This quote that is often accredited to Benjamin Franklin is one that always rings true when I think of family counsels.  I grew up with having them on the first Sunday of every month.  I think my parents did a good job of instilling in us the value of staying organized and on the same page.  They had six very busy kids and having a calendar of what was going on was so helpful.  As their counsels were so successful, I wanted to share what a typical family counsel agenda would have looked like in my family when I was growing up.

Opening Prayer:

Calendar Items:

Assigning of Family Home Evening Lessons:

Each Person Gets a Turn to Talk About what is on their mind:

Mom and Dad review how things are going:

Closing Prayer:

Of course we as kids would role our eyes and complain about family counsel each month, we would teasingly call it family "cancel".  Looking back on it now though, we learned so much about being organized and having a plan.  I know that as I have carried on this same tradition with my family, maybe not quite so organized as my parents, we are more unified as a couple and as a family.  

In October 1953 General Conference,  Elder Stephen L. Richards said, "I have had enough experience to know the value of councils. Hardly a day passes but that I see the wisdom, God's wisdom, in creating councils … to govern his Kingdom. In the spirit under which we labor, men can get together with seemingly divergent views and far different backgrounds, and under the operation of that spirit, by counseling together, they can arrive at an accord, and that accord … represents the wisdom of the council, acting under the Spirit."

Having a house of order creates a place where the spirit can reside and peace will be abundant.