Day 8 – 11:34 p.m. – A bit earlier tonight. I’ve now completed one full week and am keeping up. It feels good to do this, although ideally I’d like to write a bit earlier in the day.
Here are some things I learned today at church:
- Caleb gets a bit nervous on the stand: Yes, Caleb got to speak in primary today. He talked about the resurrection of Jesus. He had his talked completely memorized but, when he got up in front of his peers, I had to tell him most of the talk. Overall it was cute: he said the 1st and 3rd Article of Faith and also shared his testimony. I love that little guy so much and hope I can be the best daddy that I need to be so he’ll continue to grow up and be his best.
- Madi is officially in the terrible twos: Madi Mae is getting a bit sassy! She’s still so cute but is sporting a bit of an attitude lately. I feel Beck and I need to be a bit more "time-out" oriented with her so she knows what’s accepted and what’s not. She’s going to be quite the big sister – very Mommy-like.
- It’s good to ask the Young Men about chastity and morality now: We were given an assignment today to come up with questions that we wanted to ask about chastity and morality for a fireside next week. The boys were a bit hesitant to talk much but eventually, with a bit of recommendations from the leaders, some questions came out: What is chastity? What is lust? How can we avoid pornography best? How can we help friends if we know they have a problem with these things? How should our relationships be with girls? Overall I felt really good about talking to them about these things a bit. Now is the time in their lives where they begin to experiment or become more and more interested in the opposite sex. I feel like, if I would have had a leader who talked about this stuff straight up and gave me the simple why behind the rules, it would have given me a better understanding of the sanctity of these things. I hope the boys are not afraid to come talk with me if they need to.
I plan to also download some of the conference talks to my iPod tonight so I can listen to them while driving to work this week. I feel strongly that I’m going to need the Spirit with me as I’m forced to have some difficult discussions with a few people. Work is not going to get any easier in the next few weeks, I can see that coming now. My test will be mainly on how I handle the changes and transitions.
One of the talks I really want to listen to is President Eyrings about taking note every day of the ways Heavenly Father blesses our lives. Here are some excerpts:
When our children were very small, I started to write down a few things about what happened every day. Let me tell you how that got started. I came home late from a Church assignment. It was after dark. My father-in-law, who lived near us, surprised me as I walked toward the front door of my house. He was carrying a load of pipes over his shoulder, walking very fast and dressed in his work clothes. I knew that he had been building a system to pump water from a stream below us up to our property.
He smiled, spoke softly, and then rushed past me into the darkness to go on with his work. I took a few steps toward the house, thinking of what he was doing for us, and just as I got to the door, I heard in my mind—not in my own voice—these words: “I’m not giving you these experiences for yourself. Write them down.”
I went inside. I didn’t go to bed. Although I was tired, I took out some paper and began to write. And as I did, I understood the message I had heard in my mind. I was supposed to record for my children to read, someday in the future, how I had seen the hand of God blessing our family. Grandpa didn’t have to do what he was doing for us. He could have had someone else do it or not have done it at all. But he was serving us, his family, in the way covenant disciples of Jesus Christ always do. I knew that was true. And so I wrote it down, so that my children could have the memory someday when they would need it.
I wrote down a few lines every day for years. I never missed a day no matter how tired I was or how early I would have to start the next day. Before I would write, I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us or our children or our family today?” As I kept at it, something began to happen. As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day. As that happened, and it happened often, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what He had done.
More than gratitude began to grow in my heart. Testimony grew. I became ever more certain that our Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. I felt more gratitude for the softening and refining that come because of the Atonement of the Savior Jesus Christ. And I grew more confident that the Holy Ghost can bring all things to our remembrance—even things we did not notice or pay attention to when they happened.
The years have gone by. My boys are grown men. And now and then one of them will surprise me by saying, “Dad, I was reading in my copy of the journal about when …” and then he will tell me about how reading of what happened long ago helped him notice something God had done in his day.
My point is to urge you to find ways to recognize and remember God’s kindness. It will build our testimonies. You may not keep a journal. You may not share whatever record you keep with those you love and serve. But you and they will be blessed as you remember what the Lord has done. You remember that song we sometimes sing: “Count your many blessings; name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.”2 ("O Remember, Remember ", President Eyring)
I’m downloading this talk right now to my iTunes so I can listen to it tomorrow on my way to work. I feel really strongly that this blog/journal, AtonementToday.com, will be something I will feel strongly about passing down to my children, grand children, etc. in the future. I’m grateful for the ways Heavenly Father blesses my life every day. I’m grateful to be a member of the true Church, the church Jesus Christ established when he was on the earth. I know the way to true happiness is by following the teachings of Jesus Christ and by putting my trust in Heavenly Father’s will over my will.
I pray that I can live my life so that my children and Becky can feel this testimony every day.
Nate
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