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Greetings, brothers and sisters!
And welcome to this update
on the global COVID-19 pandemic.
On behalf of the Governing Body,
I want to tell you how encouraged we are
when we hear about your endurance
through these difficult times.
In this update, I’d like
to speak to you parents
who are raising children.
Although all of us have had to stay vigilant
to protect ourselves and others,
you dear parents have carried
a particularly heavy load.
We can only imagine
the deep concern you’ve had
for your young children
and teens during the pandemic.
You worry about their physical safety
and their education.
You’ve also been concerned
about the emotional impact
of physical distancing
for many months from other children,
grandparents, relatives,
and the congregation.
And you’ve handled all of this
while you work to provide for them
and keep up your family’s spiritual routine.
That’s a lot on your shoulders.
Remember that the prophecy
in 2 Timothy chapter 3 tells us
tells us that “in the last days”
there would be
“critical times hard to deal with.”
So the fact that Satan
is attacking the family unit
is no surprise to you parents.
The surprise, however, may be
when the attack takes an unexpected form
or perhaps feels like many attacks
coming all at once.
That’s what the pandemic
has been for many of you.
Now I’m going to say something
that you already know:
Jehovah God and Jesus know how you feel.
Their own example leaves no doubt.
For instance, there were times
when Jehovah stepped in to protect his Son
when he was on the earth.
He first carefully entrusted Jesus
to the care of loving parents.
And when Herod
wanted to kill Jesus as a child,
Jehovah told Joseph and Mary
to “flee to Egypt”
until the threat passed.
You could say it was
like an extended “lockdown”
that kept them away
from family and friends for some time.
Jesus experienced what it’s really like
to grow up as a child in a wicked world.
He knows the pressures and the dangers.
It’s no wonder
that he took a special interest
in children during his ministry,
and today he shares
your deep concern for your children.
But you Christian parents
have other good examples to look to.
It’s the example of our brothers and sisters
who live in areas
that have been hit hard by the pandemic.
More recently, this has been the case
in India and Brazil.
We spoke to parents in those lands
and asked them how this
has affected their families
and, in particular, their children.
For a child, it’s been a whole year
without being able to play
with other children.
So they really miss being with their friends.
A big challenge that parents have now
is coming up with something fun
for them to do as a family
so that their child
doesn’t feel upset or sad.
They feel anxious to go out,
and it’s very challenging for us
to keep them motivated to stay inside.
Our family was infected with COVID-19.
It was physically and emotionally
very stressful for all of us.
We’re not able to meet the friends
at the Kingdom Hall anymore.
Neither can we see our relatives,
so the kids are getting really bored.
Right after the pandemic began,
we got the news that Denise had cancer.
Of course, one of our main concerns
was our daughter.
She really became anxious
about what was going to happen to her mom.
Perhaps you can sympathize
with some of the challenges
parents in India and Brazil are facing.
We know it’s not been easy for parents
and families during the pandemic.
But with every trial,
there are also opportunities
to remain loyal to Jehovah
and to grow spiritually.
For example, many parents have said
that they’ve had
more time with their children
to do what it says at Deuteronomy 6:6, 7:
“These words that I am commanding you today
“must be on your heart,
and you must inculcate them
“in your sons and speak of them
“when you sit in your house
“and when you walk on the road
and when you lie down
and when you get up.”
Many of us have had more time
to “sit in [our] house” during the pandemic,
whether we wanted to or not.
But if this was your circumstance,
hopefully you made good use
of the opportunity.
Jehovah gave the command to Israel
because he knew
that spiritually strong families
would be happy families.
The same is true today.
When your family stays close to Jehovah,
you bring a blessing to yourself
and your congregation.
But you parents are not just caring
for your children’s spiritual needs.
You have spiritual needs too.
Jehovah’s command in Deuteronomy chapter 6
said that Israelite parents
must have his words on their heart.
Notice the benefit you gain
when you make time for your spirituality.
Proverbs 20:7
explains it this way:
“The righteous one
is walking in his integrity.
Happy are his children who come after him.”
So righteous parents make for happy children.
Parents, we know that you know these things.
We commend you for what you’re doing,
and we’re praying for Jehovah’s holy spirit
to give you strength,
even when you feel tired out.
Our spiritual routine is even more important
when we’re being tested.
The families we met from India and Brazil
were aware of this too.
They shared what they’ve done
to adapt their spiritual routine
to meet the challenge of the pandemic.
We go out in the ministry
together as a family
much more often than we did before.
Saturday is a special day for us.
We work together
as a family every Saturday morning,
and we make plans with other families
who are also close friends of our children.
We always have a very enjoyable time.
When we conduct our Bible studies,
we have them sit in.
The kids watch us closely,
and they learn from us.
Family worship
has played a very important role.
It’s a relaxed atmosphere
in which we can have a good time.
One of the games we play
is you name a Bible character,
and the next person has to come up
with someone whose name starts
with the last letter
of the name that was just said.
This way, the kids are getting to know
new Bible characters
and they’re learning a lot about them.
One of our projects is a model of Noah’s ark.
Our kids have learned
almost all of the original songs.
We’ve played a few games
using some of the activities on jw.org.
We made some models of Bible accounts.
We enacted Bible scenes
and role plays of Bible characters.
There was one time that we wrapped our son
in toilet paper and he was Lazarus.
And we have considered
timely articles appearing on jw.org.
We also did a project
on the metal image
of Daniel’s prophecy.
Our son enjoys family worship
because we do things that he likes
—something that holds his attention.
And it’s fun.
And seeing them happy, makes us happy.
All this has drawn us closer to each other.
And it also helped us
to draw closer to Jehovah.
With Jehovah’s help,
we can get through anything.
Perhaps something
those families are doing can work
or is already working for your family.
Let’s review some suggestions
that can help
your family’s spiritual routine.
For families with young children:
Dramatize Bible scenes.
Your children may like
to dress up and make props
to bring the account to life
and remember the lessons.
And the good thing is
you don’t need expensive props
to make this interesting.
Play memory games.
This could be based
on recent points from the meetings
or something they’ve been reading
or watching on JW Broadcasting®.
Try a jw.org activity
for children together.
These are under
the “Bible Teachings” section of the website.
But if you have young children,
I suspect you’ve been there before.
And here are some ideas
for families with teens:
Practice “What if . . . ?” situations.
Perhaps let your teen
choose a situation they’re concerned about.
Talk about goals.
These can be short-term or long-term goals.
Let your teen tell why they chose the goal,
and what steps they feel
will help them reach it.
Read or watch a life story.
Again, let your teen choose a life story
of someone they’re interested in.
Remember, though,
that you don’t have to use every suggestion.
Talk to your family, pray about it,
and try what you think
can make a difference for you.
And, of course, there’s nothing wrong
with watching JW Broadcasting
during a family worship.
After all, that’s why we’re here.
But when you do,
try to make it
more than just watching TV.
Take time to talk
about the program as a family,
either at the end of the broadcast
or after each segment.
Those are the suggestions.
Now here are the necessities for your family:
Pray together every day.
Try to include the feelings
and concerns of each family member.
Keep attending the meetings.
Help each other
to pay attention and participate.
Unlike being in the Kingdom Hall,
we may have many distractions
when we attend from home.
Share in the ministry together.
As the pandemic continues to limit
how we do our preaching work,
talk about the different forms
of the ministry you can do
and how each family member feels about them.
Listen, and encourage everyone
to do their best.
Finally, we urge you parents
to keep doing what you already know is vital:
Be alert for signs that your children
are struggling
with negative emotions or stress.
If you sense that they are,
please read the article
“Help Your Children Cope With Stress.”
It’s in the Awake! of July 22, 1993,
pages 10 and 11.
There you’ll find
wonderful suggestions on what you can do.
Jehovah loves your family.
He knows what you’re contending with,
and he wants to help you.
The pandemic has been just one of many tests
we’ll face in the last days.
That’s not meant to discourage you;
it’s just reality.
But with Jehovah’s help,
your family can come out
of each test spiritually stronger
and more prepared to face what’s ahead.
Jeremiah chapter 17
gives us this beautiful assurance in verse 7:
“Blessed is the man
who puts his trust in Jehovah,
whose confidence is in Jehovah.”
And verse 8 concludes saying:
“And in the year of drought
he will not be anxious,
nor will he quit producing fruit.”
Of course, we also want these tests to end.
And they will!
When you look back
at the pandemic from the new world,
it will seem “momentary and light,”
even if it doesn’t seem so now.
In the meantime,
we continue to pray for all of you
—parents, children,
and all in our worldwide spiritual family.
May Jehovah bless your love and endurance.
From the World Headquarters
of Jehovah’s Witnesses,
this is JW Broadcasting.

2021 Governing Body Update #5