"Their mothers knew it."

So, I've been trying to have personal scripture study this year. I haven't been good in the past, so I thought it would be fun to follow an Instagram account called "BofM365" that has passages so you can read the whole Book of Mormon by the end of the year. I haven't been 100%, and as a result I'm behind so I've been reading big chunks at a time.

I just read the story of Helaman and his stripling warriors. I remember the animated movie we had a long time ago, and I LOVED it. There's the part when they all stand up and say they know they'll be ok in the heat of battle, because their mothers knew it. Their mothers had been responsible for their learning in the Gospel, and because of that upbringing they were confident that they would survive the battle.

I've always loved that. I mean, I always knew MY mom knew the Gospel, and I know Brandon knew his mom did too. We have grandparents who are great examples of Gospel knowledge. But that leaves me wondering... what about ME? Am I going to be the kind of mother that raises a "stripling warrior" who can go off to battle and know that he (or she) will come back unshaken in their faith?

I've told Brandon that I'm terrified of bringing a child into this kind of world. We are in a world where religion is seen as "weak", and not swaying my beliefs because my beliefs might hurt someone's feelings is seen as "closed minded". Same sex marriage is seen as beautiful and natural, while monogamy is seen as unnatural. Affairs happen rampantly now, and out in the open! The idols people worship, aka celebrities, have a "long lasting marriage" if they last 5 years. This is madness! How much worse can it get?

I was raised in this time of change. My children will be raised when it is normal, and has been part of history. How can I tell my children that even though the law says it's normal, we still believe otherwise? And hope that they believe what the Gospel and their parents tell them?

What I've decided is this... I've heard that parents who have children who fall away from the Gospel can bring them back in the next life just from their righteous examples and living worthily of the Celestial Kingdom. And so if Brandon and I continue to live our lives the best way we can, and just teach our children the Gospel principles and encourage them to make their own choices, but to know that they have parents who will always love them, then we can trust that they will come back someday. This is easy to say with adult children being so far off in the future now, but I really want to believe that we will be able to raise righteous children who will follow the Gospel principles and the prophet's teachings.