God answers prayers and I'm truly grateful for the inspiration and revelation that comes to me through General Conference. An experience tonight with my children humbled me and reminded me of His Great power. Let me share.
While catching up on conference I was really impressed by this part of Sister Linda S Reeves talk in Saturday Morning Session.
"How do we lead our children to deep conversion and to access our Savior’s Atonement? I love the prophet Nephi’s declaration of what his people did to fortify the youth of his day: “We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, [and] we prophesy of Christ … that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”
How can we do this in our homes? Some of you have heard me tell how overwhelmed my husband, Mel, and I felt as the parents of four young children. As we faced the challenges of parenting and keeping up with the demands of life, we were desperate for help. We prayed and pleaded to know what to do. The answer that came was clear: “It is OK if the house is a mess and the children are still in their pajamas and some responsibilities are left undone. The only things that really need to be accomplished in the home are daily scripture study and prayer and weekly family home evening.”
I have always felt and wanted to do this in our home, but it's something that has been hard for us to stay consistent on. But I was determined to try. It had been in the back of my head all day that we were going to try and do it tonight. But after struggling with an overtired newborn and feeling overwhelmed with my life in this moment with 3 kids at home alone, I couldn't help but think, "How am I even going to make it habit to read and pray with my kids, when I can't even keep up on my dishes, or keep my house clean, bathe the kids more than twice a week, etc. etc.?" But as I sat down tonight with my kids I was reminded that if we make it a priority to do these things, God will make it happen.
Josh and Audree both sat quietly and were actually really excited to read the scriptures while drinking their nightly milk. After scriptures we said prayers and they both sat still and quietly and repeated every word that I said in the prayer. As we watched the #becauseofhim Easter video tonight for FHE they both watched in awe and repeated over and over "that's Jesus!". I couldn't help but cry as the Spirit washed over me and testified to me that the scriptures are true, God hears me and answers my prayers, and that through the Savior all things are possible. It truly was an incredible experience. One that I will treasure forever.
