As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we put a lot of emphasis on our families. We know that families are central to the Plan of Happiness that our Heavenly Father created. We strive to nurture our relationship with our husbands and children knowing that family relationships are indeed eternal. I'm grateful for this knowledge. But I fear sometimes we get absorbed in our nurturing of those around us and we neglect to nurture our individual and unique relationship with our Father in Heaven. As his daughters (or sons, if any men actually read this blog!!) we have been taught often that the first commandment is "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." We know that God is supposed to come first in our lives and that through that relationship we will be able to better nurture our families and the other aspects of our lives.
With God being such a defining role in our lives as mommies, I wonder how we strive to put him first in our lives. We are mothers 24 hours a day...how do we make time to nurture our relationship with our Heavenly Father when our to-do lists are filled with laundry, cooking, bath time, soccer practice, dance class, etc.? Do you wake up before the kids to sneak in scripture study? How do you fill your spiritual reservoir? What do you do to put God first in your life?
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4 comments:
My girls are usually either absorbed in TV or their toys when I get out of the shower, so I sneak off to read my scriptures then (when possible). Also, I've had some great conversations with the women I visit teach or have book club with that have helped me refill my reservoir. Those monthly breaks are great!
With my boys it is hard to find time to sneak off and read my scriptures while they are awake. The only time they really know I am having "private time" is when I am using the bathroom.:) I keep my scriptures, a highlighter, the Ensign, and The Joseph Smith Handbook right by the toilet! It is kinda funny, but all through the day when I take potty breaks, I also fill my spiritual reservoir! :) I also love attending Time Out For Woman once a year, reading Women Conference talks (or going when I can) and listening to General Conference talks on my computer while I clean. These things really help me feel the spirit daily to receive the guidance I need to be a better mother.
Great question, Shalee! Like others have said the biggest thing for me is making sure that I get my scriptures read each day. I used to do this during Sesame Street each day, but with the addition of our second baby the time always seemed to be filled with other things and I was always scrabbling at the end of the day to read. When we moved, things seemed to kind of fall apart for our cute kids and when I was given a blessing I was advised that things would work out if I made the effort to get up early and get my scriptures read first. Being a serious sleep addict this was NOT what I wanted to hear, but I have done it and I can't even express what a difference it has made! Getting up a half hour earlier and me being prepared for the day has made everyone in our family happier. Also, another little thing that we try to do is whoever isn't given the FHE lesson shares a quote from General Conference for a small more-adult level gospel disscussion before we have the kid lesson. I love to hear everyone else's ideas!
I think this is a great question! We have really loved having FHE with Will, and I love it, because I have to be prepared for it. I have really been trying to motivate myself to get up earlier to read my scriptures and just have some quiet time before the day begins, so you totally inspired me bridget!! One thing that I think is a great idea (this is stolen from my sister) is each morning while you are eating breakfast together (hopefully it is somewhat together :)) my sister gets out a picture from the gospel art kit, shows her kids the picture and reads the summary on the back. Then they hang it on the fridge and see it all day long. It is something so simple, yet so good for your kids and family, plus they are learning some older scripture stories that may not hear that often. Also, inspired by my sister, she has been awesome at reading scriptures with her kids everyday. They read the actual scriptures, and often only do one or two verses (in fact they aren't even through the book of mormon and they started when their first child, now 6, was born). But they read a verse, talk about it, and then have prayers and go to sleep. It is a habit/routine that they have created and they almost can't go to bed unless they do it.
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