I would love a family tradition comparable to the one he describes. Not that ours needs to be the same but that I want something that is uniquely ours which is similarly impactful.
Consistent, wholesome family traditions that include prayer, scripture study, family home evening, and church attendance will lay a solid foundation for testimony.
How many of these strong family traditions started when the family was young compared to the number that started in matured families – even perhaps after some children have gone and started their own families. Maybe we aren’t at all too late.
As parents in Zion, we have a sacred duty to awaken within our children passion and commitment to the joy, light, and truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ. While raising our children, we establish traditions within our home and we build patterns of communication and behavior within our family relationships. In doing so, the traditions we establish should ingrain strong, unwavering characteristics of goodness in our children that will infuse them with strength to confront the challenges of life.
I know that my children generally know the scripture stories – some of them know the stories exceptionally well – and yet I have no confidence that many of them have any feeling for the truths of the gospel.
For many years our family has enjoyed the annual tradition of camping high in the Uintah Mountains of northeastern Utah. We travel 20 miles (32 km) over a rocky dirt road to arrive at a beautiful green valley with towering canyon walls and through which runs a river filled with cold, clear water. Each year, hoping to reaffirm the value of gospel doctrine and practices within the hearts of our children and our grandchildren, Susan and I ask each of our six sons and their families to prepare a short message on a topic they feel is an important element in the foundation of a Christ-centered home. We then gather for a family devotional in a secluded place, and each presents their message.
They enjoyed something fun – camping together – but made sure to incorporate the gospel into the fun.
Lessons taught through the traditions we establish in our homes, though small and simple, are increasingly important in today’s world. What are the small and simple things that, when established, will perform a great work in the lives of our children?
Perhaps looking at the lessons we desire to teach may point is in the direction of traditions that can teach those lessons.
Consistent, wholesome family traditions that include prayer, scripture reading, family home evening, and attendance at Church meetings, though seemingly small and simple, create a culture of love, respect, unity, and security. In the spirit that accompanies these efforts, our children become protected from the fiery darts of the adversary so embedded in the worldly culture of our day.
Perhapsi need to just do the right thing and ignore the disobedience and disrespect.
Years ago, while I was serving as a young bishop, an older gentleman asked to meet with me. He described his departure from the Church and the righteous traditions of his parents when he was in his youth. He described in detail the heartache he experienced during his life while vainly seeking lasting joy amidst the momentary happiness the world has to offer. Now, in his later years of life, he experienced the tender, sometimes nagging whispering sensations of the Spirit of God guiding him back to the lessons, practices, feelings, and spiritual safety of his youth. He expressed gratitude for the traditions of his parents, and in modern-day words, he echoed the proclamation of Enos: “Blessed be the name of my God for it.”
I have no doubt that some of my children will wander after what we have failed to accomplish so far. I can only hope that I can change things at home soon enough to leave them with something to come back to.
Every parent faces moments of frustration and varying levels of determination and strength while raising children. However, when parents exercise faith by teaching children candidly, lovingly and doing all they can to help them along the way, they receive greater hope that the seeds being sown will take root within the hearts and minds of their children.
I worry that the seeds are not even making it to the soil, that the ground is too hard for them to ever take root.
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