“Grateful to Be Raising Them in the Gospel”

Elisangela Silva, from Mindelo, Cape Verde, and her husband, Valdir Silva, from Praia, married in 2004. One of the things that Elisangela liked about Valdir was that he had the desire to raise a family. In 2012, they were sealed with their two children, Jeffrey and Jennifer, in the Recife Brazil Temple. “I know that our family made the right choice, and I know this was only the beginning,” Elisangela said.

Elisangela believed in the responsibility Latter-day Saint parents have to help their children develop testimonies of the restored gospel and draw closer to the Lord. She was happy that Jennifer and Jeffrey felt the Spirit in the temple, said their own prayers, and were building faith that God answers them. “I feel grateful to be raising them in the gospel,” she said.

In February 2012, when Jeffrey was seven years old, he was excited to begin school and participate in the school’s Carnival party for the first time. Elisangela was disappointed when she attended a meeting at the school and learned that the event was going to be held on a Sunday. She knew that Jeffrey had been looking forward to it very much. “How am I going to tell Jeffrey that Carnival is on Sunday, and I will not be able to take him?” she thought.

When she got home, Elisangela decided to broach the news to him in a way that provided an opportunity for him to understand and make the decision on his own. “I said, hey Jeffrey, I want to ask you something. If I had a party or something else on Sunday, do you think I should go?” Jeffrey responded that no, she should not go because it was the Sabbath.

Elisangela then went over with him some of the things they did on Sundays. Then she told him about his school’s Carnival party on Sunday and asked him if he wanted to go. Without hesitation, he said no, he would not go. Elisangela saw that he understood why they would not go on Sunday.

That week at school, during all the breaks, students were busy rehearsing for their parts in the celebration. Jeffrey stayed behind by himself in the classroom. “I was quite amazed that he perceived that it was Sunday, and he should not go to Carnival,” Elisangela said.

Elisangela also witnessed the growth of her daughter, Jennifer. When Jennifer lost something, she would say a prayer and then tell her mother that she had found the item because she prayed for help. Elisangela knew that her children watched her example.

“If I do what is right, I know that they will want to copy it. If I do something wrong, they also tend to imitate me. I know the responsibility that I have, and I will try to be better countless times, making mistakes, correcting them, striving,” Elisangela said.