April 2005 Ensign - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
April 2005 Ensign - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
April 2005 Ensign - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
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72<br />
Teaching<br />
Children<br />
Purposeful<br />
Prayer<br />
When our five children were<br />
young, my husband and I<br />
felt we had done a good job<br />
teaching them the format <strong>of</strong> prayer.<br />
<strong>The</strong>y knew to begin by addressing<br />
Heavenly Father and to close in the<br />
name <strong>of</strong> <strong>Jesus</strong> <strong>Christ</strong>. Additionally,<br />
they knew to include thanks for their<br />
blessings. Yet something was missing.<br />
Prayers were <strong>of</strong>fered on a routine<br />
basis, but that’s what they were—<br />
routine. How could we help our<br />
children sincerely communicate<br />
with Heavenly Father without a crisis<br />
to pray about? <strong>The</strong> answer came<br />
when a family friend asked us<br />
to pray that her husband<br />
might find better<br />
employment. <strong>The</strong><br />
children loved this<br />
friend and wanted to<br />
help. Because they had<br />
something specific to<br />
pray about, their petitions<br />
became sweet and<br />
sincere.<br />
Since that experience,<br />
we <strong>of</strong>ten discuss beforehand<br />
specific<br />
things our children<br />
might include in<br />
their prayers. Some<br />
R A N D O M S A M P L E R<br />
<strong>of</strong> the things we’ve prayed for include<br />
the recovery <strong>of</strong> a sick cousin, help on<br />
a test, and the ability to make friends.<br />
By helping our children to pray for<br />
specific needs, our prayers as parents<br />
have become more meaningful too.<br />
Lisa H. Fernelius, Chambersburg First Ward,<br />
York Pennsylvania Stake<br />
What Do<br />
You Know<br />
about Mom?<br />
Where was Mom born? What’s<br />
her favorite food? Could your<br />
children correctly answer<br />
these questions about you?<br />
QUIZ SHOW<br />
A few years ago, I discovered that<br />
mine didn’t know as much about me<br />
as I had assumed. For a family home<br />
evening lesson before Mother’s Day,<br />
I prepared a short, multiple-choice<br />
quiz about my background as well<br />
as likes and dislikes. Though my children<br />
enjoyed learning more about<br />
me, I was surprised at how many<br />
things I thought I had told them<br />
but they couldn’t recall.<br />
Though I didn’t initially expect<br />
to learn much from a quiz about me,<br />
perhaps I learned the most poignant<br />
lesson—it’s important to share my life<br />
stories with my children now, not<br />
some<strong>day</strong>.