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Freeing Our Children
from Bondage
By C.S. Bezas
“I urge you ... to look to the
condition of your finances.”
Thus reads an insert to the September
2007 edition of the Ensign. What an important concept for our children
to learn — and to learn at an early age.
The quote comes from President Hinckley
and continues:
I urge you to be modest in your expenditures;
discipline yourselves in your purchases to avoid debt to the extent
possible. Pay off debt as quickly as you can, and free
yourselves from bondage.
If you have paid your debts, if you
have a reserve, even though it be small, then should storms howl
about your head, you will have shelter for your wives and children
and peace in your hearts. That's all I have to say about it, but
I wish to say it with all the emphasis of which I am capable
(Ensign, Nov 1998, 54, emphasis added).
One need not look far to tell that
the world is in transition, much as a pregnant woman struggles to
birth a child. Only that which the world is about to deliver is
anything but joyous. Prophets have long foretold the troubles of
our day.
President John Taylor taught the following
in General Conference, in 1879:
Were we surprised when the last terrible
war [Civil War] took place here in the United States? No ...You
will see worse things than that, for God will lay his hand upon
this nation, and they will feel it more terribly than ever they
have done before. There will be more bloodshed, more ruin, more
devastation than ever they have seen before. Write it down! You
will see it come to pass; it is only just starting in ... there
is yet to come a sound of war, trouble and distress, in which
brother will be arrayed against brother, father against son, son
against father, a scene of desolation and destruction that will
permeate our land until it will be a vexation to hear the report
thereof (Journal of Discourses, 20:318).
Plain speaking is never pleasant. Some
might wish to hide from it, but not us — not those who desire
to prepare our children against that which is to come. We may not
know when those times will beset us, but when we hearken to warnings,
our children learn how to care for themselves (and for others).
Our children will be protected because we cared enough to listen
to the Lord's living oracles and to teach our family provident preparation
skills.
One of those most important skills
is that of preparing for a rainy day, a day of potential scarcity.
Our dear beloved President Faust spoke of those rainy days in the
General Conference of April 1986:
Frugality requires that we live within
our income and save a little for a rainy day, which always
seems to come. It means avoiding debt and carefully limiting
credit purchasing. It is important to learn to distinguish
between wants and needs. It takes self-discipline to
avoid the “buy now, pay later”philosophy and to adopt
the “save now and buy later” practice (see insert,
Ensign, Sep 2007).
It's How We Approach It
Speaking of frugality either brings
moans or joy; it never seems to bring both. It's truly all in how
we approach it.
Our children will long remember how
we teach this lesson. And it is much more than the "Is the
cup half full or half empty" approach. Once a person grasps
the full range and benefit of frugal living, there is no going back.
For this week's Family Home Evening,
why not play the following games to introduce the concept and get
the family thinking along a preparedness lifestyle.
Time for FHE Fun!
Time for a little FHE Fun! To help
matters out, here is a simple outline you could follow to teach
the importance of a prepared, frugal lifestyle — a lifestyle
that brings supernal peace and joy.
Opening Song
Why not learn Hymn #279 for this week's
Family Home Evening? Here is a link http://www.lds.org/churchmusic/
Opening Prayer
Ask for a volunteer to pray. Make sure that as each week goes by
the blessings for praying get distributed evenly amongst family
members. But you may want to avoid forcing anyone to pray —
as force is rarely if ever used by the Lord.
Personal Devotional
This is a terrific time to open up
a few minutes for a family member to share a spiritually significant
thought that came to him during the week, whether from scripture
study, personal prayer or even a missionary moment.
FHE Theme Scripture
Hymn #279 lists D&C 18:34-36 as
a cross reference. Here is the scripture to read out loud with your
family.
These words are not of men nor of
man, but of me; wherefore, you shall testify they are of me and
not of man;
For it is my voice which speaketh
them unto you; for they are given by my Spirit unto you, and by
my power you can read them one to another; and save it were by
my power you could not have them;
Wherefore, you can testify that you
have heard my voice, and know my words.
Open up the discussion to explore thoughts
on what this scripture means. Remember that there are not necessarily
"right" or "wrong" answers, only "important"
answers — in other words, things that strike each individual
as significant. Explore these as a family.
Next, ask what this scripture has to
do with trusting the Lord's living oracles, the prophets. Allow
family members to share their thoughts.
Game
To open children's minds as to the
importance of preparing, you could play the following two familiar
games, but with an important twist. Be patient while the children
participate, because the feelings of "losing" will be
important when you teach the actual spiritual purpose of the activity.
Ask everyone to play "nice", because there is a purpose
to the games.
Musical Chairs
Items needed:
chairs (one less than there are family
members)
music player (with a remote, if possible)
Place chairs in a circle or a line.
Make sure there is one fewer chair than there are family members.
As long as the music plays, the family walks around the chairs.
As soon as the music randomly stops, each person needs to find a
free chair to sit on. The person left without a chair must now wait
out the rest of the game. Remove one chair. Repeat until you have
only one chair and one winner.
Without explaining, move immediately
to the next game.
Mine, All Mine
Items needed:
toys (one fewer than there are family
members)
music player (with a remote, if possible)
Scatter a variety of toys on a table
top or on the floor. Again, start the music and the players walk
around the table or the floor. When the music randomly stops, instruct
everyone to grab a toy. The person without a toy now must sit out
the rest of the game. Remove one toy. Repeat until you have only
one toy and one winner.*
Application.
Have everyone return to their seats.
Ask how it felt to be standing without a chair or without a toy.
Allow the family members to vent any frustrations or to share any
difficulties they had with the moment.
Read the following quote from the insert
found in the September 2007 Ensign:
Perhaps no counsel has been repeated
more often than how to manage wisely our income ... Too many in
the Church have failed to avoid unnecessary debt. They have little,
if any financial reserve. The solution is to budget, to live within
our means, and to save some for the future (President Thomas S.
Monson, Ensign, Sep 1986, 3).
Ask what this quote might have to do
with the games just played. What is it like when resources run out?
What kinds of feelings result?
Then ask questions similar to, "What
can we do to ensure this never happens to our family?" and
"How can we make sure we will always have sufficient for our
needs?" Make a list of suggestions the family comes up with.
Final Thoughts
Ask the family if they would support
a family fast in September. The purpose would be to explore how
best to prepare the family in frugal preparedness approaches so
that food and finances will never run out.
Invite the family to think on these
things and to come to the next FHE with any additional ideas or
suggestions or personal sacrifices they could proffer to make a
difference.
Perhaps your family might want to study
in greater detail the article in September 2007's Ensign
entitled, "One for the Money." They might even want to
take the twelve points therein and shape the next three months of
FHEs around these points.
Closing Prayer
Invite someone to pray and to invite
the Lord's help and inspiration in these ideas.
Refreshments
String cheese would be a fun refreshment
at the end of this FHE. Show the kids how you can pull a tiny string
from the main part of the cheese and then eat it. String cheese
is fun, because the more carefully and thinly you pull a string
off, the more there seems to be to go around. While snacking on
the strings, ask how this is like a smart family who carefully prepares
for the future.
Summary
When we do our part to prepare our
family against that which is to come, the Lord will bestow mighty
blessings upon us. It might take time and perspective to see His
hand, but it will be there. We will be counted among the most fortunate.
Actually, the Lord would have all His
children receive the blessings of peace and prosperity that come
from hearkening to His counsel through the prophets. When we do
so, even though we might live through the frightening times that
President John Taylor spoke of in 1879, we will live to see the
blessings promised by another of the Lord's early servants, Orson
Pratt. He said:
The hand of the Lord will be over
us to sustain us, and we will spread forth. He will multiply us
in the land; He will make us a great people, and strengthen our
borders, and send forth the missionaries of this people to the
four quarters of the earth to publish peace and glad tidings of
great joy and proclaim that there is still a place left in the
heart of the American continent where there are peace and safety
and refuge from the storms, desolations and tribulations coming
upon the wicked (Journal of Discourses, 12:345).
As Latter-day Saint people, we so often
quote, "If ye are prepared ye shall not fear" (D&C
38:30). Let's get busy so that we might be amongst those who do
not fear, who hold peace in their hearts, and who value frugality
as a way of living. In so doing, we free our children from bondage
of many kinds and protect them against the storms that are to come.
This is the power that weekly Family
Home Evenings can bring!
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* If your children are older, they
might still enjoy playing these games. If not, perhaps you could
play the Game of Life and talk instead about how it relates to being
prepared financially.
C.S. Bezas' new book is now in LDS bookstores and has
been called perfect for youth leaders and parents of teens. Powerful
Tips for Powerful Teachers: Helping Youth Find Their Spiritual
Wings is also available by clicking here.
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