DO 2445 5/88—A Lesson on Love & Appreciation!

1. Thank You for these precious children, such wonderful children, Lord, that really encourage & cheer our hearts & make us so happy that we had them. You had them, Lord, & gave them to us, trusted us with their little lives, so important & growing, springing up now, Lord, to really great flowers‚ beautiful flowers that make others so happy! TYJ! PYL! Continue to keep them safely & strong & well & happy in Thy service‚ in Jesus' name! Bless & keep us tonight & do give us a good night's sleep. TYJ! PTL! Amen, amen!

2. (Techi grabs David & kisses him but he pulls away.) (Techi: Why can't I kiss you?) What did she do? (David: She went‚ "Oh, David, I love you!") Honey, she's just enthusiastic! She was just trying to show you that she loves you. Would you rather have her hate you? (Maria: Would you rather have her never kiss you?) Honey, that hurt her to act like that! That really hurt. (Maria: Are you getting uppity & biggity?) (Techi: Mommy, he's not getting uppity, he's always been like that!)

3. David, try to be a little bit more affectionate with your sister. (Techi: Why does he have to be affectionate?) Because you have to have love, "Love one another"‚ that's why!—Jn.15:12. She is enthusiastic, she's a gusher, she's emotional & whatever she does she does it with her whole heart, & she just grabs you & kisses you! (Maria: Like Grandpa!) That's what she wants to do. You shouldn't be like that, David‚ you should be more responsive & a little more thankful & appreciative of your sister.

4. What if you didn't have a little sister? What if you lost your little sister? Would you miss her? (David: Yes.) Then show her. Well, even a little peck is better than nothing! (Maria: Mama & David are a little bit alike, & Grandpa & you are a little bit alike. Grandpa's a gusher like you, Techi. But see‚ David, you have to learn to reciprocate, you have to learn to give it back, because that's what they want. If Grandpa is real affectionate, I need to be real affectionate in return! "Love begets love"!)

5. And David‚ if you don't show a little affection, you're never going to be happy with a wife or any woman. You can't expect the woman to show you all the affection & you don't show any. You know what they wrote in about guys like that to "Dear Abby"? You know what all of the women said?—They said they'd rather have a little affection, a little cuddling, a little real love than all the sex in the World! (Maria: Amen, I wouldn't even know Grandpa loved me if he didn't cuddle me & kiss me & say sweet things to me.—Something he does all the time!)

6. Sex can be just a selfish thing, just because you need it & want it. But to give a person love & affection & cuddles to show that you love them, that's something that's beyond & more than & even greater than sex.—That's real love‚ to show you love them.

7. Do you love your sister? (David: Yes.) Well, why don't you show her more? (David: She tried to hug & kiss me & I was real tired.) Well, even though you're tired, you've got to sacrifice a little bit, Honey, & you've got to put forth an extra effort to have a little courage & a little energy & appreciate her love & respond a little bit.

8. Instead of acting like that, look how nice it would have been if you'd have said‚ "Oh thank you, Techi", & kissed her & given her a little hug, then everybody would have been happy. It's a good thing this happened to teach you a little lesson, because she gives & gives all the time. She gives you love & tries to show you that she loves you even though you hurt her feelings & push her off.

9. So what are you going to do about showing her a little more appreciation & a little more love? Don't you think you should? (David: Yes.) Are you glad you have a sister? (David: Yes.) Are you glad she's like Techi? (David: Yes.) Well, why don't you try to show her! Are you thankful? (David: Yes.) Well, what does the Lord say about us being thankful? Does He expect us to show it? If we love Him, what does He expect us to do? (David: Show it.) So why don't you show her a little bit, Honey, & be a little nicer to her & have a little more appreciation.

10. What if every time the Lord tried to love you, you said‚ "Oh‚ I'm busy, I'm tired! Go away! Don't bother me!" What do you think the Lord would think about that? (David: He wouldn't like it.) Well, she loves you so much. She respects you, she honours you‚ she loves you & she does her best to try to please you. Sometimes she's a little silly & foolish & too wild, & sometimes she even teases, but just the same‚ maybe it's to attract your attention so at least you'll pay a little attention to her.

11. Sometimes if she can't get your attention with a little love & a little affection & a hug & a kiss, then it's her natural reaction if she can't get your attention that way, just to be bad. Would you rather she be bad to get your attention, to try to get you to reprove her etc.? Would you rather she be bad to get your attention, or would you rather she be good & sweet? (David: Good.)

12. All right, Honey, well now let's try to see a little bit more response. It doesn't take that much effort! Sometimes I'm even mad at Mama about something‚ but I still kiss her. I still squeeze her hand, I still pat her, I still put my arm around her, I still show her that I love her. You can be irritated by somebody or even mad at them & still love'm! The Lord gets mad at us sometimes, but He still loves us. Sometimes I even get a little angry with the Lord!—"Why did You let this or that happen?", but I still love Him! Sometimes you're a little mad at Mama or Daddy, but you still love us, right? Sometimes we get upset with you guys‚ but we still love you!

13. So even if you get upset with her, remember she's still just a child, in a way, Son, & she's getting to that stage where sometimes she acts like a child, sometimes she acts like an adult, but it's the same with you. You're not perfect either‚ are you? (David: No.) Well, then don't be so self-righteous & act like you're so good that you don't have to love anybody, that you are just going to be what you want to be & you don't have to show others any love or respond or anything.

14. Love is the most important thing! Right? Isn't that what it's all about? Is God Love? Why don't you be like the Lord, then, & be a little more loving & kind. Because if you don't show a little kindness & love, no woman is ever going to like you very much, if you just push'm off & push'm away when they try to show you that they love you.

15. (Techi: But I'm his sister.) That doesn't make any difference. Every girl, even the ones you don't particularly like, are your sisters, so you still have to show them a little love, right? All right‚ this is a good lesson about loving your sister, don't forget it.

16. What do you say you pray for your sister now? Wouldn't that be a fitting ending? Tell the Lord you're sorry for the way you treated her & ask the Lord to help you to be more loving & more affectionate. Put your arm around her & pray for her. (Techi: It's not his fault.) (Maria: Grandpa didn't say it's all his fault‚ but it's a good lesson.) Look at that, David, Techi's trying to defend you now, how about that? That's love!

17. (David: Amen, TYL! TYL for sweet Techi‚ Lord, & how she always tries to show us all a lot of love, Lord. I really am sorry for not trying to show her a lot of love, Lord, & trying to push her away when she tries to love me, Lord‚ even if she gets over-zealous sometimes. So please help me to show her more love, Lord, & to be a better brother & show her more love & be more sweet to her & return her love, in Jesus' name.)

18. And now why don't you pray for David, Techi, & ask the Lord to forgive you for kind of overdoing it sometimes & even doing it sometimes when you know he doesn't like it.

19. (Techi: Amen‚ Lord Jesus, I pray that You help me not to be so rough, & to be more gentle with David because he's not the type who is always so zealous like I am. Help me not to overdo it or to tease him or anything like that, & to be a good sister, Lord, in Jesus' name.) Amen, TYL! TYJ!

APPRECIATING LOVED ONES WHILE TOGETHER WITH THEM!

20. I'll tell you what the Lord did to me last night.—Sometimes you guys sort of annoy us & you get on our nerves with a lot of things you do, & I even feel a little fed up with you & I get a little impatient with you & I get a little sharp with you. But last night when we weren't with you‚ I really thought, "Lord forgive me, help me to appreciate them more!"

21. What if your sister wasn't here tonight‚ would you miss her? What if David wasn't here tonight, if suddenly he was gone, would you miss him? Well, I really missed you last night. I never realised how much I'd miss you until we weren't together for a night. I prayed, "Lord, I'll try to do my best for them & appreciate them more & be more thankful!" I realise that the day may come when we may have to be apart, or one of you may have to leave us or something, but I hope it's not very soon. Amen?

22. Thank You Lord, help them to love & appreciate each other more, Lord‚ because they won't be together forever. Well, we will be in the Forever, but not now, and one of these days they might really miss each other. And one of these days, we realise Lord, we're probably going to miss them, because they may have other things & other work to do with others. Then when we look back on these days, we'll remember them, Lord, as days of Heaven on Earth with our precious children, such happy days, wonderful days, our wonderful days together. Help us, Lord, to appreciate them now!

23. Thank You, Lord, for the day that is coming when we'll be together forever, & never have to be gone from each other again! But last night we realised that the days are coming when we'll be separated and gone from each other, we'll miss each other‚ Lord. So help us to be thankful & enjoy the days we still have together, in Jesus' name.

24. Don't worry, you won't have to be together for very long, you'll be separated some day & then you'll look back & remember how happy it was. Those days have come & gone with a lot of people who lived with us. They used to be happy days, & sometimes I miss them. Do you ever miss some of the dear folks we used to live with? It seemed like those days together were going to last forever, didn't it? And now they're gone. They miss us & we miss them.

25. Some day your little sister's going to be gone, & you're going to be gone, & you're going to miss her, you're even going to miss us. And the same with her. I don't know, maybe the Lord will let her stay with me forever 'cause He sent her for my sake, but anyway, you'd better be thankful for her & enjoy her while she's here‚ because she won't be here forever. Only in the Forever will she be with us forever then, thank the Lord for that! TYJ! Amen?

26. Are you glad you're here? (David: Yes.) Are you glad we're here? (David: Yes.) Are you glad she's here? (David: Yes.) And I know you're glad he's here, right Techi? And even sometimes when he doesn't treat you very nice, he still loves you‚ even when he hurts your feelings. I know she's kind of rough on you sometimes, Son. But if you'll try to understand each other better & be a little more indulgent with each other, you'll get along better & be happier.

27. In other words, try to be a little more lenient, a little more patient. We have to be that way with you sometimes, right?—To be lenient & more patient & try to be understanding when you don't always exactly please us, you don't always exactly do what we want you to do, when you sometimes even annoy us & are disobedient. It hurts, but we still love you. That's why it hurts, because we do love you. We love you so much that when you act like you don't love us, then it hurts, & that's the trouble. When she loves you so much & then you act like you don't love her, that hurts.

28. There are probably times when you love her & you're patient with her & you try to show her a little love & she doesn't appreciate it‚ & that hurts you. Right, Techi? Isn't that a beautiful picture, Mama? Take that picture. It's so sweet! (David has his head over against Techi's & they're looking toward each other.) That's so sweet!

29. Remember, the Bible says to "love thy brother", & it also means "love thy sister"‚ you know! Love thy neighbour! She lives right next door to you, in fact next bed to you!

30. Okay, that was a good lesson we all needed to learn, amen? The Lord had to teach it to me last night when you weren't with us & I really missed you. I really missed you! So tell me goodnight! (Techi: Good night‚ I love you, Grandpa!) I don't ever want to be apart from you again! (David: I love you!) God bless you, I'm so proud of you, Honey, you're a real man!

31. (David: I love you‚ Grandpa. I love you, Techi!) Well, enjoy each other as long as you can‚ because you won't have each other always in this life. Even in the next life you won't have each other together all the time, because you'll all have important jobs. You'll be thankful if you get to see each other.

32. Even in Heaven you won't have each other always, you won't necessarily always be together. In the Millennium you may have different jobs in places far away from each other, & then you'll be really glad to see each other again when you get to have a visit. So, PTL! Amen? When you grow up, why then you grow up & other people need you.

33. Right now, believe it or not, David needs you, you're good for him. You're part of him & he needs to have a little sister around to annoy him & test him & his patience & his love. He even needs your love & affection, though he's not always willing to admit it. He even needs your cuddles! (Techi: You'd better watch out, here comes affection!) Here comes the nuisance, the loving nuisance!

34. (Techi: I'm going to try not giving him any affection for a day & then we'll see if he likes it!) Then we'll see if he misses it! Well, I'm sure if you didn't show it, he'd miss it. All right, well I'm glad you love each other, because we love you both & we want you both to be happy.

35. Okay‚ you must get to bed, children, it's after 12. Good night‚ I love you! (Sings: )

"When I'm gone, then you will miss me‚

When from you I'm far away!

When I'm gone, a weary pilgrim,

Then you'll miss me in that day!

"So when I'm gone, please don't forget me!

When from you I'm far away

For I'll miss you, dear Beloved,

When I'm gone from you some day!"

36. That's about the way it goes. I couldn't remember all the words, but that was close. Amen? Bye-bye, I mean good–night. Thank the Lord it's not bye-bye tonight, it's only goodnight! (Sings:)

"I will see you in the morning‚

I will see you in the morning!

Just outside our Eastern Gate over There!

I will see you in the morning!

I will see you in the morning

Over There!"

37. GBY! ILY! I guess we'll never forget this night, will we? We'll remember that we've got to love each other, appreciate each other & even miss each other, for someday we really will miss each other. TYJ! It won't always be like this, there's coming a day when we'll be parted & we'll miss each other. So let's enjoy this while we can.

38. I was looking at the picture of some of those folks who used to be with us & I was thinking, "Oh, those were Days of Heaven when we were all together!" Sometimes I get homesick for them & wish I could see'm & kiss'm & love'm & hug'm & hold'm & tell'm I love'm again! ILY, children! This is Heaven on Earth for us right now. TYJ!

REAL LOVE IS...

39. Remember‚ children, love is not trying to find somebody who loves you, but trying to find somebody who needs your love. That's real love. Love is both finding someone who needs your love, & finding someone who needs you, & someone whose love you need. Thank You Lord for real love! My prayer is that you both find love, real love, someone to love & take care of, & someone who will love & take care of you!

40. (Techi: I think that love as big as Mama & Grandpa's is pretty hard to find!) Well‚ you've always got me & the Lord in case all else fails! Oh Honey, someday all the boys are going to be in love with you! You're going to have boys chasing you! I wonder who's going to be her first beau! (Maria: I hope nobody for quite awhile!)

41. (Maria: Grandpa, she really needs to concentrate on the Lord & learning all the things she needs to learn!) (Techi: Learning to be serious!) Yes, take your mind off of boys, put boys completely out of your mind! If you do, you'll be out of your mind!—You wouldn't be natural, you wouldn't be normal. (Maria: Yes, but we don't want to promote it quite yet, Grandpa, do we?) If you'd put boys out of your mind‚ you'd be out of your mind! I never found a girl yet that had boys out of her mind! (Maria: That's true‚ but she doesn't have to be foolish & silly about it.) No, of course not, she'd be very serious. (Maria: Well‚ you don't have to be so serious that you get all...)

42. Now what does Mama mean? She doesn't want you to be foolish & she doesn't want you to be serious!—What does she want you to be? (Maria: Just friends.) Of course, just friends. That's right! At your age, you know‚ girls fall in love more often than any other age! (Techi: I fall in love with older boys, never younger boys.) That's natural for girls to always fall in love with older boys, sometimes even older men. Look what your mother did, tsk, tsk, tsk! She fell in love with an older man!

Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family