It is a tough thing these days to get in some quality family time as mothers race to and fro (school, to (insert your sport here) practice, dance class, assorted clubs, and excessive amounts of homework. Throw in a working mom, working father, six kids and you have complete and utter chaos with little to no time for quality family time.
Quality family time is critical to the growth and steadfastness of your family. With the constant onslaught the world throws at us these days: T.V., radio, movies, concerts and friends – it’s a wonder the family is able to balance good against the world’s idea of a “good time.” Let’s face facts, the world’s idea of a “good time” has an expiration date. If you don’t kill yourself with booze and drugs, every bit of fun the world has to offer will end sooner or later, usually in depression. On the contrary, our Father in Heaven offers eternal joy which builds within your family as you accept your divine role as parents and pattern your family after the family from which we came.
I’m not going to go into the whole working mother/stay-at-home mother debate. We all know what the brethren have said and we all know what the circumstances in our own lives are. So I’ll leave it between you, your spouse and God. But here are some ideas for quality time that might help a little bit.
Scripture Study – Too often this consists of Mom or Dad reading while the children loll around in a half comatose state early every morning. How do you make this so that it is a productive, learning time for each person?
Make the heroes of the scriptures the heroes of every day. Have your children pick one of the people in the scriptures and outline why they are a hero. Get a picture of that person (draw one if you don’t have one) and put it up on your wall of heroes. (This is a great idea I got from President Rex C. Reeve.) Bring the scriptures alive! You can also have the children pick a story out of the scriptures and act it out as a play – bring the scriptures alive and your children will grow in ways you could never have imagined.
Family Home Evening (FHE) – This is a special night set aside every week in which your family gets together to learn and bond. This too is also a problem since schools have decided to start having activities on Monday nights. Teenagers tend to want to avoid FHE like the plague and getting both parents to be proactive about it is sometimes very difficult. But FHE not only carries an incredible prophetic promise but also cements familial relationships. It is critical to the eternal and secular survival of your family. So here are some ideas for FHE that might help a little.
Lesson: Keep your lessons to five minutes (young family of toddlers) and fifteen minutes (older family) being flexible to allow for a discussion should one arise. Assign each family member to take a turn at giving a lesson using things they have learned in scripture study, seminary, primary, young men/young womens, Sunday school etc. It is important to support everyone in this endeavor, gaining value from each lesson, from the two-year-old to the sixteen-year-old.
Activity: Make sure the activity involves the entire family. This would be a great time for one of the plays acted out by the children based on a story from the scriptures. Games are also a great activity. Again, make sure each family member takes a turn at being in charge of the activity. Support even the youngest child fully in this endeavor.
Singing Time: In my family this was always the funnest part. I encourage each of you to spend at least enough time to sing two or three songs – everybody chiming in and having a blast. Music is a great way to invite the spirit and bond the family.
Church: Church attendance is critical to the health of a family. This can really be a struggle sometimes with young children and teenagers – but I promise, if you will participate fully in church services, as well as young men/young womens and enrichment night, you will find a greater peace within. Now, how to get something out of even the most boring of church talks or lessons. I have found the key – indeed feel as if I may have found the Golden Fleece. Prayer. Really, I promise. Before church begins have a quiet prayer in the chapel, just before Sacrament Meeting starts and ask that you learn that day what Lord needs you to learn. Keep a notebook and pen in hand and take notes on what each speaker says. But here’s the key, as you take notes you will find additional thoughts coming into your mind, write them down and as you do so more revelation will come. When it is done coming to you, then pick up what the speaker or teacher is saying and start taking notes again, repeating the entire process. You will be astonished at what comes to you during that time.
Family Prayer: Without fail, morning and night, you must avail your family of the heavenly protection provided through prayer. Our Father in Heaven waits to give if we will only ask. Days go smoother, tempers stay calmer when each day is begun and ended with prayer. That doesn’t mean it will be perfect and doesn’t mean things won’t go wrong. But you will handle them better when sincere prayer is offered morning and night.
These are just a few things you can do to counteract the influence of the world. I encourage you to examine your lives and find other ways in which to improve on this small list I have given you. There is so much more that we can do keep our eternal family unit intact.