Homework: 

1. Read..."Teach Them To Understand" Elder David A Bednar  Rick College Devotional 1998
2. Read...."A Plea To My Sisters" President Russell M. Nelson October 2015
3. Read one of these 2 talks....."Teaching In The Home a Joyful & Sacred Responsibility" Devin G. Durrant May 2018  OR  "Small & Simple Things" Dallin H. Oaks April 2018

Homework:

1. Read "Make The Exercise of Your Faith Your Priority" by Richard G. Scott---Read all the footnotes.  Take a piece of paper and fold it in half.  Write "To Do" on one side and "Blessings on the other.  Pick one to do with exactness for 1 week from when you start. 
2. Ponder on your Sabbath Day Observance.  What could you do to improve it. 
3. Ponder your personal prayers.  Think about how you are praying.  Is it with real intent?  Is it a meaningful experience?  Is is a real conversation?  How does He feel about talking to you in that moment?

​We often let our children act and then we step in to train, but our teaching is teaching them what ‘not’ to do and assume they are hearing what you want them to do. 
 
When we say ‘don’t slam the door’ we think they are hearing ‘close the door quietly’. 
 
All of us are focused on the negatives not the positives.
 
You cannot build a positive if it is built on a negative!!
 
If you want to produce a positive family we have to teach and train in a positive way. 
 
Think about these 5 questions….

1. What do I want my family to look like?
2. What things do I need to do to make that a reality?
3. What things do I need to stop doing?
4. How can I help my family become united in what we want to become?
5. How can I help each member of the family feel important and needed?

 
Class member:  Last night for FHE I asked my kids ‘if we were the best possible family what would we be.’  They kept saying all the things we needed to stop doing.  I asked them what positive things we could do to help our family.  We are going to pick something to work on each day.  This week I think we should pick 1 act of service for each person in the family each day this week.  It was hard to get them to not look at the negative and focus on the positive.
 
Class member:  I have a friend who works in the prison with the hardened criminals.  They do what they do because they don’t know what to do.  They want a specific result, but they don’t know how to get that result.  The criminals don’t like the response they get, but they don’t know what to do to get a different result.  We need to fill them with what ‘to do’. 
 
It’s interesting to watch how many times you are saying the negative instead of teaching them what we do want them to do.
 
Class member:  I have a 7 yr old girl and 3 yr old son.  They were playing well together and I felt like I needed to tell them they were doing the right thing. 
 
We need to teach our children what they are doing right and how they need to be.  Our children need to have the big vision to see what they are actually going for. 
 
Mormonad “Without a Goal”
 
We have to develop a system in our home so they can see if they are improving and so we can see if they are improving.
 
Heavenly Father presented a plan.  We had a vote on it.  If we didn’t know what it was we couldn’t have made an opinion on it.  Heavenly Father put that plan in order.  Heavenly Father spiritually made the plan. 
 
When you build a house there is a separate sheet for each thing…plot, foundation, electrical, framing, etc.  The inspector checks to see that everything is right because the plans are on sight all the time.  They can look at the work and make sure it is up to grade.  If it isn’t right they red tag it and they have to fix it and have it reinspected before they can go forward with any other building. 
 
Heavenly Father did that too.  He created everything spiritually before he created them temporally.  Heavenly Father is our prototype.  We need to parent in a way that has never been seen before except in how our Heavenly Father has parented.
 
President Boyd K. Packer said…
“The ultimate purpose of the adversary, who has great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time is to disrupt, disturb, and to destroy the home and family.  The family is safe within the Church.  We are not in doubt as to the course we must follow.  It was given in the beginning, and guidance from on high is renewed as need may be.  The distance between the church and the world set on a course which we cannot follow will steadily increase. Some will fall away into apostasy, break their covenants, and replace the plan of redemption with their own rules.”
Ensign April 1994 “The Father and the Family”
 
Stop listening to the voice of the world.  Satan has his voice everywhere.  Just because someone in the church tells you it’s right you still need to receive the confirmation of the Holy Ghost to see if it’s right for your own family.
 
You have to stop being reactive parents.  You have to create the plan you want in your home.  This plan is based on positives not negative rules.
 
Spencer W. Kimball “Doctrinal Insights to the Book of Mormon”
“We must strive at times to focus on the basic purposes of the work so the mere busyness does not create the illusion that we are effective when we are not.”
 
Joseph B Wirthlin “Follow Me”  April 2002
Sometimes we feel that the busier we are, the more important we are—as though our busyness defines our worth. Brothers and sisters, we can spend a lifetime whirling about at a feverish pace, checking off list after list of things that in the end really don’t matter.
 
You bond with who you spend your time with.  If your kids are always gone from home then that is who they are bonding with.  It is the Doctrine of the Family.
 
D&C 88:119
Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;
 
What are the verbs?  Organize, prepare, establish.  Scriptures are given in a list.  They are given in lists as to order of importance.  The first verb is “Organize”.  Usually we tend to just go establish.  I’m just going to tell you what we are going to do.  If you start backwards it will not work.  You have to do it frontwards to make it work. 
 
How do you organize something?
My daughter in law has everything color coordinated.  She organizes things.  Everything is folded nicely and neatly.  Sometimes my organization and order are more general.  The pot goes in the kitchen. 
 
You can’t organize your family around your family plan if you don’t have a family plan.  The goal “Get back to the Celestial Kingdom” so we will just obey all the commandments.  We need to have something that we can build on that is very specific.  It needs to be as specific as the house the plans.  It has an action to it and we can see progress.  You don’t get to be a dictator.  The family needs to have input in what the house/family look like.  We each put in our ideas and we create something for everyone.  It’s not an event to come up with it.  It’s a process. 
 
Class member:  When you build you have to build to the uniform code.  The Lord tells us how to have the structure be strong.  We have to keep going back to the code to see that we are building it right.
 
Take this question to your FHE.  You need to ponder it before you take it to family counsel.  So does your husband. 
 
Why do you need a family mission statement?  It becomes the visual.  The mission statement includes 2 parts.  1st part is what do you want your family to look like?  What do you want your family to be?
 
When my children were growing up I would ask them what it meant to be a Tanner?  They would say we work hard, really hard, and it means that we are spiritual.  It means we go on missions.  We get our Eagle Scouts.  It means we have a lot of fun on backpack trips. They had a vision of what it meant to be a Tanner. 
 
Your children should be able to say…”This is what our family stands for!”  It gives them a sense of belonging and purpose. 
 
2nd part is “What do we have to do to make that happen”? 
 
You have a list of nouns and a list of verbs.  Then to make it a statement you mesh those two. 
 
Example:  With permission, President Cobb of the Kuna Idaho Stake Presidency shared his family statement and motto…
Family Statement:  “Our home will be founded upon the principles of faith, prayer, order, respect, love and gratitude.  As a family we will go to church together, have family home evening together, eat together, read scriptures together, work together, pray together, and play together. As we do these things, we will have a Christ-centered home where the Spirit is present.” 
 
Family motto is: “Be there!”
 
It is a list of “to be’s” followed by the list of “to do’s”.
 
He shared that when his daughter went to college and called home feeling lonely, he counseled her to repeat their family mission statement each evening and she would feel more connected to them.  She did and it worked.
 
As a family, come up with a mission statement.  Copy it and post it in your home.  Recite it together.  You relate those things back to your family mission statements during FHE. 
 
It’s fun to have a family motto.  Something that is short. 
 
Examples….
Decisions determine destiny!
“And we lived after the manner of happiness”
We can do hard things.
Be there!
Do it!
 
Have a family cheer that you do after family prayer.  It can be simple or it can be longer. 
 
Examples…
Class member:  Whoever says the pray say together we ‘pray’ together we ‘play’ together and because of that we will ‘stay’ together.
 
If you have younger kids as they get older you can ask them if there is something missing or something you would like to add to it. 
 
Class member:  We have friends stay with us from out of town.   Right after family prayer the family put their hands in and said…“We will do our part with a happy heart.”
 
These are ways to identify and see what it means to be in your family!  That is what will bond them to your family. Our kids need to bond in the home and be strong together. 
 
Class member:  I read an article and it said if you don’t want your children to stray then teach them their family history.  They don’t need to find it elsewhere. 
 
Class member:  What would you recommend for a blended family? 
 
Leave out the name or hyphenate the name.  Say “in our home” that means anyone that is in our home.  It’s hard to help blended family come together.  You can help them say “While I’m here within these walls” this is what our vision needs to be.  They get to help create what that safe place will be.
 
Class member:  Does it matter the ‘verbs’? 
 
You can say “we are” that’s stronger, but you can say “we want to be” lets them ‘become’. 
 
Class member: To sign our we have a picture of our hands ‘watermarked’ behind our family mission statement.  I feel like I want it to expand outside the walls of our home when they leave for college.  My husband wrote the family mission statement.  We have had it every since them.  It’s evolved, but when we ask our kids if they want to change it they don’t want to change anything.  We have made a family symbol now. 
 
Tracy (my daughter) he family uses the scripture “If all men were like unto Moroni the gates of hell…” (Alma 48:187 their motto is “Let’s shake some hell!”
 
We need to create a sense of order than comes from a set routine.  You have to look at this as ‘how can I make it work’ instead of ‘it can’t work because…’.  Some of you came in just frazzled and everyone is always needy.  You take control.  You are going to create order.  I don’t mean be bossy and powerful.  The Lord’s kingdom has order.  You can’t get baptized when you are 7 ½.  It’s very dependable and concise way. 
 
As you establish order you will wipe out arguments along the way. 
 
D&C 88:124  
“Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated.”
 
If you are weary it means you go to bed earlier.  If you arise early your bodies and minds will be invigorated.  General Authorities get up at 4am because that’s when their minds are invigorated.
 
What is your inventory on texting, Pinterest, Facebook, watching TV, videos, computer, novels?  Idle time are things we choose to do sometimes that are unproductive.  Everyone needs down time, but down time shouldn’t be wasted time.  You can have down time and still do something uplifting.  Spend 10 minutes in the scriptures before your kids get up.  Try it for a week and see if it’s a different experience.  It’s the principle of you taking control instead of just reacting. 
 
Anytime there is change your family will complain.  They like what’s familiar and they like what is easy.  Incorporate their help if they are older to establish the routine.  There is no right way. 
 
Class member:  I have a testimony of getting up early.  It changed my day in a big way.  My 9 year old got up earlier.  He does his homework and chores before school.  Even after school was so much easier. 
Little people need to ‘see’ it.  Make a list or a chart. 
 
Example:  They need a time to get up.  Greet them dressed. 
 
We learn to love who we serve.  The bond between the children will become greater.
 
Class member:  I have a son that leaves at 6:30am.  I have another son that leaves at 7:30pm and he thinks he should be able to sleep another hour.  How do you get this to happen without creating more problems?
 
Take the 13 year old out for ice cream.  Say, I know you have some problems with this.  I can understand that.  It’s got to be a challenge.  I feel badly about that.  What do you think we can do to make it different?  It’s important to have family prayer in the morning. You being open to listen to him will change his heart faster.  You can’t dictate, but you can solicit their help with solving the problem.  Having scriptures is not the option.  You need to have family prayer in the morning.  Lay the doctrine on the table and then ask ‘How do you think the best way is to make it happen?’
 
Class member:  What if you don’t have help from a spouse?
 
I didn’t.  10 years my husband was inactive.  The key is you never ever criticize or condemn them to the children or to them.  It has to be your gift to your children and your gift to your spouse.  If you can do that and they don’t feel like you are nagging on them chances are they will turn around.  It’s hard!  It’s possible with the Lord. 
 
You need to make part of your daily routine to SMILE!   Smile at your children when they come home.  Learn to smile.  Tell your face that you are happy and thankful for your family.  Make greeting them a habit.  When they come home from school you go to the door.  You greet them and touch them.  ALWAYS!!!  You meet at the cross roads.  This is your children and your spouse.  They need to know that you missed them and you want them there.  There needs to be a physical touch and a smile. 
 
Rites of Passage:
You start scouts, get baptized, start dating at a certain age.  We have nothing in our society that says they are growing up except for a driver’s license.  You only need a few of them and they need to be established in concrete!  Be careful what your rites of passage are.  They need to be sure!!  The reason is you will make it for the first one and you want to give them that privilege a little bit early and it invalidates the first one.  If you make them don’t break them.
 
Ideas:  You establish your own because you have to enforce them.
 
Girls wearing makeup---If you establish the age of 13 and you have someone who is 12 and everyone at school is doing it.  You say, “You can as soon as you are 13.  We will go get some make up and learn how to put it on.” 
 
If you allow make up on your girls please teach them how to put it on. 
 
What age you get your ears pierced?
When you were allowed to not take a nap…. Once they went to school they got to not take naps. 
At a certain age you can cook.
 
What happens by having a few.  Then when the Lord says no dating until 16 they don’t push against it are less because they already understand rites of passage.
 
Once in a Lifetime Events:
You need to decide what do you want to do for high school graduation.  What do you want to do before they open mission calls?  Do you want to do something special the night before they leave for their mission?  Do you do something special the night before they get married?  Is there a special father’s blessing they need that night.  What are you going to do when first babies are born in their families?  They won’t forget.  Make sure you do them. 
 
Homework:

1. Family mission statement, motto, and cheer.  Think about it.  Start to move on it. 
2. Looking at weekly organization…examine how family prayer, family scriptures, and FHE are going and what you can do to improve them.
3. Read one of two conference talks.  Elder Larry Lawrence “Courageous Parenting”  OR  Elder Joe Christensen “Rearing Children in a Polluted Environment”  Write the counsel given to parents in these talks.
4. This coming Saturday is the Women’s session of General Conference.  Between now and that session formalize a question that you would like to take about marriage, children, family or your own personal spirituality.  If you do so prayerfully it will be answered.  The Spirit will give you the answer if you go prepared.

 
I give homework because there is a difference between knowing and becoming.  I want you to become different.  That’s why you came to class.  Every week I will give you homework.  You can do it or not do it.  If you want to enjoy the Spirit of the Lord helping you change you have to do something to be willing to have the Lord walk with you.  He will empower you and will change your heart.  You will be a different parent in 10 weeks than you are today.  It will show the Lord you want to become.  He will empower you to change.
 

​What did you get from last week?  Did you pick one to be more exact with?  Did you look at Sunday?  Anyone want to share?
 
Class member:  Kids…how do you feel about doing FHE every Monday with or without Dad?  They wanted to wait for Dad.  They decided to do it anyway.  Then we went to Utah and got home at 9pm last night.  They are going to help with FHE lesson.  It’s going to be a FHE because I have no desire to do FHE.  It will happen. 
 
Class member:  We have been trying to do better.  It can be really difficult.  We have been working on just one verse with reading scriptures.  The Sabbath is probably the hardest thing with my family.  It’s really hard to have a peaceful Sabbath. 
 
Peace we translate to be “quiet”.  You can have organized chaos on Sunday. You can play games together, make cookies together.  Focus on what you “CAN” do.  Have a box with only Sunday activities….play dough, markers. 
 
Class member:  I have an almost 7 year old and almost 2 year old.  My daughter is wanting to read more.  The advice was to have the 2 year old repeat after us.  He has been much more involved. 
 
Class member:  Our Sabbath Day has been a lot better.  Now we have a lot of family members that are widows.  Everyone of them is assigned a family to come to dinner.  We had everyone come to dinner for Valentine’s Day.  It’s helped my kids get out of themselves.  They are hearing family stories. 
 
A little over a year ago Elder Packer & Elder Perry talked.  There were 9 talks given on the family.  9 of the 15 spoke on family or marriage.  About 9 months later the Supreme Court agreed to same sex marriages.  Those times are coming.  Our faith wasn’t shaken because we already knew the doctrine.  The Lord’s principles/doctrine will stay the same.  
 
In 2015 the First Presidency had a leadership conference and since then there have been talks on Sabbath Day observance.  Why do you think that is critical right now?  Why is it critical that we not only teach it, but implement it as a solid practice right now?
 
Class member:  It’s going to change the world by starting with the family.  We will bring more light into this world as we do this.
 
Class member:  I think the kids need to know that there is no more ‘gray scale’.  Things are black and white now.  You have to have your stand.  We need to raise our kids with ‘this is how a family is.’  We need to train them and teach them and show them the way.  It’s also to weed those members out of the church that haven’t been as strong in the church. 
 
Class member:  I think Sabbath Day gives us time to communicate.  I think they are inundated with all these other things.  I think we need a longer span of time to communicate, a longer time to influence them.  They need to know who they turn to so they can feel the Spirit.  Every now and then I need a longer date to just get over the every day things to get to the dreams and other things. 
 
There was a time after the 200 hundred years or after King Benjamin’s talk.  It was the youth that fell away because they didn’t believe what was taught.  You may have a really strong testimony, but do your youth?  If we don’t ground them and found them and make the gospel not just principles we believe, but principles that we live that they will be influenced by the philosophies of men. 
 
I have watched Christians become anit-Christs.  They go to church, but the teachings of Jesus are great philosophies, but to believe in the divinity of the Savior they don’t necessarily believe that. Part of teaching our children their divinity is to teach them to keep the Sabbath Day holy.  We need to teach them the Sacrament is more than just bread and water.  It needs to be in our souls so it will govern us.  The process of learning to feel the Sabbath Day and want the Sabbath Day and to hunger and go to the Sacrament Table has to be in us. 
 
I think the prophets are saying if you want to be anchored during these times the Sabbath Day/Sacrament is where you need to be anchored.  I think we need to study and prayerfully read and focus and make it a matter of prayer and focus to increase that deep feeling of the Sabbath day.  To me this isn’t a casual topic out there.  I think it is a serious warning.  This is a life saver to our children.
 
Class member:  About a week ago I shared a post on Facebook that said, “Laman & Lemuel were more than just a bad attitude.”  It’s a lot deeper than that.  That journey was probably terrible.  What made Nephi different was that he knew who he was and that Christ was his Savior and he was there guiding him.  Laman & Lemuel didn’t believe that in their core.  If we didn’t have that core we would all have a terrible time.  I feel like the Sabbath Day gives us that time to get to know Christ and develop that relationship with him.  I feel like because the youth are so strong Satan is working that much harder on them to pull them away.  That’s why we need to work harder as well. 
 
Our youth aren’t chosen because they are ‘cool’.  They were chosen to do the work.  You are chosen to prepare the way.  You are chosen because you have a work to do.  

​I have a nephew that wrote an online book in 2015.  I’ve been reading it over the last couple of days.  It’s amazing!  It’s about the last days.  It’s about the time table of the last days.  As you watch the signs of the times I know it’s close.  It has made me think of panic.  I think when we have a really good lesson on food storage and preparedness.  The key is to not be fearful, but to have faith. 
 
If you look at inside the church signs of the times, the upheaval of women holding the priesthood and the children in gay marriages and the conflict that arises within the church, that is a sign of the times. 
 
Part of the parable of the 10 Virgins is that we are cleaning from the inside of the church out.  Look at all the times just before the Savior came to America all the destruction, before he was crucified and the destruction, the pioneers and all the destruction.  I don’t know ‘what’ to do, but the key is to know ‘what is coming’ and the vision. 
 
If we follow the prophet we will know what to do.  He is telling us exactly what to do is that we align ourselves carefully, completely, with super glue to the words of the prophet.   It’s not just enough to listen to Conference.  What did he say last time that you are doing?  How have you changed?  Do you see that is not good enough.  If we want to be prepared for what is coming we need to already be glued to that iron rod.  The mist of darkness is going to be like the mist that was there like the darkness during the destruction of the Nephites. 
 
Hauns Mill…He went to Far West to visit with Joseph Smith .  Joseph Smith counseled that he needed to bring in all the people into Far West.  He didn’t tell the people the counsel of the prophet so they didn’t leave.
 
The prophet will always warn us.  When something is repeated it is now at the top of the list.  Usually when we hear the same thing over and over and over we tend to tune out.  We need to tune in and evaluate our compliance with that commandment.  Seldom will we hear “Thus saith the Lord…”  We think it was a good talk.  We don’t think Heavenly Father is telling me what I need to do. 
 
Richard G Scott “Make the Exercise of Faith Your First Priority”
“When these tools become fundamental habits, they provide the easiest way to find peace in the challenges of mortality.”
 
Family Prayer, Family Scriptures, FHE, Temple Attendance + Sabbath Day
You will see the country and the church in turmoil.  You will see members falling away because of the doctrines of men. 
 
We know these are the guidelines, but what I really want to teach is the blessings.  If you want the blessing you obey and he will give you the blessing.
 
Naaman….
He had leprousy.  The prophet told him to go wash in the dirty River Jordan 7x.  The servant said if you had been told to do something big you would have done it, so why not do the small things. 
 
He had to obey the law with exactness.  Naaman had what he thought was a ‘valid excuse’ not to do it.  It was pride.  How often when you don’t do one of these things is it because of some excuse you have made?  The focus becomes the excuse rather than making obedience a quest.  Instead you need to say how can I make this happen. 
 
President Ezra Taft Benson put it most poignantly when he said, “When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes our quest, in that moment God will endow us with power.”
 
Family Prayer…
Principle:  Morning & Night
Promises:  Ease family tensions, check the dread disease that erodes our society (pornography, immorality, apathy), children will remember the poor and the needy, hearts will be open in compassion, children will gain respect for parents, as we pray for leaders in our country they will feel the respect for liberty, children will grow in love for parents, they will know parents believe in God, your heart will fill with peace. It will protect your family day to day from the adversary and destroying angels.
 
Example:  We had family prayer sometimes with sleeping children and sometimes with wakeful children. A lot of times you won’t know when the Lord has blessed you.  Guardian angels are there to watch over your children.  We were in Utah.  The family was going different directions.  Jana & Ashley were driving home from Provo.  Jana had been an EFY counselor and was really tired.  Ashley was going to keep her awake.  Jana fell asleep for just a minute.  She rolled the car 3 times.  Jana was not conscious.  The next car behind them had a doctor and a nurse from Mountain Home.  They called 911.  Ashley called me in Provo.  I said I can’t get there.  I said call your Dad in Boise.  Mike usually worked out in Meridian.  That day he was at the end of Broadway.  He got there before the ambulance.  Both of them went home.  Ashley still has a big scar across her neck where the seatbelt was.  Jana was black and blue and had a few stitches over her eye.
 
Example:  Corey was on a scout activity.  They were up on Mt Borah.  There is a place called “Chicken Out Ridge”  Corey was coming down it too fast and slid.  Just before he hit the drop his backpack caught on the only bush that was in the shale. 
 
The angels are there to watch over our children.  It is more important that they are there to protect them from influences.  There is a shield that is put around them to guard them when you kneel in family prayer.  I wouldn’t send my children out into the world without that shield. 
 
Practices:

• You have to make it regular.  It has to be routine.  One semester we had early morning seminary and 6 teens playing at night.  We will get up at 4:30 and have family prayer and scripture study.  There was mutiny.  Children came down with blankets around them.  Everyone else crawled back into bed.  We would each go around a read a verse.  They would open up their scriptures to where we were.  They would doze until it was their turn.  How much scriptural knowledge did they gain during that semester?  None.  That was not wasted.  At the end of the semester my children would testify that I follow the prophet. 
• If you forget, put one of your red children in charge if you give them that responsibility. 
• Mom needs to be up a little bit before. 
• As important as the prayer you say, is how you feel before and after the prayer. 
• Discuss as a family who needs to be prayed for that day.  Who has something that needs help.  You discuss this just a moment. 
• At night you come back and report back and give thanks for those things where you have seen the hand of the Lord.
• The father should be the one to call on someone to say the prayer.  If he won’t do it then you are the counselor.  You get everyone up.  He is the king of the castle DO NOT de-throne him. 
• Family Prayer and Personal Prayer are not a job list for Heavenly Father.  They need to prayer for “What can I do to help Abby with her friend problem at school?”  Instead of “Send Abby a friend.” 
• Ask the guidance from the Holy Ghost and the power to through the Atonement to follow through. 
• We need to teach our children to thank him, but then when we come to the ‘ask for what we need’.  We ask in such a way that he handcuff the Lord to answer our prayers.  He won’t come down and do it for us.  He may put people in our paths to answer those prayers. 
• Ask for things where they saw Heavenly Father touch their lives today.  One of the key phrases in the temple is “Return & Report”….DAILY!!!  Heavenly Father needs to feel welcome in our home.

 
FAMILY SCRIPTURE STUDY
Principle:  Study the scriptures daily…family and personal. 
 
Your responsibility is come to family scripture study and then have your personal scripture study. 
 
By age 2 they are wanting a bedtime story.  They could have a bedtime story from the scriptures.  They need a Book of Mormon and the “Friend”. 
 
I went to a Mother-Daughter thing.  One question was what’s your Mother’s favorite thing to do?  She said “Read the Book of Mormon”.  I had never said that. 
 
Promises….spirit of reverence will increase, mutual respect, more considerate of each other, spirit of contention will depart, parents will counsel in love and wisdom, righteousness will increase, children will be more responsive and submissive, peace, joy and happiness in your home, the strength to resist temptation will increase, strong faith in the grace of God, they will come to know they will be empowered through the Atonement to do those things that seem difficult.
 
Practices…start by age 2…Friend stories, own copy of scriptures. 
 
It is essential that children hear the words of the prophets.  The children repeat the words.  When kids get to be about 5 and kids are just starting to read and it takes them forever as they stumble through reading a verse.
 
Class member:  It will help them be a better reader.  My son could read on a college level at a very young age. 
 
Class member:  When my kids were little, my son (who is red) argued with his teacher that it is “mine paper”….he argued with the teacher because that is what they are reading.
 
Class member:  We would recap everyday in the story where we were.  The first time he got the plates.  The second time Spencer was 4 he said, “They forgot the cups and the napkins.” 
 
Choose when you read (that is a practice).  They put the Book of Mormon in their car.  The power of doing it with exactness was important.
 
I challenge you from this point to accept that challenge…to read from the Book of Mormon every day. 
 
FAMILY HOME EVENING
Principle:  1999….we counsel parents and children to give the highest priority to FHE, however worthy or appropriate other activities might be.  FHE is for everyone. 
 
No one is exempt.  The picture just looks different.  It’s Family Home Evening not hour.  Your lesson may be very, very short, but the evening is where the family bonds together.  It should be an evening of family time together.
 
Promises:  It will take away stress, give direction to our lives, adds protection to our home (increase capacity to not listen to inappropriate music or watch inappropriate videos), love will increase, obedience will increase, youth will gain power to combat the evil influences that will beset them. 
 
C Scott Grow---BYU Devotional
Somehow, a tradition has developed in the Church. In fact, you may have heard members say, "We hold our family home evenings on Sunday, and on Monday nights we have activities." Note that the First Presidency letter says that Monday Night is the time for family home evenings. Also note that Monday night is not for activities, but as they counsel, "to teach the gospel in their homes."
 
I hope that you can have vision to see what the prophets are seeing as they give us this counsel. Satan is targeting our homes and families. The day has passed when we can be casual in holding family home evening, daily family scripture study, or family prayer and still have real hope to hold our children close to the family and close to the Church.
 
I feel like this is one of the opportunities to obey with exactness.  You pay 10% tithing…not 9%.  I know that I am doing FHE on Monday night. 
 
Practices---Every home is different.  There are some things that have to be in place.
 
1.  You have to be enthusiastic about it. 
2.  You need to get older children involved in giving the lesson.  Particularly teenagers need to go to LDS.org and find material to have good lessons.  You show them where to go and how to find new things.
 
Class member:  My 7 year old reminded me that last night was FHE.  I said what do you want to talk about.  She got on the Ipad and found stuff on LDS.org.  She found a video about Christ being baptized.  She found a song about baptism. 
 
I think we think we have to do it all.  They learn to love it as they become part of it.  From nursery we send home a paper every week that represents something they have done each week.  Have them hold their picture and tell them about it.  They are hearing about it one more time.  That reinforces it. 
 
300 Object Lessons (Website)
 
Teach a principle.  Teach an application.  Then DO IT!!!  It needs to be applied or it’s not internalized.  We are not there to teach knowledge.  No one is converted unless they apply. 
 
No cell phones, no texts during FHE!!!  They are connecting somewhere else.  They aren’t connecting with you. 
 
Encourage the spirit of reverence.  There are moments when you should.  Teach children how to bear testimony.  Little people need to learn reverence.  Their attention span is short, but you had better start teaching it at home.  They need to learn that now is appropriate to sit here and listen for a few minutes. 
 
Sometimes our children are so uncomfortable with the Holy Ghost that they don’t know what to do with it.  They do something to break the spirit.  They make a joke.  They do it in Sunday School.  This is the time you teach them.  It is to be invited and not chased out. 
 
Make it fun!  Make it exciting!
 
TEMPLE ATTENDANCE
Principle:  Regular temple attendance (often and regular).  For every person it is different. 
 
I would recommend you make this a sacrifice priority.  You need to give up something else to do it. 
 
Class member:  In Colorado I had a little guy at home still.  The temple president had gotten up.  I could feel my testimony slipping a little.  He talked about this woman who had to drive for a long time and she had little kids.  I thought if she can do it I will do it.  I decided I would go every week for a year.  There were so many tender mercies through that year.  For the first 3-4 months I left the temple crying each day.  So much was changing…just with me.  It was amazing what it did!  I decided just recently to do that again.  I find it’s harder now even though he is older.  I remember someone saying if you have a struggling marriage or a struggling teenager go to the temple.  I just miss feeling that spirit all the time.  I was doing mostly family names.  I had such a connection to my ancestors. 
 
The thing about going to the temple is that no one can tell you the blessings of the temple unless you go consistently.  It’s the consistency of it.  Have you ever been in a room where you go into the dining room where you have a dimmer switch.  That’s what it’s like in going to the temple consistently, regularly.  It’s like taking that knob.  You have light.  Then it turns up a little.  You have the capacity that increases the light you have in you.  Your capacity to learn, feel, study, know inside you.  When you stop going the dimmer switch starts going down.  For exaltation we want to increase our capacity to endure light.  That light comes on a little at a time.  Your ability to learn everywhere increases. 
 
I went consistently, but working in the temple every week I just can hardly wait until Friday morning comes so I can go serve in the temple.  You just have to experience it!  It is amazing!  Everything the Lord says about the temple is true. 
 
Blessings…Increase ability to righteousness and light, understand the priesthood better, the veil becomes thin, become more receptive to divine guidance, more sensitive to receive light
 
Get your children involved.  Get them to do baptisms.  Get them to do family search.  They can go to family search and put a memory of someone on there.  When they start posting memories they feel the connection.  They feel the bonding that makes them want to participate in the temple. 
 
Elder Bednar says doing temple work will save our children in these days. 
 
SABBATH DAY
It is imperative that we keep the Sabbath Day holy.  We need to keep this day as a sign between us and the Lord of how we feel about Him.  When you look at the activities you want to do on the Sabbath day teach your children “What sign am I giving the Lord about how I am using His day?” 
 
This is one of the things that will protect us as we come into the last days.  One of the key elements is the Sacrament.  We can be tempted as mother’s to use digital devices to keep our children entertained for Sacrament meeting.  Keep what you bring simple and keep it for only younger children.  Children will rise to whatever standard you set.  Even 3 year olds can sit at least through the Sacrament with nothing. 
 
Teach them in FHE so they can do it in Sacrament Meeting.  As you take your children out that it is a training moment, not an entertainment moment.  If you let them run the halls, get a drink, or play do you think they want to sit in Sacrament Meeting.  Parent intentionally!!!  You want to teach even your little ones to come unto Christ to feel his love and companionship for him.  That happens in Sacrament Meeting and on the Sabbath Day.  They should come to him and feel his presence.
 
A picture of peace
There once was a King who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried. The King looked at all the pictures, but there were only two he really liked and he had to choose between them.
 
One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror, for peaceful towering mountains were all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect picture of peace.
 
The other picture had mountains, too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky from which rain fell and in which lightening played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not look peaceful at all. But when the King looked, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest in perfect peace.
 
Which picture do you think won the prize? The King chose the second picture. Do you know why?
 
'Because' explained the King, 'peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace.'
Author Unknown
 
There will be turbulence all around.  The only place to come for peace will be the temple or your home if you make your home a temple.  The Savior wants to be there.  Prepare your home to receive Him. 

ADDITIONAL NOTE FROM ANDREA....
There are more "blessings" from obeying each leg of the table posted in the links from previous years as well as the actual references to the quotes.  You can find those here....

4 Table Legs 2015
4 Table Legs 2014
4 Table Legs 2013