The 2012 Olympics are over, and what an Olympics they were for the United States’ women gymnasts. Their team won the gold medal for only the second time in Olympic history, and many other medals along the way. Many of the women on that team excelled at their sport during the Olympic events, but the Olympic champion who sticks out the most in my mind is Gabby Douglas, the all-around gymnastics gold medalist.

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) in 2001 started the observance of “Family Day: A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children.” CASA’s research shows that “the more often kids have dinner with their families, the less likely they are to smoke, drink, or use other drugs,” as explained by Kathleen B. Ferrigno, Director of Marketing for CASA.

“As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a lovely woman who lacks discretion” (Proverbs 11:22).

I think each of us would agree that God expects our obedience. It is in our best interest to “live by every word of God.” That His laws are good and that we ought to keep them is not something we have to think about. Do we take that expected obedience for granted? Many of us do. When we examine ourselves, do we find perfect obedience in our lives? I sure don’t. I always come up short and that is a problem I have been thinking about a lot.

Many years ago during World War I, my grandfather who was with the Royal Engineers, was sent to Palestine to help build a bridge over the River Jordan. During his time there he lived with a family in Jordan (then known as Trans Jordan). He mentioned that they were so hospitable that they treated him as though he were their own son.