At work on our roots

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Saturday Morning Session of the October 1999 Conference.

Elder Neil L. Andersen spoke in this session. I wonder if it was his first Conference talk? He was a Seventy. He talked about when he lived in Florida and his lawn got eaten by mole crickets. They sound terrifying! Elder Andersen's neighbor saw one cricket scuttle across the sidewalk and warned him to spray for them, but he didn't see any signs of infestation, so he didn't. Then about ten days later, brown spots appeared in his lawn. Soon after it all died and had to be completely replaced.

Elder Andersen compares the mole crickets to the forces of Satan in our lives. They feed on the roots of our testimonies before we can see them, and if we don't take action, they can destroy us. He says:

Let me demonstrate the warning voice of the Prophets. On February 11 of this year, the First Presidency, with the support of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, sent to every member of the Church a letter of counsel concerning our families. Let me read you just two sentences from this letter:

“We counsel parents and children to give highest priority to family prayer, family home evening, gospel study and instruction, and wholesome family activities. However worthy and appropriate other demands or activities may be, they must not be permitted to displace the divinely appointed duties that only parents and families can adequately perform.”

What is our reaction to this prophetic counsel? What has been my response and your response to this First Presidency letter of nearly eight months ago?

As a parent of teenagers in a busy world, I can confirm that it takes giving these issues our highest priority to see them effectively work in our family. …With the influences of evil that surround our children, can we even imagine sending them out in the morning without kneeling and humbly asking together for the Lord’s protection? Or closing the day without kneeling together and acknowledging our accountability before Him and our thankfulness for His blessings? Brothers and sisters, we need to have family prayer.

Certainly there are times when getting the family together to read the scriptures does not stack up as a spiritual experience worthy of a journal entry. But we must not be deterred. There are special times when the spirit of a son or daughter is just right and the power of these great scriptures goes down into their heart like fire. As we honor our Heavenly Father in our homes, He will honor our efforts.

We all know the struggle necessary to retain family home evening. There are thieves among us who would steal our Monday nights. But the promises of the Lord made to families who hold family home evening, that were spoken by the First Presidency 84 years ago and reiterated by our Prophets today, have never been revoked and are there for us:

“If the Saints obey this counsel, we promise that great blessings will result. Love at home and obedience to parents will increase. Faith will be developed in the hearts of the youth of Israel, and they will gain power to combat the evil influence and temptations which beset them.”

Who within the sound of my voice would be willing to sell these promises to those who would confiscate our Monday nights? Not one of us.

For you and me, the disciples of Christ, these moments of building faith in the lives of our children must be strengthened. We will at times fall short as parents. I know I do. But we must begin again. The Lord sees our righteous efforts and will open the blessings of heaven as we give our families our highest priority. My brothers and sisters, there are spiritual mole crickets at work on our roots, and we must be even more serious in our family stewardship.

The world is wicked enough now that I'm not in danger of thinking these basic practices aren't needed in my family. However, it's very easy to feel like all these safety measures won't be enough; that even if we do manage to have prayer and scripture study and family home evening, our efforts as parents are hopeless anyway. When even lifelong members suddenly seem to be leaving the faith all around us, what chance is there for any of our children? How can we possibly withstand this day of Satan's power?

It is both hopeful and sobering to know that we fight him the same way we always have—by following prophetic counsel and hanging onto our covenants. President Nelson has given invitation after invitation, warning after warning. Through him and others, God has given us so many ways and so much counsel to invite the influence of the Savior into our homes. Am I taking it seriously enough?

Other posts in this series:

Families—by Rozy

Earrings, Scrupulosity, and Love—by Nathaniel Givens