In Tamil Nadu state of India, friends who had completed Book 2 were systematically deployed to carry out home visits and excellent results were achieved:

During the recent cycle of growth in the Sivakasi and Thiruvannamalai clusters, it was found that there still remained a good number of new believers who had to be enrolled for the institute courses and we felt the need to systematize the home visit campaigns. The following measures were therefore undertaken:

(1) Compiling village-wise lists of the new believers who were yet to be enrolled for the institute courses;

(2) Compiling a list of the graduates of Ruhi Institute Book 2 in the areas where the new believers were enrolled; and

(3) Organizing a program to study the seven deepening themes once again with these graduates, followed by detailed planning on who would visit which new believers, the dates for the visit, and the sharing of each deepening theme.

In Ramalingapuram (Sivakasi), one believer who was conducting a study circle on Book 2 in a nearby village, took the participants along with him to visit four new believers and they shared with them the deepening theme on the Covenant and part of the second theme on the Life of Bahá’u’lláh. This resulted in all the four believers joining the institute course on Book 1. Similarly two other friends took three graduates of Book 2 to visit eight believers and shared with them the first deepening theme. All eight believers have expressed eagerness to study Book 1 and these friends will soon establish a study circle for them. In another part of Sivakasi, Alamarathupatti, three friends have shared the first deepening theme on the Covenant with 12 new believers, who became very happy and interested. While seven of them have been enrolled for the study of Book 1, five others have started attending devotional meetings.

A similar program for home visits was organized in the Thiruvannamalai cluster during the recent consolidation phase of its intensive program of growth. Following a refresher course on the first three deepening themes of Book 2, eight graduates of Book 2 devised a plan to visit the 60 new believers in Pandithapattu village, each of them planning to visit four to nine new believers with whom they would share the first three deepening themes during three visits. So far they have met 40 new believers and have shared with them the deepening themes. Twenty-five of these new believers are now ready to study Book 1 and their names have been given to the institute coordinator. Similarly, in Nallavanpalayam village, five graduates of Book 2 met 25 believers and have so far shared with them three deepening themes. Fifteen of these new believers are now ready to study Book 1.

REFLECTIONS ON GROWTH

Number 14, October 2006

Courtesy: http://ruhibooks.blogspot.com/