Have you ever wondered why we call Primary “Primary”? While the name refers to spiritual learning children receive in their earliest years, to me it is also a reminder of a powerful truth. To our Heavenly Father, children have never been secondary—they have always been “primary.”1
He trusts us to value, respect, and protect them as children of God. That means we never harm them physically, verbally, or emotionally in any way, even when tensions and pressures run high. Instead we value children, and we do all we can to combat the evils of abuse. Their care is primary to us—as it is to Him.2
One young mother and father sat at their kitchen table reviewing their day. From down the hall, they heard a thud. The mother asked, “What was that?”
Then they heard a soft cry coming from their four-year-old son’s bedroom. They rushed down the hall. There he was, lying on the floor next to his bed. The mother picked up the little boy and asked him what had happened.
He said, “I fell out of bed.”
She said, “Why did you fall out of bed?”
He shrugged and said, “I don’t know. I guess I just didn’t get far enough in.”
It is about this “getting far enough in” that I would like to speak this morning. It is our privilege and responsibility to help children “get far enough in” to the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we cannot begin too soon.
There is a uniquely special time in children’s lives when they are protected from Satan’s influence. It is a time when they are innocent and sin free.3 It is a sacred time for parent and child. Children are to be taught, by word and example, before and after they have “arrived unto the years of accountability before God.”4
President Henry B. Eyring taught: “We have the greatest opportunity with the young. The best time to teach is early, while children are still immune to the temptations of [the] mortal enemy, and long before the words of truth may be harder for them to hear in the noise of their personal struggles.”5 Such teaching will help them realize their divine identity, their purpose, and the rich blessings that await them as they make sacred covenants and receive ordinances along the covenant path.
We cannot wait for conversion to simply happen to our children. Accidental conversion is not a principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Becoming like our Savior will not happen randomly. Being intentional in loving, teaching, and testifying can help children begin at a young age to feel the influence of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is essential to our children’s testimony of and conversion to Jesus Christ; we desire them to “always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them.”6
Consider the value of family conversations about the gospel of Jesus Christ, essential conversations, that can invite the Spirit. When we have such conversations with our children, we help them create a foundation, “which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if [they] build they cannot fall.”7 When we strengthen a child, we strengthen the family.
These vital discussions can lead children to:
-
Understand the doctrine of repentance.
-
Have faith in Christ, the Son of the living God.
-
Choose baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost when eight years old.8
-
And pray and “walk uprightly before the Lord.”9
The Savior urged, “Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your children.”10 And what did He want us to teach so freely?
1. The Fall of Adam
2. The Atonement of Jesus Christ
3. The importance of being born again11
For Sister Jones’ complete talk, including working links, click . . . Essential Conversations.
