Increase Home Teaching Through the Power of “Why”

Nathan Waldron is an elder's quorum president from Roy, Utah. He has a bachelors degree in Computer Information Systems, an MBA, and pursing a graduate degree in banking work as an analyst for Zions Bancorporation. He served his mission in Madrid Spain (Did I mention his wife and 3 kids?). I recently interviewed Nathan during the How I Lead segment on the LeadingLDS podcast (listen HERE).  Enter Nathan... In the Church we do lots of things--we home/visit teach, hold family home evening, study the scriptures, attend church, attend other meetings, serve in various callings, attend the temple, do family history, the list can go on and on. All of these activities have a purpose and goal. For example, the purposes of home teaching, as illustrated by duties of the priesthood, are to “visit the house of each member, and exhort them to pray vocally and in secret and attend to all family duties” (D&C 20:47) and “watch over the church always, and be with and strengthen them; And see that there is no iniquity in the church, neither hardness with each other, neither lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking;” (D&C 20:53-54). There is no doubt in my mind these are worthwhile goals that can bring us closer to our Savior and Father in Heaven. And, the level at which we choose to participate in them is a reflection of the strength our testimonies. Let’s call these the “hows” of the gospel. The “whats” of the Gospel are the results of the “hows.” If we read the scriptures, we are being obedient and our testimonies are strenghened. The “what” is a stronger testimony and the “hows” are scripture study, church and temple attendance, service, etc. In his October, 2011 Conference talked titled Forget Me Not, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, said to the women of the church--and this is also very applicable to the men (emphasis added): While understanding the “what” and the “how” of the gospel is necessary, the eternal fire and majesty of the gospel springs from the “why.” When we understand why our Heavenly Father has given us this pattern for living, when we remember why we committed to making it a foundational part of our lives, the gospel ceases to become a burden and, instead, becomes a joy and a delight. It becomes precious and sweet. Let us not walk the path of discipleship with our eyes on the ground, thinking only of the tasks and obligations before us. Let us not walk unaware of the beauty of the glorious earthly and spiritual landscapes that surround us. My dear sisters, seek out the majesty, the beauty, and the exhilarating joy of the “why” of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The “what” and “how” of obedience mark the way and keep us on the right path. The “why” of obedience sanctifies our actions, transforming the mundane into the majestic. It magnifies our small acts of obedience into holy acts of consecration. How often do we keep our eyes on the ground, doing our duty, with no joy? How often do we fail to see the beauties of the world around us because we are too busy running from one meeting to another and from one service project to another? We have been asked to be disciples of Christ and the only way we are going to see those in need is to raise our eyes and look around. Soon after being called to serve in an Elders Quorum Presidency I attended some training through work. After the first day, I knew I could apply the Influencer/Six-Source Model to home teaching. I worked feverishly for months and finally had a plan. I felt inspired as I worked through the process and knew this would make a difference in our quorum. The first month we implemented revised home teaching assignments we jumped from an average of 10-15% to over 40%! It worked! I was thrilled to see such an immediate (and lasting) change. But improvement from 40-50% was slow going. Then I was called to be the president of the quorum. During Priesthood opening exercies each week,