorting them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties” (D&C 20:51). They are assigned to families and individuals to “watch over … and be with and strengthen them” (D&C 20:53). They “warn, expound, exhort, and teach, and invite all to come unto Christ” (D&C 20:59)."

As to a matter of how long a visit should be, judge the spirit of the home and the need of the family. Some families prefer a short visit, other families like to chat, while you may have other needs for the day so the lesson needs to be shorter.

I have had 15 minutes visits and I have had 2 hour visits. With the two hour visits, the results would not have been as good if I went in with the determination that this will only be 15 minutes or 30 minutes. This I have come to realize, judge by the spirit or ask the father or mother how long of a visit they would prefer.

[mnn727]

Unless I am coming straight from Church I never wear a White Shirt - but then frankly I despise white shirts, and if it were not the 'unofficial uniform' for males at Church I wouldn't even own one. YMMV

Its Business Casual for me: Dress Pants, clean pressed dress shirt, no tie. Which is also the dress code where I work at.

As for what to study, etc. Let your companion take the lead, and also talk with him about it.

[Vort]

Unless I am coming straight from Church I never wear a White Shirt - but then frankly I despise white shirts, and if it were not the 'unofficial uniform' for males at Church I wouldn't even own one. YMMV

Funny. I sort of agree. I don't despise white shirts, but I can't imagine I'd be likely to own one if I weren't LDS.