June 13-15

We spent three days in Salt Lake City, getting training for the self-reliance initiative.  The meetings were held at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.  We had a van from SLC come to pick us up Monday by 7:45.  Our driver was the new manager of this program.  He lived in Roy so he was up by 5:30, drove to SLC to pick up the van and then came to Provo.  What a lot of driving.  But he wanted to get a feel for what it involves getting missionaries from Provo to SLC.  We had pretty bad traffic and were a little late for the meeting.  The first day we had someone explain the programs of self-reliance.  He had helped write the manuals.  It was so eye opening to hear about the change that is taking place in the self-reliance initiative, which is taking Pres. Hinckley's vision and moving forward and refining it.  The presenter talked about the spiritual side and the temporal side of self-reliance and how the gospel doctrines can help with the temporal.  He is teaching the lessons from My Foundation to his family and talks about how much is has helped them.  So each lesson starts with a spiritual doctrine and then proceeds to a temporal element.

Tuesday our meetings were about the Perpetual Education Fund doctrine behind the program and the shift in the teaching and requirements for it.  There is no PEF on the Solomon Islands but was good to get a background for the program.  In the past, a lot of missionaries were spending time trying to track down people who had taken out a loan and hadn't repaid it yet.  The point was made that the church isn't in the loan collection business so they are emphasizing how to help those people with loans.

Wednesday we were taught the different organizational structures of the program and how everything seems to flow and work.  We were given ideas as to how to approach a stake president or bishop and not belittle them but ask "How can we help?"  As missionaries, we have more spiritual power than realize.  We need to look at the doctrine and teach that before we try the practical.  Meetings should have a doctrinal discussion instead of a spiritual thought to help internalize the doctrine.

Thursday we are leaving the MTC and finally starting our journey to our mission.  We fly from SLC to San Francisco, then to Auckland, New Zealand, and then to Vanuatu.  We will stay there a few days because they are having a senior missionary conference while we are there.  And then we fly to the Solomon Islands.  We should be there by Tuesday, June 22.  Lynn and I just spent time packing and weighing our luggage.  On the New Zealand Air, our carry-ons can only be 15 lbs.  so we had to rearrange some stuff.  I'm sure I have packed stuff that won't be necessary and will find there will be stuff that I wish I had.  Oh well, too late now.

Door knob hanger at MTC