October | 2016 | Missionary in Training

THE HOME & FAMILY MISSIONARY TRAINING CENTER

PROGRAM VISION

The MISSIONARY IN TRAINING (or “MIT”) program is a comprehensive but flexible plan to help family members to be current member missionaries as well as to prepare for future full-time missionary service. We all desire to train our children (now – more than ever before) and we know that we need to do it. The challenge is to commit to it and to know how to do it. This program gives a plan – a vision – and the focus to do it through your own Home and Family Missionary Training Center.

PROGRAM OBJECTIVES:

To create a family expectation or tradition of missionary service.

To get family members – children and even teen-ages (both male and female) excited and involved in missionary work and to commit their involvement.

To get teenagers – Aaronic Priesthood holders and Young Women – involved as teacher/trainers as they participate in the program as “Ammonite Trainers” – with the goal of getting them comfortable in the role of teacher for their future missions, by giving them training assignments for each weekly training session – wherein they can plan, research, present and testify to other family members.

To help Aaronic Priesthood young men and Young Women to fulfill requirements and complete requirements for Duty to God and Young Women Recognition awards as they “learn, act and share”.

Utilizes “Preach My Gospel” and other current resources but in a simplified manner so that children and youth can understand and enjoy it.

To teach and train the children relative to the “How and What” of missionary service.

To have a master family training plan to include study sessions (AKA: home evening), missionary preparation activities, service events and training lessons focused specifically on missionary service and preparation.

To build testimonies and to help children to make and keep sacred covenants, including baptism; to receive additional priesthood ordinances as they are eligible for them, and ultimately to get them to the Temple.

To strengthen extended family ties as older cousins (without siblings), aunts, uncles and grandparents are involved occasionally as guest trainers.

The program is not designed to be new tasks to be added to an already “too busy” life. It is to be incorporated into current family and home plans and objectives – but has an expanded vision and focus on missionary work.

To get family members to commit to being missionaries NOW by inviting “Friendshipping Families” to join with yours in missionary preparation activities, service events, special conferences, and church and community events.

HOW IT WORKS:

Families commit to a long-term plan for missionary training and preparation for their own children of all ages.

The family creates an organization and a master plan to accomplish the long-term goals and objectives of missionary service now and in the future.

Parents, home teachers, grandparents, siblings or others commit themselves to be full-time missionary trainers of their own HOME AND FAMILY MISSIONARY TRAINING CENTER for all of the children in the home.

The children are taught of the missionary function and their current and future service opportunities. Each child also commits to long-term mission preparation missionary preparation activities and instruction.

The children complete a “Future Missionary Application” and anticipate being “Called to Serve”.

“Mission Calls” (patterned after “real” mission calls issued to full-time missionaries) are sent/received for each child and then are distributed at a special family gathering designed to create mission preparation enthusiasm and commitment to begin a formal preparation and training process. Each child becomes a “Future Missionary” and a “Missionary in Training”. (Special important note to parents: DO NOT SHARE news or details of the MIT Program with the children until after the “Call Gathering”. Excitement will be stronger if they don’t know all of the details!)

Weekly “Missionary Study Sessions” (AKA ‘Missionary Preparation Classes or Family Home Evening) are planned to develop each “Missionary in Training” in the Home and Family MTC.

Families have a special breakfast or other planning event to plan out a quarterly or annual program of training sessions, missionary preparation activities, service events, special mission conferences together. Use the MIT Sample Calendar as outlined for the initial three months of program participation but put specific dates to each training or activity.

This is a home and family centered program designed to help accomplish the mission and objectives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for missionary preparation and the family. It is a “program with a plan” to help parents serious about their parenting responsibilities and opportunities. And while the program is congruent with Church policies and objectives, it is not a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints nor is it endorsed by the Church.

This is not a new list of things to add to your already “too-busy” life. It is a system – a plan – for home evenings you already are or want to be having

Written by Kevinthescout Blogger – Kevin Hunt

Scouting Historian, Author and Speaker, Scouting Veteran, Camp Director, and Missionary enthusiast

Kevin Hunt is the compiler of the home and family “Missionary in Training” Program. This is a comprehensive program for parents to use to train their children for their upcoming missionary responsibilities and opportunities. This article is from the MIT package.

For more information about the “Missionary in Training” Program, contact Kevin directly at info@missionaryintraining.com

I have mentioned our daughter, Kaylea, and how she and her husband, J.D. are raising missionaries … Well, now she has six children – five boys and one girl – all between the ages of eight and twelve. So, that is a lot of missionaries who could all leave about the same time. And that is a lot of missionary preparation that needs to happen. It is exciting to think about all of those missionaries.

Kaylea and her husband, J.D., have regularly bought new suits (beginning with the feature photo shown with this blog – when the boys were eight and under) – and dresses for Lucy. When they bought their first suits for the boys I was excited … I could only imagine how fabulous they must look. I decided that if they were willing to get the suits for the boys, then I, as the Grandpa, should get some “Future Missionary” name badges for them. I went to the local LDS book store to make a purchase.

They actually had two badge options. One was the “Future Missionary” that I went there looking for. And the other, I had not seen before. It said, “Missionary in Training”. I just kind of stared at those badges for a few moments as I first saw them. Then suddenly I was overpowered almost by the Spirit. I felt a rush of inspiration about the development of a “Missionary in Training” program for all of those missionaries in that one family – and thought too, of all of the rest of our grandkids. Wow! I had never considered this before. And I certainly would not have thought of it myself.

Anyway, after that initial inspiration – for which I am very grateful, I began to ponder and think about what might be in such a program. The ideas kept coming (literally flowed into my mind) as I worked over the next few months to get the ideas and inspiration down on paper. Details of the full program were unfolded to me. And the inspiration expanded to include not just a program for my own grandkids but also to all other parents serious about their charge for missionary preparation.

And that’s what this package is all about. It is all about training our missionaries and preparing them now so that they can be prepared to serve anywhere in the world as they are called. It is very much a home and family program designed to help parents and families focus specifically upon the training of their own missionaries – to serve now with their friends and neighbors – as also to prepare them to be future full-time missionaries.

I really love the recent quote as given by Sister Julie B. Beck when she was general Relief Society President. She said:

“Think of the power of our future missionary force if mothers considered their homes as a pre-missionary training center (MTC). Then the doctrines of the gospel taught in the MTC would be a review and not a revelation. That is influence; that is power.” (“Mothers who Know”, Beck, Julie B., Ensign, November 2007 available at https://www.lds.org/general- conference/2007/10/mothers-who- know?lang=eng).

Well, there we have it! That is the challenge for all of us – dads included! We all know that we need to help prepare the next generation of missionaries and we all want to do it … and we probably all wonder how we can rise to the massive challenge of that preparation. So, how do we get started? What do we do? Sure, we can do/have home evening – and everything else that was on my list above – and more … but how can we not only do the minimums, but also keep pace (run like crazy) with the vision of our Church leaders?

This program, “MISSIONARY IN TRAINING” might help us all to do that. It might help us get focused to really step up and do as we have been asked. It can be the tool that we all have wanted anyway … the tool for us to really get involved and progressing toward the missionary preparation goal with our children.

“MISSIONARY IN TRAINING”: The Program really is home evening (as we should have been doing anyway) but with a new missionary focus – and specific missionary preparation activities. The program also involves missionary lessons, an attitude of missionary work, an organization, and excitement to get our children (sons AND daughters) thinking of how they too can commit and prepare to be missionaries. It is not just a one-time lesson on missionary work. It is rather, a total commitment kind of thing. It will take major effort and commitment, and that level of commitment must be for the long-haul … but the results can be phenomenal. Really great things can happen for you and your family as parents gives the program a full effort and that long-term commitment to the children.

If you are serious about the missionary commitment for your children and family … If you want to really “Do It” (as President Spencer W. Kimball taught), then this program may be for you … Check it out … see what it might do to assist you in your goals and dreams – your missionary preparation and training responsibilities in the family.

“MISSIONARY IN TRAINING”! (That sounds really great but let’s make that “OUR MISSIONARIES IN TRAINING”) … WOW! You can do it through your very own “Home and Family Missionary Training Center” – with you, parents, and your teenage sons and daughters as the Ammonite trainers … and all of your children – of all ages – participating as Future Missionaries. CATCH THE VISION OF THAT … Your own Home and Family Missionary Training Center for your children – a part of “The GREATEST GENERATION of MISSIONARIES!” MAKE THE COMMITMENT … and GO FOR IT! MISSIONS, HERE WE COME!

Kevin V. Hunt

PROGRAM SUMMARY

MISSIONARY IN TRAINING (MIT) is a HOME and FAMILY MISSIONARY TRAINING CENTER program. It’s a fun and very detailed program designed to help families (with children – both boys and girls – of all ages) to train their sons and daughters as future missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The program consists of weekly Missionary Study Sessions, monthly (or more frequent) missionary preparation activities, weekly “P-Day” missionary preparation activities, as well as special Home and Family Missionary Training Center conferences.

All of these training sessions, missionary preparation activities and conferences are designed to teach and to prepare future missionaries through building testimony of gospel doctrine as well as practical application of needed “missionary life skills”.

The MISSIONARY IN TRAINING PROGRAM is a LONG-TERM PLAN, a HOME and FAMILY-CENTERED PROGRAM FOR MISSIONARY PREPARATION – typically to be staged during your regular family home evening times (and the weekly home evening will now be called a “Missionary Training (or “study”) Session”. The program also involves special missionary preparation activities and conferences held on Saturdays or other days as the family organizes its own HOME AND FAMILY MISSIONARY TRAINING CENTER.

In addition to the home centered MISSIONARY IN TRAINING program, there is also a week-long “MISSIONARY TRAINING CAMP” (The MTC) program entitled “The Camp of Ammon”. This MTC program – to be held at various times and locations throughout the country – incorporates many of the same learning sessions as MISSIONARY IN TRAINING (which can take a year or two) but study sessions, missionary preparation activities and conferences are all compressed into five days of intense training.

At the MTC – The Camp of Ammon, youth dress, live and act as regular missionaries! They will eat, sleep and really live the missionary life! If you really want to get your sons and daughters excited about their future missions, send them to this great MTC program. It might be one of the best investments you’ll ever make! (Note: This is a developed program but has not yet been staged. If you have interest, you could help us make this a reality … Contact Kevin Hunt to express interest!)

Youth have who participated in the MIT program at home and who also attend the MTC “Camp of Ammon” program can help to motivate, inspire and encourage other Camp of Ammon participants. And they will return from the Camp of Ammon supercharged to be “Ammonite trainers” in your own Home and Family Missionary Training Center. Check out both programs on the internet at www.missionaryintraining.com.

The MISSIONARY IN TRAINING PROGRAM will strengthen youth resolve to serve missions, will pull your family together in a marvelous way and will get everyone thinking about being missionaries now and in the future. The MISSIONARY IN TRAINING PROGRAM will be beneficial to your family and others – in so many ways – and it will be great fun for you and all families, everywhere.

This is a home and family centered program designed to help accomplish the mission and objectives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for missionary preparation and the family. It is a “program with a plan” to help parents serious about their parenting responsibilities and opportunities. And while the program is congruent with Church policies and objectives, it is not a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints nor is it endorsed by the Church.

As the Director(s) of your own Home and Family Missionary Training Center, you can commit yourself (yourselves) to active, deliberate and focused missionary training for your children. You can help them to prepare to be effective missionaries. You can prepare them to be ready to serve whenever and wherever they might be needed in the world.

You can determine the level of participation and training for your own family. The Missionary in Training program is a comprehensive package designed to assist you in your parental responsibilities and opportunities. But, the program, and your use of it, is still flexible. You should utilize the program as desired to meet the needs of your own family – while also maintaining your own family traditions, goals and activities. The program is designed as a tool to help you achieve your own family objectives.

The Missionary in Training program is designed to be fun and exciting. This is not something you “have to do” but as you CHOOSE to do it, your family will have some really great times together. You’ll later look back and rejoice together in the missionary preparation for each family member – and ultimately your missionary success – through your posterity – throughout the world.

For more information about the Missionary in Training Program contact: Kevin Hunt

Missionary in Training E-mail: info@missionaryintraining.com

Phone: 480-717-8241 Websites: www.missionaryintraining.com

Kevin Hunt is an author, blogger and speaker. He writes regularly on three different Scouting blogsites and shares his insights about Scouting, Scouting in the LDS Church, and other subjects. New blogs are posted on his Facebook page: Scouting Trails Books and Blogs.

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