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DISTRICT LEADERRomania Bucharest Mission

Congratulations! Thanks for accepting this assignment. This calling is demanding. This packet isdesigned to help you understand your responsibilities as district leader. Principal among those isassisting the mission president in training, encouraging and motivating the missionaries in your

district.

You were called because of your obedience, work ethic, proselyting and leadership skills. We expectyou to continue this pattern and teach the members of your district these same skills. You must leadwith love and humility. As you do this, youll gain the respect and love of your district and you willbe able to inspire them to fulfill their potential and calling as an ordained servant of the Lord.

You have the incredible opportunity and responsibility to be a steward over your district. The Lordtaught us the meaning of stewardship in the Doctrine and Covenants: He that is ordained of God issent forth, the same is appointed to be the greatest, notwithstanding he is the least and the servant of all. (D&C 50:26) He taught which qualities are desirable in a steward: persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; by kindness and pureknowledgewithout hypocrisy, and without guile (D&C 121:41-42).

Although the responsibilities may at first seem overwhelming, remember that he whom the Lord callsHe qualifies. The Lord has called you and you will be endowed with the direction to lead those whomyou serve.

Example. You must be an example for those in your district at all times, in all places and in all things.Have faith that you will find and baptize the elect. The Savior was the perfect leader and the perfectexample unto all. As he stated to the Nephites, What manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I sayunto you, even as I am (3 Nephi 27:27). Your district should always be able to follow your examplein every aspect of missionary work. Exhibit quiet dignity. Follow all grooming guidelines withexactness. Avoid slang and inappropriate language. Always use titles of respect. Polish your shoesdaily.

Obedience . You must be obedient. Remember, as a leader, you cannot expect more out of yourmissionaries than what you are willing to give. 100% obedience is the key to your ability to inspire,teach and correct your district. It is also the key to your success as a missionary and the example of that success will speak far louder to your district than your words.

Work Ethic . When you are excited, enthused and motivated about your mission, your district will be,too. Our leaders have told us that when a new missionary comes into the mission he looks more to hisdistrict leader than to anyone else for the expectations of missionary work. You will set the standardfor your missionaries, and it will have lasting affects long after they leave your district.

Proselyting Methods . You must set the standard for those in your district in all proselyting methods.You must be contacting, finding, re-activating and teaching constantly and effectively in your ownproselytizing area.

Branch work. You have to have a great working relationship with the branch leaders branchpresident, branch mission leader, etc. Make the branch president your best friend, and do all you canto serve him and his branch. Remember that its HIS branch, not yours, and that hes the one whoreceives revelation for it. If you come to him with a list of changes that need to be made, he probablywont receive it too happily. Instead, meet with him and ask what he wants you to do to help thebranch. It is good to involve him in all activities, and to be willing to adjust to his schedule.

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Try to meet with the Branch President weekly, when possible. Talk to him about how the work isgoing, serious investigators, and progression with less actives and recent converts. Let him knowimmediately when you set up a baptismal date. Most of all, build him up. Strengthen his testimony.Serve and love him. Take him with you to discussions. Build a fire in him for missionary work.

The branch mission leader is one of the keys to your work. Be sure to always have weekly missionarycoordination meeting when he can. If he cant, then have the coordination meeting anyway, but besure to try to work with his schedule as well. Include him. He should not just be there to fill a chair.Seek his advice. Ask where you can improve. He should conduct the coordination meeting. Take himto discussions.

District Meetings. Your district meeting should be centered on helping your missionaries learn how todo missionary work better. It should be as good as a mini zone conference. Prepare well for thesemeetings so that the missionaries are spiritually fed and better prepared to do their work. Focus on theneeds of your district. Help everyone feel included. It is a time for instruction, a time for accounting, atime for motivation. You should briefly review and discuss the districts overall performance asshown by investigator progression and goal realization. You should instruct and, wherever possible,have practical, hands-on training. It is a great time for role playing. Dont allow your district meetingto be an afterthought to a district lunch. It should last no longer than 1-1/2 hours. Use and agenda andbe disciplined in your use of the time.

Following Up. You fulfill and magnify your calling as you effectively follow up. Preach My Gospel teaches us: compliment and encourage people who are succeeding in keeping commitments(page 200, Preach My Gospel ). Following up is being interested in your district members work andlives. It shows them you care and expect them to keep commitments and follow counsel from you andfrom all of their leaders. It shows them that you expect them to make and meet their own goals, and toreach their own potential. You will also show them that you are willing to follow these sameguidelines. Make sure you correct any problems immediately and clearly as moved upon by the Spirit,showing an increase in love and faith, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy (D&C 121:43). Followup during nightly phone calls, exchanges and Sunday night number reports.

Baptismal Interviews. This is a very sobering part of your calling. You are a judge in Israel. You are

the one who will receive the inspiration and revelation as to whether the investigators in your districthave come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness[ed] before the church that theyhave truly repented of all their sins (D&C 20:37). The investigators should be prepared for theinterview by the respective companionship. They need to know what to expect so that the interviewwill run smoothly. You should never feel pressured to allow someone to be baptized. Have theboldness and the courage to make right decisions. As you are worthy to follow the guidance of theHoly Ghost, you will know who is ready for baptism. Be familiar with the baptismal interviewquestions, and make sure if any problems come up you call the president during the interview, especially with abortion issues. When there are problems, find out all of the details. For example,with an abortion situation, ask when they participated, marital status at the time and now, thecircumstances that led to the abortion decision, and most of all, if they realize that it is a sin and theyare repentant.

When it is necessary to postpone a baptism, the district leader and other missionaries should handlethe situation sensitively and privately. Explain the sacred nature of the ordinance requires highstandards of worthiness. Wait for the promptings of the Spirit. Listen intently to the investigatorsanswers, testimony and any concerns and respond as best you can. Help the investigator realize thathe or she is loved and that it is an interview, not an interrogation.

Baptism Ceremonies. You should coordinate with members for the baptismal ceremony and any othermember work through the branch mission leader. If there isnt one in your branch, work with thebranch president. Prior to the baptism, ensure that the branch president has met the investigator. 80%of investigators who attend a baptismal ceremony are later baptized themselves. So, invite

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investigators. Make sure that all the physical arrangements have been made for the baptism. Makesure there is baptismal clothing of the correct size. Ensure that the baptismal candidate has a change of underwear and a towel. Review the actual procedure of the baptism with the candidate, including howto hold the hands and pinch the nose so that water doesnt get in his during the baptism. Make surethat, after the baptism, the baptismal clothing is either cared for by the branch member responsible forthat or, in the absence of someone with that calling, that you arrange for that to be done or do ityourself.

Record Keeping. You are a steward and will be held accountable for the work done under yourdirection. It will be helpful to all of us if you have accurate records of the events in your district.Please turn in baptismal and confirmation certificates promptly (a person is not an official memberand cannot receive the full blessings therein until their records are in SLC). There is no justificationto be late with these forms. The baptismal form will be filled out during the interview with thebaptismal candidate. The confirmation record will then be filled in by you and signed by the BranchPresident or, in his absence, his counselor at church the day of the confirmation. Then, report thename of the new member, baptismal date, confirmation date, contact method, gender and date of birthto your zone leader that night on the phone. Send both records completely filled out Monday morningto the office. All confirmations and baptisms that take place will first be faxed to the office at021.232.57.87 and then mail the originals the same day. We cannot stress enough the importance of prompt record keeping.

Vision. You are in this position to be bold and somewhat creative in your stewardship role. However,as a leader, you must be in line with the direction the president wants to take the mission. You weartwo hats. You represent the president in communicating, encouraging, motivating and trainingmissionaries in your district. At the same time, you represent the missionaries in communicating theirsuccesses, challenges and needs to the president through the zone leaders and assistants.

Nightly Phone Calls. You need to verify that the missionaries in your district are safely at home everynight. These calls should be effective. Discuss the investigators that the missionaries are workingwith. Help them see the vision of baptizing. Avoid light-mindedness, focus on your missionaries andhow they can be more effective in their missionary work. Your phone calls should be short, inspiring,caring, loving and used to correlate the following days activities. Be sensitive to the needs of your

district, especially the sisters.

Exchanges. Exchanges will be very helpful when used well. They should be kept to a minimum,absent special circumstances. A missionary must be with his companion as much as possible. Theymust learn, teach, pray and do the work together. Even in cases of companionships with problems,make sure training is taking place, and that your missionaries dont see them as a break. When youdo an exchange, it should be for a 24 hour period and you should have a purpose. The primarypurpose is to teach. You should also follow up, analyze the skill level of your missionaries and resolveany problems. Fill out and promptly fax to the mission home an exchange report for each exchange.

Planning. To work effectively, you must take care of the supporting details. Take care of themthoroughly and quickly. Do it on preparation day. Always plan in advance, be organized and clean,and respect the Lords precious time. Your primary calling is and will always be as a missionary.

Relationship with Zone Leaders. Always support your zone leaders. They are both zone leaders andhave been called to equally take care of the zone. They are your line of authority and are constantlypraying and pondering for the well being of you and your district. Talk to your zone leaders aboutproblems in the district. The 24 hour exchange has been given to us to allow the zone leaders to beable to train you as a district leader, and to help and encourage you. Make sure that you have thedetails down before the exchange with the zone leader begins. This will let you receive as much timeas possible to learn and work. You may be asked from time to time to do some tasks pertaining toyour district. These could come from your zone leaders, assistants, or even president. Pleaseaccomplish these things as quickly as possible.

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Apartments. All apartments in your district are under your care. You should have a section on this inyour area book, including a list of each apartment, the address, the proprietor, and other necessaryinformation. If there is a problem, you must make sure it gets resolved. You should be sure thatcontracts are complete and that things are in order in Bucharest. If an apartment is being closed or youneed to find a new place, contact the mission office before you act.

Filters in Capelas & Vilas. It is the responsibility of the district leader to make sure that the waterfilters in the capelas and vilas are changed on the regular schedule. Ensure that there is a scheduleconspicuously posted near the filter in your capela or vila and that the filters are changed according tothat schedule and the dates of changes kept updated.

You have a unique calling. No other leader has the opportunity you have. You are always right therewith your district. Each day you will teach them through your example. You will help them improvetheir work in bringing souls unto Christ. Always put the needs of the district above your own. Alwaysbe worthy of, seek and follow the guidance of the Holy Ghost in all you do. We love you, Elder, andappreciate your willingness to sacrifice and serve!

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District Meeting Outline

The District Leader calling is one of the most important in the mission because he has the

ability to affect both the branch and the missionaries. The main focus of the District Leaderis being an example and receiving inspiration so as to know how to teach and train hisDistrict so that they can become better missionaries, and better leaders. Great sources of inspiration are the following:

1- Zone Conference2- Exchanges with the missionaries in his District3- Meeting with the Branch Presidency

Training is then done in the district meetings. The district meeting is one of the bestmissionary tools that we have. It should last between 60-90 minutes and be focused on theconcerns of the district. There are many ways to conduct a district meeting, but this is a brief outline that gives some ideas and some structure to make these meetings effective, valuable

and fun.

Opening HymnOpening PrayerAnnouncementsMissionary TipLanguage TipMissionary Spiritual ThoughtDistrict Leader Instruction

-This takes up most of the time of the meeting. The following are some ideas thatcan be applied in this section.

-Teach things discussed at Zone Conference-Teach principles/lessons that help meet the needs of the missionaries

in the District (discuss and address challenges)-Share insights from Personal and Companionship study-Practice teaching the lessons in Preach My Gospel (role plays)-Explain, demonstrate, and practice principles and skills spoken about

in Preach My Gospel -Discuss the progress and needs of investigators-Share experiences and testimonies of missionary work.-Every missionary teaches something-Sisters corner (Sisters teach a portion of the meeting)-Graphs (showing District progress, etc.)-Handouts to the point-Review Goals/Commitments-Half spiritual lesson/half pump up lesson-Other (Be creative and stay on task)

Closing HymnClosing Prayer