I guess it is about time that I speak up. Share a little bit of history with the future generation. I guess I would like to start with the historical moment of our first African American President, Barack Obama. I was sitting on my couch with MY LB filling out Matthew's homework (shh his teacher would be very disappointed) after Matthew went to bed it was to much fun to stop keeping track of electoral votes. Of course we all know that got boring fast because we knew who our new president would be pretty early on. No, we did not vote for Barack Obama. We voted for John McCain. Of course that is water under the bridge and we must move forward. Pray for hope and guidance for our new president and for our country.
Next I would like to put down on our history book the current economic state and how it is affecting our family. I do not claim to know much about politics or even the current approach the government is taking in resolving matters. I also do not claim to have any resolve over why we are in this economic state. Sure I have read theories and talked amongst friends and family regarding the issue but still I have no resolve. I have read reference to our current state as being severe recession, near stock market bottom, housing crisis, rising jobless rates, banking crisis and a suffering economy. Still I do not claim to know or understand why it has happened or when and how it will be resolved.
However I do know what I see. I see empty buildings where once were shoppers. Empty homes where once lived families. Jobless friends and neighbors trying to endure. Church leaders asking us to reach out and help one another. So how do we sustain ourselves through this suffering economy?
MY LB and I have made changes but mostly in behavior and gratitude. Besides owing more on our home then it is actually worth we have been very blessed during this time. However our financial mistakes seem to become magnified and past choices become more then a learning experience. We learn the value of money, the discomfort of debt and the integrity in keeping our financial obligations. We also learn to be grateful for the things that we take for granted. Shelter, food, vehicles, schools and teachers, income and many other things that seem so easy to come by. In a moment of economic insecurity these things seem so much more important then they were before. We are blessed!
"Fear not, for I am with thee". These are the words that give our family comfort in this time of economic insecurity . So through it all we will look to our Savior for peace. We will follow the guidance of our church leaders. We will pray for inspiration and most of all we will continue to build and strengthen our family unit upon the teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Family: A Proclamation to the World : The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. "Children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalms 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.
The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.
All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny.
