Helping Those Who Cannot Help Themselves

Because of where I live, I know many people who are very old, even by anyone's standard of old age. Because of their age and physical and/or mental limitations, they cannot easily work on a computer and because of these limitations, finding names to take to the Temples is simply impossible. These are good people who have served The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in many capacities throughout their lives. But eyesight limitations, lack of short-term memory and other disabilities keep them from learning and using the FamilySearch.org Family Tree.

Many of these people are still able to go to the Temple and participate in doing the ordinances. They also have a desire to do this work for their own families but do not have family members who are actively doing their family history.

My heart goes out to these faithful brethren and sisters who long for the opportunity to provide saving ordinances for their families without the ability to do so. As I am able to help them with finding names from their own families through the FamilySearch.org Consultant Planner, I have "adopted" several of these people and find names for them from their ancestors and relatives to take to the Temples.

Now, here is what I see.

I see many more of these people throughout the Church who are only prevented from taking their own names to the Temples by age and disability. I also see a lot of younger people, even the youth of the Church who are ignoring this opportunity to serve in a meaningful way. Imagine the impact on the lives of both the youth and the older members, if the youth took the time and made the effort to learn what was necessary to help and then spent some of their time sitting patiently with the older members helping them find their own names to take to the Temples. This mentoring program could change both lives for the better.

Temple and Family History Consultants should be looking for these types of opportunities. I am constantly asking those around me for opportunities to help and my biggest frustration is their lack of response. Many times, leaders with good intentions, call the "youth" as Consultants and then fail to provide them with the training they need to actually help people find names to take to the Temples. I mourn the loss of these wonderful opportunities.

Many of the leaders are not even aware of the need for mentors for both the youth and the disabled and they fail to teach and support even those Temple and Family History Consultants that do exist. When we pray for the needy, the sick and the afflicted, how about doing something for them instead of just praying?