Good morning, I am happy to say it is finally starting to feel like summer! I
am happy to be here on this beautiful Father’s Day to share some of my
thoughts and part of my testimony with you.
I last spoke to you on Mothers Day and now I get to speak to you on this
Father’s day. I am sure that’s just a coincidence BUT I actually googled to
see if there’s a siblings day? I am happy to report that there is - so
Brother Mammen I have gone ahead and penciled myself in for next
springs talk. Just trying to be helpful over here.
Since receiving Taylors invitation to speak a few weeks ago I have spent a
fair amount of time trying to figure out what I would speak on today. I am
a Father to 3 beautiful girls, I had a wonderful loving Father here on this
earth that took care of me and guided me. AND I know that my Father in
Heaven loves me and hears my prayers. I also thought of all of the great
examples of Fathers in my life. But what part of my story could I share
today that would ultimately bring you closer to Jesus Christ, inspire you or
help you to know our Father in Heaven better.
In preparing my thoughts I came across a talk given by Elder D. Todd
Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles given in April of 2016
General Conference simply entitled Fathers. It is a great talk and I will be
quoting from it heavily. If you get a chance you should give it a read today
in its entirety.
At the beginning of his talk Elder Christofferson states;
“As a Church, we believe in fathers. We believe in “the ideal of the man
who puts his family first.”2 We believe that “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.”3 We believe
that in their complementary family duties, “fathers and mothers are
obligated to help one another as equal partners.”4 We believe that far from
being superfluous, fathers are unique and irreplaceable.” - end quote
I thought of all the examples of excellent Fathers in my life. It has been fun
teaching seminary in our home over the years. The kids in this Ward are
well mannered, curious and respectful. Much of this is because they have
excellent role models in their homes. I believe that I have been blessed to
be able to come here and worship together with so many wonderfulpeople and to have such strong examples in my life of good men being
great Fathers. Thank you!
Naturally, I thought of my own Dad as well. His example. He was tough
but fair and loving. He taught me a lot about work - how to work hard and
to be comfortable being myself. He taught me how to be strong. And
most importantly he shared his Fatih and testimony with me constantly.
He loved me and I felt very secure. He gave me room to make mistakes
but tried to comfortably (and maybe sometimes not so comfortably) guide
me. He loved my Mom and showed her incredible respect. He was not
perfect but it was obvious that he was working as hard as he could to be
everything for our family. I felt loved.
Elder Christofferson goes on to say;
“For men, fatherhood exposes us to our own weaknesses and our need to
improve. Fatherhood requires sacrifice, but it is a source of incomparable
satisfaction, even joy. Again, the ultimate model is our Heavenly Father,
who so loved us, His spirit children, that He gave us His Only Begotten
Son for our salvation and exaltation.7 Jesus said, “Greater love hath no
man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”8 Fathers
manifest that love as they lay down their lives day by day, laboring in the
service and support of their families. - end quote.
Growing up in my house - Saturdays meant work. We would wake up in
the morning and mow the lawn and pick weeds. If we had a little extra
time we would wash out the garage. After that we would drive down to my
Dad’s office and clean the building. Thinking back my Dad must of had
some next level patience. I can’t even imagine trying to teach a 12 year
old me how to mow the lawn in straight lines. Wow. I am sure he
could have hired a lawn service - like every family in the neighborhood - or
I am sure he could have hired a cleaning crew to maintain his office.
Thinking back on it I am sure my Dad was exhausted come Saturday
morning - but I never knew it. He sacrificed his weekend time to teach his
kids. To do something together as a family that he knew would ultimately
help us. He would continue to teach us how to do these things week in
and week out until we would get it right. He had Patience!Now I think of my own life and the role I have been blessed with to be a
Father. This has changed my life. Rewind back to Naomi and I living in
San Francisco. Struggling. We were both working full time jobs and I was
doing little side shows here and there to make some extra money. We had
very little stability and the city was SO expensive. I was overwhelmed.
The idea of work and paying the bills consumed my life. Seven years into
our marriage I witnessed the absolute miracle of birth. I held Mia in my
arms - I couldn’t believe it. She was so small, so precious. All of my fear,
my concerns and the things that I thought were SO IMPORTANT just
faded. All of a sudden things made sense. Something clicked in my head.
THIS was my calling. I was here to be Mia’s dad. This is what I am
supposed to do. Yes, I needed a job and still had to pay my bills but all of
that got really quiet and I understood that my primary purpose was to take
care of my Family. The Plan of Salvation made so much more sense to me
after this day. The role of the family and the opportunity to grow and learn
really came into focus. I got a small glimpse of the love our Heavenly
Father must have for us.
Elder Chrtofferson touches on this and I quote;
“The perfect, divine expression of fatherhood is our Heavenly Father. His
character and attributes include abundant goodness and perfect love. His
work and glory are the development, happiness, and eternal life of His
children.6 Fathers in this fallen world can claim nothing comparable to the
Majesty on High, but at their best, they are striving to emulate Him, and
they indeed labor in His work. They are honored with a remarkable and
sobering trust.” - end quote.
Earlier when Elder Christofferson said “fatherhood exposes us to our own
weaknesses and our need to improve.” I have felt this! I don’t put an
emphasis on this to make us feel bad but to highlight the feeling that so
many of us have. It is a call to continue to improve and grow. To selflessly
look for ways to serve our families.
This year we have been studying the Book Of Mormon and I love the
beginning - the First Book of Nephi is great. We get to read about the
prophet and Father Lehi through the eyes of his son Nephi. Lehi lead his
family to the New World. I am in awe - I am challenged to rally my familyfor dinner some nights. As I think of Lehi’s example and all that he did for
his family I am saddened that two of his sons Laman and Lemual did not
heed his council or teachings. Despite our best efforts sometimes our
efforts take time beyond what we can see to make an impact.
Elder Christofferson touches on this and I quote;
“To all the rising generation, we say, wherever you rank your own father on
the scale of good-better-best (and I predict that ranking will go higher as
you grow older and wiser), make up your mind to honor him and your
mother by your own life. Remember the yearning hope of a father as
expressed by John: “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children
walk in truth.”21 Your righteousness is the greatest honor any father can
receive.
To my brethren, the fathers in this Church, I say, I know you wish you were
a more perfect father. I know I wish I were. Even so, despite our limitations,
let us press on. Let us lay aside the exaggerated notions of individualism
and autonomy in today’s culture and think first of the happiness and well-
being of others. Surely, despite our inadequacies, our Heavenly Father will
magnify us and cause our simple efforts to bear fruit.” - end quote.
In this chaotic and incredibly loud world of mixed messages I am grateful
for the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Plan of Salvation is beautiful
and gives me hope. The Holy Ghost has a been a guide throughout my
life. Many times my prayers have been answered and I have felt the
guiding hand of the Lord in my life. Being a Father has challenged me and
helped me grow. It has helped me better understand my divine nature as
a child of God. I am grateful for the Book of Mormon and for the Prophet
Joseph Smith and all that the early Saints that endured so that we could
have such truths. So that we could better understand the eternal nature of
families. I am thankful for all your examples and testimonies that nourish
me week in and week out. I am thankful for my Dad that challenged me
and taught me truth. I am grateful for our Heavenly Father and His perfect
love - for the Plan of Salvation - that we could have a Savior even Jesus
Christ - that through the Atonement that I can continue to improve and be
better and draw closer to my Father in Heaven.
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