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Raising Up a Family to the Lord
How can you teach your family with the Spirit of the Lord? How can you reach a wayward child? How can you hold more effective, enjoyable family home evenings? In Raising Up a Family to the Lord, Elder Cook teaches parents how to counter the destructive forces in the world we live in and explains how children can be taught to love the Lord.
340 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 143 reviews
December 24, 2014
I'm not a member of the LDS church, however I have a few friends who are Mormon and I've been long intrigued with their church (even though their beliefs differ widely from my own). I've long been impressed with their focus on family and teaching their young.
After reading this article, I was even more impressed: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2...
I picked up this book to learn more about the methods they employ in teaching their children gospel truths.
I was surprised to learn that there was SOOO much from this book that I can apply within my own faith in raising my own family to the Lord!
It was quite easy to edit out the beliefs and thoughts that don't line up with my own faith.
This is my second time reading through this book and gathered even more ideas the second time around.
After reading this article, I was even more impressed: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2...
I picked up this book to learn more about the methods they employ in teaching their children gospel truths.
I was surprised to learn that there was SOOO much from this book that I can apply within my own faith in raising my own family to the Lord!
It was quite easy to edit out the beliefs and thoughts that don't line up with my own faith.
This is my second time reading through this book and gathered even more ideas the second time around.
January 7, 2014
This has been one of our family's core books for many years. It shaped our family culture in too many ways to name! A wonderful parenting guide for Latter-Day Saints.
January 3, 2010
This is a core book for me, shows how to have a healthy and happy family. I am a big Gene R. Cook fan.
May 3, 2010
This was all in all a great practical book. The principles he talks about therein are not some grand new thing that will magically change our family but all the stuff we hear each week in church. He says not to skip the first chapter, but sorry, I don't need convincing again why I should be raising my family up to the lord, that is why I wanted to read this book in the first place. so don't feel bad if you skim it too.
I especially love all the personal stories and examples he uses from his own family to illustrate his points, especially since, like the rest of us, he isn't perfect in his parenting skills all the time.
My favorite examples are how he uses prayer to turn his children to the lord, to teach them to love the lord. I love his question list for family scripture study and have been implementing it with my older kids.
his chapter on work was interesting, though there are some things that we don't see eye to eye on.
This book left me inspired to really take the time to make sure each of my kids develops that relationship with the lord through personal and family worship. a great read, much better than say dr sears, because when you get the lord involved, you will succeed.
I especially love all the personal stories and examples he uses from his own family to illustrate his points, especially since, like the rest of us, he isn't perfect in his parenting skills all the time.
My favorite examples are how he uses prayer to turn his children to the lord, to teach them to love the lord. I love his question list for family scripture study and have been implementing it with my older kids.
his chapter on work was interesting, though there are some things that we don't see eye to eye on.
This book left me inspired to really take the time to make sure each of my kids develops that relationship with the lord through personal and family worship. a great read, much better than say dr sears, because when you get the lord involved, you will succeed.
January 21, 2009
I am fired up after reading this book! I feel empowered to really be able to use the tools the Lord has given us to raise our children up to the Lord. Loved the first half of the book the best. Lots of great examples about turning the children to the Lord when they need answers to life's problems. Loved the concept of how to transfer my generation's (or the Lord's) values to the next generation (my children). And I loved the ideas about making family scripture study better. I doubt I'll use all of his ideas especially in relation to work, but loved the book nonetheless. I'm usually quite excited to get one or two good ideas that I think will work for me and my family but I feel like I came away with many more than two new ideas from this book.
May 29, 2017
Solid counsel to parents in the book, but it's quite long and, at times, rambling and repetitive. Before midway through the book, I felt as though I were slogging through. It was good enough that I didn't quit. However, it seemed to suffer from a lack of editing, as if someone at the publisher didn't feel they had the authority to trim the words of a General Authority or amount of quotes from scriptures and modern-day prophets. It was also written by someone who was apparently making all the right parenting decisions from the beginning and had cooperative children raised in an era long before the tech-heavy world we live in today, so no advice for some of the modern issues we face.
January 22, 2009
I read this book some years ago but had a great conversation about the book and listened to a talk by the author this weekend and remembered how much i had enjoyed the book. bro. cook gives great ideas on how to instill a love of the Lord in our children and teach them to rely on Him. i also liked his idea of the marking pencils at scripture study time for each person and pulled those back out. the kids are more engaged and can see how important we feel the scriptures are and develop their own relationship with the scriptures.
June 23, 2008
Elder Cook and I don't see eye to eye on everything, but overall I thought this book was great. I really liked a lot of the suggestions and examples he gave. I felt like some chapters were better than others. He gave me some really great ideas and insights that I hope to implement in my family. I would like Robbie to read it, but am not forcing him to like I've done with other books that I really feel strongly about him reading.
August 7, 2011
This book is beautiful encouragement for blessing the lives of your family members. Suggests specific ways to invite the Spirit into your home and covers topics like faith, discipline, work, finances, love and service. Highly recommended.
August 9, 2011
I read this book years ago and we also have it on audio cd, so I listen to it every so often. The teachings allow the Spirit to direct me in the way I need to teach my own family. I found it very inspiring, encouraging and motivating to improve.
May 30, 2016
This is a WONDERFUL book full of neat ideas for parents in teaching their children, and really for each member of the family and what they can do individually and together to be close to the Lord. There is really nothing more important in this life than to seek for the Lord and bring others to Him, particularly our families. Elder Cook shares some wonderful stories and examples and important principles we can all follow. He talks about the importance of prayer, scriptures, following the Spirit, living with faith and utilizing its power, working, repenting, keeping the commandments, loving, and serving.
I loved the very specific examples shared, very real and tender and helpful in illustrating how to apply these principles. These included ideas for how and when we should pray and how this can bring us together and closer to the Lord. There are also great examples of how to read the scriptures, how to exercise faith, how to discipline and teach repentance and forgiveness, how to follow the Spirit and truly love and serve, how to work and teach others to take responsibility for themselves.
Of course each family is different and will adapt and focus on different things, but the basic truths are important for everyone. Our prayers will be answered differently, but we can have faith and know that our Heavenly Father wants us and our families to succeed. As we have faith and humble ourselves and come to Him we will be blessed. There really is so much here to come back to and study and ponder. Many of the chapters contained a specific list of principles related to each topic (see pages 8, 169, 186, 194, 249). A great invitation to study! In a world of quickly shifting values and focus this book is a foundation that reminds us where to focus and how to come to the Lord.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes:
"'The Prophet Joseph Smith declared--the eternal sealings of faithful parents and the divine promises made to them for valiant service in the Cause of Truth, would save not only themselves, but likewise their prosperity. Though some of the sheep may wander, the eye of the Shepherd is upon them, and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of Divine Providence reaching out after them and drawing them back to the fold. Either in this life or the life to come, they will return (Orson F. Whitney, p. xiii).'"
"Seeing this brief snapshot of typical family life should make us humbly salute all parents, especially those who in dedication respond to the needs of their children. Parents all over the Church face such challenges every day of their lives (p. ixx)."
"Parents cannot adequately raise their children without direction from the Lord. The challenge is too great and the consequences are eternal (p. xx)."
"I bear testimony that the Lord fulfills his promises. If we will do our part, be patient, and keep the commandments, the Lord will answer our prayers concerning our families. He will bless us in our sacred duty to raise up our children unto him (p. xxvii)."
"The still, small voice whispers yet a deeper meaning: home is heaven. We are strangers here on earth. My real home is not here but there. My challenge is to learn how to make a home here on earth similar to the one I left in heaven. The Lord says we were taught 'even before [we] were born (p. 1).'"
"If you are righteous and faithful to the end, no matter what your present status, you will ultimately be blessed as part of a family unit (p. 3)."
"Remember to keep your family responsibilities as a priority. There will be many who will want to encroach upon your responsibility to teach and provide activities for your family. Never forget that yours is the primary responsibility, and that your ultimate success in all other endeavors will be in direct proportion to the attention you give these divinely appointed relationships (p. 5)."
"If children truly pray and read the scriptures on their own, that may be the best insurance of all that the children will ultimately achieve those outcomes (p. 18)."
"The Church plays an important role in supporting the individual and the family. It helps in teaching children about prayer, scripture reading, and gospel values, but it is much less influential than the family (p. 25)."
"Because our son was upset, he offended one of his sisters, and she began to cry....I did my best to offer a prayer for him: 'Heavenly Father, bless my son. He's hurting today. He's had some problems with the family. He's worried about his tests at school.' And I expressed my love to him the best I could in that prayer, exercising my faith that the Lord would help him that day if he would humble his heart. After a few minutes his heart was humbled, and as soon as the amen was uttered, he said, 'Dad, let me pray.' In his prayer he asked for forgiveness. He told the Lord that he loved him, and that he loved me. He told the Lord he would ask forgiveness of his sister. He said he was feeling great stress but that he believed the Lord would help him. After that prayer, a father and a son embraced in great love, and with the Lord as part of the solution, the love between the two of them was enriched a hundredfold (p. 34)."
"Love multiplies in such situations...because the Lord is in the situation (p. 35)."
"I suspect that I nor anyone else could ever teach in words or doctrine all that can be learned in a real experience with the Spirit of the Lord (p. 36)."
"If we ever allow pride to enter our hearts, thinking we know all about how to raise a family and that we 'are really good parents,' in that day the heavens will be sealed to us. But if we will humble ourselves and pray to the Lord as often as we can, the Lord truly will open our eyes that we may see and our ears that we may hear....Don't be too worried about the details of teaching. Be much more concerned about how to turn to the Lord and receive instruction from the true source. Knowing how to receive an answer from God may be the greatest gift you could ever bequeath to your children (p. 41)."
"Instead of talking about the less active, we said, 'We want you to go out and be with the less active. We're going to give you half an hour of instruction and then we'll ask you to go out for two hours and meet with some of them. Your objective is to bring them back to the Lord (p. 53).'"
"Express love openly for God and his children, and the Spirit will be felt profoundly (p. 57)."
"'You've come to ask if you could help me?'....I've often thought, 'What if we had not responded to the promptings? What if we had not been told what to say (p. 61)?'"
"Using the priesthood and its ordinances in your home is another way to invite the Spirit of the Lord to help you in raising your family (p. 67)."
"Brigham Young, at one time, preached a fiery sermon on repentance. John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff went up to the prophet after the sermon to resign as apostles. They said, 'We don't feel worthy to go on, President Young, as apostles of the Lord.' And Brigham Young answered them, 'No, my brethren, you'll find that the closer you draw to the Lord, the further away you'll recognize you really are, and that brings true humility.' If you will acknowledge who the Lord is and venture to say there is not one of us who does not have much to ask for in the spirit of forgiveness daily. Remembering that will help us be more humble (p. 72)."
"One of the greatest gifts we can give our children is to teach them to rely more fully on the Lord through prayer. What a blessing it would be fore them to know that the Lord lives and will answer their prayers. What a blessing it would be for them to know how to pray to him, and what some of the laws and conditions are to obtain answers to prayer...The best way for children to learn how to pray and to know the power of prayer is to see it in action in their own family. If they see parents who humbly kneel and offer prayer, they will do likewise. If they see parents who, when first confronted with a problem, turn immediately to the Lord, so will the children. Our children ought to see us daily give thanks to God in prayer. Again, if children see parents who are truly grateful, so will the children be (p. 77)."
"In many of our problems, we do not ask specifically enough or with real intent. How badly the Lord wants to bless us, and yet many of us will not ask. Thus he cannot bless us nearly as well as he would like (p. 81)."
"A family united in prayer can have real spiritual power (p. 90)."
"Prayer is truly one of the fundamental building blocks of raising up a family to the Lord (p. 100)."
"'Let us not treat lightly the great things we have received from the hand of the Lord. His word is one of the most valuable gifts He has given us. Recommit yourselves to a study of the scriptures. Immerse yourselves in them daily...Read them in your families and teach your children to love and treasure them (Ezra Taft Benson, p. 107).'"
"One of the most important things learned in reading the scriptures is how to hear the voice of the Lord to us. Instruction comes not only from reading the words; when we prayerfully ponder them, the Lord can speak 'between the lines' to us (p. 109)."
"Families will have to decide whether to study the Book of Mormon from beginning to end or to study it by subject. We have found that both are important ways of learning. We tend to read from beginning to end, but we stop anyplace we are interested in a particular concept. Then we may study that subject for a number of mornings, using the Topical Guide and Bible Dictionary, until we understand it. Whether it takes us one morning or five or six mornings, we do what we need to do to understand what we are reading, without feeling the need to rush on to continue a certain reading pace....We have found it important that each family member have a set of scriptures. Our little ones, especially, have taken great pleasure in having their own books with their own names on them, their own marking pencils, and so on. This seems to add to the importance of the scriptures and of scripture reading (p. 120)."
"What a tremendous way the Lord has of blessing us! He doesn't just solve our problems but he gives us assurance, peace, faith, and hope so that we will move forward to resolve our own problems under the direction of the Lord. Thus he makes us strong (p. 127)."
"The thought came to me strongly, 'Why do you want to find the cables? Are you looking for a sign to prove to the family, 'See, here are the lost cables; the Lord has done it again'?' There seems to be a very fine line between obtaining answers to prayers like that and seeking for a sign. As I recognized that, I tried to humble myself more and intently prayed that the Lord would return the cables. I also believed they would be found, in spite of the fact that this now seemed impossible, since my family had searched every single place....Why were the cables not found when the family searched so thoroughly? Perhaps the reason is that the Lord really does, because of love, test us over and over again. Many times the answers to our prayers are delayed or brought about in unusual ways to see if we will still believe. After the test of not finding them, the real test was, 'Do you still believe?' If we could pass that test, then we would receive an answer from the Lord (p. 137)."
"'I'd just suggest that you stay close to the Spirit of the Lord, and he will tell you what to do (Spencer W. Kimball, p. 149).'"
"If parents begin to teach as if they are the teacher instead of the instrument in the Lord's hands, things will not work as well. The Lord is the true teacher and we are here to assist him, not the other way around. How the Lord will work with us if we are faithful (p. 151)!"
"Children need to learn to act in faith, following the promptings of the Spirit, even when there is pressure from others (p. 161)."
"One of the problems for many of us is that we are just too busy to listen for the voice of the Spirit. We're too busily engaged and thus fail to notice some of the significant things that are occurring around us (p. 163)."
"The Lord seems especially to honor the fervent prayer of a good mother in behalf of her children....Are we exercising the same kind of faith and prayers in behalf of our families (p. 167)?"
"If we can show our children who the leaders really is, meaning the Lord, and turn them faithfully to him, he will raise up our children. He will turn their hearts. He will humble them. He will teach them from on high (p. 171)."
"Love is a divine motivation; it motivates the Lord and thus must motivate us. Particularly is that so in dealing with our families. Joseph F. Smith once said, 'Father if you wish your children to be taught in the principles of the gospel, if you wish them to love the truth and understand it, if you wish them to be obedient to and united with you, love them! and prove to them that you do love them by every word or ac to them (p. 176).'"
"Truly, love is a great power for good (p. 177)."
"Love your children enough to cause them to face the consequences of their own behavior. Do not shield them from the result (p. 184)."
"We could do everything for our children, but the only real safety for them lies within themselves. We an set up restrictions to guide them and put every protection around them, but when all is said and done, the final test is what is inside of them. They must be able to stand alone and to follow the promptings of the Spirit (p. 187)."
"When we hold our children accountable for their actions, they will interpret that as love. When we are loose and let them do whatever they want, they will interpret that as a lack of love. Children need direction, guidelines, and parents who love them enough to enforce the proper discipline for the breaking of rules (p. 194)."
"Whatever you sincerely believe about yourself becomes true, even if it is false in the beginning. We would all do well to stop and examine the beliefs we hold about ourselves, because many are true and probably many are not (p. 203)."
"We need to be sure that in training our children to keep the commandments, we do not neglect missionary work. Children can have a great influence in bringing people to Christ, and as they have these experiences, they will develop a desire to serve formal missions when they are older (p. 210)."
"They were somewhat surprised that his convictions about the quality of the movie were enough to turn down a friend, their son, who wanted him to go. They were even more impressed with the fact that he would stand up to two adults and tell them that. I'm thankful that my son did what was right on his own, with his parents nowhere in sight. As a result of his example, my wife and I were able to introduce the gospel to this family (p. 212)."
"The commandment to work was one of the first commandments given by the Lord to his children. I believe the Lord knew that if we were idle we would be more prone to discouragement and temptation. If we were given something concrete to do, we would be closer to the Lord and more fulfilled in life. Nothing else is quite as disheartening as being idle and not having work enough to do. I believe this is why the Lord would have us work all the days of our lives, as we are physically able, to sustain ourselves by the sweat of our brows (p. 226)."
"To be successful, families must be organized. But that...doesn't happen on its own. It requires plenty of planning and hard work (p. 229)."
"We have found that one of the great benefits of a garden is that we always produced more than we were able to eat. This gave us an opportunity to share with others in and around our neighborhood and develop good relations...sharing vegetables always gave us a reason to go visit someone (p. 235)."
"Children need to be taught to give of themselves, of their own time, to sacrifice and learn to work. The very sacrificing of some of the things they desire will teach them much and help bring the Spirit of the Lord to them (p. 242)."
"'It is worth it to keep the commandments of the Lord. The Lord will bless those who do (p. 246).'"
"Decisions about employment and careers truly are difficult ones. But if young people are taught to look to the Lord and keep his commandments with exactness, he truly will cause all things to 'work together for [their] good (p. 247).'"
"May I bear testimony...of the importance of young people working. It will build into them honesty, integrity, faith, diligence, determination, and many other characteristics of a good, well-developed person (p. 250)."
"As with most other areas, children learn about finances best from their parents. If the parents are diligent in budgeting, saving their money, being careful in distinguishing between needs and wants, and staying out of debt, so will be the children (p. 251)."
"In family councils we have regularly reviewed parts of the family budget over which the children had some control, such as utilities, food, music lessons, educational costs, and so on. That has helped them realize that they couldn't just have whatever they wanted in life but had to live within a budget (p. 252)."
"I've not seen an exception to the Lord's pouring out his blessings upon his people temporally if they would keep his commandments, if they would exercise faith in him and do those things he has commanded (p. 260)."
"Even little children who can't read can conduct family meetings. Parents can discuss with them what is to happen and in what order. Then they can make an agenda with pictures instead of words that the children can follow. It's a lot of fun to watch children conduct family home evening. It also builds their self-confidence and makes them feel like an important part of the family (p. 267)."
"May the Lord bless all of us to be more giving and to encircle the needy with the love of our families (p. 270)."
"Spend time with your children. Perhaps that is the greatest gift you can give them (p. 272)."
"Lighten up! Increase love among family members by sticking little notes around the house that say 'I love you' or that mention something special you have seen one of your children do (p. 273)."
"Remember that children often need to talk at inconvenient moments (p. 273)."
"Pass on to your children some of the skills you have learned (p. 273)."
"Just as we have callings in the Church, so we extend callings to our children in the family (p. 292)."
"There is no greater joy than bringing happiness to others and helping them save their own souls. This basic principle of love must be paramount in our teachings and our examples to our children if we desire to raise them up to the Lord....Let love abound in our homes, and then let it overflow into our neighborhoods to bless our fellowmen (p. 311)."
"Keep in mind that great pattern that Jesus gave us by what he did. If you search after that, you will find the answers of what to do (p. 327)."
"May the Lord bless us to give our very best effort to raising up our families to the Lord....May the Lord bless us to lead our children to the Lord, to love them, to cheer them up, to encourage them, and to support them. May he bless us to spend time with them, to teach them and prepare them for this life and, more important, for the life to come (p. 333)."
I loved the very specific examples shared, very real and tender and helpful in illustrating how to apply these principles. These included ideas for how and when we should pray and how this can bring us together and closer to the Lord. There are also great examples of how to read the scriptures, how to exercise faith, how to discipline and teach repentance and forgiveness, how to follow the Spirit and truly love and serve, how to work and teach others to take responsibility for themselves.
Of course each family is different and will adapt and focus on different things, but the basic truths are important for everyone. Our prayers will be answered differently, but we can have faith and know that our Heavenly Father wants us and our families to succeed. As we have faith and humble ourselves and come to Him we will be blessed. There really is so much here to come back to and study and ponder. Many of the chapters contained a specific list of principles related to each topic (see pages 8, 169, 186, 194, 249). A great invitation to study! In a world of quickly shifting values and focus this book is a foundation that reminds us where to focus and how to come to the Lord.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes:
"'The Prophet Joseph Smith declared--the eternal sealings of faithful parents and the divine promises made to them for valiant service in the Cause of Truth, would save not only themselves, but likewise their prosperity. Though some of the sheep may wander, the eye of the Shepherd is upon them, and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of Divine Providence reaching out after them and drawing them back to the fold. Either in this life or the life to come, they will return (Orson F. Whitney, p. xiii).'"
"Seeing this brief snapshot of typical family life should make us humbly salute all parents, especially those who in dedication respond to the needs of their children. Parents all over the Church face such challenges every day of their lives (p. ixx)."
"Parents cannot adequately raise their children without direction from the Lord. The challenge is too great and the consequences are eternal (p. xx)."
"I bear testimony that the Lord fulfills his promises. If we will do our part, be patient, and keep the commandments, the Lord will answer our prayers concerning our families. He will bless us in our sacred duty to raise up our children unto him (p. xxvii)."
"The still, small voice whispers yet a deeper meaning: home is heaven. We are strangers here on earth. My real home is not here but there. My challenge is to learn how to make a home here on earth similar to the one I left in heaven. The Lord says we were taught 'even before [we] were born (p. 1).'"
"If you are righteous and faithful to the end, no matter what your present status, you will ultimately be blessed as part of a family unit (p. 3)."
"Remember to keep your family responsibilities as a priority. There will be many who will want to encroach upon your responsibility to teach and provide activities for your family. Never forget that yours is the primary responsibility, and that your ultimate success in all other endeavors will be in direct proportion to the attention you give these divinely appointed relationships (p. 5)."
"If children truly pray and read the scriptures on their own, that may be the best insurance of all that the children will ultimately achieve those outcomes (p. 18)."
"The Church plays an important role in supporting the individual and the family. It helps in teaching children about prayer, scripture reading, and gospel values, but it is much less influential than the family (p. 25)."
"Because our son was upset, he offended one of his sisters, and she began to cry....I did my best to offer a prayer for him: 'Heavenly Father, bless my son. He's hurting today. He's had some problems with the family. He's worried about his tests at school.' And I expressed my love to him the best I could in that prayer, exercising my faith that the Lord would help him that day if he would humble his heart. After a few minutes his heart was humbled, and as soon as the amen was uttered, he said, 'Dad, let me pray.' In his prayer he asked for forgiveness. He told the Lord that he loved him, and that he loved me. He told the Lord he would ask forgiveness of his sister. He said he was feeling great stress but that he believed the Lord would help him. After that prayer, a father and a son embraced in great love, and with the Lord as part of the solution, the love between the two of them was enriched a hundredfold (p. 34)."
"Love multiplies in such situations...because the Lord is in the situation (p. 35)."
"I suspect that I nor anyone else could ever teach in words or doctrine all that can be learned in a real experience with the Spirit of the Lord (p. 36)."
"If we ever allow pride to enter our hearts, thinking we know all about how to raise a family and that we 'are really good parents,' in that day the heavens will be sealed to us. But if we will humble ourselves and pray to the Lord as often as we can, the Lord truly will open our eyes that we may see and our ears that we may hear....Don't be too worried about the details of teaching. Be much more concerned about how to turn to the Lord and receive instruction from the true source. Knowing how to receive an answer from God may be the greatest gift you could ever bequeath to your children (p. 41)."
"Instead of talking about the less active, we said, 'We want you to go out and be with the less active. We're going to give you half an hour of instruction and then we'll ask you to go out for two hours and meet with some of them. Your objective is to bring them back to the Lord (p. 53).'"
"Express love openly for God and his children, and the Spirit will be felt profoundly (p. 57)."
"'You've come to ask if you could help me?'....I've often thought, 'What if we had not responded to the promptings? What if we had not been told what to say (p. 61)?'"
"Using the priesthood and its ordinances in your home is another way to invite the Spirit of the Lord to help you in raising your family (p. 67)."
"Brigham Young, at one time, preached a fiery sermon on repentance. John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff went up to the prophet after the sermon to resign as apostles. They said, 'We don't feel worthy to go on, President Young, as apostles of the Lord.' And Brigham Young answered them, 'No, my brethren, you'll find that the closer you draw to the Lord, the further away you'll recognize you really are, and that brings true humility.' If you will acknowledge who the Lord is and venture to say there is not one of us who does not have much to ask for in the spirit of forgiveness daily. Remembering that will help us be more humble (p. 72)."
"One of the greatest gifts we can give our children is to teach them to rely more fully on the Lord through prayer. What a blessing it would be fore them to know that the Lord lives and will answer their prayers. What a blessing it would be for them to know how to pray to him, and what some of the laws and conditions are to obtain answers to prayer...The best way for children to learn how to pray and to know the power of prayer is to see it in action in their own family. If they see parents who humbly kneel and offer prayer, they will do likewise. If they see parents who, when first confronted with a problem, turn immediately to the Lord, so will the children. Our children ought to see us daily give thanks to God in prayer. Again, if children see parents who are truly grateful, so will the children be (p. 77)."
"In many of our problems, we do not ask specifically enough or with real intent. How badly the Lord wants to bless us, and yet many of us will not ask. Thus he cannot bless us nearly as well as he would like (p. 81)."
"A family united in prayer can have real spiritual power (p. 90)."
"Prayer is truly one of the fundamental building blocks of raising up a family to the Lord (p. 100)."
"'Let us not treat lightly the great things we have received from the hand of the Lord. His word is one of the most valuable gifts He has given us. Recommit yourselves to a study of the scriptures. Immerse yourselves in them daily...Read them in your families and teach your children to love and treasure them (Ezra Taft Benson, p. 107).'"
"One of the most important things learned in reading the scriptures is how to hear the voice of the Lord to us. Instruction comes not only from reading the words; when we prayerfully ponder them, the Lord can speak 'between the lines' to us (p. 109)."
"Families will have to decide whether to study the Book of Mormon from beginning to end or to study it by subject. We have found that both are important ways of learning. We tend to read from beginning to end, but we stop anyplace we are interested in a particular concept. Then we may study that subject for a number of mornings, using the Topical Guide and Bible Dictionary, until we understand it. Whether it takes us one morning or five or six mornings, we do what we need to do to understand what we are reading, without feeling the need to rush on to continue a certain reading pace....We have found it important that each family member have a set of scriptures. Our little ones, especially, have taken great pleasure in having their own books with their own names on them, their own marking pencils, and so on. This seems to add to the importance of the scriptures and of scripture reading (p. 120)."
"What a tremendous way the Lord has of blessing us! He doesn't just solve our problems but he gives us assurance, peace, faith, and hope so that we will move forward to resolve our own problems under the direction of the Lord. Thus he makes us strong (p. 127)."
"The thought came to me strongly, 'Why do you want to find the cables? Are you looking for a sign to prove to the family, 'See, here are the lost cables; the Lord has done it again'?' There seems to be a very fine line between obtaining answers to prayers like that and seeking for a sign. As I recognized that, I tried to humble myself more and intently prayed that the Lord would return the cables. I also believed they would be found, in spite of the fact that this now seemed impossible, since my family had searched every single place....Why were the cables not found when the family searched so thoroughly? Perhaps the reason is that the Lord really does, because of love, test us over and over again. Many times the answers to our prayers are delayed or brought about in unusual ways to see if we will still believe. After the test of not finding them, the real test was, 'Do you still believe?' If we could pass that test, then we would receive an answer from the Lord (p. 137)."
"'I'd just suggest that you stay close to the Spirit of the Lord, and he will tell you what to do (Spencer W. Kimball, p. 149).'"
"If parents begin to teach as if they are the teacher instead of the instrument in the Lord's hands, things will not work as well. The Lord is the true teacher and we are here to assist him, not the other way around. How the Lord will work with us if we are faithful (p. 151)!"
"Children need to learn to act in faith, following the promptings of the Spirit, even when there is pressure from others (p. 161)."
"One of the problems for many of us is that we are just too busy to listen for the voice of the Spirit. We're too busily engaged and thus fail to notice some of the significant things that are occurring around us (p. 163)."
"The Lord seems especially to honor the fervent prayer of a good mother in behalf of her children....Are we exercising the same kind of faith and prayers in behalf of our families (p. 167)?"
"If we can show our children who the leaders really is, meaning the Lord, and turn them faithfully to him, he will raise up our children. He will turn their hearts. He will humble them. He will teach them from on high (p. 171)."
"Love is a divine motivation; it motivates the Lord and thus must motivate us. Particularly is that so in dealing with our families. Joseph F. Smith once said, 'Father if you wish your children to be taught in the principles of the gospel, if you wish them to love the truth and understand it, if you wish them to be obedient to and united with you, love them! and prove to them that you do love them by every word or ac to them (p. 176).'"
"Truly, love is a great power for good (p. 177)."
"Love your children enough to cause them to face the consequences of their own behavior. Do not shield them from the result (p. 184)."
"We could do everything for our children, but the only real safety for them lies within themselves. We an set up restrictions to guide them and put every protection around them, but when all is said and done, the final test is what is inside of them. They must be able to stand alone and to follow the promptings of the Spirit (p. 187)."
"When we hold our children accountable for their actions, they will interpret that as love. When we are loose and let them do whatever they want, they will interpret that as a lack of love. Children need direction, guidelines, and parents who love them enough to enforce the proper discipline for the breaking of rules (p. 194)."
"Whatever you sincerely believe about yourself becomes true, even if it is false in the beginning. We would all do well to stop and examine the beliefs we hold about ourselves, because many are true and probably many are not (p. 203)."
"We need to be sure that in training our children to keep the commandments, we do not neglect missionary work. Children can have a great influence in bringing people to Christ, and as they have these experiences, they will develop a desire to serve formal missions when they are older (p. 210)."
"They were somewhat surprised that his convictions about the quality of the movie were enough to turn down a friend, their son, who wanted him to go. They were even more impressed with the fact that he would stand up to two adults and tell them that. I'm thankful that my son did what was right on his own, with his parents nowhere in sight. As a result of his example, my wife and I were able to introduce the gospel to this family (p. 212)."
"The commandment to work was one of the first commandments given by the Lord to his children. I believe the Lord knew that if we were idle we would be more prone to discouragement and temptation. If we were given something concrete to do, we would be closer to the Lord and more fulfilled in life. Nothing else is quite as disheartening as being idle and not having work enough to do. I believe this is why the Lord would have us work all the days of our lives, as we are physically able, to sustain ourselves by the sweat of our brows (p. 226)."
"To be successful, families must be organized. But that...doesn't happen on its own. It requires plenty of planning and hard work (p. 229)."
"We have found that one of the great benefits of a garden is that we always produced more than we were able to eat. This gave us an opportunity to share with others in and around our neighborhood and develop good relations...sharing vegetables always gave us a reason to go visit someone (p. 235)."
"Children need to be taught to give of themselves, of their own time, to sacrifice and learn to work. The very sacrificing of some of the things they desire will teach them much and help bring the Spirit of the Lord to them (p. 242)."
"'It is worth it to keep the commandments of the Lord. The Lord will bless those who do (p. 246).'"
"Decisions about employment and careers truly are difficult ones. But if young people are taught to look to the Lord and keep his commandments with exactness, he truly will cause all things to 'work together for [their] good (p. 247).'"
"May I bear testimony...of the importance of young people working. It will build into them honesty, integrity, faith, diligence, determination, and many other characteristics of a good, well-developed person (p. 250)."
"As with most other areas, children learn about finances best from their parents. If the parents are diligent in budgeting, saving their money, being careful in distinguishing between needs and wants, and staying out of debt, so will be the children (p. 251)."
"In family councils we have regularly reviewed parts of the family budget over which the children had some control, such as utilities, food, music lessons, educational costs, and so on. That has helped them realize that they couldn't just have whatever they wanted in life but had to live within a budget (p. 252)."
"I've not seen an exception to the Lord's pouring out his blessings upon his people temporally if they would keep his commandments, if they would exercise faith in him and do those things he has commanded (p. 260)."
"Even little children who can't read can conduct family meetings. Parents can discuss with them what is to happen and in what order. Then they can make an agenda with pictures instead of words that the children can follow. It's a lot of fun to watch children conduct family home evening. It also builds their self-confidence and makes them feel like an important part of the family (p. 267)."
"May the Lord bless all of us to be more giving and to encircle the needy with the love of our families (p. 270)."
"Spend time with your children. Perhaps that is the greatest gift you can give them (p. 272)."
"Lighten up! Increase love among family members by sticking little notes around the house that say 'I love you' or that mention something special you have seen one of your children do (p. 273)."
"Remember that children often need to talk at inconvenient moments (p. 273)."
"Pass on to your children some of the skills you have learned (p. 273)."
"Just as we have callings in the Church, so we extend callings to our children in the family (p. 292)."
"There is no greater joy than bringing happiness to others and helping them save their own souls. This basic principle of love must be paramount in our teachings and our examples to our children if we desire to raise them up to the Lord....Let love abound in our homes, and then let it overflow into our neighborhoods to bless our fellowmen (p. 311)."
"Keep in mind that great pattern that Jesus gave us by what he did. If you search after that, you will find the answers of what to do (p. 327)."
"May the Lord bless us to give our very best effort to raising up our families to the Lord....May the Lord bless us to lead our children to the Lord, to love them, to cheer them up, to encourage them, and to support them. May he bless us to spend time with them, to teach them and prepare them for this life and, more important, for the life to come (p. 333)."
August 10, 2018
This served as an inspiration for my daily scripture study on a topical basis, and it also has helped me initiate many discussions with my family during our devotional time to help to strengthen my family in many ways. I have owned it for 20 years as it was a gift for my wedding. It’s quite appropriate that I finished reading it as I celebrate my 20th wedding anniversary. It’s easy to fall into ruts after 20 years of family life, and this book is helping me to renew my resolve to strengthen my family by bringing them into the Lord. Filled with inspirational stories showing principles in action, and there is some really helpful parenting advice that is much more helpful than traditional parenting books in my opinion and confirmed many principles that I have discovered through much prayer and parenting trial and error.
January 16, 2018
This religious book about parenting is less about processes to raise children, and more about the kinds of attitudes and the spiritual things you should do to raise a family to the Lord.
Cooke had 9 children and he explained how they kept the Lord at the forefront of their lives, how they did family scriptures and prayer, how they set rules, etc. As he taught this, he also taught powerful doctrine about how to keep a Christ-centered home.
I was very interested in thinking about the family activities and the way I can teach my children in the home. One if his main points was that families should be the first to teach and give recreation for the children. Church and school and community events should be secondary.
Cooke had 9 children and he explained how they kept the Lord at the forefront of their lives, how they did family scriptures and prayer, how they set rules, etc. As he taught this, he also taught powerful doctrine about how to keep a Christ-centered home.
I was very interested in thinking about the family activities and the way I can teach my children in the home. One if his main points was that families should be the first to teach and give recreation for the children. Church and school and community events should be secondary.
March 4, 2022
The book is full of loving advice on how to lead our families. There are some issues with it in terms of editing, word choice, concept repetition, and other structural things, however, setting all these aside and focusing on what the Holy Ghost can teach us through this book makes it a success. At the beginning of it, I felt that the recommendations were too basic, too obvious if you will. But the more time I spent with it the more I could perceive little nuances that I can personally apply in my life and my family. This is a book that can be re-read several times because we can receive different counsel from it in each of these times.
May 18, 2025
My parents gave this book to me and my husband 25 years ago when we got married. I have read it countless times over the years and after reading MANY parenting books, this is by FAR my favorite. It teaches you principles not applications and then you can apply those principles uniquely based on your family’s needs. The bottom line: God is with us and will help us raise our families if we will ask Him in humility for help. Amazing!
June 19, 2018
The Gospel applied at home
This was a fantastic book! As a new father I loved learning about the importance to put on teaching my children the Gospel. A divine responsibility. I have no doubt that your family will be blessed if you live and teach the principles contained in this book.
This was a fantastic book! As a new father I loved learning about the importance to put on teaching my children the Gospel. A divine responsibility. I have no doubt that your family will be blessed if you live and teach the principles contained in this book.
June 2, 2020
I loved this book and will read it over and over again. This book challenged me to be more in touch with the spirit when it comes to raising my children. I learned that ultimately it's the spirit that teaches our children. We make suggestions, provide guidance and sometimes impose consequences when necessary, but no lasting change can be permanent without the help of the Lord.
July 29, 2021
I read this book years ago and was just reminded that it's an important book in my library. The counsels in the book helped as we raised our children. Sometimes it's too easy to make decisions for your children rather than taking time to help them learn how to pray for Heavenly Father's help. We definitely weren't perfect, but it helped us try harder.
November 18, 2019
If you are a parent and want to see your kids, grandkids, etc keep building their lives with the gospel, this is the book for you.
Written in a very practical style with lots of stories and doctrine to back up each principle.
Highly Recommended I picked up some great bits of advice!
Written in a very practical style with lots of stories and doctrine to back up each principle.
Highly Recommended I picked up some great bits of advice!
December 29, 2024
This would be a great book to read as young married to help establish a home culture before the many stresses in life occur. Simple ideas that are harder to implement but could change your way of looking at your family.
June 20, 2017
There are so many great things in this book that I will definitely read this once a year to review.
June 25, 2018
Fantastic! Every parent should read this.
December 28, 2018
Loved!! Will read and reread this one.
January 30, 2019
Gene R. Cook is one of my all-time favorites and I love this book!
April 6, 2019
Owesome.
March 27, 2020
One of my favorite parenting books. I need to read it again!
September 29, 2020
I wish that I had this book when I first started being a parent. So many helpful things and ideas and examples.
January 4, 2021
The best book! So eye opening. Needed to hear every word. It’s already changed our parenting for the better. One to re-read many times!
July 19, 2021
This book was wonderful! I want to read it again!
March 1, 2022
Practical guide, rich with ideas and personal experiences
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