Family Home Evening Moments

One of my favorite things lately has been our Family Home Evenings. I have still be faithfully planning each week's lesson based off of the Come, Follow Me program for the LDS church. I am actually a little surprised that despite my obvious neglect of the family blog, that I have stayed up with that one!

A couple of weeks ago we were learning about Priesthood ordinances and blessings. Towards the end of our lessons I try to give the little ones something to do to distract them so that us older folks can have a more in depth conversation about the topics. On this particular evening I gave the littles blank pieces of paper and told them to draw pictures of priesthood ordinances and then see if we could figure out what they are. Sort of like pictionary...

When it came time for the big "reveal" I was actually surprised at the way they followed directions and how their pictures were actually resembling ordinances! See if you can figure them out:

Jonathan drew this one:

If you guessed sacrament you would be correct!

This one is Reagan's (and a little bit harder to interpret...): 

I won't think badly of you if you can't determine this one, but it is baptism. The blue is the water and then the rest of the scribbles are people getting baptized.

Every so often I find myself questioning my efforts and wondering one of two things: will any of this make a difference? or is anyone getting anything out of these weekly endeavors? I know that the answers to both of these questions are yes, but it is easy to get caught up in the daily happenings of life and get frustrated with their little antics. I am grateful for a Heavenly Father who loves me enough to put tender mercies in my life that remind me and teach me so much.

Today in sacrament meeting when they were blessing the sacrament, the young man who blessed the bread mixed up some of the words to the prayer and had to start over. Jonathan was really confused about why he was saying it again. I was able to then (whispering of course!) have a little conversation with him. I reminded him that sacrament was an ordinance like we talked about in FHE last Monday night. Then I pulled out my scriptures and showed him where the prayers are at. He was so cute! Then as we sat there I showed him some of the pictures that are in the back of my bible. There is a picture of the river Jordan. I asked him what happened there. Quick as can be he answered "wasn't Jesus baptized there?" When I asked him who baptized him he said (a little too loudly...) "John the baptist!"

It was in that moment that I realized that despite all the times he doesn't seem to be listening or understanding, some of it is sticking. I look at some of the crazy things going on in the world and the different choices so many young people are making and I worry for my own children. I want them to choose the right because they understand why they should and because they have a desire to do that for themselves. I don't want it to be because I make them or they feel guilted into it. There are days I think keeping them safe at home and never letting them go anywhere might be the only way to safely get them to adulthood, but I know that is irrational. I guess that I will just have to stick with the current plan of teaching them everyday and hoping that some of it sticks.