Strengthening and Preserving the Family

I love mother she loves .
We love Daddy, yes siree.
He loves us and so you see,
We are a happy family.
I can't tell you how many times I have mentally sung a song to answer a thought or sung my testimony with a simple Primary song. With the family being the basic unit of organized life on this earth, the prophets keep helping us by word and example so that we can fulfill our responsibilities to our families, in whatever shape or form they exist.
JF Smith was a busy man in that he was a prophet with all the demands on his time that that calling can make as well as being a father. In response to that call, he made sure he gave focused time to his family when he was with them. His wife was asked how to describe her husband since he was observed as quite serious. Her reply reads, "The man I know is a kind, loving husband and father whose greatest ambition in life is to make his family happy, entirely forgetful of self in his efforts to do this. He is the man that lulls to sleep the fretful child, who tells bedtime stories to the little ones, who is never too tired or too busy to sit up late at night or to get up early in the morning to help the older children solve perplexing school problems. When illness comes the man I know watches tenderly over the afflicted one and waits upon him. It is their father for whom they cry, feeling his presence a panacea for their ills. It is his hands that bind up the wounds, his arms that give courage to the sufferer, his voice that remonstrates with them gently when they err, until it becomes their happiness to do the thing that will make him happy. …

“The man I know is unselfish, uncomplaining, considerate, thoughtful, sympathetic, doing everything within his power to make life a supreme joy for his loved ones. That is the man I know." Wouldn't we all love to be able to look at ourselves and claim these attributes? I think perhaps I am still working on a few of these items as you might also be doing.

A couple stories are told in the lesson that makes this prophet and man about the house seem personable. I, being a connoisseur  of fruit pies love the story where he would grab and apron and take off into the kitchen. The children loved this scene as they would anxiously await the appearance of multiple pies coming to them in a couple hours. Can you smell the pies baking? What could be a happier moment than sitting with family consuming pie?

Did you read about a son who loved to "shadow box" with his Dad (the prophet) as neither wanted to hurt the other? Maybe all the Dad's aren't exactly like this, but the time spent together in whatever manner can never be replaced by an monetary item! Amelia, his daughter  "also revealed her father’s method for disciplining his children: “If any of us needed to be corrected for some misbehavior he simply put his hands on our shoulders and looking into our eyes with a hurt look in his own, said, ‘I wish my kiddies would be good.’ No spanking or other punishment could ever have been more effective." Maybe this method will or won't work for you and yours, but this shows the man behind the calling.
Sister Buchan showered us with photos of her family as she taught the lesson. When we look at photos of our loved ones, we feel that great love as mentioned above. We are one part in a very long chain of our Father's family. If we are fortunate, He will loan us some of his spirit children for our raising which is one of the highest honors. Our home should and can be the extension of heaven on earth. There is no substitute for righteousness in our homes. They are places to teach truth  and live the commandments. Yes, we have church and other activities, but the calling of parent bears the greater magnitude. All around us are forces trying to destroy the family and replace it with liberal ideas that show contempt for God's authority. The foundation of the family was ordain before the earth and continues from Adam and Eve through today.
It is at home where we learn how to conduct ourselves, where we learn about life, love, service loyalty and sacrifice. Through good examples from committed parents, the next generation gains this knowledge in a safe and secure environment where we all prepare to meet God again. The family is the only organization in the Celestial kingdom. hmm  Time to think again about how important our family members are, especially in the heat of the moment when life gets sticky. No item of any earthly value can or should outrank family.
 "The hope of eternal life, including the reuniting of the members of the family when the resurrection comes, brings to the heart greater love and affection for each member of the family. With this hope, husbands are inclined to love their wives with a stronger and more holy love; and wives in like manner love their husbands. The tender feeling and solicitude on the part of parents for their children is increased, for the children become endeared to them with bands of love and happiness which cannot be broken."
There will more than likely be plenty of times when no matter what position you hold in a family, you will ask yourself, "What did I do wrong? What could I have done better?" Remember that no one is perfect, although we should be striving for that attribute. We cannot control anyone else but ourselves. Even with the pain that comes from one who chooses not to abide by the teachings of Christ that we profess to love and cherish, we have to allow others their right to choose, that gift of agency we were also given. If we all strive to be less selfish, more loving and wear out our knees in prayer, using great faith, IF we are living by example, we will gather all we love to us.
In a way this sounds easy, but please don't give up, judging yourself too hard. Become as a little child who has fallen off that bicycle and asks you to hold the seat so they can try again. Our Father is there, holding that seat for each of us all the time if we will keep pedaling.
Riding along bloggess,
Janice