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Born of Goodly Parents
Of all the lessons my parents have taught me throughout my life, it is their example that has taught me the most.
My mother, Linda Obeketang, is a very strong and intelligent woman and she leads our family in righteousness.
For years, my mother has made sure that our family gathers every morning and every night for family prayers. Participating in this daily devotion to God has taught me to turn to Him in all things, because that’s what we’ve always done. It has taught me that He is listening and that He loves me. Our daily prayers invite the Spirit into our home and help us to have a good day.
Thanks to my mother’s consistency and faith, prayer is not something that I need to remind myself to do, it is a righteous habit that I will carry into my adult life and I am so grateful to her for that.
The primary song, ‘A Child’s Prayer’ comes to mind when I think of my mother.
‘Pray, he is there; Speak, he is listening’.1
This is a simple doctrine that I know to be true. My mother also taught us about prayer with her words, but it was her actions that made the lessons stick.
My father, Hirobo Obeketang, has always been passionate about service. Everywhere he goes, he is looking for people in need and reaches out to them quickly.
On his birthday last year, he decided to give gifts instead of receiving them. He decided to give gifts to some homeless men who were living in the street. That night we went to a restaurant for dinner. After eating at the restaurant, he saw two old men also eating there and secretly went and paid for their meal. I see him do this kind of thing all the time.
As a person who is shy and who struggles to talk to strangers, my father’s example has shown me firsthand the joys of selfless service. Simply being told to serve wouldn’t have been enough for an introvert like me; I needed to be shown by example and experience and that’s what Dad did.
The hymn, ‘Have I Done Any Good?’ makes me think of my Dad, especially the last line: ‘Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure, a blessing.’2
My father is not active in the Church at the moment but every time he selflessly gives, I see him light up. I know he is feeling the Spirit; I can see it on his face. I see the great love he has for the people around him and I know that love, and the Spirit he feels when he serves, will eventually lead him back to the gospel.
When we follow the example of the Saviour and do as He did, the Spirit is more able to testify to us of the truth of it. I am grateful to a loving mother and father who have taught me to pray and to serve through their examples.