Jackson's and Will's Talks

When we were all asked to speak in church Jackson and Will were not worried or nervous at all. Several days before the day they were suppose to speak, they wrote out in bullet points what they wanted to share and talk about. Scott and I went over it with them, tweaking a little here and a little there. But, 90% of what they spoke on was from them. I am very proud of how well their talks were written and how well they were delivered. The spoke slowly, enunciating words carefully, looking up the the audience often and maintained good volume and pace.

Jackson's Talk:

Good morning Brothers and Sisters. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Jackson Thompson.  Today I will be speaking about how to “Strengthen Home and Family” through Family Rules and Mottos.

In our family, we have a couple of important rules, mottos or mantras.  The first one is what we call the “Number 1 Rule”.  Simply put, it says “Don’t embarrass Mom.”  This is such an important rule for us to remember, because it has a lot of different ways that it reminds us about our behavior.  It is not that much different from the saying “Return With Honor” and could probably very easily be changed to say “Don’t Embarrass Heavenly Father.”  When we take a moment before acting and consider the consequences that the action has and whether or not it might bring embarrassment to our Mom; this gives us a good way of deciding if we should do it or not.

My mom told us many years ago that our new family motto was “Brother’s First”.  To me this motto means that in any situation that we are in, we need to remember to put our brothers first.  For example, there might be a time when I really want to hang out with some friends, but one of my brothers has a football or lacrosse game.  I will often skip what I am doing with my friends so I can go to the game and try to support them.

Another way that I put my brothers first is when I am asked to babysit.  I could easily just sit and play on the computer or watch TV and ignore them.  I mean, as long as nobody dies on my watch, I think that I will have done a pretty good job of babysitting.  But when I apply this motto, it reminds me that I need to place their needs and wants ahead of my own.  So instead of thinking of myself, I think about what they might want to do.  I play games with them, dress up with them and act out different stories or movies.  It is really fun to see them having a good time.  I know when I put my brothers first I am showing them service and love and it makes me feel good after.

I am thankful for my mom and dad and all the things they keep teaching me to be a better brother and person.  In closing, I would like to bear my testimony. [BEAR TESTIMONY] In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Will's Talk:

Good morning Brothers and Sisters. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Will Thompson.  I am the oldest son in the Thompson family. Today I will be speaking about how to “Strengthen Home and Family” through Setting a Good Example.

Being the oldest in the family, I think that it is my number one job to be a good example to my younger brothers.  They look up to me and will often do things that they see me do because they want to be just like me.  It is the same thing that we all do with OUR Older Brother, Jesus Christ.  He was the greatest example of the things that we should say and do on this Earth.

The ways that I think I can be a good example to my brothers is through obedience, attitude, and hard work.

With the principle of obedience, I think it is important for my brothers to see me being obedient to the rules of the house and to the rules and commandments of the Gospel.  In D&C 82:10, it says “I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.”  This Scripture Mastery scripture teaches us that it is through obedience to the commandments that we are given great blessings and the Lord HAS to give them to us because he is bound.  In our home, the same principle applies.  My parents want to give us stuff and do nice things for us, but they expect us to be obedient and respectful.  If we don’t do these things, then we cannot expect the blessings that come.  If my brothers see me being obedient and showing respect, then they will want to do the same.

However, it is not just enough to obey and do the right thing.  It is also important to do it with the right attitude.  There is a big difference between doing what we are supposed to do with a bad attitude and doing it with a GOOD attitude.  I can do the dishes each night only after I am reminded 100 times and then throw the dishes around because I am mad that I have to do them.  Or, I can do the dishes without being asked, with a smile on my face and understand that we all have important jobs to do in the family. My brothers watch my reaction and response to various situations, so it is important for me to show them that we need to do things with a good attitude.

Finally, it is important for me to show my brothers a good example by working hard.  In our family, we have another motto and it is “We Do Hard Things”.  As a family, my mom wanted us to remember that in our family we don’t give up just because something gets hard.  Often times, we do things because they ARE hard and it is what is expected of us.  Being the oldest in the family, most of the hard work and chores get allocated to me because I am the oldest.  It is important for my brothers to see that I am willing to do these hard things just as much as they are, if not more.  As the oldest, it was recently my opportunity to be the first one to get a “real job”.  I am thankful to Ira Ashton for giving me the opportunity to work for The Lawn Guys.  I could have just as easily have chosen to do an easy job for my first job and worked in an air conditioned space making shaved ices.  But I chose a hard job because I knew that it fit my family’s motto.

President Ezra Taft Benson shared the following quote as part of his message to full-time missionaries shared in September 1990 Ensign.  

He said:

“I have often said that one of the greatest secrets of missionary work is work! If a missionary works, he will get the Spirit; if he gets the Spirit, he will teach by the Spirit; and if he teaches by the Spirit, he will touch the hearts of the people and he will be happy. Work, work, work—there is no satisfactory substitute, especially in missionary work.”

I am thankful for my mom and dad and all the things they teach me to be a better brother and person.  I know that I am able to set a good example to my brothers, because my parents have set a good example for me.  In closing, I would like to bear my testimony. [BEAR TESTIMONY]  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.