Progress

I realized a few things when I went in the pantry to clean it up - I use a lot of valuable space for things that aren't food! So....what do I actually need to do with the things I WANT vs the things I NEED? That's going to take a weeding out and a little more time than I had when I went in to clean!

Freezer before. Seriously - I don't think that having 200 flavor ice for 3 years is a good thing.

Freezer after. I know how much beef we have left from the last steer - and we need to get another one ready! It's a process though. Fix the fence; fix the corral; fix the bulls so they're steers (hahahaha!)

Anybody know that shelf life of #10 canned wheat? I don't. Some of this is going to take a little research.

Following up with our focus on culture, I found this very interesting and alarming! In Illinois right now, the State Board of Education approved a new rule for statewide curriculum mandates called the Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards. Essentially, it's a new law that forces teachers to "Embrace and encourage progressive viewpoints and perspectives. That's a fancy way of saying that teachers are mandated by law to discuss current political controversies in class and they have to organize what they call action civics (field trips, student protests, lobbying expeditions) on behalf of causes like gun control or the green new deal. They have to admit that there's unlimited numbers of genders and prioritize representation of these 'genders' in the classroom. They are doing everything they can to bring this to the national level so that this can be the 'standard' in all schools. If a teacher says they will not teach these things, he/she gets his/her teaching license taken away. 

This illustrates the point that we are trying to make - we need to be the cultural instructors in our families! We need to make sure that we all know what things are true and what standards we follow. This storm of absolute LIES needs to stay out of our homes. It needs to stop with brave families who stand for what is right! 

Several quotes I found that may be helpful at this time:

*if you don't know what you stand for, you'll fall for anything

*There are some as wolves among us. Among our own membership, men are arising...diverting from the right or correct, and being obstinate in the wrong, willfully, in order to draw the weak and unwary members of the Church away after them. (Harold B. Lee; January 1973)

*The time is fast approaching when it will require a great courage for Latter-Day Saints to stand up for their peculiar standards and doctrine - all of their doctrine, including the more weighty principles such as the principle of freedom. (Ezra Taft Benson; October 1964)

*Behaviors which once were considered inappropriate and immoral are now not only tolerated by also viewed by ever so many as acceptable. (Thomas S. Monson; October 2011)

Do we know where to look for what our standards should be? Do we know how to change ourselves if we need to? Do we know how to stop the storms of the world? 

please share any help or thoughts you might have; we can all use the support!

February will be Scott and Brandee's month for posting on the blog.

What Can We Do?

I watched Charlie Kirk the other day talk about how Andrew Breitbart said politics are downstream from culture. What is culture? Dictionary dot com says it's the sum of attitudes, customs, and beliefs that distinguishes one group of people from another. Merriam-webster says the definition is the characteristic features of everyday existence (such as a way of life) shared by people in a place or time. 

In this little video snippet of Charlie Kirk's, he names the 7 areas of culture - business, government, media, arts and entertainment, family, education, and religion. With our recent government issues, dealings, and disappointments, Charlie says that the government has taken over all 7 of these areas of culture. He makes a good point - and a VERY important one! - that we as Christian Conservatives need to "play offense" in every single one of these areas. We need to reclaim our constitutional republic - the "choice land above all others". We need to take back these ideals! The storm that is in the world needs to STOP HERE - in our homes, families, and culture! Brandee and I were messaging about this and she said her theme for last year's Relief Society in her ward was "The Storm Stops Here: Making our Homes Christ-Centered Sanctuaries." How perfect is that for this year??

President Russel M. Nelson said in his April 2011 General Conference talk titled "Face the Future with Faith" that:

"Difficult days are ahead. Rarely in the future will it be easy or popular to be a faithful Latter-Day Saint. Each of us will be tested. The Apostle Paul warned that in the latter days, those who diligently follow the Lord 'shall suffer persecution.' That very persecution can either crush you into silent weakness or motivate you to be more exemplary and courageous in your daily lives."

Rather than being crushed (the fight or flight that we all deal with), I'd like to propose that we become motivated as a family so that we can help each other change our world. This blog is hopefully going to be our place to go to for that help. Each of us will have a month assigned that is ours to share tips, thoughts, lessons, strategies, etc. for becoming more exemplary. 

My contribution this month is based on an article that Brandee shared with me titled: 7 Ways to Transform Your Home into a Sanctuary of Faith from the website thirdhour.org

In the October 2018 General Conference, President Nelson spoke about transforming our homes into sanctuaries of faith. He began his talk by saying that 'we look to the future with enthusiasm. We have been motivated [by the other talks] to do better and to be better'. 

The 7 ways in the article are:

1) Paint the picture - sit down with your family and list all of the ways you can make your home a holy place. 

2) It's not just for one day of the week - there should be a high standard of behavior all week long, not just on Sunday.

3) Stay on the offense - make sure you are constantly doing things to promote an uplifting environment so that when the adversary comes knocking, you can combat him easily and effectively.

4) Cleanliness is Next to Godliness - It sounds not important, but the Lord says "Mine house is a house of order". Being clean and organized is not worldly or vain.

5) Let music set the mood - As all of you know, growing up with your dad, Music is important! Depending on what you are doing, choose music that will complement the activity!

6) Filling the technology void - plan activities that can replace our social media time. 

7) Allow room for mistakes - M. Russell Ballard stated: "[Your homes] may not always be spotlessly clean nor the children perfectly behaved. But they are a place in which family members clearly love each other, and the Spirit of the Lord is felt by those who visit."

I am mostly going to work on #4 - January seems like a great time to clean up and clean out! I need to assess the food storage situation and check dates and make sure we have what we need. I need to see what is in the old office that can be donated to people who need it more than we apparently do. I encourage you to have a cleanliness FHE in your home and let us know how it worked (or didn't work!). Share your tips and/or ask questions. 

Welcome Watson Family!