but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food and drank from his cup; it slept in his arms and was like a daughter to him.

Your wife will be like a fruitful vine flourishing within your house, your sons like olive shoots sitting around your table.

Fathers, do not provoke your children, so they will not become discouraged.

For you know that we treated each of you as a father treats his own children—

For example, two people might be cooking the same meal and using exactly the same ingredients, but one is pouring Love into what he does and the other is merely trying to fill his belly. The result will be completely different, even though Love is not something that can be seen or weighed. The person making the Offering is always rewarded. The more he shares out his affection, the more his affection grows.

Rather than being concerned only with my hopes, my dreams, my concerns, I was called to shepherd others. To love them, hurt with them, pour into them.

Maybe not everyone got the mom who baked cupcakes and showed up at all the school parties. There weren't enough of those to go around, so maybe God used other people, like Mrs. Lora and J. Norm, to make sure you learned how to shell a purple hull pea or find Saturn in the night sky.

It's really all about family, love and the children for me. I work at that every day.

Your family and your love must be cultivated like a garden. Time, effort, and imagination must be summoned constantly to keep any relationship flourishing and growing.

Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, we are reminded today that family is the most important.

Where friendship blooms, life is reborn.

A healthy family builds up the weakest members while not tearing down the strong.