How to track limited-use recommends

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wheelerob
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How to track limited-use recommends

#1

Post by wheelerob »

Does anyone know how to track limited-use recommends? I know you can't do so yet in MLS - will that be changing soon? Any ideas?
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aebrown
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#2

Post by aebrown »

wheelerob wrote:Does anyone know how to track limited-use recommends? I know you can't do so yet in MLS - will that be changing soon? Any ideas?
If you want to track them, I would think that a simple spreadsheet would work. There's no tracking that the Church does automatically, so you're on your own to come up with a system.
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TinMan
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#3

Post by TinMan »

I give every deacon and beehive one when they graduate from primary. Thereafter, we give them a new one at their birthday interview.

Instant tracking...
jaj78
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#4

Post by jaj78 »

...Except not all youth are in town on their birthdays (summer months), some youth join the church during their teen years, and some youth have periods of their life where attending the temple isn't automatic, making them out of synch with the birthday assumption or list.

Tracking would be nice, but for now, reviewing the carbon copies in Book 3 have been sufficient for our smallish youth group.

Before our youth baptistry trips, we have spoken with every youth in private, even if they hold a limited-use recommend to just touch base and say, "Are you still worthy to use your recommend?"

Second to that, a bishopric-only spreadsheet would work.
TinMan
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#5

Post by TinMan »

jaj78


According to the handbook, every youth is to have an interview with the bishop, or in odd circumstances a counselor, annually on or near his or her birthday. The bishop is the only one who needs to know if a youth is temple worthy or not. If the youth gets a recommend at an odd time in the yearly cycle a new recommend on his or her birthday is an acceptable thing. Spreadsheets, lists, etc that track worthiness are a dangerous thing.

A counselor asking "are you still worthy to use your recommend" is out of line. He can ask if they have a current recommend, but worthiness questions of the youth should be guarded. Would you ask his mother if she was still worthy to use her recommend? I don't think so.

Yes, counselors can issue recommends to the youth. But any question of worthiness, especially for the youth, should be handled by the bishop.

In my opinion. Yours may vary.
russellhltn
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#6

Post by russellhltn »

TinMan wrote:Yes, counselors can issue recommends to the youth.

Seems to me that if counselors can issue recommends, then they can ask the questions that go with issuing one. But if any thing comes up, then it gets passed to the bishop.
TinMan wrote:Spreadsheets, lists, etc that track worthiness are a dangerous thing.
I'd certainly be careful about where they are stored. (On a flash drive locked away.) But otherwise I don't see anything bad about tracking expiration dates. It's the same thing MLS does. I would be very cautious about going beyond holding a current recommend.
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TinMan
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#7

Post by TinMan »

So if you are having a ward temple day for the adults, are you saying the counselors should take each one aside before you leave and ask "are you still worthy to use your recommend?" Why is it different for the youth?

Limited use recommends are usually listed as a group for the youth. Only if the youth go to the temple "frequently" are they to be given an individual recommend. So how does your spread sheet keep track of that? If they were worthy to go with the group in August, are they still worthy in December? They need an whole new interview for the group recommend, so why keep track?

You will usually only have a handful of individual youth recommends. How hard is it for the bishop to keep track of them? And if your spread sheet doesn't list someone on it has having a recommend, what is someone who isn't knowledgeable to read in to that? That they aren't worthy or they just don't go often enough to have their own recommend?

I have 43 young men and young women in my ward. I know which ones are temple worthy and which ones aren't. Every birthday interview, I give those "frequent attenders" a new one. We only live 5 minutes from the temple. Most of my temple worthy youth go at least monthly on their own or with friends, as our temple is so busy we only get two opportunities a year to go as a ward.

I don't know. It just seems like more work than necessary, as well as a document floating around that can be misinterpreted.

Perhaps there is a reason MLS doesn't keep track of expiration dates for the youth?
wheelerob
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#8

Post by wheelerob »

I am the Stake Clerk of a YSA stake. So, what I was actually asking was if anyone else had success with tracking these recommends, but it appears that isn't possible currently. Maybe it will be added to MLS eventually so that I can just pull a custom report. Thanks for all the replies.
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