Our stake presidency is concerned about Satan's increasingly targeted attack on young children, so they hosted a Standards Night for Primary children this week. All families with Primary children from the stake were encouraged to attend. The Stake Primary Presidency put together a 2 hour sharing time for all the children that came so the parents could focus on the teachings occurring in the chapel. Can you imagine how many children were in the Primary that night? They packed the gym! I was so impressed with how organized everything was for the children. I was so thankful for the time and energy those people put into this night.
In the chapel we were blessed with amazing talks about several things.
One speaker emphasized the need for a strong foundation in moral standards. Our youth receive the "For the Strength of the Youth" booklet that outlines moral choices that will protect and improve them, but he said that parents need to teach these principles as soon as children can speak and understand. If we wait until they are teenagers to teach this, it will be too late, bot the vicious attacks of Satan are the strongest during the teen years and the foundation hasn't been laid. It's too late to build that foundation of strength if you endeavor to begin during those years. He strongly suggested that we build our weekly Family Home Evening lessons around one topic of the book and continue this pattern until we have covered everything in the book. I loved that idea and felt in my heart that our children DO need this discussion now.
Sister Nicholas emphasized that we really need to have the Spirit in our parenting. There is no greater tool on earth for protecting and blessing our children. The Spirit knows when our children are in danger or when they should avoid certain places/people and he will communicate these things to us, but only if we are attuned to it. She said this is one of the most important skills for parents to hone: listening to the Spirit. I had never heard that before, but I instantly saw the wisdom of this counsel. She pointed out that if you are always in a hurry, or stressed about little things, you can't hear the Spirit's whispers and you'll miss them entirely. I hope I can take time each day to ponder and slow down mentally so I can grow stronger in this area. She shared stories of times when the SPirit told ehr to keep her children home from some fun activities that they had wanted to attend, and she found out weeks later that the situations were very bad and the children in those places were abused. She was so thankful for the gift of the Spirit that helped her keep her children safe. I feel like society is so twisted and wicked, and it requires me as a mom to be constantly vigilant to see the possible dangers around us. Children are increasingly targets for felons and I will happily accepts all the help I can to protect these little ones from broken hearts.
President Brown commented in particular about spending time with our families on Sundays. He used to play basketball with his son after church and years later his son told him, "That meant the world to me. I looked forward so much to having that time with you each week." While playing basketball in and of itself may be debatable and inappropriate for Sundays, he said that the family time was very important and that condoned the activity. I agree with this and have decided to plan fun activities for Sunday afternoons. In particular, Sarah has been begging me to get out the sewing machine and teach her how to sew dresses for her dolls. This is what I hope to incorporate into our Sundays.
President Huntsman discussed 'family time'. In particular he said that the family should not be involved in so many activities that the family must divide inorder to attend them all. Whatever we choose to be engaged in (sports, dance, band, etc) we should support as an entire family. He also emphasized family heritage and family unity. I felt prompted to make a family motto to recite every night. I"m working onthe details now, but I liked the format the Huntsmans used: "I will respect and honor the Huntsman Name. 'H' is for honesty in all our doings, "U' is for unity, etc".
I will respect and honor the Kingsley name.
K is for Keep the commandments of God in every place.
I is for Integrity everyday.
N is for Never give up.
G is for Go the extra mile.
S is for Service to God and man.
L is for Love one another.
E is for Ever learning new things.
Y is for You are priceless.
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