All About Family

       I love the ideas about family in a small set of verses in the Book of Isaiah:
      “And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
      “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in." (Isaiah 58:11-12)
      In our Lewis family, we often recite what we call our Lewis Family Creed: “We seek successive generations of grandparents, parents and children who are grounded in the Gospel of Christ and sealed in his holy temple.”  Here is the original Lewis Family Creed in its full form: “Raise up the foundation of many generations.  We seek successive generations of grandparents, parents, and children who are grounded, rooted, settled, and established (Ephesians 3:16-19) in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and sealed in His Holy Temple.”
      To “raise up the foundations of many generations”, have the faith and courage to marry and build a family.  Find your Rebecca or your Isaac (Julie Beck CES talk, Aug. 4, 2009), who is your eternal marriage and family partner.  Try your best to establish and possess a family culture which emphasizes Godly qualities such as compassion, appreciation, and forgiveness (Elder Bragg 2017 Conference talk) and in which people thrive and are motivated to be their best.
      Sometimes people wander away from the way of God.  If needed in your generation, be an Abraham or Sarah and seek again, for your own family, “the blessings of the fathers” and your “appointment unto the priesthood.” (Abraham 1:2,4)   
      Sometimes families fracture or sever relationships.  Be a “repairer of the breach” in your family and establish and maintain caring, supportive relationships with all.  
      In some families, bad choices are learned and repeated in successive generations.  Be a “restorer of paths to dwell in” by erasing toxic practices or attitudes in your family line in your generation.