Sacrament meeting with kids

Today at church during the sacrament I was trying to say a little prayer but I kept stopping mid-sentence to manage children—take a loud crinkly paper program from Amber, motion at Rose to SIT DOWN, hold Jay’s feet to stop them from swinging and kicking the bench in front of us, take the other loud crinkly paper program from Amber, tell Rose to whisper, etc. etc. etc. It was not feeling very peaceful or reflective in our pew. I finally gave up on praying about whatever I had started praying about, and said a quick desperate/exasperated mental-mom prayer instead. It went something like this: “I’m sorry that I can’t sit here and think about Jesus and be still and reflective during the sacrament! I have to teach my kids how to behave during the sacrament too, and I can’t figure out how to do both.”

Worshiping and teaching feel mutually exclusive, especially during the sacrament! As I was saying my little prayer, (it was said in my head while I was reaching over and under children, trying to keep them at least all quiet, if not still), this thought came to me and hit me right in the heart: “The atonement is for this moment too.” Amidst the semi-silent chaos on our pew, I suddenly felt a flood of love and understanding from the spirit. It filled my heart and taught me that I am doing the Lord’s work by teaching my kids how to act during the sacrament, and in order to do that I have to sacrifice my own quiet time to pray, ponder, and worship during the sacrament.  Jesus Christ’s atonement makes up for anything I wish I was doing or think I should be doing during the sacrament. The atonement not only “makes up” for what I can’t do, it supports me through what I can do! Maybe one way that we moms can worship at church is to offer up/sacrifice our own personal worship time to teach our children how to worship. What is more holy and Christlike than sacrificing for a loved one?

During everyday moments of possible worry, irritation, or impatience, I hope I can remember today's beautiful lesson: “the atonement is for this moment too.”

{30 freshly clipped tiny fingernails = 1 cross-eyed mother}