Elder Packer's Talk

I was reading Elder Packer's talk on Priesthood this morning. It is very powerful. I would recommend it to everyone. It really explains the purpose of priesthood in the home. He quotes President Joseph F. Smith:
President Joseph F. Smith made this statement about the priesthood in the home: “In the home the presiding authority is always vested in the father, and in all home affairs and family matters there is no other authority paramount. To illustrate this principle, a single incident will perhaps suffice. It sometimes happens that the elders are called in to administer to the members of a family. Among these elders there may be presidents of stakes, apostles, or even members of the first presidency of the Church. It is not proper under these circumstances for the father to stand back and expect the elders to direct the administration of this important ordinance. The father is there. It is his right and it is his duty to preside. He should select the one who is to administer the oil, and the one who is to be mouth in prayer, and he should not feel that because there are present presiding authorities in the Church that he is therefore divested of his rights to direct the administration of that blessing of the gospel in his home. (If the father be absent, the mother should request the presiding authority present to take charge.) The father presides at the table, at prayer, and gives general directions relating to his family life whoever may be present.”
I really liked also that it was essential for the women to understand the father's role so they could support him. I know myself that having Jenna's support in doing my duty helps me along. I married a great women who is confident in helping me and in fulfilling her own responsibilities.
Near the end he has this statement:
Every law and principle and power, every belief, every ordinance and ordination, every covenant, every sermon and every sacrament, every counsel and correction, the sealings, the calls, the releases, the service—all these have as their ultimate purpose the perfection of the individual and the family, for the Lord has said, “This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”
-President Boyd K. Packer
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
It puts a good perspective for me on how all the activities that happen in the church are for out benefit and for the improvement of priesthood power in the home. Even the releases teach us something.
I am very grateful for Elder Packer and his lifetime of gospel instruction. He really has a way of explaining things that makes them understandable. Our Apostles and other leaders are there to help and support us. I am grateful for that guidance. I know they are in tune with the Lord and his Spirit. I know that the Lord's plan revolves around our families...and I love my family!