Jonny's Talk

Here is Jonny's talk that he gave in Sacrament Meeting today. I'm wishing my talk were written for Saturday. Jonny did a great job. Sacrament Meeting was great as always. It's good to be in Sunday School and Relief Society. We have a great Sunday School teacher and Relief Society lessons are always so good.

Jonny's Talk

In the Family Proclamation to the world, it states that “Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live.” If parents are able to accomplish this sacred duty, the family will be strengthened and they will be better able to withstand the temptations of the world and will be better prepared for life in the eternities.

Youth and children also have a duty to help their parents attain this goal. Some of the ways that I feel that we as youth can help our parents are by:
Honoring our parents
Being a peacemaker in the home
Praying as a family and individually, and
Working together as a family.

1. The first one of these is honoring our parents
Mosiah 13:20 Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
When Abraham Lincoln was riding in a stagecoach with a colonel from Kentucky, the colonel asked Lincoln if he would like to have a drink of whiskey with him, but Lincoln declined. He then asked if he would at least smoke a cigar with him. Lincoln told the colonel what a good man he was, but proceeded to tell him a story of when he was younger.
Abraham Lincoln’s mother was dying and she called Lincoln to her bedside and said, ““Abey, the doctor tells me I am not going to get well. I want you to promise me before I go that you will never use whiskey or tobacco as long as you live.” And I promised my mother I never would.
Lincoln then told the Colonel that he had kept that promise, and asked him if he would advise him to break that promise to his dear mother. The colonel answered by saying, “No, Mr. Lincoln, I wouldn’t have you do it for the world. It was one of the best promises you ever made. And I would give a thousand dollars today if I had made my mother a promise like that, and kept it as you have done.”
If we honor our parents in righteousness, our relationships with our parents and our families will be strengthened. We will respect what our parents tell us to do, and we will help them in their sacred duty to rear their family in righteousness.
2. Being a peacemaker in the home:
When we lived in California, we decided as a family that we would have a Peacemaker Jar. We took a big jar and bought a bunch of glass beads. Whenever we saw someone being kind to someone else, we put one bead in the jar. When the jar was filled, we got to purchase a swing set for our backyard. With everyone trying to be kind, the house became a more enjoyable place to be in.
Matthew 5:9 says: “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall see God.”
We can all strive to help our homes be a more enjoyable place to be in by thinking of others before ourselves and being kind and loving at home.

3. Praying as a family and individually
a. 3 Nephi 18:21 says: “Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.”
b. A few years ago, my mom lost her keys. We looked everywhere for them but could not find them anywhere. After about a month of looking and my mom saying her own prayers to help her find them, she asked for the strength and faith of our family to help her. We knelt down in our living room as a family and fervently prayed for Heavenly Father’s help. We stood up from the prayer, and my mom walked over to a couch that she had previously looked in and reached down far into it, and pulled out her keys.
c. This experience taught me not only the power of prayer, but the power of family prayer. In our family, when we forget to have family prayer in the morning, I have noticed that there is more contention and less tolerance for each other. I know that family prayer is an important part in helping us strengthen our families.

4. Working together as a family
a. President Benson said that, “Successful families do things together: family projects, work, vacations, recreation, and reunions.”
b. I have personally seen the benefits of working together as a family. When we do yard work, clean in the house, and organize something together as a family, I see that the task can be accomplished much quicker. I have noticed also that when we make a game out of the job and have a good attitude that I feel closer to my family and I enjoy working with them.

Through these things and many others, we as youth can help our parents in their sacred duties to raise their family in love and righteousness. I hope that I will be able to strengthen my family through all that I do and say. I am grateful for my family and the strength it gives me in my life.