Book of Mormon Week: Day Three

Is there not something deep in our hearts that longs to draw nearer to God, to be more like Him in our daily walk, to feel His presence with us constantly? If so, then the Book of Mormon will help us do so more than any other book.

Ezra Taft Benson 

Naomi is still working on reading the Book of Mormon on her own.  She's nine (which means she'd rather be poked in the eye with a sharp stick than write down a few sentences) so she dictated to me what she wanted to say:

Every night I read one verse of the Book of Mormon.  I'm going to make a goal that I'll finish the Book of Mormon when I'm ten or before I'm ten.  Lately my mom has been waking us up for family scriptures.  Most of the time I don't really want to get up.  We read scriptures because the prophet told us to.  I like family scriptures because it has some funny stories.  Reading the Book of Mormon helps us be closer together because of the Spirit.  

Encouraging newly baptized kids to read the Book of Mormon on their own is kind of a bold undertaking.  The book contains long passages quoted from Isaiah that can be difficult for even adults to understand.  The long and involved historical sagas of different civilizations in the Americas can be tough to follow.  And the language itself can be challenging.  Here are a few things I've found to be helpful in guiding my kids through their personal study:

• I give them their own set of scriptures for their eighth birthday.  By that time they're old enough both to read and to care for a nice set of scriptures.  At fifty or sixty dollars a pop, it's tempting not to buy them at all; especially since they have iPads and the computer to read scriptures on.  But as in Lord of the Rings, there is "a time when all other lights go out"--and I want them to have a set they can always count on.  
• I encourage them to focus on the things they do understand.  There are difficult passages, but if a child can find just one verse in his daily study that strengthens his testimony and lifts his spirit, it's worthwhile.  For awhile I encouraged Ezra and Eliza to find a verse to mark every day.  This helps them to focus on what they love each day, rather than what they don't understand.
• I encourage them to pick a time each day that works for them and stick to it.  For Ezra it's morning, for the girls who like to sleep in, it's right before bed.  They find a quiet place and go for it.
• I study with them as a family each day out of the Book of Mormon to help them become familiar with the language and stories.  This makes personal study easier.
•  I keep an eye out for signs of trouble in their personal lives, and ask if they're keeping up on their reading.  Nine times out of ten, their schedule has been disrupted and they're having trouble finding time for study.  I've avoided making daily scriptures a part of their daily chores or even their home school, and I don't stipulate how long they read.  I've found that letting them have a lot of ownership here is key to success.
• I encourage them to set goals for completion.  Ezra and Eliza both chose a birthday.  This keeps the fire burning when things get tough.

As I mentioned before, I didn't read the Book of Mormon on my own until I was in my teens, so I'm asking a lot of my kids.  But that's pretty much TJ's and my modus operandi.  We always want them to do better than we ever did, and we're not shy about that irony.  We even laugh about it with them when they call us on it.  Times are changing, though, and what worked for raising kids when we were little just doesn't cut it anymore.  I want to arm them against Satan in every single way that I can.  It's my whole reason for being their mother.  And helping them know and love the Book of Mormon may turn out to be the best help I can give them.