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To Be Known and Loved: Why Family Matters
To Be Known and Loved: Why Family Matters

I have learned from experience that Jesus’ redeeming power extends not only to individuals, but also to families. There are second chances for families. There are new beginnings. There are things that seem lost or too late or forgotten, which circle around in seasons of bounty, often least expected. Let us not lose faith in God’s mindfulness of and purpose for families. All families are part of His plan, even when they are untraditional, broken, unrealized, or estranged.

Stories of Faith | Corrie ten Boom 
Stories of Faith | Corrie ten Boom 

I’m convinced that some women, like Corrie ten Boom, suffer horrific fates, carried only by their faith in God, so that people, years later, can continue to be inspired by them. Corrie’s story teaches us that if we open our hearts and eyes to the miracles taking place in our own lives, we’ll find not only are they there at every turn, but perhaps they are also evidence that God has a greater plan for us all.

Study Guide: The Family Is Of God | May 2018
Study Guide: The Family Is Of God | May 2018

Though the world is full of discord and people who are offended, who betray one another, and hate one another; though there are false prophets who rise and deceive many; though iniquity abounds and the love of many has waxed cold (Matthew 24:10-12), yet we can choose to reflect our divine nature in every word and every deed. We can choose to love all of God’s children. 

May's Theme — The Family Is Of God
May's Theme — The Family Is Of God

Winston Churchill said, "There is no doubt that it is around the family and home that all the greatest virtues, most dominating virtues of human society, are created, strengthened, and maintained." We could talk about the magnificent structure, systems, and traditions of the family...but ultimately the thing that makes the family one of the most important pieces of life is the Godly love that is found within.

Peace, Be Still — Reflections & Resources
Peace, Be Still — Reflections & Resources

It has been an inspiring and humbling experience to hear your stories and reflect on your faith and courage. We also recognize that there are many of you out there who are going through similar things and are exhibiting similar faith and courage in your lives, day by day and sometimes minute by minute.

 
 
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Stories of Faith | Corrie ten Boom 
Stories of Faith | Corrie ten Boom 

I’m convinced that some women, like Corrie ten Boom, suffer horrific fates, carried only by their faith in God, so that people, years later, can continue to be inspired by them. Corrie’s story teaches us that if we open our hearts and eyes to the miracles taking place in our own lives, we’ll find not only are they there at every turn, but perhaps they are also evidence that God has a greater plan for us all.

Stories of Faith | Lindsay Ricks
Stories of Faith | Lindsay Ricks

I feel William is a gift from God, his life is a living miracle, and God’s blessings come as we try to “walk in His ways” (Psalms 128:1). Although life continues to throw curve balls of instability and sickness, I’ve learned that God is good and involved in the details of our lives.

Stories of Faith | Cydney Barno
Stories of Faith | Cydney Barno

Caring for Annie has bonded our family together in a way we weren’t before. So many of my fears from my pregnancy are now the things I love most about our lives. I worried before that we would have this baby forever; now I feel so lucky that as we get older, we’ll always have Annie.

Stories of Faith | Harriet Tubman
Stories of Faith | Harriet Tubman

I often wonder about the doors God opens for us. Did you ever stop to think that perhaps God opens doors for us not only in spite of our limitations or trials but also precisely because of them? Harriet Tubman was the perfect example of this. Her head injury could have destroyed her life....Instead, her injury set her on a path of renewed faith in God and a push from Him to work tirelessly to aid others. 

Elizabeth Smart | Faith, Survival, and Resilience, Part 2
Elizabeth Smart | Faith, Survival, and Resilience, Part 2

Believing in the atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and knowing that he has felt everything that I have felt,  and that he has suffered everything that I have suffered, helps me I know that I don’t have to carry the weight of everything alone. I can give him my burden to carry. This knowledge has helped me more than I probably even realize. But that is what has allowed me to heal and to move forward in life.

Elizabeth Smart | Faith, Survival, and Resilience, Part 1
Elizabeth Smart | Faith, Survival, and Resilience, Part 1

I had decided almost from the get-go that I would do whatever it took to survive, because I had something they couldn’t take away from me—I had my family’s love. And that was worth surviving for. Because maybe nobody else would ever like me or want to have anything to do with me, but my family would still be my family and they would love me and that was not only enough to survive for but it was worth surviving for. 

 
 

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You can’t teach a child the scriptures, let alone teach them a love of the scriptures, unless you first have the fire yourself. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah experienced much opposition in his desire to share his conviction, enough so that in one moment of personal frustration he wrote “O LORD,... I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me...I will not make mention of [the Lord] nor speak any more in his name” (Jeremiah 20:7-9). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ It can often feel this way for us in today’s climate of politics, worldly morals, and decreased faith. Maybe we even start to feel some of the frustrations that Jeremiah did when we think of our own faith, let alone thinking of teaching faith to our children. But what is needed now more than ever is conviction and strength in testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ. — Krista Horton @kristajohorton, from Teaching Kids Scripture Study, Part 1: Light Your Fire First — We wanted to re-share a favorite series from our Small Seed archives: Teaching Kids Scripture Study. Be sure to click the link in our bio for links to all 3 parts of the series—it's the perfect place to start if your family (or personal) study feels lacking and needs a fresh perspective! — 📷: @heatherbygrace Think about your particular assignment at this time in your life. It may be to get an education, it may be to rear children, it may be to be a grandparent, it may be to care for and relieve the suffering of someone you love, it may be to do a job in the most excellent way possible, it may be to support someone who has a difficult assignment of their own. Our assignments are varied and they change from time to time. Don’t take them lightly. Give them your full heart and energy. Do them with enthusiasm. Do whatever you have to do this week with your whole heart and soul. — Marjorie P. Hinckley There is something of the divinity within each of us that needs cultivation, that needs to come to the surface, that needs to find expression. You fathers and mothers, teach your children that they are, in a very literal way, sons and daughters of God. There is no greater truth in all the world than that—to think that we have something of divinity in us. — Gordon B. Hinckley, One Bright Shining Hope: Messages for Women ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What is your earliest memory as a child of learning that you were a child of God? Or, if it wasn’t until you were older or an adult, how did this truth affect your life? What are ways we can teach or pass on this truth to the next generations? — 📷: @mandinelson_ Now that I am a mom, I find myself instinctively striving to imitate the image of the “perfect” family—a cross between old-timey Norman Rockwell and new-timey Instagram/Pinterest. But an image is all that it is. As with many things in this fallen, mortal life, there is a gap between what we expect and how we experience things. Even at their very best, parents fall short. Children disappoint. Siblings compete. And spouses struggle through rough patches. But that's as it should be. Perfection is not for this life. If I'm honest with myself, I would much rather give my children a home where they can be less than perfect, and still loved. — Becca Robison @rebeccasrobison, To Be Known and Loved: Why Family Matters — Today on thesmallseed.com Becca (our Features Editor) shares more on imperfect families made of imperfect people and how our love and the love emanating from Christ can help us to find peace in our own family situations. — Click the link in our profile to read the full post! A late-night thought on surrendering ourselves to Christ... — Christ Jesus said: ‘I am the Vine, ye are the branches.’ In other words: ‘I, the living One who have so completely given myself to you, am the Vine. You cannot trust me too much. I am the Almighty Worker, full of a divine life and power.’ You are the branches of the Lord Jesus Christ. If there is in your heart the consciousness that you are not a strong, healthy, fruit-bearing branch, not closely linked with Jesus, not living in Him as you should be—then listen to Him say: ‘I am the Vine, I will receive you, I will draw you to myself, I will bless you, I will strengthen you, I will fill you with my Spirit. I, the Vine, have taken you to be my branches, I have given myself utterly to you; children, give yourselves utterly to me. I have surrendered myself as God absolutely to you; I became man and died for you that I might be entirely yours. Come and surrender yourselves entirely to be mine.’ ― Andrew Murray, Absolute Surrender — I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. — John 15:5 (KJV) We were always having the same argument, just disguised under the facade of a different topic. He felt confused and misunderstood by me; I felt a lack of care and protection from him. One night, we were sitting across from each other at a beautiful restaurant in silence, scrolling mindlessly through our phones. Nearly every post in my social media feed validated my belief everyone else had it better than we did. I felt alone and disappointed in having a marriage that didn’t feel (in any form) picture perfect. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ In the midst of my self-pity, a loud, exuberant laugh caught my attention. A cheerful, middle-aged couple was sitting at the table next to us, captivated in conversation. I watched as he reached across the table and grabbed her hand, causing the already-present-smile on her face to widen. Their locked eye-contact and enthusiasm in their voices portrayed they were thoroughly enjoying each other’s company. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I looked across the table at my husband as he was face-down in his ESPN app and wondered what we were missing. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What do they know about marriage that I don’t? How do you improve a marriage that feels hard? — Jan Clark @rootedandrising_ , 4 Things To Do When Marriage Feels Hard — We are sharing one of our favorite articles on marriage from our Small Seed archives today—be sure to click the link in our bio for 4 gospel-based suggestions of what you can do when your marriage feels hard! — 📷: Milan Popovic We would do well to slow down a little, proceed at the optimum speed for our circumstances, focus on the significant, lift up our eyes, and truly see the things that matter most. Let us be mindful of the foundational precepts our Heavenly Father has given to His children that will establish the basis of a rich and fruitful mortal life with promises of eternal happiness. They will teach us to do ‘all these things…in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that [we] should run faster than [we have] strength. [But] it is expedient that [we] should be diligent, [and] thereby…win the prize.’ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ...As we turn to our Heavenly Father and seek His wisdom regarding the things that matter most, we learn over and over again the importance of four key relationships: with our God, with our families, with our fellowman, and with ourselves. As we evaluate our own lives with a willing mind, we will see where we have drifted from the more excellent way. The eyes of our understanding will be opened, and we will recognize what needs to be done to purify our heart and refocus our life. — Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Of Things That Matter Most — 📷: Annie Spratt It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship...All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or the other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all of our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations—these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit...— C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory — How would the world look if we all behaved according to this knowledge?! — We wanted to give you a weekend challenge from our study guide! We encourage you to identify a family member or someone in your circle of life and write a note of encouragement, pray more sincerely for them, look for ways to be helpful, and/or tell them you love them. 💛 We get nearer to the Lord through music than perhaps through any other thing except prayer. — J. Reuben Clark — As we’ve worked to incorporate good music in our home, this last month has been dramatically different. Along the way we’ve learned a few tips and found some new music that we love, which I’m sharing below! I would love to hear your ideas, as well as any good spiritual songs or albums that you and your family love—let me know in the comments below! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Here are my 5 favorite tips for using music to strengthen your family: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 1. Play uplifting music at mealtimes (especially at breakfast to start the day!). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 2. Use music to help children learn and memorize scriptures. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 3. Take time to talk about the lyrics and the meaning of the music. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 4. Play uplifting music while driving, playing, or any other time! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 5. Use good music at bedtime. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ — Lizzy Jensen @lizzy.jensen, 5 Ways to Use Gospel Music to Strengthen Your Family from our Small Seed archives (link in bio — check out more on each of Lizzy’s 5 tips!) You can never learn that Christ is all you need, until Christ is all you have. — Corrie ten Boom — Today we feature a Story of Faith profile on Corrie ten Boom by Brittany Richman of @theamericanmoms and are touched by her recounting of Corrie’s miraculous life and how we can learn from her faith, efforts to forgive, and the purpose she found in God. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Click the link in our bio or stories to read the full story, and find a quick peek into Corrie’s life below! — [Corrie] was determined that even in a Nazi concentration camp, she would conquer the brutality and spread light. Those nightly Bible readings brought peace and comfort to the women in those barracks, barracks crammed with over 1400 women in a place designed to hold only 400….Despite the dark circumstances that brought them there, Corrie remembered those times as “little previews of heaven, these evenings beneath the lightbulb.” If they were caught, Corrie knew she could be killed. However, the guards, who did daily checks in every other barrack in the camp, never came. The reason was both a curse and a blessing: the barrack was infested with fleas. The guards wouldn’t step foot in a barrack with a flea infestation. Corrie and her sister thanked God daily for those fleas. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Days before Betsie passed away of illness exacerbated by the conditions in the camp, she told Corrie that she had a vision that they would return to Germany to teach people about God. Corrie was shocked. Germany was the last place she would ever want to return. But Betsie insisted that it was the Germans who would need their message the most: “We must tell people what we have learned here. We must tell them that there is no pit so deep that He is not deeper still. They will listen to us, Corrie, because we have been here.” — Brittany Richman, Story of Faith | Corrie ten Boom I remember, very vividly, a conversation I had with my parents when I was a little girl. We were in the kitchen putting our dinner plates away after a big Sunday dinner. My mom said, ‘If you see someone working on something, such as putting dishes away, you help them. In doing so, you are seeing a need and filling it. Help them and don't sit down until everyone can sit down.’ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ It was not the first time I heard them use that phrase; it was somewhat of a family theme. On Sunday evenings, we would have a family council and we would share times during the week when we had seen a need and filled it. There was a sense of accountability I felt as a child, knowing my parents wanted us to look for service opportunities and report back on them every week. During those councils, we would share our experiences and my parents would award one of us with a metal statue we called the happy warrior. They would award the statue to someone whom they had observed seeing a need and filling it. As a child, this concept resonated with me. I really enjoyed the ability to lighten the burden or job of someone else.... ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Jesus was the perfect example of seeing a need and filling it. There are multiple experiences recorded in the scriptures of Him stopping and meeting people’s needs. In Matthew 9:35, it says, ‘And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.’ He took the time in His ministry to see the needs of the one. — Emily Blewitt @emilyblewitt, Faith-Based Parenting: See A Need And Fill It from our Small Seed archives (link in bio!) — What things have your parents taught you as a child that have stuck with you through the years? Which do you want to pass on? We’d love to know! — Painting ‘Greatest in the Kingdom’ by @jkirkrichards Of all the words they could have chosen to define her role and her essence, both God the Father and Adam called Eve ‘the mother of all living’—and they did so before she ever bore a child. Like Eve, our motherhood began before we were born....Motherhood is more than bearing children, though it is certainly that. It is the essence of who we are as women. It defines our very identity, our divine stature and nature, and the unique traits our Father gave us.... ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The subject of motherhood is a very tender one, for it evokes some of our greatest joys and heartaches. This has been so from the beginning. Eve was ‘glad’ after the Fall, realizing she otherwise ‘never should have had seed.’ And yet, imagine her anguish over Cain and Abel. Some mothers experience pain because of the children they have borne; others feel pain because they do not bear children here.... ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ [T]he Lord’s timetable for each of us does not negate our nature. Some of us, then, must simply find other ways to mother. And all around us are those who need to be loved and led. — Sheri Dew — Happy Mother’s Day from our Small Seed team to each of you who is part of this community of women! While it is a holiday that can have mixed emotions for some, we echo Sheri Dew’s words today: are we not all mothers? Further, we each have been brought into this world and raised by women of all types, who have mothered us—biological or not. We love you and appreciate each of you amazing women who reach out to comment, uplift and support each other here—it is the essence and model of righteous womanhood. Children or not, married or not, we are so grateful for the divine nature God gives each of His daughters so that they can lift and raise the next generation. Happy Sunday! — 📷: @samandravieira While the world I live in is dramatically different than it was two thousand years ago, I think motherhood is very similar. I think of Eve…no cookbooks, no Pinterest, no parenting books, not even a mother or a girlfriend to call for advice! But maybe that made it easier for her to see the necessity of relying on the Savior. She experienced childbirth, she taught her children to pray, she managed the cooking, the cleaning, and the laundry all with children crying at her feet. I like to think she tickled her children, laughed with them, wiped their tears, sang their praises, and delighted in their progress. I am sure she disciplined, mourned when her children fought with each other, and she experienced losing a child. That is the motherhood that I know: the perfect combination of hard and happy to lead me to His grace. With grace motherhood helps me see my weaknesses (all too clearly most of the time), but then lets me work to overcome them. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ While [the scriptures] are filled with doctrines and topics worthy of intense study, they are also filled with reminders of faithful parents who knew Christ and experienced His grace. Motherhood has led me to His grace. And that is truly a gift. ‘For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is a gift from God.’ (Ephesians 2:8) — Jesika Harmon @jesikaharmon, from the Embracing Grace in Motherhood series in our Small Seed archives What can you do, as a young mother, to reduce the pressure and enjoy your family more? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ First, recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. She said: ‘The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make....I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less” (from Quindlen’s book, Loud and Clear). — M. Russell Ballard, Daughters of God — What can you do this coming weekend that will help you to slow down and enjoy moments with your loved ones? We would love to know any tips or ideas you have for making this possible! Share below in the comments! 💛 The psalmist wrote, “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. (Psalms 8:3-5, KJV) The Lord gave an answer to the psalmist’s question; it is recorded in the book of Moses: “For mine own purpose have I made these things….And by the word of my power, have I created them…For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:31–32, 39). When we look to see the evidence of creation all around us, from a grain of sand to the majestic planets, we begin to realize that we are the greatest of all God’s creations; we are created in his image. — M. Russell Ballard MINI DEVOTIONAL — May Study Guide — “Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting / The soul that rises with us, our life’s Star / Hath had elsewhere its setting / And cometh from afar…” These words, penned by William Wordsworth, immortalize in a most eloquent way this fundamental truth: you are a child of God. . Many of us have grown up with those words ringing in our ears, spoken or sung, taught over the pulpit at church, read in Holy Scripture, borne witness to by the Spirit itself (Romans 8:16). And yet, how often do we take the time to ponder the implications of those words? . As a child of God, you are in fact a child of noble birth, with a divine nature and infinite worth. As a child of God, you are loved and known by the Creator of all things (Jeremiah 1:5). As a child of God, you are an heir of God and a joint-heir with Christ (Romans 8:17). As a child of God, you deserve respect—from self and others. As a child of God, you should take care to bring honor to your Father through words and deeds. As a child of God, you should keep your heavenly home in view. — Megan Grant — The first part of our study guide focus is centered on understanding our identity as a child of God, our Father in Heaven. We’re so grateful for study guide editor @megan_j_grant who has shared her thoughts on this essential element of our divine nature! We'd love to hear how your study is going in this months study guide. Have you downloaded it yet? xo, The Small Seed Team My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. — John 10:27 (NIV) — When I see a flock of sheep I see exactly that—a flock. A rabble of wool…all alike. But not so with the shepherd. To him every sheep is different. Every face is special. Every sheep has a name, and that includes you! The Shepherd you! He knows your name and he will never forget it. — Max Lucado, When God Whispers Your Name @maxlucado All of us, single or married, are eternally part of some family—someway, somewhere, somehow—and much of our joy in life comes as we correctly recognize and properly develop those family relationships. We come to this earth charged with a mission: to learn to love and serve one another. To best help us accomplish this, God has placed us in families, for he knows that is where we can best learn to overcome selfishness and pride and to sacrifice for others and to make happiness and helpfulness and humility and love the very essence of our character. We learn that friends and neighbors come and go but family is forever, and as we learn this, we find that we are eternally our brother’s keeper and we begin to realize how much help we need. — John H. Groberg When we understand our relationship to God, we also understand our relationship to one another. All men and women on this earth are the offspring of God, spirit brothers and sisters. What a powerful idea! No wonder God’s Only Begotten Son commanded us to love one another. If only we could do so! What a different world it would be if brotherly and sisterly love and unselfish assistance could transcend all boundaries of nation, creed, and color. Such love would not erase all differences of opinion and action, but it would encourage each of us to focus our opposition on actions rather than actors. . The eternal truth that our Heavenly Father loves all his children is an immensely powerful idea. It is especially powerful when children can visualize it through the love and sacrifice of their earthly parents. Love is the most powerful force in the world. — Dallin Oaks, Powerful Ideas To mothers, especially young mothers, who often feel overwhelmed and underwater while striving to raise “a sin-resistant generation,” never underestimate your central role in God’s plan. In stressful moments—perhaps when you are chasing little ones and a charred smell from the kitchen informs you that your lovingly prepared dinner is now a burnt offering—know that God sanctifies your most difficult days. — Brian Taylor, Am I A Child of God?