Expressions of Love

This video is a great reminder of the little things we can do to remind our spouse that we love them. I love the one man that said it has to be forever because they have come to far for it to get this good and it not be forever. Doing these small things can help keep marriages strong, especially when times get tough.

Saving Your Marriage

This is a great Mormon Message with excerpts from Elder Oaks talk that I shared a few days ago.

Divorce

Marriage is hard. It is pretty much impossible to get along with someone 100% of the time. Elder Dallin H. Oaks talks about not giving up on our marriage just because hard times have hit. He tells us what we can do to keep our marriage strong and how to keep going and not giving up. He also talks about the affect divorce can have on children. I think one of the key things he talked about is praying together and working together to keep the marriage going. This is a great talk. Listen to it and let me know your thoughts.

Protect Our Nestlings

This is a great video released by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It is Elder Boyd K. Packer talking about protecting our families. "You will do no greater eternal work than in the walls of your own home." - Elder Boyd K. Packer

Children Enrich Our Lives

This is a great Mormon Messages video I found. It shares a little of Elder Neil L. Anderson's talk that I shared a few days ago.

Children

Elder Neil L. Anderson's talk on children during the October 2011 General Conference was AMAZING! There are so many great things I learned. One of my favorite quotes was when he talked about a blog that he had read and the Christian mother, not of our faith, said "Motherhood is not a hobby, it is a calling. You do not collect children because you find them cuter than stamps. It is not something to do if you can squeeze the time in. It is what God gave you time for." We were commanded to multiply and replenish the Earth. If we feel as though we don't have time to have kids we may need to evaluate what our priorities are. I am not currently married but I know that when I do marry having children will be a top priority for me. Having children terrifies me, but it is what the Lord has commanded me to do. 

I also loved when Elder Anderson talked about not judging other people's decisions on when to start their family or on how many kids they want. Everybody's situations is different. I liked the story he shared about President Dorius and his wife and how they weren't able to have children or adopt children for 25 years. People questioned them and asked about his ability to be a bishop when he no children of his own. They didn't know their circumstances and that they had tried, they just knew they didn't have any. He touched on a really important matter of how the subject of child bearing can be a heartbreaking matter to some righteous couples who are unable to have kids. I think we need to be sensitive to each person's individual experience and not jump to conclusions that they just don't want kids, they don't want a big family or whatever the circumstance may be.

Listen to Elder Anderson's talk and let me know what you think.

Protecting Children

I listened to this talk the other day by Elder Dallin H. Oaks. He discusses some of the many abuses children can face now days and how we can help keep them from those abuses. It gave me a lot to think about and it also made my heart break for the children in the world that are dealing with any of the circumstances he talked about. I'm grateful every day for the family I was born into and for the love and support I received from them each day. I can't imagine having any other family and I also can't imagine what would cause someone to harm their child. Children are our future and it is our responsibility to teach and support them.

Nurturing Marriage

I really enjoyed this talk by Elder Russell M. Nelson. The story he shares at the beginning was intriguing and I think we can all relate to it in one way or another. The wife was trying to show her husband that she loved him but the husband was focused on his electronic device. Are there times we are so focused on some piece of technology or a hobby of ours that we forget to pay attention to our spouse? I liked the quote by Elder Nelson when he said "The foremost priesthood duty is to nurture your marriage - to care for, respect, honor and love your wife. Be a blessing to her and your children." Read or listen to this talk, it is really good, and let me know your thoughts. What did you like about it?

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2006/04/nurturing-marriage?lang=eng&query=marriage#d

Strengthening Marriage

There are several ways we can strengthen our marriages but the most important ones are love and service. Finding ways to show your spouse that you love them can be easy by simply serving them. This Mormon Message shows the love this man has for his wife by how much he serves her each day. I especially love the quote at the end by Richard G. Scott from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. "Marriage provides an ideal setting for overcoming any tendency to be selfish or self-centered...Pure love is an incomparable, potent power for good, and the foundation of a successful marriage."

P.S. You might need a tissue for this because it is a tear jerker.

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

Over the last few weeks I've been studying a lot about the family. The basis for my studies have been centered around The Family: A Proclamation to the World. I've read the document a few times now and I've learned a lot about myself and how I need to refocus some of my goals. It also teaches me about the desires my Heavenly Father has for me and everyone else. I would love to hear your thoughts on this document. Do you agree with it? What does it teach you? 

https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/images/gospel-library/manual/34190/34190_000_WWC_26-FamProc.pdf