Back To Basics Homemaking Night

Tonight after work & school & dinner, Autumn & I went to homemaking.  They had some of the young women there to watch the kids so I could listen and get my craft on w/ out being interrupted every few minutes.  It was glorious!  The first part of homemaking was about getting back to the basics of prayer & scripture study (I talk more about that below) and how to set the tone of our home.  After the 2 lessons, we went into the cultural hall and did this ADORABLE craft that Mariah from Giggles Galore ‘N’ More came and taught us how to make.  It’s a way for us to keep track and be accountable to ourselves to read our scriptures & say our prayers daily and then to have FHE once a week.

It was my first time using washi tape, and I’ve been seeing it all over craft blogs for years now, and have always wanted to try it.  But, I haven’t ever bought any b/c I that’s an expensive thing to get into w/ a roll of tape costing roughly $4.  So, I was glad I finally got to use it and I must say I’m a big fan of the stuff, but just can’t even let myself buy one roll b/c it would be a slippery slope downhill after that!

I went & got Autumn from the babysitting room and she said she had a great time.  It was already 9:00 by the time we got home, so I put her to bed right away.  Then I went straight to my church bag and got out my scriptures and scripture journal so I could write down some of the thoughts that Sis. Atkinson shared on getting back to the basics.  It was SO GOOD and I didn’t want to forget anything (although I already had).

• What’s the first thing you think of when you wake up in the morning?  She said not to share what we were thinking (LOL) and instead suggested that we say to ourselves when we wake up, “I’m building the kingdom of God today.”  That will change the outlook of our whole day.
• She showed us about 20 different pictures of the Savior and asked us to say the first thing that came to our mind.  It was neat to hear what different words we felt as we saw each picture.  She wanted us to know and feel how much our Heavenly Father & Savior love us.
• Then she talked about how knowledge leads to a testimony and the step beyond that is true conversion leads us to action.  We have to learn to move what we know in our heads to what we feel in our hearts.
• Next she talked about the simple commandments of reading our scriptures & praying daily, both as individuals and as families.  If you think about it, those are not complicated commandments.  They are pretty straight forward.  That doesn’t mean they are easy to do, but they simple…just read and pray.
• My favorite part was when she tied that into Alma 33.  We tend to look at the children of Israel and think of how dumb they were to not look at the brass serpent if they had been bitten.  It was such a simple thing to do to be healed.  She then compared that to us and how we’re not very different from the Israelites.  She read us the following verses and told us to think of them in terms of ourselves and reading & praying daily:

19) …behold a type was raised up in the wilderness, that whosoever would look upon it {read and pray}  might live. And many did look {read and pray} and live.

20) But few understood the meaning importance of those things {reading and praying}, and this because of the hardness of their hearts. But there were many who were so hardened that they would not look {read and pray}, therefore they perished {spiritually}. Now the reason they would not look {read and pray} is because they did not believe {truly believe in their hearts} that it would heal them.

21) O my brethren {sisters}, if ye could be healed by merely casting about your eyes   {reading your scriptures and saying your prayers}that ye might be healed, would ye not behold {read and pray} quickly, or would ye rather harden your hearts in unbelief, and be slothful {or in other words be lazy and not do it}, that ye would not cast about your eyes {read and pray}, that ye might perish?

22) If so, wo shall come upon you; but if not so, then cast about your eyes {read and pray} and begin to believe in the Son of God, that he will come to redeem his people, and that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins; and that he shall rise again from the dead, which shall bring to pass the resurrection, that all men shall stand before him, to be judged at the last and judgment day, according to their works.

23) And now, my brethren {sisters}, I desire that ye shall plant this word in your hearts, and as it beginneth to swell even so nourish it by your faith. And behold, it will become a tree {or true conversion which spurs you to action}, springing up in you unto everlasting life. And then may God grant unto you that your burdens may be light, through the joy of his Son {who doesn’t want that, and what an incredible blessing from simply reading and praying daily}. And even all this can ye do if ye will {it’s up to US to make the choice}. Amen.

It was SO POWERFUL to hear her read those verses like that.  They sank into my heart and made such an impact.

• She wrapped everything back to the beginning part by saying that we have to be obedient so we can invite the Holy Ghost to be with us so we can receive inspiration daily. When we REMEMBER why we love our Heavenly Father and Jesus, we obey because we love them and that deepens our conversion and changes us.
• She also talked about how important it is to have the Holy Ghost with us daily and to bring Him into our lives and homes and teach our children, b/c we have such an important role to fill as women.  She shared this quote by George Q. Cannon, “God has reserved spirits for this dispensation who have the courage and determination to face the world, and all the powers of the evil one, visible and invisible, to proclaim the Gospel, and maintain the truth, and establish and build up the Zion of our God, fearless of all consequences. He has sent these spirits in this generation to lay the foundation of Zion never more to be overthrown, and to raise up a seed that will be righteous, and that will honor God, and honor him supremely, and be obedient to him under all circumstances. (Journal of Discourses,11:230)
• When we begin doing the things the prophets have guided us to do, we come to understand a drop at a time that the Savior's Atonement really does heal us. Doing the basic things will help us to have the Spirit and brings us to our Savior to be healed.

The Spirit was so strong when she spoke and it all made perfect sense to me.  That’s why I wanted to write it all down and highlight those verses as soon as I got home.  I think I’ll print off all the notes I just typed above and glue that piece of paper into my scriptures by this verse.