http://www.mormonmentality.org/2007/01/28/a-giant-revolving-door.htm#more-151

We’ve been in several wards and differing circumstances, but I *LOVE* our current ward because the leadership vocalize at the pulpit a collective acceptance of one another despite how long people will be around.

I know I’ve often tried to ask those who are former missionaries which ward/branch they felt closest to — those where they had the choicest memories; and then asked them how long they were there. Usually the answer is 6 months, or 8 months tops! That helps us all realize how little time is required to have an impact on our own lives and on the people around us.

On the other hand, I well remember some ward members in New England who just had a hard time getting involved with people who they knew would be leaving. It was truly an emotional withdrawal for them, since they felt that it was very painful for them to see people enter their lives and then leave. And I could understand, even if I knew that they might be missing out on a blessing in their life or the opportunity to be of help and service to someone else.

Hopefully we can all bloom where we are planted. For me, I only have to follow the example of my wife who loves everyone and adopts all strangers :-)

DB

I think children in a ward connect people. They meet each other in classes and activities, and you teach other people’s kids and vice versa. I was visiting our daughter’s former ward in Boise a couple of years ago, and for Father’s Day they had a group of Unknown Dads with paper sacks on their heads stand in front of the Primary and take turns answering questions from the kids. It was amazing to see children recognize the Dads of their friends, based on visits to their friends’ homes.

In my last ward, I went from being a temporary substitute Gospel Doctrine teacher to the regular one so seamlessly that they forgot to set me apart for several months. I kept that calling for 8 years, which I didn’t mind at all since I enjoy it more than anything else I’ve done. I’ve worked my way into that calling in my three previous wards. The key each time was participating actively in class and volunteering when they needed a substitute. I am subbing teaching Gospel Doctrine for the first time in my new ward next Sunday, so it may eventually happen again.

Incidentally, the ward we moved into now is a splinter of the ward we moved into 12 years ago, which we left three years later. Between ward splits and people moving in and out, 80% of the ward is different from the one we left.

If you want people to know you, you need to learn who they are.

My husband is a medical student, so while we are “short term” (4 years) he has been called as Elders Quorum President and I am in the RS Presidency. I often get frustrated when I see other students “checking out” for the two to four years that they are here. We so desperately need them, no matter how long they are in town.

As I stood up to introduce myself in RS last week, the person conducting asked if I was short-term or long-term. I winced and answered, “That depends on your definition.” I knew the ward gets a lot of 4-6 month members and I didn’t want them to disregard me on day one, even though my stay will be twice that length.

All these people are my potential friends; the only thing missing is enough shared experiences that expose the best parts of our souls. And I think that holds true for anyone around me- in or out of the church.

Although it is understandable, I think, that someone prioritizes the permanent over the temporary, the risk is that we become out of touch with the temporal flux of life. I believe, though my behavior doesn’t often show it, that even very brief encounters with certain people can be very meaningful. Even if you never see them again. Of course, a belief in eternal life and (near) universal salvation might be important to mention here. I suspect that some people we will be closest to in the hereafter are people who we were close to here, even for very brief periods of time.

Exactly. I was in six different wards in the six years after I graduated college, one of them twice, and never for more than about nineteen months at a time. I was never called on to speak in sacrament meeting, but I somehow managed to get called as membership clerk in three of those wards. While I sent off my own record all three times I did feel like part of the ward by then, at least at some level.

I’ve been in my current ward for six and a half years, and to some extent I still feel like I’m on the margin. Maybe it’s the fact that I came into the ward with a stake calling, and I still hold that calling.

I have been treated that way, blessed when not treated that way, and probably guilty of being that way myself since I’m not perfect.

“…wherefore let them act upon this land as for years, and this shall turn unto them for their good.” (verse 17)

Even if you’re only going to be somewhere a short period of time, it will be to everyone’s benefit to act as though you are permanent. This has helped me feel more integrated into those wards where I was a short-timer. The reverse could also hold true for those who are permanent ward fixtures. There is a lot to gain from those just passing through and the effort in friendship and helping them integrate is usually well worth it when all is said and done.

As a result, my husband and I have learned more about how to support and serve others in a ward family than we have learned over our entire previous church membership. We are young and still in the transitory stage of life. I am told that our service was useful, but I don’t know if that can compare to our exponential growth and gratitude for the ward for helping us grow up. I agree with this wholeheartedly. Wards should use every member that lives there-no matter how long. Not only would the ward would be stronger for it, but those families that are able to contribute will have their testimonies strengthened as well.