Proclamation Series: Nurturing our Family Through Food

In The Family a Proclamation to the World it teaches:

"Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children"

That one simple declaration has made me reflect over and over again on my role in our home as a "nurturer"

I will admit, many years ago, I felt a little gypped that our only declared role was to nurture. It is such a short one-liner. Wasn't there more to be had as a mother? Did we get the short end of the stick?

To nurture means: to promote and sustain the growth and development of something, to feed or support, educate or train, nourish, raise, inspire with confidence, give hope or courage to, care for, rear,bring up from infancy,help develop, help grow...etc

Basically it encompasses all we do as mothers, and what we do best. We have the natural innate tendencies to nurture. Through nurturing we come to find ourselves and fulfill God's purposes.

I have a picture on my wall that is a great reminder to me everyday

We can't underestimate our value and worth in the nurturing of our children.

One of the greatest ways we nurture our family is through food

Children are born associating mom with food. Sometimes we try to separate ourselves as mothers from being the constant need to be the food person.

Through nature and because of nurturing: we are it.

I have noticed that there is little else that can bring a feeling of home, comfort, warmth, and family bond more than mom baking, cooking, being there in the kitchen doing her thing.

I have also noticed, that there is really no homey feeling of comfort, warmth, or family bonding when we as mothers, are not there providing meals and food for our families in a nurturing way.

When we are standing up around the counter, everyone "fending for themselves", and eating on their own. Besides feeling chaos, you will definitely notice that

something is missing!

...and it will effect the spirit of your home and the cohesiveness of our family.

There is something to sitting down together, with every one's feet under the table, eating a meal, and talking about the day. It is worth sacrificing to make happen.

Dallin H. Oaks in his talk Good, Better, Best said this:

"The number of those who report that their “whole family usually eats dinner together” has declined 33 percent. This is most concerning because the time a family spends together “eating meals at home [is] the strongest predictor of children’s academic achievement and psychological adjustment.”

What your children really want for dinner is you."

Nurturing our family through food, in one of those small and simple things...
for which great things are brought to pass.

See: Julie B. Beck's, {Powerful Nurturing}

Proclamation Series: Come to the Mountain of the Lord-the holy temple

"Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally." The Family: A Proclamation to the World

This week on  Family Proclamation on Fridays I want to focus on the  importance of temples. 

 The ordinances we make and keep are sometimes referred to "saving" ordinances.  Why?  Because they will literally save us and enable us and our families to return to the presence of God. They are that important.

As Mothers Who Know, we know the importance of making and keeping covenants.

" Mothers who know honor sacred ordinances and covenants. I have visited sacrament meetings in some of the poorest places on the earth where mothers have dressed with great care in their Sunday best despite walking for miles on dusty streets and using worn-out public transportation. They bring daughters in clean and ironed dresses with hair brushed to perfection; their sons wear white shirts and ties and have missionary haircuts. These mothers know they are going to sacrament meeting, where covenants are renewed. These mothers have made and honor temple covenants. They know that if they are not pointing their children to the temple, they are not pointing them toward desired eternal goals. These mothers have influence and power." -Julie B. Beck, Mothers Who Know October 2007 Ensign

Our Young Women recite this in their theme every Sunday:

"We believe as we come to accept and act upon [these] values, we will be prepared to strengthen home and family, make and keep sacred covenants, receive the ordinances of the temple, and enjoy the blessings of exaltation. 

If you want a powerful read, read Julie B. Beck's talk on the Doctrine of the Family 

She refers to the Creation, the Fall, and the Atonement as the Theology of the Family.  The Creation of this earth, was the creation of an earth where a family could live.  The Fall provided a family.  Without the Fall, there would have been no family.  And the Atonement makes it possible for us to live after this life, with our Father in Heaven, as families......The Theology of the Family.  This is what it is all about.

Doctrine and Covenants 2 : temple blessings and covenants. 

1 Behold, I will reveal unto you the Priesthood, by the hand of ^aElijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and ^bdreadful day of the Lord.

2 And ^ahe shall plant in the hearts of the children the ^bpromises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers.

3 If it were not so, the whole ^aearth would be utterly wasted at his coming.

September 21, 1823. Angel Moroni, the last prophet of the Book of Mormon appeared to Joseph Smith as a resurrected being. He came in light and he had a very important message from the Lord to Joseph Smith and to the world.

The message Moroni had was D&C 2  about preparing the world to receive the blessings of the temple. Three times during the same night and one more time the next morning, the angel Moroni delivered the exact same message to Joseph Smith.

This is the only scripture that is quoted in all four standard works. The promises of the children made to the fathers was that their hearts would turn to their fathers . Who are the fathers? Julie B. Beck said, “The fathers were Adam, Abraham,Isaac, Jacob, Noah—those ancient prophets who understood the doctrine of eternal families. The temple provides the saving ordinances and covenants of eternal life, without which “the whole earth [would be] utterly wasted.”

This message was so important, it was given to Joseph Smith BEFORE he received the plates, BEFORE the Book of Mormon was translated, BEFORE he received the priesthood, and BEFORE the church was organized. 

Moroni was the one to deliver the message AND he is delivering a message to us every day.

I love what Sister Elaine Dalton said in our YW General Conference last week,

"  I have a spectacular view of the Salt Lake Temple. Every day I see the angel Moroni standing atop the temple as a shining symbol of not only his faith but ours. I love Moroni because, in a very degenerate society, he remained pure and true. He is my hero. He stood alone. I feel somehow he stands atop the temple today, beckoning us to have courage, to remember who we are, and to be worthy to enter the holy temple—to “arise and shine forth,”¹ to stand above the worldly clamor, and to, as Isaiah prophesied, “Come … to the mountain of the Lord”²—the holy temple.

See other posts on temples {CLICK HERE} 

Proclamation Series: The Divine Plan of Happiness

"In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally "

Two years ago my aunt died. She was in her mid 70s, had cancer, and went rather quickly. I loved her dearly! She is one of my mother's sisters and was a second mother to me in life. She was one of the soft places I had to land. She always loved me with the sweetest purest love. When she died, I was heart-broken. Out of the clear blue sky, announced, I would burst into heart-broken tears over her death. Just yesterday I heard Whitney Houston's song "I Will Always Love You" and the tears came right back.

But I do feel peace, knowing she is on the other side. She still lives. I have felt her presence with me from time to time. It is comforting to know that someone who knows me and loves me is on the other side, not too far away, watching over me.

I know that through the blessing of the temple, families can be together eternally. Death does not have to separate families.

I had an interesting visit with a new friend.  She began to tell me of her conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is not your typical conversion story:

"She and her husband both moved to the same town from different locations, in their high school years. Neither one of them were members of the church at that time, although they had friends who were LDS.  They dated each other in high school, then  were later married in a Baptist church.  They weren't Baptist, but had a friend who was, so that is where they were married.  Shortly after they were married they had the feelings of wanting to start going to a church of some kind, but they weren't sure where or which one. 

Another friend of theirs (who was LDS ) had an infant son who died suddenly of SIDS.   She wanted so badly to comfort her friend in this devastating loss, but did not know how. She was at a loss of what to say or how to comfort her. This baby's death effected her and her husband deeply.  They were groping to understand the "whys" as much as anyone.  They attended the funeral and were deeply touched by the message of hope and the Spirit that was felt there.   The funeral was the turning point in their conversion.  They received the missionaries who taught them the gospel and they were baptized.  "

That was probably 20 years ago or so, and they think of that infant boy who died of SIDS as their first missionary.  Without his death, they feel they wouldn't have been introduced to the gospel.  They revere him in that his purpose and mission on this earth was partly for them to find the true gospel of Jesus Christ.  This tragedy of loss in this families life, gave the light of the gospel in the other.

That story touched me  deeply. I have the faith and assurance that this family who lost their son, will see him again.  They are still a family and their family relationship can "be perpetuated after death"

For more information on how we can live as families and with God again, {click here}

To read The Family: A Proclamation to the World {click here}