This
Week in Review
This
has been a busy week. Walking is quickly
becoming Zachary’s preferred method of moving around, it’s exciting to watch
how quickly he’s improving. We got to
spend some time with cousins this week.
We saw Stanley and Henry on Tuesday and spent Wednesday and Thursday
with Clara and baby Bradford. We had a
lot of fun playing.
We
took advantage of the tax-free weekend and stocked up on some of our craft
supplies, Robert helped a family move and cleaned the church this week and
today we are having the missionaries over for dinner.
Our
Cute Kids
One
of the things that I really love that the kids do is how they watch out for
each other. Don’t get me wrong, they
still argue and fight, but they also try their best to be protective. Rebekah Mae loves to tell me that Zachary is
her baby and she wants to hold him and take care of him. Both Benjamin and Rebekah Mae remind me when
one or the other is about to get in trouble for something, “Be nice that’s my
sister” or “Be nice that’s my brother.”
It’s just wonderful to see how much they care.
Thoughts
We’ve
been reading in Alma Chapter 5 this week, where Alma teaches the members of the
Church in Zarahemla and reminds them of the covenants that they once made and
asks, “I say unto you, can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and
clean hands? I say unto you, can you look up, having the image of God engraven
upon your countenances?” (Alma 5:19).
I
guess what I find particularly significant about this chapter is that Alma isn’t
talking to those that are not members of the Lord’s church, but those that
are. How often do we get caught up in
everything that we have to do and forget to include those things that will
bring us closer to our Heavenly Father?
Elder
Dallin H. Oaks gave a talk several years ago entitled, Good, Better, Best that
I think best illustrates this point. He
said, “We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better
or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our
families.”
“The
First Presidency has called on parents ‘to devote their best efforts to the
teaching and rearing of their children in gospel principles. … The home is the basis of a righteous life, and no other
instrumentality can take its place … in … this God-given responsibility.’ The First Presidency has
declared that ‘however worthy and appropriate other demands or activities may
be, they must not be permitted to displace the divinely-appointed duties that
only parents and families can adequately perform.’”
My
hope is that I can do my best to always remember to put the most important
things first because foremost in our mind should be doing those things that
will help us to remain an eternal family.
Although sometimes it’s hard to maintain a calm, peaceful and spiritual
home, I truly believe the Lord gives us credit for trying and will bless our
efforts and our homes.
