For many years from at least 1982 there was emphasis on the three-fold mission of the Church and I sensed somewhat of a compartmentalisation by some leaders, and by myself, of Proclaiming the Gospel, Perfecting the Saints, and Redeeming the Dead.
While serving as a ward mission leader in about 1994, some 12 years later, I was taught by the Spirit as I worked with the Member Progress Record. Details were recorded for a new or returning member of how they were taught the basic gospel principles, helped to receive a temple recommend so that they could perform baptisms for the dead as soon as possible, guided to research their family history so that they could provide ordinances for their relatives or others beyond the veil, and then getting them ready to go to the temple once they received a recommend for living ordinances after being a member for at least a year. I realised that as a ward mission leader, focused on Proclaiming the Gospel, I was actually involved in one work and not three separate missions (what in the business world might have been described as three 'silos').
As we teach basic principles to the prospective, new or returning member, we are proclaiming the gospel. This leads naturally to perfecting the saints as we prepare them to be worthy to enter the house of the Lord and issue a temple recommend to do baptisms and to later receive an endowment from the Lord. Then, as they can only do an ordinance once for themselves, every time that they return and perform baptisms, initiatory, endowment or sealing ordinances, they will do them in behalf of a deceased individual, thus redeeming the dead. As they serve as proxy for someone else, the Spirit will give them further insight regarding the ordinance, or the gospel, that will continue to proclaim the gospel to the individual, perfect the member as a saint, and redeem someone beyond the veil. All part of one journey.
I am always impressed that while interviewing a youth or adult - whether a new or returning member - to serve in a responsible calling, it is an ideal time to reassess their foundation by conducting a temple recommend interview and, hopefully, issuing a temple recommend if they do not have a valid one. If they are not worthy to be handed a temple recommend, they will have been searching their soul and the Spirit will have been touching their heart.
The temple recommend interview is not a chimney pot to put on once the building is complete, but part of establishing the foundation. I appreciated a comment by brother Taona Jiri as I mentioned this to him as a member of the bishopric during my recent interview to renew my own temple recommend. He suggested that this helps to make sure that the chimney is well built and that smoke does not spread through the building. The member will feel the Spirit very strongly as the leader works through each and every question, not stopping at one where they 'fail', but working faithfully on strengthening the entire foundation. Then, in the following interview by president Emmanuel Danso of the stake presidency, he pointed out that the temple recommend details are now available for all the world to see and they can then look at Emmanuel Danso, or Les Powrie, and say - I know your Church, the standards, and that you have a temple recommend and so I can expect you to be this kind of person. What an opportunity to be a light, leaven or salt in the community!
Perhaps if you are interviewing a brother for welfare needs, someone who is dependent on Zion, if you reviewed the ten commandments or the thirteen articles of faith with him, it would help him to become less dependent and move towards being independent, then onwards to being interdependent and building Zion. Is being dependent maybe telestial, becoming independent could be terrestrial, and interdependent, the opposite of dependent, or building Zion is perhaps celestial? Perhaps the reason that Moses was instructed to not accommodate any blasphemers, breakers of the law of the Sabbath or chastity in the Camp of Israel was because they were like parasitic cancerous cells that needed to be removed, not mollycoddled. He took people who were dependent on the fleshpots of Egypt and was trying to build them to be independent and then to go into the promised land that was similar to the desert-like Karoo, through which we drove every year with our family to get to the Johannesburg temple, to the point that they would make their promised land desert to blossom as the rose, building a Zion or more Celestial community. See a summary of Covey:
"Acquiring the seven habits of effectiveness takes us through the stages of character development. Habits 1 through 3 make up the “private victory” - where we go from dependence to independence by taking responsibility for our own lives. Acquiring habits 4 through 6 is our “public victory”: Once independent, we learn to be interdependent, to succeed with other people. The seventh habit makes all the others possible - periodically renewing ourselves in mind body, and spirit."
I love the story of a sister who was not living the word of wisdom and so was not given her temple recommend, but she returned to her bishop about two weeks later saying that she was now ready to have the interview again because she realised that the word of wisdom was not the problem. I guess that we often address symptoms and ignore the underlying problems and a temple recommend interview can help the member to feel the Spirit guiding them to sort out problems and the symptoms will then go away by themselves as the member adjusts course. I would often challenge a member to change and put in place something that was not in order, and if they were willing to commit to repent, I would seek the confirmation of the Spirit that I could give them a recommend based on their commitment rather than on their track record, or set a time within a few days or weeks for me to do so.
I recently realised that someone preparing to receive a patriarchal blessing is required to be worthy to hold a temple recommend. I then learned through the whispering of the Spirit that they, or I, cannot fully benefit from the patriarchal blessing as the years pass unless we remain as worthy to read it as we needed to be to receive it.
When the member is in any interview, the leader can help them to consider their next step like priesthood, patriarchal blessing, or temple. The leader thus gets to discuss these with them at the same time as the Spirit is touching their hearts.
I love the opportunity that is stressed now that no adult should be alone teaching children or youth, but should be accompanied by either a spouse or a member of the same gender. I am concerned that some feel that this is not feasible, impractical, or a nuisance. But what better opportunity is there to give a new or returning member the opportunity to relearn the basic gospel principles as he or she hears it taught to children or youth? Before long he or she will be ready to participate in the teaching, and maybe even to teach a lesson or two. This is strengthening their spiritual foundation. What a simple solution to our ongoing problem of people not attending their meetings! We are giving them a real reason to prioritise being at their meetings while giving them a chance to fill an essential but non-threatening position and they are being strengthened and blessed by being there. I love our prophetic leadership in the Lord's work.
Blessings on our ward and organisation leaders as they serve as true under-shepherds to the Lord's children in these simple and foundational activities of ministering to the sheep of their flock through taking opportunities for doing things such as inviting members to participate in interviews. Members of a bishopric can conduct temple recommend interviews, but other organisation leaders can invite members to an interview where they discuss simple and basic topics using the temple recommend questions as a basis, not to determine worthiness, but to help the member to feel the Spirit that will change their hearts and bring them closer to the Lord. Perhaps an interview conducted by a Young Women president will be a real contributing landmark in the life of a young a sister that helped her to be ready to receive a Temple Recommend to marry in the Temple. We might often be the leaven in the loaf that makes a significant difference in someone's testimony and we may never even realise what an impact that action of ours had, but I have a special conviction that the Lord will know, and He will bless us eternally for our simple efforts.
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