Training...Always Training

This week was a Zone Conference week. Our mission has six "zones". Each geographic zone has about 20-25 missionaries in it. We combine three zones for a Zone Conference. We held these all-day conferences on Wednesday in downtown Philadelphia and Friday in Broomall, PA. Our missionaries often travel up to 2 hours to attend these conferences. The purposes of Zone Conferences are to train, inspire, motivate and minister to our missionaries.

We always have 3-4 break-out sessions in our Zone Conferences. Each break-out session focuses on a chapter from Preach My Gospel, the training and instruction manual for missionaries. Each break-out session typically consists of 5-10 minutes of instruction, followed by 15 minutes of role playing. We find that our missionaries learn very quickly through role plays.




Usually our break-out sessions are taught by our Zone Leaders. This week I got into the act and taught our missionaries how to interact with bishops and branch presidents. Following brief instruction, the missionaries paired off with one being a "missionary" and the other being a "bishop". The missionary was enlisting the help of the "bishop" in regards to "handing-off" a number of recent converts and other members with whom the missionaries had been closely working.

Very Basic Training

Our mission has about 130 missionaries and is divided into 6 "zones". Each zone has 20-26 missionaries and is led by a pair of "Zone Leaders". Zone Leaders serve in these assignment for 3-6 months. They are carefully and prayerfully selected. Not only are they expected to carry a full-load of regular missionary responsibilities, but they are also in charge of overseeing the daily work of their 20-26 missionaries. One of the constant ingredients within a mission is that of training. I'm always training. And our Zone Leaders are constantly training those for whom they are responsible.

Once every six weeks I conduct a day-long "Zone Leader Council". In this meeting I provide training and encouragement to our group of 12 Zone Leaders. My two assistants also help with this training. It is important that all of our training "run downhill". That is, we need everything we teach in Zone Leader Council to get to the very last missionary in the mission. Consistency is an important element to our success.

With this in mind, Elder Worley came up with a brilliantly creative training idea -- to see, in fact, if our training gets to the bottom of the hill. Elder Worley was in the military prior to his missionary service and, as such, knows how to polish a shoe like nobody else. During Zone Leader Council he gave a 30 minute workshop on how to shine a shoe. This was not your standard shoe shine. The method he taught results in a shoe that requires one to wear sun glasses due to the extraordinary brightness. One would think that he imbedded a lighting source inside the shoe. The shoe shine training had three parts: (1) Learn how to shine a shoe like Elder Worley and (2) teach all the missionaries in your Zone how to do it and (3) come to Zone Conference in 3 weeks with everyone's shoes bright and shiny. Part one will be the easy part. Part two will take some time. And part three is the real test -- can our Zone Leaders do adequate followup, communications, etc. to assure that everyone fulfills this task for our Zone Conference.

If a mission can shine shoes, then we should also be able to learn how to teach the restored gospel of Jesus Christ with great urgency woven with an abundance of charity. Our next Zone Conferences are on Sept. 17 and 19. I'll be on the lookout for extra shiny shoes!