Prayer

As I was holding family prayer the other night I listened to the words being said. "Please bless John (name has been changed), that he will feel our love. Help him to know how much we appreciate him. Help him to know the important roll he plays in our family." I hope that our family members know do know this. However they can not know these things if we are helping them to know and feel these things. In James 2: we are taught that "faith without works is dead". We can pray all we want for others to feel our feelings toward them, but they wont feel it unless we follow up with action.
There are many things that we can do and say daily to help our family members feel our love.
Things to do for a spouse:
-Tell him/her thank you for their efforts. Sometimes we feel taken for granted with the mundane things we do for our families or to provide for them.. A simple 'thank you' can go a long way.
-Surprise them- It can be a favorite treat, drink or breakfast in bed .Everyone loves a surprise.
-Compliment them-Women loved to be told they look beautiful or that the new shirt she bought, and didn't need, looks great on her. Men on the other hand like to be told that are manly. When you compliment them on their good looks, strong muscles or being a great provider, it helps your souse feel like a man, like a protector.
Things to do for our children:
-Give praise for their accomplishments, and also their efforts.
-Surprise them too- a small treat or a note on the pillow to tell them your proud of them.
-Give them one on one time- All kids need their own time with Mom and Dad.
Compliment them- on their talents or schooling, or things they have made.
As we focus on helping our family members feel loved, our relationships inside our home will grow. Our love will grow. Our trust will grow. In Mosiah 2:17 we are taught "that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God. " Serving your family members will bring you not only closer to your family, but closer to God as well. I hope as I work on this I will grow closer to not only my spouse but my children as well.

Protect the Family

"WE WARN that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.

WE CALL UPON responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society."

Dallin H Oaks: Protect the Children Oct 2012  We remember our Savior’s teaching as He placed a little child before His   followers and declared:

“And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

“But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me,it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck,and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew 18:5–6).

When we consider the dangers from which children should be protected, we should also include psychological abuse. Parents or other caregivers or teachers or peers who demean, bully, or humiliate children or youth can inflict harm more permanent than physical injury. Making a child or youth feel worthless, unloved, or  unwanted can inflict serious and long-lasting injury on his or her emotional well-being and development.

Happiness in Family Life

"HUSBAND AND WIFE have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.

THE FAMILY is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed."

This last week we have been learning about loving and caring for our children,teaching our children and the responsibilities of mothers and fathers. This week for the fourth of July we decided to take the kids camping and spend time with them. We couldnt go to far because the older two kids needed to go to their pipe moving jobs. But distance didn't keep us from having fun.

We caught butterflies.

We went on a nature walk and collected items we liked and made belts and headbands with them.

We always have to find weapons and pretend to fight.

no hike is complete without getting into the river in your undies....

and your older brother bored out of his mind.

We had such a great time playing games around the campfire, duck duck goose was the best. Making meals together, walking and talking, sitting and talking with not much else to do are just some of the things that made these last two days so fun. There is something about the mountains that brings us back to the basics, that reminds us how important family time is. We have time to sit and watch the kids explore and teach them things of nature. Im so thankful for the small amounts of time that we are together as a family. I know the day will soon come when it will be a hard thing to get everyone together. So as for now I will cherish this time.

Peace

I just returned from Girls Camp as the camp director. I had the opportunity to go with all four of my girls this year. It was Brooklins last year and Gemmas first year, and I think everyone had a great time. I have never been good at handling stress and once again, as I have been preparing for camp, I have stressed my body out. I have had a lot going on the last couple weeks. Our neighbor has been sick and has been in and out of the hospital. He is a bachelor and I am the one who watches out for him, takes him to Dr appointments and such. I love helping him out, he is a really nice guy. However on top of that and doing schoolwork and taking care of kids and getting camp planned I have developed 'Stress induced esophagitis'. It started the day before camp and continued to get worse through camp. I wasn't able to hardly swallow, and when I did it would hurt so bad in my chest. As camp ended I has been lightening up and I ate my first food today. I have wondered why I have not been able to get in control of my stress. Everyone has stress in their life, why is it that others handle their stress and I cant. My goal over the next year is to work on overcoming this weakness. I hope to learn to take time for me, doing something that will bring peace into my life.  John 14:27 comes to mind. 'Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.' 

Chastity and Sanctity of Life.

"THE FIRST COMMANDMENT that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

WE DECLARE the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan."

Elder Bednar: Things as They Really Are. May 2009 

Because a physical body is so central to the Father’s plan of happiness and our  spiritual development, we should not be surprised that Lucifer seeks to frustrate  our progression by tempting us to use our bodies improperly. One of the ultimate ironies of eternity is that the adversary, who is miserable precisely because he  has no physical body, invites and entices us to share in his misery through the  improper use of our bodies. The very tool he does not have and cannot use is  thus the primary target of his attempts to lure us to physical and spiritual 
destruction.

The adversary attempts to influence us both to misuse our physical bodies and to minimize the importance of our bodies. These two methods of attack are  important for us to recognize and to repel.

When any of Heavenly Father’s children misuse their physical tabernacles by  violating the law of chastity, by using drugs and addictive substances, by  disfiguring or defacing themselves, or by worshiping the false idol of body image, whether their own or that of others, Satan is delighted.