Bringing the Spirit Into Our Home

Talk given Sunday, May 31, 2009 When Beck was born he brought with him the spirit of heaven and looking at him Ben and I were able to gain a strong testimony of the Father's love for us and His plan of salvation. For months our home was filled with love and the spirit that was exuding from our precious little boy. Since then we have fallen back into the habit of not always noticing the special feelings that come along with living gospel-centered lives. The Proclamation on the Family states,

"Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ." The principles necessary for happiness include prayer, forgiveness, and love to be taught and practiced in the home regularly. President Ezra Taft Benson said, "One great thing the Lord requires of each of us is to provide a home where a happy, positive influence for good exists. In future years the costliness of home furnishings or the number of bathrooms will not matter much...It will greatly matter whether there was happiness and laughter, or bickering and contention." Let's first focus on the importance of creating routine and consistency with the gospel in our homes. Whether your family is a star-example of daily individual and family scripture study and prayer or your family is more like ours where it's a daily struggle to accomplish just one thing that invites the spirit, the things we do need to be so regular that everyone in the family can recognize the spirit received from the actions. I can share a couple personal examples. Years before I had any interest in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints I would visit at the homes of friends who were church members. On many occasions I would be asked to join the family in their mealtime or nightly prayers. Though most of the time I would politely say no, the spirit in their homes spoke to me while I listened from another room. The family gathered together and recounted the things they were grateful or remembered people with special needs. It was quickly obvious to me the homes in which this was an important nightly ritual and the homes that were going through the motions to try and impress their guest. In Ben's parents' home the spirit is almost always strongly felt. They raised 15 children strong in the gospel and when the family gets together it's almost always a time of laughter and happiness. We gather together regularly for what we call "Sing Thing" to sing hymns and other silly songs as well as read the scriptures and share a family prayer. I've always felt comfortable there and have seen numerous non-members feel right at home as they've joined over the years. In contrast, shortly before my baptism several of my sisters had traveled to Utah during spring break. Ben's parents were excited to meet them and invited us all over for dinner. After dinner we gathered in the living room, but instead of the usual round of singing and stories, Ben's parents had decided to play a church video and have a short religious discussion. Though their intentions were extremely good, it was not something that happened in their home consistently and it felt quite obvious that the spirit was being forced rather than laying itself peacefully upon the hearts in the room. This was not the way the Spirit was normally invited into the Hiatt home and in that particular instance it reached the opposite effect to the one which had been desired. Trying to consistently teach Beck to say his prayers and read his scriptures has given us an additional blessing outside our home. When we travel to my parents home the spirit gently encourages us to do those things we regularly do at home. We invite anyone who is there to join in saying Beck's nightly prayers and so far they have never said no. In the gospel we are taught the importance of knowledge and learning. In my life right now, as a stay-at-home mom, I have the opportunity to witness learning in a special way. This leads me to second idea we should focus on. We need to take time to recognize and appreciate how the Spirit is in our homes each day. Beck is two-years-old and gaining new skills in every waking moment-New words, new songs, how to carry on conversations with his stuffed animals and how to get them to talk back, how to fix a toy that's broken and how to play by himself or get mama's attention when playing alone isn't fun anymore. It's too easy for me to get busy on the computer or reading a book or doing housework and miss everything he is learning. I have found one of the quickest ways to bring peace into my environment and a smile to my face is to just stop whatever I'm doing and watch him from a distance. It reminds me that even though his body is young and fragile, his spirit is strong and growing. Those small quiet moments while I'm watching him and smiling reassure me that feels and also contributes to the spirit that is in our home and he is receiving the blessings that come with it. I want to quickly mention another way we can be sure to notice and appreciate the spirit in our homes. At night after Beck is in bed and the sun has gone down Ben and I like to set out on the front step and lye in bed and look at the moon. Setting in the quiet, watching a breeze in the trees, and listening to the birds reminds us how small we are in the world. It helps us re-focus on the principles of the gospel which are so much more important than who's going to do the dishes or what's coming on tv. I'm grateful for the prompting to study this topic this week. While looking for ideas on lds.org I watched a video posted on the homepage. It was a clip of Henry B. Eyring at a recent church general conference. He was telling about a journal he has kept since the time his children were small. In it, at the end of each day, he records little things that happened during the day. He asks himself, "Have I seen the hand of God in my life today? Did God send a message that was just for me?" I'm going to try to add these two questions to the quiet time I have at the end of every day. I encourage you to do the same. Have I seen the hand of God in my life today? Did God send a message that was just for me?