The Eternal Blessings of Marriage

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This past weekend was the General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and there was one talk that stood out to me and that was incredibly applicable to the audience of this blog (among countless others).

The talk was given by Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and was titled "The Eternal Blessings of Marriage."

Here is a link to the full text of the talk, and below are few of my favorite quotations. (Note: The message is applicable to all, not just members of the LDS Church)... Enjoy!

Spritual Thought: To visit the Fatherless and Widows...

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photo © 2010 Ryk Neethling | more info (via: Wylio)
I was reading in James recently and came across a verse that really spoke to me regarding the importance of our roles as Husbands and Fathers.

 "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." (James 1:27)

In other words, visit those without a Father or a Husband during difficult times. I think there are 2 important lessons to learn from James' words:

• Husbands and Father have an important role in the lives of wives and children.  This makes me want to be a better husband and father. My wife and kids do have me here... I better be taking good care of them.

• We have a responsibility to reach out with love to those who may be without a father or husband.  Chances are you know kids without a dad or a woman without a husband, will you be there during times of affliction?

Spiritual Thought: CHRISTmas

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It's easy (and sorts of cliche) to say things like "remember the reason for the season" and "keep Christ in Christmas."  You've heard all this before so instead of pleading with you to remember Christ, I just wanted to share with you some of my thoughts about Christ, His birth, His life, and His divinity.

Spiritual Thought: Drinking of Your Cup

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A few nights ago, my wife and I were reading the New Testament together before going to sleep.  We read this in John 18:11-

"...the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?"

If you recall, Jesus says this to Peter, in response to him lashing out and cutting off the ear of the high-priest servant as they were coming to take him away.  It was a testament to his dedication in being faithful to the will of God; he was to suffer and die for the sins of the world.

Spiritual Thought: I Can Do All Things Through Christ

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Today's Spiritual Thought post comes to us from Philippians 4:13 -

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

What a great verse!!  I also enjoy this verse (John 15:5), which has the same message -

A Better Husband and Father Song: Lead Me

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A big thanks to Amy of Confessions of a PTO Mom for posting a link to this video in the comments (not this exact video - I had to find one that I could embed, but same song). I liked it so much I had to share it with everyone. This embodies the attitude we all should have toward being a Better Husband and Father. Enjoy...

Spiritual Thought: Better Husband and Father Proverbs

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In church last week, some people were sharing their favorite Proverbs. It had been a while since I had read through Proverbs and  I was surprised by how many much wisdom there is for Husbands, Fathers, Marriage, and family in general.  Let me share a few of my favorites (all references are Proverbs and excerpts are taken from the King James Version):

Spiritual Thought: Pray for/with your Wife and Children

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Whether, memorized, read, or spoken from the heart, prayer is an important part of any religious lifestyle.  It doesn't matter how you pray, when you pray, or who you're praying to (though I would recommend God) make sure to pray for your wife and children. It will soften your heart toward them it will remind you how much you love them, and how much God loves them.

Spiritual Thought: Is it I?

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During the last week of Jesus' life he ate what is known as in Christendom as "The Last Supper." He was surrounded by his twelve apostles for the Passover feast. During this event, He declared "one of you shall betray me."

Spiritual Thought: Joseph's Obedience

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I have been thinking a lot Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus.  I cannot imagine the emotions he was gong through when he found out that Mary was going to have a baby!  They were not married, nor had the "known" each other.  Naturally, Joseph's reaction is to "put her away" or leave her.  What comes next is an important lesson...

God sent an angel to Joseph to deliver the message that Mary was, in fact, going to have a baby, and that this baby was "of the Holy Ghost."  We can learn a lot from Joseph's reaction - "...[Joseph] did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife."  Joseph received communication from heaven that he should marry Mary, so he did it! Joseph relied on God and showed obedience in one of the most trying times in his life. Are we sensitive to God's prompting in our life and for our families?  When we receive inspiration from heaven are we as obedient as Joseph?

Action Item: God wants us to have happy families and He will use us to accomplish this, He will help us be a better father and a better husband. He wants you to be the Spiritual Leader in your home and will guide us through the inspiration of His Spirit, but we must be obedient to it - only when we are obedient to what He gives us, will He give us more!

Spiritual Thought: Joshua

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I was recently reading about Joshua in The Bible.  Joshua lead the children of Israel into the promise land.  He helped them cross through the Jordan River on dry ground and helped them fall the walls of Jericho.  What can we learn from this great prophet?

"Choose you this day whom ye will serve; ...but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."  (Joshua 24:15) 

This verse of scripture is the greatest thing we can learn from Joshua, not only was he the leader of the Israelites, but also a righteous leader in his own family.  Through this we are taught something about parenting - Joshua gave the people their agency, taught them about the Lord, and set a righteous example by stating that he would serve the Lord.  Because of his example the people respond to Joshua's question of whom to serve with "The Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey" (Joshua 24:24).  When we teach our children and set an example for them to follow, we can encourage them to make good choices. 

Action Item: Like, Joshua, be a spiritual leader in your home. To do this, decide to serve the Lord, teach your children about the Lord, and set a righteous example for them.

Introducing: Spritual Thoughts

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As I continue to get the hang of this blogging thing (its been about 2 months!) I am starting to get a little better organized about my posts.  The weekly Date Your Wife posts which were introduced a few weeks ago are successful and very fun to write.  So, I have decided to introduce a new series to Better Husbands and Fathers called Spiritual Thoughts!

The reason I have decided to do this is because Christianity and religion are big parts of my life and a large contributor to my efforts to become a Better Husband and Father.  Also,  being spiritual leaders in the home is a very important role for a husband and father.

Some posts will be from The Bible, others will be quotations, and some will simply be spiritual reflections from my experiences as a husband and father.  All Spiritual Thought posts will have one thing in common, at bottom of every post is an action item - something that you can implement in your own life.

I've got my first one set up to post tomorrow, but I don't expect them to be a predictable, weekly feature.

I hope you'll enjoy these as much as I'll enjoy writing them!