I taught Lesson 12 to my mother while we were doing our laundry at the laundromat and following a prayer, I asked Mom what she thought the word salty meant, as the same question was asked of us during this week's gathering. I then asked what charity meant to her and how she would explain it to another who didn't know the meaning of it.
Mom said that she thought the word salty meant spicy and she would explain the meaning of salt as being kind of bitter, yet an addition of flavor. She said salt is used to preserve things.
I then asked Mom what the word charity meant to her and I also asked her how she would explain the meaning of the word to someone who didn't know what it meant.
Mom said that to her, charity means the pure love of Christ. She said she would explain the meaning to another by saying that charity is giving of yourself or your resources for the betterment of other people.
From there, I asked Mom to share when she has received charity and when she has been the giver of charity. Mom said that the most recent instance in which she received charity when my father was sick with his cancer and after he died, as a lot of tender mercies came into her life. As far as giving charity, Mom said that she has been the most charitable when she has been of service to her fellow man through service projects such as helping feed people at the seniors center on Christmas Days in the past and volunteering at the Honored Guest Party in Raymond for many years. She said that giving service and charity gives her a great deal of self-satisfaction.
I then asked Mom what we can become more charitable at as children of God? She said that we can be more charitable at giving of our time, as anyone can be charitable with their finances, but it is so much more difficult to be charitable with our time.
From that point, I asked Mom how the hand of the Lord has touched her life and the life of her family, inviting her to get as personal as she wished or just give a simple answer if she felt more comfortable doing that. Mom said that we might not ever have extra money, but we seem to always have enough because we show our faith by paying tithing.
In conclusion, I asked Mom what the Lord has done for her throughout the week and again invited her to get as personal as she felt comfortable doing with the subject. Mom said that when she had anxiety issues and problems doing tests and other work at school, she would immediately go to her email and look through her LDS Daily Messages to have the Spirit help keep her calm. She and I also prayed continually for her that she would pass her school lessons and all the tests. Mom concluded by saying that ever day she can open her eyes and be healthy enough to do what she needs to, she is very grateful for the knowledge that the Lord is there and giving her blessings as she presses forward.
Learning Report
In terms of the goal I set for the relationship between my brother and I, we managed to have a couple of brief conversations in passing, as we ran into each other while I was downtown and he was on his lunch hour from work. We always ended the conversations by saying how we loved each other and giving each other a hug, so I think that goal was accomplished. I also offered to take him to a movie sometime, but he was busy during the time I wanted to go.
In terms of the goal I set for my mother, I did whatever housework and errands needed to be done after taking care of my own school work so that Mom could stay late to finish all of her school work. She was busy trying to finish a test during the week and was very exhausted and in need of relaxation by the time she got home this week, so we haven't yet done any practice typing tests as of yet. However, we have made an effort to spend time together and I fully intend to help her with her typing through practice tests this week.
The challenge in terms of both my mother and my brother was just seeing them for more than a few moments during the day because we are all so busy right now with school and work. However, when we did see each other, we made the most of the small amount of time that we had and always took the time to say 'I love you,' to each other. Any time I can spend with my family is precious to me and it is also precious to them, as we are all being proactive in the process of healing the damage caused to our family by my dad when he was alive and drinking heavily.
The most important thing I did today was spend time with my family, which is refreshing because there is not much opportunity to do so during the week. I went grocery shopping with my mom and my brother and we got food from a drive-thru before returning back to our respective houses. I know that some families may not look at grocery shopping, driving around, and getting food from a drive-thru as spending quality time together. Since, however, we are all currently very busy during the week, I enjoy any time my family can spend together however we can be together.
The most important thing I want to remember from this lesson is the talk 'What Have I Done for Someone Today?' by Thomas S. Monson and it talked about how there are people in need all around us and with that, there are ample opportunities for us to serve and fulfill those needs. There is opportunity to show love for others every day and serve others to truly show that love and lose our daily concerns and worries in the love that we can show through our service and feel as a result of doing service. Intent is nice, but it dies unless action follows it even if the action is but a simple gesture of love. The Lord will not abandon us when we strive to do his work in a righteous frame of mind. By being prepared to teach others, we shall be given the opportunity to do so as long as we strive to do it righteously.We really need to take time in our daily lives, no matter how busy we might get, to think about the Savior and how much He gave us that we might be able to live and learn to our fullest potential and that we don't have to focus on our sins because He bought them off of us and took the penalty required for them, something only one of a perfect life could do. We need to show gratitude for Christ's act of healing and grace by living the best lives we can live.
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