Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Zone conferences Sept. 2014



It's time for Zone Conferences again. I can't believe how quickly 3 months passes!  This conference President Cook wanted to emphasize the importance of Joseph's first vision.  He talked about how powerful this story is and it tells how our church is different from other churches.  We practiced the points of all the lessons by doing an activity where they have to place all lessons in order under their main headings.  This is the Binza Zone it is one of the bigger zones with 24 missionaries 6 sisters/ 18 elders.  We have 9 zones now since the split. So it takes us three weeks or so to get around to all the zones.
It's so important that they know these lesson points and know them in order.  They do amazing !  But a good review never hurts.  The next exercise we did was tossing the beanbag and have the person catching it gives an inspired question.
The President wanted me to talk on "My Family" booklet and how it can be used in missionary work.  I have begun to fill my booklet to show them.  They first need to begin their own booklet.
Then I had them take a few minutes and filled out the first page about themselves.
We talked of ways we could use this booklet especially in part member families and inactive families.  President role played that he was a nonmember and his daughter was a member of the church and wanted the missionaries to tell him about her church.  The Elders told how important families are to Hevenly  Father. And told a story about their grandfather. Immediately following the story the missionaries ask the father to tell them a story about his grandfather.  And this is the miracle of this booklet. Then the missionaries role played
Practicing this over and over gives our missionaries the courage to try new teaching techniques.  Finally for the last part the President wanted to show how in 10 minutes you can change someone's life.  He told them how important and powerful the Joseph Smith's story is.  He recited by memory the first vision to them.  He told them that they were going to have a prayer and then he was going to send the Zone Leaders out on the street to find someone who would have time to come back to the church and listen to the Joseph Smith story.  This is the 8th zone conference that we have done this in and it has turned out wonderful every time.  It takes about 15 minutes for the ZL to find someone.  Only in Congo can this work so well.  As the investagor enters the chapel they are always alittle hesitant but the President welcomes them in and introduces everyone and explains that we are having a training and we could use their help.  Then he calls on a companionship that doesn't know they are going to be the teachers and gives them 10 mins to tell the Joseph Smith First Vision.  These missionaries look straight into the eyes of the investigator and testify the truth of this story. You can feel the Spirit and every zone conference the missionaries have made an appointment to come and teach them.  They all have excepted the Book of Mormon.  After the sisters and elders sing "Called To Serve" to the investigator.  It's been great!  After he leaves the president asks the missionaries what they learned.  It's powerful.  And it shows them what can be done in 10 minutes.  Here's pictures of the different Zone conferences thatwe have done and these people they found just right in front of the church
Here are some of our wonderful zone conference pictures  love them all!